Your favorite Mac amplifiers?

[70sMac]

Originally Posted by SAM992

I want to know what the hell kind of speakers Dan had...??

The famous MC601 "Headroom" photo was taken back in early 2015. I can't swear to what he had then, but I do know that he was enjoying Sonus Faber Amati Anniversarios with his MC2301 powered system.

Regardless, the Sonus Faber Amati Anniversarios are 4 ohm speakers that have a "Power Handling" specification of 30-300W "without clipping"...and they are very difficult to find.

[W9TR]

Originally Posted by SAM992

I want to know what the hell kind of speakers Dan had...??

(on a more serious note, how much over rated can most speakers go anyway?)

PMC EB1i - up to the task!

Speakers can be driven hard - with several limits. Speaker manufacturers punt on these and just give a recommended amplifier rating or some such similar hand waving - can’t blame them.

Thermal limit - voice coils heat up, and if they get too hot the adhesives that hold them together will fail. You’d have to play something really dense like electronica or EDM really loud for awhile to get this to happen.

Wire limit - if you drive a speaker super hard, especially a tweeter, you may cause the wire in the voice voice coil to heat up so much the wire melts. A variation of the thermal limit, above but happens with much higher peak power.

Physical limit - the drivers or diaphragms in your speakers can only move so far before they compress or hit the magnet structure itself. This usually catastrophic failure happens mostly with woofers and subwoofers. (Don’t ask me how I know about this.)

I’ve found that all the speakers I’ve owned start to compress and sound bad well before I’m in danger of blowing them to smithereens.

[SAM992]

Originally Posted by W9TR

PMC EB1i - up to the task!

Speakers can be driven hard - with several limits. Speaker manufacturers punt on these and just give a recommended amplifier rating or some such similar hand waving - can’t blame them.

Thermal limit - voice coils heat up, and if they get too hot the adhesives that hold them together will fail. You’d have to play something really dense like electronica or EDM really loud for awhile to get this to happen.

Wire limit - if you drive a speaker super hard, especially a tweeter, you may cause the wire in the voice voice coil to heat up so much the wire melts. A variation of the thermal limit, above but happens with much higher peak power.

Physical limit - the drivers or diaphragms in your speakers can only move so far before they compress or hit the magnet structure itself. This usually catastrophic failure happens mostly with woofers and subwoofers. (Don’t ask me how I know about this.)

I’ve found that all the speakers I’ve owned start to compress and sound bad well before I’m in danger of blowing them to smithereens.

good info, thanks. The interesting fact is while intuitively one would think it's best to have an Amp that doesn't output as much as the speakers are rated for, when in fact it's better to have an amp that output more (headroom) than the speakers are rated for.

[SAM992]

Originally Posted by 70sMac

The famous MC601 "Headroom" photo was taken back in early 2015. I can't swear to what he had then, but I do know that he was enjoying Sonus Faber Amati Anniversarios with his MC2301 powered system.

Regardless, the Sonus Faber Amati Anniversarios are 4 ohm speakers that have a "Power Handling" specification of 30-300W "without clipping"...and they are very difficult to find.

Intersting

But heck, even my little XR50's are rated 50-300W... I've taken them to well above 300W without any issues (transient of course) ...

[70sMac]

Originally Posted by SAM992

Intersting

But heck, even my little XR50's are rated 50-300W... I've taken them to well above 300W without any issues (transient of course) ...

SAM..... I don't mean to push the discussion into the realm of McSpeakers, but how long have you been using your Mac XR50s, and what are your thoughts on them?

Have you done any A/B testing or comparisons?

[SAM992]

Originally Posted by 70sMac

SAM..... I don't mean to push the discussion into the realm of McSpeakers, but how long have you been using your Mac XR50s, and what are your thoughts on them?

Have you done any A/B testing or comparisons?

My dealer had a pair of JBL and another British brand who's name eludes me, but was also quite pricy to try out for my "bookshelf" mission and the XR50's where by far the clear winner ... I value good, punchy bass, and they were easily the most bass in a small speaker I'd ever heard... which is explained by the crazy 81dB sensitivity rating.. Plus a true 3-way driver system and 300w capacity.

I have now been enjoying them almost 6 months, and absolutely no regrets .. there is no better sounding speaker to my ear in the same foot print for under $4000 a pair that I have been able to hear.

the video in my signature starts out with a 1 minute audio run and if your laptop speakers are good, you can hear for yourself.

[70sMac]

What Did The Man Say?

A Thing of Beauty Is a Joy Forever...

[Yamaki]

[AudioFi]

I've heard very positive comments about the MC1502. I'm looking forward to be able to try one. have you?... impressions?







DAC/streamer: Lumin T2
Speakers: Sonus Faber Sonetto III
Happy MA8900 owner.

[RaceCarDriver]

I would have to think it would sound identical to the MC2152.. which looks a whole lot better IMO.

Now if there were monoblock versions of the MC2152 that would be a winner in my book!