I’m pretty sure my poor Denon 2807 is falling short of the task of powering my speakers now that I’m out of the apartment and in a larger living room.
First some basic questions:
Is the information about listening levels and headroom for various type of music given on this site reasonably accurate:
How Much Amplifier Power Do I Need? If given good info is this calculator realistic:
Amplifier Power Required Until I completely set up the room I won’t know the exact speaker distances I’ll end up with but these numbers are most likely how far they will be from the primary listening position:
Mains/Center = 10 feet
Surround Sides = 6 feet
Surround Backs = 8 feet
The side and back surrounds may even end up farther if I ceiling/wall mount them instead of using the stands.
The loudest average SPL I typically use is 80dB.
I listen to everything except country and rap but I think the classical is probably the most demanding. Crown claims that classical music can have up to 25dB peaks so I used this number for the amplifier head room.
I ran the numbers assuming both worst case sensitivity 91dB and best case 95dB and came up with the following:
91dB
3 x M80s = 279w
2 x QS8 sides = 100w
2 x QS8 backs = 178w
95dB
3 x M80s = 111w
2 x QS8 sides = 40w
2 x QS8 backs = 71w
So even in the best case I think I’m going to need help powering the 3 M80s up front and will likely in the worst case or even somewhere in between need more power for the surround backs and possibly the sides.
A couple ideas I’m considering are getting the Outlaw 997 paired with the Axiom A1400-8 or a mid level Denon Receiver paired with the Emotiva XPA-3.
Any suggestions on other options to look at and the relative advantages/disadvantages of them are greatly appreciated.
