everyone recommends more power for my speakers. My Maggies are rated at 85db, which means they will produce 85db sound pressure at 1 meter using 1 watt of amplifier power. According to the inverse square law (and an article I read on the internet), power usage is like this:
decibels watts
-------- -----
85 db 1 watt
88 db 2 watts
91 db 4 watts
94 db 8 watts
97 db 16 watts
100 db 32 watts
103 db 64 watts
106 db 128 watts
109 db 256 watts
If my normal listening level is 85db, then I would be using 1 watt of power. At 90db, I would be using about 4 watts.
My amp is capable of producing 120 watts into 4 ohms, so my peak volume level without distortion would be somewhere between 103db and 105db. That's pretty loud, and I don't n normally listen to music that loud. 103db is as loud as a power wrench like they use to get the lug nut off your car wheels.
Assuming all the above is correct, I should be able to get close to 105db with my 120 watts of power. Supposedly this amp has further reserves for brief peaks (according to the what I read, written by the manufacturer, when I bought it centuries ago). So it seems like I have plenty of power.