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Are most budget & mid range amps under-powered?

I've been reading some articles by a speaker manufacturuer about how under-powered most modern amps are for the speakers they have to drive.
The basis was that for "true hifi", a system needs to be able to achieve unclipped peaks of 105dB at the listening position, often about three meters away. For 90dB/Watt @1M speakers like mine, this means I need an amp capable of over 125W per channel, which is a lot more than my NAD 50W/channel amp can manage.
The same peak from 87dB/Watt speakers would need a 250W/channel amp.
Does this sound right to you guys, and does it mean many amplifier manufacturers are under-powering their amps?
carl109

Showing 1 response by robr45

robr45's avatar
robr45
319 posts
 
You reference peaks of 105db but then seem to be loking for an amplifier that can deliver enough power continuously.

A 50wpc amplifier that is well designed should be able to deliver far more power in a short burst than the continuous power rating might indicate.

This is referred to as headroom.
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