2. amps-preamps
  3. 131787-104068

How could 100 Watt class a has more head room than a 300 Watt amp Class AB

Put aside which brand or make.
I put two amps into a test, both highend amp came from the same manufacturer.
Both double down the power with half of the impedance load, and THD is about the same.
Regardless of the size and cost difference, from a pure science perspective.
300 watt in theory should provide more headroom and sound ease when it reaches 100db, but the reverse is the true, the class A 100 watt seems to provide more headroom.
I have tried to use another set of speakers which is much easier to drive and it reaches the same conclusion.
Can someone explain why?
Quality or quantity of watt, how do we determined?
samnetw

Showing 1 response by monoogan

monoogan
55 posts
 
From what I've seen in the Stereophile reviews the Pass XA series amps are rated for their class A power and not peak power capabilities. It looks like they tend to double when run up to the limits of the power supply.

From the Stereophile XA60 review it'll do 130 watts into 8 ohms and keep going up as the impedance is lowered. It's just running in AB at that point. The A rating is probably limited by heat dissipation and the full power output by the power supply.

More to discover