L

Lewis Sheppard

Audioholic
Does it make a difference if it works/is in good/decent condition???
 
Swerd

Swerd

Audioholic Warlord
If it works, and the price is right, a used amp can be a good way to buy.

Sites like audiogon are full of perfectly good used amps being sold by people who suffer from Audio Nirvana Nervosa.

Be patient as you search, because initial asking prices can be high. With time they often are willing to come down.
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Try to reach out to Dr. Mark aka TLSGuy - he might able to give you few good tips re: british amps.... I do know he's a big QUAD fan :)
 
M

markw

Audioholic Overlord
Amp technology hasn't really gone through any massive changes in the past few decades.

If you find a good, clean, functioning amp within your price range that meets your needs, I'd say jump on it.
 
L

Lewis Sheppard

Audioholic
Thanks guys :) and I think I already have an old Akai amp which I think I will use while buying some speakers as it was one or the other really.
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Thanks guys :) and I think I already have an old Akai amp which I think I will use while buying some speakers as it was one or the other really.
do remember that great speakers with mediocre amp will sound much better than mediocre speakers with great amp
 
L

Lewis Sheppard

Audioholic
do remember that great speakers with mediocre amp will sound much better than mediocre speakers with great amp
What are Akai amps like? Never really seen much of them and it's really old. Also, the speakers I'll be getting will be somewhat £50 ones as I'm only 16 and still in school so I'm a bit short on money.
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
What are Akai amps like? Never really seen much of them and it's really old. Also, the speakers I'll be getting will be somewhat £50 ones as I'm only 16 and still in school so I'm a bit short on money.
with 50 pounds in speakers, it doesn't matter how good Akai amp is :D
 
Pyrrho

Pyrrho

Audioholic Ninja
I don't even understand this ohms thing :confused:
Ohms is a measurement of resistance or impedance to the flow of electricity. The lower the ohms rating, the lower the resistance or impedance. That makes it easier for the electricity to flow. However, that can be a dangerous thing for amplifiers, which have limits on what they can handle regarding the flow of electricity. The extreme is 0 ohms, which would be shorting out the output of the amplifier, which, in most cases, is something that can potentially damage an amplifier, though some have protection circuitry to prevent damage and will just shut down instead.

What this means in practical terms is this: You want the amplifier to be capable of handling the impedance of a particular speaker if you are going to use that speaker with that amplifier. If you have a speaker that has a minimum impedance of 8 ohms, than anything rated for 8 ohms should work with it (though if it is very low powered and the speakers are of low sensitivity, you may not get much volume). Beware, though, of "nominal" impedances, as some speaker companies essentially lie about this in order to make a sale even though the speaker is not suitable for use with an amplifier that can handle that impedance and no lower.

Here is an article with some more information:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_characteristics_of_dynamic_loudspeakers

There are standards for what "nominal impedance" means, as in that article, but, evidently, there is no legal definition of the expression, and many speaker companies give a number that is not even close to what the "nominal impedance" is in that article. In other words, they lie.
 
H

herbu

Audioholic Samurai
I don't even understand this ohms thing :confused:
Pyrrho's explanation is right. For your practical use, I think you can remember one thing to stay out of trouble... Only connect 1 speaker to a speaker output on your AVR/amp. Don't be tempted to connect 2 or more different speakers to a single speaker output. As kids, I suspect more people than me simply began adding speakers, (in both car and home), and just sort of stringed the connections together. That is when the "Ohm" thing will get you.

Connect the speakers as they are labeled on your AVR/amp, and you'll likely be fine. As you begin to get into high dollar equipment, you may give more consideration to ohms.
 
L

Lewis Sheppard

Audioholic
Pyrrho's explanation is right. For your practical use, I think you can remember one thing to stay out of trouble... Only connect 1 speaker to a speaker output on your AVR/amp. Don't be tempted to connect 2 or more different speakers to a single speaker output. As kids, I suspect more people than me simply began adding speakers, (in both car and home), and just sort of stringed the connections together. That is when the "Ohm" thing will get you.

Connect the speakers as they are labeled on your AVR/amp, and you'll likely be fine. As you begin to get into high dollar equipment, you may give more consideration to ohms.
Thanks! I really hope Pyrrho didn't spend a lot of time writing that out as I googled it after I posted that and found an answer almost straight away.
 
M Code

M Code

Audioholic General
What are Akai amps like? Never really seen much of them and it's really old. Also, the speakers I'll be getting will be somewhat £50 ones as I'm only 16 and still in school so I'm a bit short on money.
@ one time Akai was a major audio brand, selling most tape decks. They did market a line of audio components (amplifiers, tuners) & receivers, I recall most were built in Japan and of reasonable mid-quality.. But like any amplifier 25 years old, its a crap shot maybe OK maybe not.. Try it and see..

Just my $0.05... ;)
 
L

Lewis Sheppard

Audioholic
@ one time Akai was a major audio brand, selling most tape decks. They did market a line of audio components (amplifiers, tuners) & receivers, I recall most were built in Japan and of reasonable mid-quality.. But like any amplifier 25 years old, its a crap shot maybe OK maybe not.. Try it and see..

Just my $0.05... ;)
It was Yamaha not Akai :rolleyes:
 
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