czarivey:
The Pass amplifier was reviewed/measured by Stereophile and having just looked up the info it output 332 watts into 2 ohms @ 1% distortion and close to 200 watts @ 4 ohms.
I do not understand what Nelson did with the new design, but it’s a major departure (headroom wise) from the Aleph series.
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I think I recall in an article that Eddie Kramer would leave the control room if a band needed to listen to playback above 90 dB. |
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Anything over 90db is the beginning dB of hearing damage. |
100db is cranking at my house and definatley ringing ears,which isnt good for an ole fart like me there already beat of from being a musician ..120 db is painful and very damaging like ac/dc front row next to the pa lol usually 60-80 ish ...
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Amplifier to speaker power is a lot more complicated than rated power output vs listening dB. The trick is amplifying the entire audio band. Even a low power consumer receiver will crank out 90 plus db but if you place a spectrum analyzer you will find the lower end of the Thiel's frequency band to be way lower than the spec'd +/-3dB.
Put a Krell or a Levinson monster on a Thiel and match the output and you will immediately hear a profound difference at the same listening dB as the lower frequencies are brought to life. |
I don't like to play games so for me normal level is 93db or so and a typical Fri/Sat night jam session runs up to 110-112db on peaks. I'd go higher if I thought I could get away with the neighbors not knocking on the door. They should probably be thankful I have not purchased a sub just for that reason.
I'm guessing that those who are able to enjoy listening at under 80db must have a very quiet noise floor in the room to begin with or have very sensitive hearing.
The noise floor in my room is quite high though in general. Using REW I measure a constant 50-55db at all times without a peep from anything else taking place. 116yr old house, no insulation, about 30ft off a a busy street.
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30 Watts in class A.
I bet it goes to AB past that. |
frozentundra - My seated distance to speakers is similar to yours. Loud to me is 85 - 90 dB; over 90 db seems very loud. Normal listening levels are in the range of 80 - 85 db using a Radio Shack SPL Meter set to Slow response and 'C' weighting. See link for anyone unfamiliar with it. http://support.radioshack.com/support_audio/doc72/72441.pdf |
On a properly set up system, you can (and, I do) listen as high a volume level as you want. I listen at concert levels and it is not deafening. Nice, detailed, dynamic and definitely CRANKED but musical, not loud. Noise is loud. Loud, to me, is not a pleasant adjective. |
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Your amplifier is capable of over 150 watts @ 8 ohms as it has an additional 120 watts (class B) of headroom.
It would have even more headroom (> 150 watts) pushing your Thiels.
Depending on how fast the meter is you may not even notice the amp spiking into class B to cover transients.
I listen in the 70’s with peaks in the 80’s (higher dB’s trigger migraines).
I’m just getting over a headache that started yesterday afternoon (spent an hour waiting @ our local Apple Store for a tech to fix my wife’s iPod). |
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Everyone has different tolerances, I like listening to small jazz ensembles or symphony at what I would say are "live" levels.... The problem is what is that? A live Rock concert can hit peaks of 124 db and 121 db is the normal threshold of pain... while going to a symphony, you may be lucky to hit 92 or 93 db.
And no, I would never attempt to listen to anything in my home over that mid 90's db point.
Ok, so what is cranking it? |
80 to 85 db is cranking it for me
The following is my understanding about sound and power
2 speakers increases the sensitivity by 3db so (sourced from enjoy the music dot com)
1 87 db speaker will produce 87 db of sound at 1 meter with 1 watt of power
2 87 db speakers will produce 90 db of sound at 1 meter with 1 watt of power
Placing a speaker in a room increases the output by about 4db so (sourced from enjoy the music dot com)
2 87 db speakers will produce 94 db of sound at 1 meter with 1 watt of power
Power required for average sound (Sources from PSB speakers)
2 87 db speakers will produce 94 db of sound at 1 meter with 1 watt of power
2 87 db speakers will produce 97 db of sound at 1 meter with 2 watt of power
2 87 db speakers will produce 100 db of sound at 1 meter with 4 watt of power
2 87 db speakers will produce 103 db of sound at 1 meter with 10 watt of power
2 87 db speakers will produce 106 db of sound at 1 meter with 20 watt of power
2 87 db speakers will produce 109 db of sound at 1 meter with 40 watt of power
The inverse square law states that when the distance from the source is doubled, the sound pressure weakens by 6 dB.
2 87 db speakers will produce 96 db of sound at 3 meter with 20 watt of power
2 87 db speakers will produce 99 db of sound at 3 meter with 40 watt of power
You also need to account for musical peaks which are louder than the average sound and voice coil heating which affects the speaker sensitivity
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I have never measured the volume of my listening...that's a bit too anal...
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