Hi... I am not really a technical guy. Just love my sound to be as pure and clean as possible. I have a couple of Rogers LS3/5a speakers. I just received a gift: a Cambridge Audio Azur 540 integretad amplifier. My question is: the amp is designed for 4 to 8 omhs speakers. My Rogers are 11 ohms. What will happen? Does that degrade the sound? Is it worst than that?
Nope, your amp will see a higher impedance, therefore work less stress, but it won't give you the full power announced. What's the Rogers's sensitivity?
"High sensitivity speakers are a problem only to tybe amps, due to its outputs transformers"
should have read:
High "impeadence" speakers are a problem only to tube amps, due to its outputs transformers.
man if we both only proofread! lol
J. Vigne
Unregistered guest
Posted on
High sensitivity and high impedance speakers have no, repeat NO, negative effects on tube amps. Almost all tube amps have transformer taps at 16 Ohms making certain they produce their rated power into any load from 4,8 or 16 Ohm taps. Try that with a transistor amp. I can personally attest to the quality of the LS3/5a's with tubes.
KEGGER: nice catch also to you, I should have said impedance instead of sensitivity.
Now, when I say this amp works better with this impedance, I'm talking extreme cases.
Transistor amps don't get along with very low impedance, the same way tube amps don't get along with very high impedances, MEANING:
If you short -"zero" ohms- the amps outputs, it will blow the power devices if it's a transistor amp, but not if it's a tube amp;
If you open -infinite ohms- the amp's outputs (terminals "on air") you will blow the amp's outputs if it's a tube amp, but not if it's a transistor amp;
This is a general rule, which aplies to the great majority of tube and transistor amps.
In both amp types, the higher the sensitivity, the higher the volume will be, per watt. Generally, low sensitivity speakers tend to play better than high sensitivity ones, due to reactance issues that I'm not quite expertised to explain. The same way, high sensitivity speakers need amps with greater "damping factor" figures to achieve better performance.
NOTE: I always mean QUALITY WISE when I say "performance".