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Ten Percent Distortion?

I have a little Panasonic SA-XR25 digital receiver for my TV rig (I can't really call it HT). Driving some good speakers it sounds great, and cost me all of $287. Tonight I was killing some time wandering around the Best Buy shop looking at similar electronics from Panasonic, and others, and I noticed that output power was quoted at 10 percent distortion! At first I thought this was a missprint, surely they meant 1 percent or even 0.1 percent. However several units, from several manufacturers, were described this way. Back home I quickly checked the SA-XR25 spec and was reassured to find a reasonable 0.3 percent stated.

What the heck is going on? Wouldn't 100 watts at 0.3 percent sell better than 140 watts at 10 percent?
eldartford
inpepinnovations1e75
395 posts
 
Actually, the 100wpc at .3% distortion amp sounds the same as the 140wpc at 10%, since it is the same amp.! But which spec is more attractive? The 140wpc one, of course, so it is the one used. The % distortion is rarely quoted in big letters.

Bob P.
nighthawk
241 posts
 
A distortion spec at the onset of clipping is pretty much worthless. A more useful number is the THD at 1W. This corresponds to a level you are more likely to listen to. Most amps are well under .1% at 1W. However, that simple number still tells you very little about how the amp sounds. You need to know more about the spectral content of the distortion to infer anything about the sonics.
eldartford OP
4,262 posts
 
It is useful to know how much power an amp is good for, bcause your speakers or type of listening may require a certain amount of power. Of course it doesn't tell you how the amp will sound, but it does help select amps for further consideration.

I am truly surprised that the stated distortion level is of such little interest. For the appropriate application I would buy an amp with relatively low power (20 watts used to serve me well in my tube days), but I would never even consider one with a distortion spec of 10 percent. How do I know that this represents the onset of clipping?
inpepinnovations1e75
395 posts
 
Of course true audiophiles aren't interested in the distortion figure! It is probably that 10% distortion that makes that amplifier sound better to that audiophile's ears, who naturally says that the sound of an amplifier is all that counts. That goes for power also. In fact, the lower power amps probably sound better due to the distortion!
Meanwhile, the non-audiophile, is oblivious to the "sounds better" issue and only sees watts and that is what he buys and that is the market which those products are aimed at.

Bob P.
killerpiglet
373 posts
 
who naturally says that the sound of an amplifier is all that counts.

What a silly idea! Everyone knows all that counts is the amount of coal it can carry.

KP
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