Behringer A800 Stereo Amplifier Review

[staticV3]

Even the back cover talks about 4ohm stereo/8ohm mono

Those are the minimum load impedances:

Higher is always ok, e.g. 16Ω Stereo.

Behringer has no plans to use 8Ohm stereo.

Yes they do.

 

[effj]

Even the back cover talks about 4ohm stereo/8ohm mono, hence my question. Behringer has no plans to use 8Ohm stereo. Thanks for the reply.

I have a fosi za3 and I don't know whether to buy a second i and use it as two as a monoblock or switch to one A800 for Atc scm11 v2

The specifications (page 26 of the user guide) list the peak power (W) for 8 ohms stereo, 4 ohms stereo, and 8 ohms bridged mono: 220/channel, 400/channel, and 800, respectively. You can connect it to 8 ohm speakers in stereo, and the main caveat is that you won’t get full power. If 220 W / channel is adequate for you, don’t sweat using 8 ohm speakers.

 

[staticV3]

the main caveat is that you won’t get full power.

@Bartez2000 Just to clarify: this is not a weakness of the A800, but a natural phenomenon of increasing load impedance.

P=V²/R, so by doubling the impedance you halve the power.

The same thing will happen with any other competent amplifier.

Mind you, you'll still get the A800's full output voltage and loudness, regardless of whether you use 4, 8, or 16Ω speakers, it's just that higher impedance speakers inherently reduce current.

 

[Bartez2000]

Many thanks Gentlemen.
What do you think, is it better to use 1 x a800 or 2 x fosi audio za3 (mono)?

 

[LTig]

Even the back cover talks about 4ohm stereo/8ohm mono, hence my question. Behringer has no plans to use 8Ohm stereo.

This just means that in stereo mode you can connect all speakers with impedances down to 4 Ohm, but in mono mode down to 8 Ohm.

 

[Old_School_Brad]

Many thanks Gentlemen.
What do you think, is it better to use 1 x a800 or 2 x fosi audio za3 (mono)?

It depends.

Thermally, the Behringer with space around the components and cooling slots, would likely perform much better if you put some of its power to use. However, the two amplifiers are quite different, as measurements indicate. If you're using sensitive speakers, be aware of potential noise.

 

[Bartez2000]

I concluded from Amir's measurements that 2x fosi za3 can have about 120watt 8ohm, a800 has more because 140watt 8ohm. I already have one za3. I don't know whether to buy a second fosi za3 or go for the beringer a800.
Near field scm11, studio work.

RME babyface pro> subwoofer with hi-pass filter kali w12 > amp > atc scm11

 

[Clmrt]

140 compared to 120 watts gains another .7db.

Really they should be considered 60-70 watt amps in use, the 2nd half of their power is for headroom.

With your speakers at 1 meter, in a working situation, having a 200 watt amp wouldn't be out of line.

In any case, quality over quantity should be the rule.

 

[Bartez2000]

I used the fosi za3 with one atc scm11 v2 speaker in a blind test and each time I subjectively felt that the mono mode controlled transients better, especially in the 100-300hz range. Hence my idea of increasing the power. I prefer to ask you, who have experience and knowledge in this topic. 1x za3 is 90watt, 2x fosi is 120 watt, a800 is already 140watt. It seems to me that this may be a noticeable difference, but I prefer to ask before I buy a new amplifier and something else will be a better solution. I am still learning. Thank you,

 

[Clmrt]

Dual mono has benefits - absolute channel separation (post-preamp)

 

[Clmrt]

Dual mono has benefits - absolute channel separation (post-preamp)

Also, not sure what your loudness requirement is, at what level do you work?

85db at 1 M requires 2 watts with some headroom built in. 105db peaks = 100-200 watts available.

Power is funny. What you use and need and nailing that down to a number on a spec sheet is a waste of time. Just calculate what you think you need and multiply by at least 1.5. If you don't, you'll have doubts, doubt leads to wonder and insecurity, and you buy again.

My only real experience with this was from using an older (2007) class D for years and I thought everything was great. Until I changed speakers, 89db 4 ohm towers replacing 92db 4 ohm towers. Then the clip lights started to flicker. So I found a good old AB amp with 5x the power. It is clean and silent. I know I will never ever clip that amp in my domestic situation, and if I do, it will light up and tell me. By that time I'll need the light because I'll be deaf.

Anyway, I'd go Fosi simply because one amp / one speaker sounds like a great idea vs one Behringer that isn't usefully cleaner, and then having an unused Fosi laying around. (But when the Behringer blows up, you will have a spare to fall back on.)

 

[Bartez2000]

Maybe you could write some recommendations for amplifiers that fully power the atc scm11 v2 ( listening distance 1,5m) at a reasonable price. Thank you for your involvement, I'm afraid to make such decisions myself, it's better to ask and avoid mistakes that won't teach me much anyway

 

[Thelifestyle]

It has a good and neutral sound, but it lacks the lowest bass. It plays at full power from about 40Hz and 30hz -3db. I know that many speakers can't produce that frequency, but I think that the amplifier should be able to handle it when using a subwoofer. But for the price of 190 euros it's ok. I can't recommend this method for large speakers with a lot of bass potential and not for a subwoofer either. Cheap components correspond to the price range.

Don't get me wrong, the sound is okay for this price, but it's not a miracle like many people claim. The bass is exaggerated around 50Hz and very deep bass is muffled.

The sub-bass is completely missing. I had a phonic amplifier or even a regular König amplifier for the same price, which has a better overall sound than this amplifier. The price is acceptable, but when I see a lot of people connecting $1000 speakers and saying that the amplifier plays like any other $3000 amplifier, it's a clear fantasy. According to the manual, the frequency range is 20hz - 20khz -1db which is not HiFi standard. Acceptable is 20Hz - 20Khz @ 0.5db..

 

[staticV3]

Má dobrý a neutrální zvuk, ale chybí nejnižší basy. Hraje na plný výkon přibližně od 40Hz a 30hz -3db. Vím, že mnoho reprosoustav neumí takovou frekvenci produkovat, ale myslím si, že zesilovač by to při použití subwooferu měl zvládnout. Ale za cenu 190 eur je to ok. Tento způsob nemohu doporučit pro velké reproduktory s velkým basovým potenciálem a pro subwoofer také ne. Levné komponenty odpovídají cenové kategorii.


Nechápejte mě špatně, zvuk je za tuto cenu v pořádku, ale není to zázrak, jak mnoho lidí tvrdí. Basy jsou kolem 50Hz přehnané a velmi hluboké basy jsou utlumené.



subbasy zcela chybí. Měl jsem fonický zesilovač nebo dokonce běžný zesilovač König za stejnou cenu, který má celkově lepší zvuk než tento zesilovač. Cena je přijatelná, ale když vidím, že spousta lidí připojuje reproduktory za 1000 $ a říká, že zesilovač hraje jako každý jiný zesilovač za 3000 $, je to jasná fantazie. dle manuálu je frekvenční rozsah 20hz - 20khz -1db což není HiFi standard. Přijatelné je 20Hz - 20Khz @ 0,5db ..

Please use English on ASR.

 

[Thelifestyle]

Má dobrý a neutrální zvuk, ale chybí nejnižší basy. Hraje na plný výkon přibližně od 40Hz a 30hz -3db. Vím, že mnoho reprosoustav neumí takovou frekvenci produkovat, ale myslím si, že zesilovač by to při použití subwooferu měl zvládnout. Ale za cenu 190 eur je to v pořádku. Tento způsob nemohu doporučit pro velké reproduktory s velkým basovým potenciálem a pro subwoofer také ne. Levné komponenty odpovídají cenové kategorii.


Nechápejte mě špatně, zvuk je za tuto cenu v pořádku, ale není to zázrak, jak mnoho lidí tvrdí. Basy jsou kolem 50Hz přehnané a velmi hluboké basy jsou utlumené.



subbasy zcela chybí. Měl jsem fonický zesilovač nebo dokonce běžný zesilovač König za stejnou cenu, který má celkově lepší zvuk než tento zesilovač. Cena je přijatelná, ale když vidím, že spousta lidí připojuje reproduktory za 1000 $ a říká, že zesilovač hraje jako každý jiný zesilovač za 3000 $, je to jasná fantazie. dle manuálu je frekvenční rozsah 20hz - 20khz -1db což není HiFi standard. Přijatelné je 20Hz - 20Khz @ 0,5db ..

Please use English on ASR.

sorry. already fixed

 

[sergeauckland]

According to the manual, the frequency range is 20hz - 20khz -1db which is not HiFi standard. Acceptable is 20Hz - 20Khz @ 0.5db..

I still work to +-3dB standards, so 20Hz-20kHz +-3dB is HiFi. If an amplifier is only 1dB down at 20Hz, who's ever going to hear that?

S.

 

[Thelifestyle]

I still work to +-3dB standards, so 20Hz-20kHz +-3dB is HiFi. If an amplifier is only 1dB down at 20Hz, who's ever going to hear that?

S.

Yes, according to the manual it should be like that, but the attenuation is much higher at lower frequencies. And I don't know where you got 20hz - 20Khz + 3db, you definitely mean 20Hz - 20Khz +0. Everyone has their own opinion and that's how it should be In my opinion, it's not a hifi amplifier, but for the money it meets the requirements for parties.

 

[sergeauckland]

Yes, according to the manual it should be like that, but the attenuation is much higher at lower frequencies. And I don't know where you got 20hz - 20Khz + 3db, you definitely mean 20Hz - 20Khz +0. Everyone has their own opinion and that's how it should be In my opinion, it's not a hifi amplifier, but for the money it meets the requirements for parties.

No, back in the days when I was trained, frequency response measurements, especially for loudspeakers, were quoted as +-3dB. That allowed for errors in tone controls, RIAA equalisation or tape equalisation. For power amplifiers, in practice, the frequency response was never + relative to 1kHz, but were still quoted as +-3dB, or +-1dB

S.

 

[Thelifestyle]

No, back in the days when I was trained, frequency response measurements, especially for loudspeakers, were quoted as +-3dB. That allowed for errors in tone controls, RIAA equalisation or tape equalisation. For power amplifiers, in practice, the frequency response was never + relative to 1kHz, but were still quoted as +-3dB, or +-1dB

S.

but here is not a discussion about speakers but about amplifier.. Apparently you are not reading what I am writing to you. A quality amplifier should be able to transmit the entire 20Hz-20Khz band @0.5 db. When measuring it is for 20Hz @- 6db and 20Khz @ -1db. Of course, with smaller speakers it will not be noticeable, but as soon as you want to use large subwoofers or large three-way speakers you will hear attenuation at low frequencies below 25Hz. An adult can hear frequencies from 20Hz - 17Khz. There is no need for measurement for this to see that the amplifier cannot produce deep bass below 25Hz. At higher volumes, the bass is too emphasized but around 50-60hz. The sound is balanced but not accurate.


it's just not a universal amplifier.

 

[sergeauckland]

but here is not a discussion about speakers but about amplifier.. Apparently you are not reading what I am writing to you. A quality amplifier should be able to transmit the entire 20Hz-20Khz band @0.5 db. When measuring it is for 20Hz @- 6db and 20Khz @ -1db. Of course, with smaller speakers it will not be noticeable, but as soon as you want to use large subwoofers or large three-way speakers you will hear attenuation at low frequencies below 25Hz. An adult can hear frequencies from 20Hz - 17Khz. There is no need for measurement for this to see that the amplifier cannot produce deep bass below 25Hz. At higher volumes, the bass is too emphasized but around 50-60hz. The sound is balanced but not accurate.


it's just not a universal amplifier.

If you say so, who am I to argue? After all, I'm only an audio engineer, not a HiFi enthusiast.

Universal enough for me. (and I use three of the older A500s...)

S.