I would have to agree that the amp is starting to clip as well; however the overloading of the room is also another thought that has merit.
Is this clipping or just high SPL?
Hey everyone,
A question arose today during a listening session. I have a Yamaha M40 120wpc amp driving GMA C1's with a passive pre-amp. I usually run both my pre-amp and amp at about 12... but on rare occasions I will turn my pre-amp up all the way and boost my amp to about 2 or 3 o'clock. I do this on recordings that seem to be mastered lower than usual...
Anyways, today I was listening at the higher play levels and a particularly abrupt loud passage came... specifically, it was 'Dark Side of the Moon' when the bells come in on the beginning of the third track (that everyone has heard at least 40 times).
I didn't hear any clipping, and never have on this system... but things just sounded more congested with less separation and clarity than I'm used to. Given, it only lasted about 10 seconds during that one sequence... but it sparked the question of whether it was likely that the amp was clipping or that it was just loud beyond my comfortable listening level. I am in a small room about 8 feet from the speakers, btw...
Thanks.
A question arose today during a listening session. I have a Yamaha M40 120wpc amp driving GMA C1's with a passive pre-amp. I usually run both my pre-amp and amp at about 12... but on rare occasions I will turn my pre-amp up all the way and boost my amp to about 2 or 3 o'clock. I do this on recordings that seem to be mastered lower than usual...
Anyways, today I was listening at the higher play levels and a particularly abrupt loud passage came... specifically, it was 'Dark Side of the Moon' when the bells come in on the beginning of the third track (that everyone has heard at least 40 times).
I didn't hear any clipping, and never have on this system... but things just sounded more congested with less separation and clarity than I'm used to. Given, it only lasted about 10 seconds during that one sequence... but it sparked the question of whether it was likely that the amp was clipping or that it was just loud beyond my comfortable listening level. I am in a small room about 8 feet from the speakers, btw...
Thanks.
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- 20 posts total
Yup - "Time"... But the rated power handling of Green Mountain Audio Continuum 1s is around 200-250 watts I think... so I shouldn't even be close to distorting my tweeter or midrange with a Yamaha M-40 (120wpc) at 3/4 volume.. right? Any distortion would be coming from the amp or the room, wouldn't it? Would this cause damage to my GMAs? |
Do you have an SPL meter? How loud was it? If it was above 100 db SPL then you might be "pushing" your speakers too much. See this article Unreasonably large distortion in midrange drivers. You can see that it gets bad above 105 db SPL. The main issue in the midrange and tweeter is excursion outside the non-linear range of the driver rather than amplifier power. This is why many studios use horns and why most speakers for sound reinforcement uses horns. The fact is that most normal speakers (even good ones) compress and distort above 100 db SPL (at the listening position - which can be 110 db SPL for the speaker). |
- 20 posts total