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How Much Difference Does a More Powerful Amp Make?

When would you notice a real difference in sound quality with a more powerful amplifier?

I have a Simaudio W-7 driving Dynaudio Sapphires, and at some point, I may upgrade to Sonus Faber Amati Futuras.

My W-7 is 150 watts at 8 Ohms, and Simaudio makes the W-8 at 250 W at 8 Ohms. Would I notice any difference if I moved to the more powerful amp in a medium-sized room (14' x 22' x 8')?

The Sapphires are 89 db efficient, the Futuras are around 90 Db, but I've read that with most speakers, the more power the better.
level8skier
unsound
6,115 posts
 
IMHO, and perhaps more so with ss amps, having some extra power beyond actual use, is worthwhile in that it can keep an amp from stressing near it's clipping point.
mclsound
159 posts
 
I had a Classe CA 300 on a pair of PMC MB2 once and turned the amp up to its limit and then put on a Classe CA 400(only 100w more But 1kv bigger transformer)and that made a huge difference when pushing a great song up into the bigger SPL's.
I have had a Simaudio Titan(200w/ch) and it would hold its own..
The $$ value vs power may not be worth it...maybe W7M's
tmsorosk
1,013 posts
 
The C.J. LP280 used a more complex circuit than the LP140 or 70 .
stringreen's avatar
stringreen
5,112 posts
 
A better amp is more important than a more powerful amp. Don't be mislead by the numbers game.
wolf_garcia
4,650 posts
 
Isn't that what the Pass "first watt" thing is all about? There are a hundred things that make up a great amp, and power is only one of them. I think 100 clean high gain watts per side is just about right for my rig and room, but I was at a friend's place recently and he had some little triode tube mini watt thing and it sounded amazing, although not very loud. Note that for live stuff I've always used VERY large wattage amps...350 watts minimum into each speaker or uncompressed things don't fare well.
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