Looking at some of the technical specs of today's power amplifiers, one cannot help but be at a loss in trying to compare different models and terms, such as "t-amp", "THD" etc. I will give a short overview of the output power spec in order to help you better understand the meaning of this term and how they relate to the performance of an amplifier.
If you are looking to buy an audio amplifier to set up your home speakers, you will often be confronted with a number of strange terms describing its performance. But how do these numbers relate to how the amplifier sounds and how are these to be interpreted? Let me now go ahead and explain the wattage rating of audio amplifiers.
"Wattage" is sometimes also known as "Power" or "amplifier output power". To put it in a nutshell, "wattage" relates to how high the amp can drive your speakers. The higher this number the louder your speakers. You want to pick the amplifier wattage based on how large your listening environment is. For best audio quality, you may want to go with an amp that has higher power than you need since many amps will show increasing distortion as the audio power goes up.
There are two common ways to display amplifier wattage. These are "peak power" and "rms power". "Peak power" describes how much power the amp can deliver to your speakers for a short burst. On the other hand, "rms power" describes how much power the amp can output for a prolonged amount of time without being damaged. The peak power rating in the past often led to manufacturers showing large wattage ratings for small amplifiers. However, in reality those amps would not be able to sustain larger amounts of output power for larger amounts of time.
Today most amps will specify rms power which gives a better indication of the amps true performance. However, please ensure that your amp has enough headroom to avoid clipping of the audio. Having enough headroom is essential since music signals differ a great deal from sine wave signals which are used to measure rms power. Short bursts of high power are often found in music signals. These bursts will drive the amp into high distortion unless the peak power is high enough.
Please note that often the peak power of the amp will depend on the impedance of your speakers which is typically between 4 and 8 Ohms. Due to the limited amplifier supply voltage, the maximum output power will be half if you connect an 8-Ohm speaker of the peak power that the amp can deliver to a 4-Ohm speaker. Usually maximum power is specified for a 4-Ohm speaker impedance. However, ideally the manufacturer will tell which speaker impedance the power rating is being referenced to. Please note that some amplifiers cannot drive speakers with very low speaker impedance.
If you are looking to buy an audio amplifier to set up your home speakers, you will often be confronted with a number of strange terms describing its performance. But how do these numbers relate to how the amplifier sounds and how are these to be interpreted? Let me now go ahead and explain the wattage rating of audio amplifiers.
"Wattage" is sometimes also known as "Power" or "amplifier output power". To put it in a nutshell, "wattage" relates to how high the amp can drive your speakers. The higher this number the louder your speakers. You want to pick the amplifier wattage based on how large your listening environment is. For best audio quality, you may want to go with an amp that has higher power than you need since many amps will show increasing distortion as the audio power goes up.
There are two common ways to display amplifier wattage. These are "peak power" and "rms power". "Peak power" describes how much power the amp can deliver to your speakers for a short burst. On the other hand, "rms power" describes how much power the amp can output for a prolonged amount of time without being damaged. The peak power rating in the past often led to manufacturers showing large wattage ratings for small amplifiers. However, in reality those amps would not be able to sustain larger amounts of output power for larger amounts of time.
Today most amps will specify rms power which gives a better indication of the amps true performance. However, please ensure that your amp has enough headroom to avoid clipping of the audio. Having enough headroom is essential since music signals differ a great deal from sine wave signals which are used to measure rms power. Short bursts of high power are often found in music signals. These bursts will drive the amp into high distortion unless the peak power is high enough.
Please note that often the peak power of the amp will depend on the impedance of your speakers which is typically between 4 and 8 Ohms. Due to the limited amplifier supply voltage, the maximum output power will be half if you connect an 8-Ohm speaker of the peak power that the amp can deliver to a 4-Ohm speaker. Usually maximum power is specified for a 4-Ohm speaker impedance. However, ideally the manufacturer will tell which speaker impedance the power rating is being referenced to. Please note that some amplifiers cannot drive speakers with very low speaker impedance.
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You can find more information about t-amp models in addition to power amplifiers from Amphony's website.
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