Topic: Can somebody explain wattage and speaker efficiency? (tube vs. SS content)

[macdaddy]

It can't hurt to try.

that is what i was looking for. +t

i was going to try plugging the cables in to 4ohm taps, but the back panel of my klipsch speakers says 8ohms, so i never have. but if i wont f*ck something up, i will give it a whirl sometime...

[ducati]

You will not f*ck anything up.

[Tim]

I had no idea... I'm going to mess with that next week. thanks

here's a 100 for ya ducati

[BobW]

I don't think that anyone really hit sensitivity and efficiency for speakers.

FWIW, here's a few good links:

Sensitivity:
http://jsdsound.eds-tech.com/sensitivity.htm

http://www.audiovideo101.com/dictionary/sensitivity.asp

Efficiency:

http://www.visi.com/~asm/Newsletters/2001/asm_apr_01.pdf#search='speaker%20efficiency'

http://www.lenardaudio.com/education/05_speakers.html

[ducati]

Make sure you let us know what you think.  It all depends upon the speaker/amp interaction!

[macdaddy]

Make sure you let us know what you think.  It all depends upon the speaker/amp interaction!

so just power down, pull the plugs, reconnect to the different set of taps, and power back up..?

[ducati]

Yes--but just as a general suggestion, leave your tube amp powered off for awhile.  A few mins should be sufficient.  It is very hard on tube amps to turn off/on in quick succession.  The worst case is a quick off/on (sometimes you will hear audible groaning!) but I try to play it safe there.

[macdaddy]

well, i'll be d*mned... i think using the 4ohm taps improves the sound noticeably. the sound stage opened up a bit, and i have a bit more defined bass (i know that is what every audiophile says, but i swear, i hear it)... the dobros sound much more real, too [listening to david johansen and the harry smiths (2-ch sacd)]...

i am very glad i tried that - thanks again, ducati, for holding my hand, and reassuring me

[ducati]

You're welcome!!  Glad you liked it.  Now listen like this for a few weeks and switch back.  I'll be interested to hear what you heard "going back."  It should vindicate the decision on which is the better tap

[pfife]

well, i'll be d*mned... i think using the 4ohm taps improves the sound noticeably. the sound stage opened up a bit, and i have a bit more defined bass (i know that is what every audiophile says, but i swear, i hear it)... the dobros sound much more real, too [listening to david johansen and the harry smiths (2-ch sacd)]...

i am very glad i tried that - thanks again, ducati, for holding my hand, and reassuring me

Wait, so you just hooked up 8ohm Klipsch to the 4ohm outputs on the amp, and that's not going to hurt the amp?   I'm confused... 

anyways, what klipsch are you running, macdaddy? 

[ducati]

No, it won't hurt anything.  Each speaker is different, and each amp/speaker combo will be "optimized" as well as possible on one of the existing taps.  Lots of ratings "8 ohm, 8ohm compatible" etc are just general guidelines.  Curves vary widely in practice...  Here's the curve from my now-departed B&W N805's (courtesy of Stereophile):

[pfife]

damn, I guess I'll have to try it then.  +t

[ducati]

BTW--in that Stereophile diagram, the black line is impedence.

I liked that speaker on the 8 ohm tap best, as you can see, it doesn't drop below 8 very often.

[Tim]

just switched from the 8ohm to the 4ohm taps... sound is very different, noticeable change immediatley... not sure which I like more but for the time being the new 4ohm setup has me intrugued. the bass and low mids seem cleaner and the bass seems tighter and lower..... the upper mids seem cleaner as well...

I'll have to do some more listening though

[Tim]

hmmmm..... imaging seems tighter and the soundstage seems much deeper and WIDER... instruments are reaching well outside my speakers, much further than usual.

I'm going to switch back to the 8ohm taps in a bit and see what I think of the differences but the 4ohm taps seems to have really brought my system to life...

edit: soundstage is a touch wider, not as dramatic as I originally thought... overall though the soundstage seems deeper, the imaging tighter, and the overall tonal characteristics seem cleaner with deeper bass when I'm on the 4ohm taps as oppossed to the (recommended) 8ohm taps...

I still need to do more listening but I've got to thank DUCATI for tipping me off to this tweak... much thanks