Looking at today's audio amplifier products, one cannot help but be overwhelmed by the number of technologies and models. Regardless of your application, I will explain some essential amplifiers terms which will be useful when picking the right model.
Some audio sources such as surround-sound receivers already come with a built-in audio amplifier. Using a separate amplifier, however, offers some advantages. One advantage is having more flexibility and being able to pick an amplifier that is best suited to drive a particular speaker. Some of today's mini amplifier models can be hidden virtually anywhere due to their small size.
Most people will look at amplifier wattage first when choosing an amplifier. Output wattage is the amount of power the amplifier is able to deliver to the speakers. Driving low-sensitivity speakers (sensitivity is expressed in dB/W) requires fairly high wattage. Also, driving outdoor speakers or speakers in a large room will require higher amplifier power. You shouldn't use an amplifier with significantly higher output power than your speakers can handle. Overdriving your speakers can do irreparable damage to your speakers.
However, a 20 to 50 Watt amplifier will give you more than enough power in most situations so don't be overly concerned about the rated amplifier wattage.
Amplifier wattage is given either as rms or continuous power which shows how much power the amplifier can deliver continuously or as maximum or peak power which shows how much power the amp can output for short periods of time. You should choose an amplifier that has sufficient rms power, although 10 to 30 Watts should be plenty for most applications but has enough headroom for peaks that occur in music signals.
Audio quality is just as important as having enough audio power and therefore you should also look at figures such as total harmonic distortion or THD. No amplifier is perfect. There will be some amount of signal distortion which is caused by the amplifier. The amount of distortion is expressed in percent or dB. A smaller distortion number means a lower distortion of the audio signal by the amplifier. The amount of distortion will be less than 0.05% for a high-quality amplifier. Consumer type amplifiers have higher distortion figures. Typical figures are up to 10% depending on the output power.
Another figure related to audio quality is known as signal-to-noise ratio and describes the amount of unwanted noise the amplifier will add to the signal. Higher-end amplifiers will achieve a signal-to-noise ratio of at least 100 dB while consumer grade amplifiers will typically have a signal ratio of at least 80 dB.
There are several amplifier technologies available. Today's amplifiers are mostly Class-D amplifiers. Class-D amplifiers have a high power efficiency and waste little energy as heat. High power efficiency has led to the development of very small amplifiers. Some of these latest mini amplifiers are no bigger than a deck of cards. Class-D type amplifiers often have higher distortion and a lower signal-to-noise ratio than Class-A or Class-AB amplifiers. Some latest digital amplifier models, however, come very close to the audio quality of analog amps. Make certain that the amp has low distortion and a high SNR if you pick a Class-D amp.
Some audio sources such as surround-sound receivers already come with a built-in audio amplifier. Using a separate amplifier, however, offers some advantages. One advantage is having more flexibility and being able to pick an amplifier that is best suited to drive a particular speaker. Some of today's mini amplifier models can be hidden virtually anywhere due to their small size.
Most people will look at amplifier wattage first when choosing an amplifier. Output wattage is the amount of power the amplifier is able to deliver to the speakers. Driving low-sensitivity speakers (sensitivity is expressed in dB/W) requires fairly high wattage. Also, driving outdoor speakers or speakers in a large room will require higher amplifier power. You shouldn't use an amplifier with significantly higher output power than your speakers can handle. Overdriving your speakers can do irreparable damage to your speakers.
However, a 20 to 50 Watt amplifier will give you more than enough power in most situations so don't be overly concerned about the rated amplifier wattage.
Amplifier wattage is given either as rms or continuous power which shows how much power the amplifier can deliver continuously or as maximum or peak power which shows how much power the amp can output for short periods of time. You should choose an amplifier that has sufficient rms power, although 10 to 30 Watts should be plenty for most applications but has enough headroom for peaks that occur in music signals.
Audio quality is just as important as having enough audio power and therefore you should also look at figures such as total harmonic distortion or THD. No amplifier is perfect. There will be some amount of signal distortion which is caused by the amplifier. The amount of distortion is expressed in percent or dB. A smaller distortion number means a lower distortion of the audio signal by the amplifier. The amount of distortion will be less than 0.05% for a high-quality amplifier. Consumer type amplifiers have higher distortion figures. Typical figures are up to 10% depending on the output power.
Another figure related to audio quality is known as signal-to-noise ratio and describes the amount of unwanted noise the amplifier will add to the signal. Higher-end amplifiers will achieve a signal-to-noise ratio of at least 100 dB while consumer grade amplifiers will typically have a signal ratio of at least 80 dB.
There are several amplifier technologies available. Today's amplifiers are mostly Class-D amplifiers. Class-D amplifiers have a high power efficiency and waste little energy as heat. High power efficiency has led to the development of very small amplifiers. Some of these latest mini amplifiers are no bigger than a deck of cards. Class-D type amplifiers often have higher distortion and a lower signal-to-noise ratio than Class-A or Class-AB amplifiers. Some latest digital amplifier models, however, come very close to the audio quality of analog amps. Make certain that the amp has low distortion and a high SNR if you pick a Class-D amp.
About the Author:
Gunter Fellbaum has been developing audio and electronic products for over 10 years. You can get additional information regarding t-amp models as well as power amplifier products from Amphony's website.
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