8/4/2 Ohm power doubling at low volume?

[blueone]

The way manufacturers have been claiming it is by under rating the 8R and 4R figures to give the illusion audiophiles want to buy into.

I think you've hit the nail on the head with this comment. The audiophile press seems to have convinced many of their readers that if your amp doesn't double power as impedance halves you're missing something in sound quality. Something audible. For most listening levels in most rooms with most material, even action movies, you're very unlikely to miss anything SQ-wise if your amp has relatively high power (e.g. ~200W/ch into 8 ohms) and only delivers 50% more power into 4 ohms than 8 ohms.

I know there are some speakers that have been tested that have very low impedance into some important frequency ranges (the Legacy Focus Stereophile tested comes to mind), but these are exceptions. The old Apogee Scintillas also come to mind. But most speakers do not have impedance curves that fall substantially below 4 ohms. These two examples are exceptions.

I think power doubling is mostly an audiophile press driven requirement that isn't supported by the facts.

 

[Doodski]

I think you've hit the nail on the head with this comment. The audiophile press seems to have convinced many of their readers that if your amp doesn't double power as impedance halves you're missing something in sound quality. Something audible. For most listening levels in most rooms with most material, even action movies, you're very unlikely to miss anything SQ-wise if your amp has relatively high power (e.g. ~200W/ch into 8 ohms) and only delivers 50% more power into 4 ohms than 8 ohms.

I know there are some speakers that have been tested that have very low impedance into some important frequency ranges (the Legacy Focus Stereophile tested comes to mind), but these are exceptions. The old Apogee Scintillas also come to mind. But most speakers do not have impedance curves that fall substantially below 4 ohms. These two examples are exceptions.

I think power doubling is mostly an audiophile press driven requirement that isn't supported by the facts.

I agree mostly although if the amplifier only has 75w@8R then doubling down to 4 Ohms and then 2 Ohms would be beneficial.

 

[blueone]

I agree mostly although if the amplifier only has 75w@8R then doubling down to 4 Ohms and then 2 Ohms would be beneficial.

That's why I included the "relatively high power" caveat.

 

[restorer-john]

I don't really care about continuous 2 ohm ratings, that is a ridiculous requirement, but 2 ohm dynamic capability is great. I'd rather an amplifier dish out a heap of dynamic power at 2R and be able to shut itself off at anything lower (like a short).

My nominally 4R rated mains drop to 2.6R at 120Hz, so decent amplification is a requirement.

 

[TankTop]

For the type and price of these speakers perhaps you might like a better power amp instead of a all in one AV unit. The impedance and phase is challenging.

In a month or so this would make more financial sense, too bad it will be gone.

https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649766210-belies-aria-integrated/

 

[Doodski]

In a month or so this would make more financial sense, too bad it will be gone.

https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649766210-belies-aria-integrated/

Is that enough juice for you and your speakers?
Can take this with a grain of salt, "Not broken in yet. Probably only about 60 hours of use. Belles suggested at least 200 hours for break in."
Break in is sales speak for get used to it and then fall in love with it... It's a off shoot of the, "Puppy dog close" in sales jargon.
Take the puppy home and enjoy it, fall in love with it and keep it.

 

[TankTop]

Is that enough juice for you and your speakers?
Can take this with a grain of salt, "Not broken in yet. Probably only about 60 hours of use. Belles suggested at least 200 hours for break in."
Break in is sales speak for get used to it and then fall in love with it... It's a off shoot of the, "Puppy dog close" in sales jargon.
Take the puppy home and enjoy it, fall in love with it and keep it.

Ha! I’m aware of word soup but I was under the impression they are great integrated amps. Anyway I don’t understand the phase angle etc of the speakers, what do you like for speakers like this? I only sit about 8’ from the speakers and never approach 90db.

 

[Doodski]

Ha! I’m aware of word soup but I was under the impression they are great integrated amps. Anyway I don’t understand the phase angle etc of the speakers, what do you like for speakers like this? I only sit about 8’ from the speakers and never approach 90db.

The phase angle is related to the relationship of the voltage and current delivery to the speaker driver(s). The phase angle increase corresponds with the impedance dip and the combination of the two occurring simultaneously causes a more difficult load for the amplifier. If you are 8 feet from the speakers and don't go too loud then a good 75 Watt amp should be nice. I've had a good 75 Watt amp and it was plenty loud but it had significantly better specs than the Belles Aria. I don't recommend a lesser quality 75 Watt amp with your Contour 20 speakers. Your Marantz 5014 presently does the job and the sound will usually improve with a high quality amp. I like that you look for linearity of doubling power with each halving of the impedance but like has been mentioned it's a rare thing and is associated with higher expense. Concentrate on getting output power with good specs at 8 Ohms and 4 Ohms and not as much on 2 Ohms unless you are prepared for a higher expense and a big beasty amp that may also make lots of heat and raise your power bill. There is also class D to consider if you don't mind thinking outside the box and taking on some new designs. Myself I like the big beasty route although like I said it's radical.