Damping factor is is an amplifier's ability to control a woofer's motion after the drive signal has ceased. For example: if you drive a loudspeaker with a bass drum whack, the woofer's inertia and resonance in the enclosure will cause it to keep moving after the signal has died away. a This is a form of distortion that alters the music signal's dynamic envelope. The diaphragm of the Maggie is so light, and it's excursion so short(because of it's surface area) that the damping factor of your amp is virtually a moot point. The MMg's are only rated down to 50hz anyway(they're already rolling off at 80hz). Bottom line: Don't buy an amp to go with your Maggies based on damping factor. I'm using a Hafler TransNova 9505(255wpc) to drive my subs because of it's high damping factor(1000) and fast slew rate(150v/ms). Not an expensive amp at all(for high power and damping factor). BUT- I love tubes for my Maggie mains, and my Cary SLM-100s do a wonderful job. I've driven the Maggies full range with the Carys(and the Hafler for the heck of it) and they don't sound bad at all. Nothing beats the dyanamic range and transparency I get by bi-amping though. One more thing- Damping factor is related to the amplifier's output impedance. The lower the output inpedance, the higher the damping factor. The impedance of the cable between the speaker and amp decreases the effective damping factor of your amp. Keep you speaker cables short.
Damping factor or watts?
Hi all,
Which is more important? High damping factor or high wattage? I was reading about how a high damping factor would be better in controlling the excursions of the speaker drivers but to have a amp with high wattage and damping factor would be astronomically expensive.
So in our imperfect world, which is more important? It seems like the amps with a high damping factor are mainly Class D or ICEpower amps (are they both the same?).
My speaker is a Magnepan MMG and is currently partnered to a pair of Denon POA-6600A monoblocks that are 260W/ 8 ohms. I have read some Audiogon citizens driving their Maggies with amps that have high damping factor to excellent results. Wondering if that should be the direction to go....
Your advise would be greatly appreciated!
HL
Which is more important? High damping factor or high wattage? I was reading about how a high damping factor would be better in controlling the excursions of the speaker drivers but to have a amp with high wattage and damping factor would be astronomically expensive.
So in our imperfect world, which is more important? It seems like the amps with a high damping factor are mainly Class D or ICEpower amps (are they both the same?).
My speaker is a Magnepan MMG and is currently partnered to a pair of Denon POA-6600A monoblocks that are 260W/ 8 ohms. I have read some Audiogon citizens driving their Maggies with amps that have high damping factor to excellent results. Wondering if that should be the direction to go....
Your advise would be greatly appreciated!
HL
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- 32 posts total
- 32 posts total