I will have a look at a number of audio amplifiers and explain some essential vocabulary to help you select the best amplifier for your loudspeakers
There is a flood of different audio amplifiers available which all differ in their specifications, shape and size. This makes it tricky to make a decision which model to select. You don't have to be an expert. Just follow some simple guidelines and you ought to be pleased with your amplifier.
The most apparent parameter is the size of the amp. There are models that are as large as half your living room whilst several of the newest mini amplifier models are as tiny as a bar of soap. Numerous units will be the size of a standard audio rack so that you can simply stack it on top of your audio equipment. The vast majority of today's audio amps are solid state amplifiers vs more conventional tube amplifiers. Tube amps have been dominant a decade or so ago. Tube amplifiers, on the other hand, have a fairly large amount of harmonic distortion. Harmonic distortion refers to how much the audio signal is degraded whilst being amplified. This term is frequently used while comparing the audio quality of amps.
Harmonic distortion of tube amplifiers is often as large as 10%. Solid-state amps will have less audio distortion. However, distortion will depend on the particular audio amplifier technology. In the past, typically "Class-A" and "Class-AB" amplifiers were available which are also referred to as "analog amplifiers". Audio amplifiers which are based on these technologies generally have low harmonic distortion. Also, this technology is fairly inexpensive. However, the disadvantage is that the power efficiency is merely in the order of 20% to 30%. Power efficiency describes how much of the electrical power is utilized to amplify the audio as opposed to being wasted as heat. Amps with low power efficiency will need relatively large heat sinks since the majority of the power is radiated.
"Class-D" amplifiers, on the other hand, which are also known as "digital amplifiers" have a power efficiency of no less than 80% and are smaller and have a smaller power supply than similar analog amplifiers. The downside is that digital amps often have larger audio distortion than analog amplifiers. This is for the most part a consequence of the switching distortion of the output power stage. Latest digital audio amplifiers, though, employ a feedback mechanism and can minimize the audio distortion to below 0.05%.
"Class-D" amplifiers, on the other hand, which are also referred to as "digital amplifiers" have a power efficiency of at least 80% and are smaller and have a smaller power supply than similar analog amplifiers. Due to the switching output stage, digital amps generally have higher harmonic distortion than analog amplifiers. On the other hand, a few of the most recent models are capable to reduce distortion to 0.05% and lower by using a feedback mechanism. The amplifier should be capable to offer enough output power to sufficiently drive your speakers which will depend not only on how much power your loudspeakers can handle but also on the size of your listening area. Loudspeaker power handling capability is specified as peak power and average power. The peak power value refers to how much power the speaker can handle for a short period of time whilst the average power handling value describes how much power you can drive the loudspeaker at continuously without damage.
If your listening area is rather small then you might not require to drive your loudspeaker to its rated power handling value. You would probably be good getting an amp that can offer 20 to 50 Watts despite the fact that your speakers may be capable to tolerate 100 Watts of power. Low-impedance loudspeakers normally offer high sensitivity and are less difficult to drive to high volume than high-impedance speakers. Be certain that your amplifier can drive your speaker impedance. You can easily find the rated speaker impedance range in your amplifier's user manual.
Finally, be sure that your amp introduces little noise and has a broad enough frequency response. High-quality amps will have a signal-to-noise ratio of no less than 100 dB and a frequency response of no less than 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
There is a flood of different audio amplifiers available which all differ in their specifications, shape and size. This makes it tricky to make a decision which model to select. You don't have to be an expert. Just follow some simple guidelines and you ought to be pleased with your amplifier.
The most apparent parameter is the size of the amp. There are models that are as large as half your living room whilst several of the newest mini amplifier models are as tiny as a bar of soap. Numerous units will be the size of a standard audio rack so that you can simply stack it on top of your audio equipment. The vast majority of today's audio amps are solid state amplifiers vs more conventional tube amplifiers. Tube amps have been dominant a decade or so ago. Tube amplifiers, on the other hand, have a fairly large amount of harmonic distortion. Harmonic distortion refers to how much the audio signal is degraded whilst being amplified. This term is frequently used while comparing the audio quality of amps.
Harmonic distortion of tube amplifiers is often as large as 10%. Solid-state amps will have less audio distortion. However, distortion will depend on the particular audio amplifier technology. In the past, typically "Class-A" and "Class-AB" amplifiers were available which are also referred to as "analog amplifiers". Audio amplifiers which are based on these technologies generally have low harmonic distortion. Also, this technology is fairly inexpensive. However, the disadvantage is that the power efficiency is merely in the order of 20% to 30%. Power efficiency describes how much of the electrical power is utilized to amplify the audio as opposed to being wasted as heat. Amps with low power efficiency will need relatively large heat sinks since the majority of the power is radiated.
"Class-D" amplifiers, on the other hand, which are also known as "digital amplifiers" have a power efficiency of no less than 80% and are smaller and have a smaller power supply than similar analog amplifiers. The downside is that digital amps often have larger audio distortion than analog amplifiers. This is for the most part a consequence of the switching distortion of the output power stage. Latest digital audio amplifiers, though, employ a feedback mechanism and can minimize the audio distortion to below 0.05%.
"Class-D" amplifiers, on the other hand, which are also referred to as "digital amplifiers" have a power efficiency of at least 80% and are smaller and have a smaller power supply than similar analog amplifiers. Due to the switching output stage, digital amps generally have higher harmonic distortion than analog amplifiers. On the other hand, a few of the most recent models are capable to reduce distortion to 0.05% and lower by using a feedback mechanism. The amplifier should be capable to offer enough output power to sufficiently drive your speakers which will depend not only on how much power your loudspeakers can handle but also on the size of your listening area. Loudspeaker power handling capability is specified as peak power and average power. The peak power value refers to how much power the speaker can handle for a short period of time whilst the average power handling value describes how much power you can drive the loudspeaker at continuously without damage.
If your listening area is rather small then you might not require to drive your loudspeaker to its rated power handling value. You would probably be good getting an amp that can offer 20 to 50 Watts despite the fact that your speakers may be capable to tolerate 100 Watts of power. Low-impedance loudspeakers normally offer high sensitivity and are less difficult to drive to high volume than high-impedance speakers. Be certain that your amplifier can drive your speaker impedance. You can easily find the rated speaker impedance range in your amplifier's user manual.
Finally, be sure that your amp introduces little noise and has a broad enough frequency response. High-quality amps will have a signal-to-noise ratio of no less than 100 dB and a frequency response of no less than 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
