If you are looking for new speakers, you will certainly be faced with a number of issues. This way you come across specifications that you may not know what they say or what to do with. In this article of Specifications of speakers we therefore explain the important specifications of loudspeakers.
Specifications of speakers: Wattage of speakers
The wattage of a speaker is always a bad point. How much do you need? What’s normal? What does it mean? We will not go into this too deeply, but first describe what the wattage of a speaker is exactly;
The wattage of a speaker is not something a speaker has , but what it can handle . A (passive) speaker itself has no built-in amplifier. If a speaker says 100 watts somewhere, this means that the speaker can process 100 watts, which an amplifier sends out. This does not mean that a speaker cannot handle more than 100 watts. This is because each manufacturer comes to a certain wattage in a different way. They all have different ways of calculating this.
Many people also think that the higher the wattage, the louder the speaker can be. This is not right. The loudness of a speaker also depends on the sensitivity, effectiveness and frequency range. Often it is that a higher wattage means that the speaker can play louder, but you cannot simply assume this. It’s not a rule.
We can give an example to delve deeper into the specifications; When you double the wattage, you only get 3db (Decibel) more volume. So, when the rest of the specifications are the same and a speaker has a sensitivity of 98db (Decibel) and can handle 500 Watt, this speaker will generate exactly the same volume as a speaker of 95db and 1000 Watt. This perfectly shows that it is very difficult to precisely understand the specifications of speakers. You really should dive into this. That is why it is always wise to ask for advice from a seller at a hi-fi specialist. This saves you headaches and gives you a perfect sound system. After all, it is mainly about experiencing and listening yourself, let the salesperson tell you whether it works well technically what you want.
Also read more about the types of speakers and the position of speakers in your home theater system .
Reference table
However, we can give some advice, so that you can at least make an estimate in terms of wattage. But, as said, the sound that a speaker produces depends on many more things and you will always have to listen first and get advice. The table below shows what each wattage for sound can produce.
2W = 93db
4W = 96db
8W = 99db
16W = 102db
32W = 105db
64W = 108db
128W = 111db
256W = 114db
512W = 117db
1024W = 120db
Now for the reference to the volume:
10db = normal breathing
60db = normal conversation
110db = screaming in your ear, electric saw, car horn
120db = rock concert, Boeing 747 taking off, ambulance siren
And then the comparison with a living room;
|
Speaker Sensitivity [dB] |
Small (less than 60 m3) |
Medium (between 60 and 85 m3) |
Large (more than 85 m3) |
| 85 | 96 | 128 | 192 |
| 86 | 76 | 101 | 152 |
| 87 | 60 | 81 | 121 |
| 88 | 48 | 64 | 96 |
| 89 | 38 | 51 | 76 |
| 90 | 30 | 40 | 61 |
| 91 | 24 | 32 | 48 |
| 92 | 19 | 25 | 38 |
Speaker impedance (resistance)
Most speakers have an impedance (resistance) of 8 ohms. Some speakers have a resistance of 4 ohms, which means that they draw twice as much power from the receiver / amplifier. Most receivers have no problems controlling an 8 Ohm speaker, but only the more powerful receivers can also perfectly control 4 Ohm speakers. This simply requires more power and power supply. If you have speakers with an impedance of 6 or 4 ohms, make sure you look for a receiver that specifies output for 4 ohms. Usually such a receiver also has 8-4 Ohm on the back. Receivers with only 8 Ohm can also drive 4 Ohm speakers, but the performance will be less than when they drive 8 Ohm speakers. Moreover, the power of the output is not known with a 4 Ohm speaker. So,
Loudspeaker advice
If you want a good home cinema system and your budget is flexible enough, we recommend choosing a receiver or amplifier with at least the following specifications;
– 80 Watts RMS (for all channels, not just stereo)
– 6-8 Ohms per channel
– 20Hz to 20KHz, when all channels are on
– With no more than 0.08% THD (How clean a receiver can process an audio signal )
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