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Speaker impedance and sensitivity

This is an old topic but I'm curious about the notion of "easy to drive" speakers that are labeled so due to their benign impedance curves. I understand that such speakers will draw relatively less current from the hypothetical amplifier. Does this mean that regardless of sensitivity the speaker will play to its full potential up to a certain point?

Good examples are British monitors that generally have high nominal impedance but often brutal sensitivity ratings. These speakers should be "driven" well at moderate volumes but simply won't play loud unless paired with a really powerful amplifier. Am I thinking about this right? If I am, then audio enthusiasts should consider how loud they listen when choosing an amp and open up a wider range to choose from. Comments please. Thanks.

128x128voodoochillin

Showing 1 response by sbayne

sbayne's avatar
sbayne
480 posts
 

@voodoochillin - Yes, I think you are thinking about this correctly. For instance, the Harbeth P3ESR has a sensitivity of 83 db. The math shows you would need 250 watts at a listening position of 10 feet to produce 100db of sound with that speaker. Most reasonable people don't listen at those levels for very long. Personally, I wouldn't go crazy with the watts. Instead, look for amps that have robust power supplies and output stages that produce high current. I owned Harbeths for awhile and they loved a high current 50 watt Class A amp I had at the time. 

 

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