Low Volume Fidelity VS Power Ratings

[Andrein]

If there was a difference with my system it's very subtle, even inaudible. I know when I switched my bookshelf speakers out for the towers I have now it made a much bigger impact.

Maybe in your case speakers is the weakest chain in your system...

 

[Verdinut]

I can tell you that the Monolith has outstanding specs and is built by ATI, one of the best US OEM electronics manufacturers.
It may show higher distortion figures than a McIntosh, but you won't hear distortion from it. Also, it probably has more bass punch than the McIntosh which is overpriced. Most McIntosh amps have autotransformers in their output stage that kill their damping factor.

I would not hesitate to recommend the Monolith.

 

[lovinthehd]

That is exactly what I found. I'm quite surprised he didn't get the same thing. I'm actually floored by it. I have no idea why.

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More or less the same idea forced me to look for another amp. Monolith 5 and Anthem mca 525 gave me what i was looking for. More fidelity, better dynamic range, more details, better signal to noise ratio, more separation of instruments.

Don't you both have the same avr? Maybe there's something to that angle but since neither of you have done a proper comparison, you might still be surprised by what a proper comparison might yield without expectation bias rolled into the mix....

 

[Pogre]

Maybe in your case speakers is the weakest chain in your system...

Lol. No.

 

[LuisEcho]

I am thinking speakers are a bigger point of interest than amps. The SR6011 has good specs and I would expect it to be clean at low levels.

However, I have definitely heard speakers that sounded very poor at low levels then came into their own once you opened them up. I expect selecting the right speaker will be the most relevant choice in getting this right!

I don't know what characteristics would affect this in a speaker, but someone else probably does. I do know that having the speakers close for low level listening seems to give a fuller sound.
How low is your low level? Do you have a SPL meter?

I dont have an spl meter but im listening at arround -55 i think db

 

[Andrein]

Don't you both have the same avr? Maybe there's something to that angle but since neither of you have done a proper comparison, you might still be surprised by what a proper comparison might yield without expectation bias rolled into the mix....

No. Diff avrs. I have yamaha a860. Not marantz

 

[lovinthehd]

I dont have an spl meter but im listening at arround -55 i think db

Is that calibrated to the THX standard with a measurement mic/auto setup routine (where you are down 55dB from reference volume)? If so that's a very low volume level....at -55 on my sets that's barely audible, a level I might turn mine down to if I got a phone call....

 

[LuisEcho]

Maybe in your case speakers is the weakest chain in your system...

Wow big hit for me i know there are exotic speakers out there but the cm10's are about 4k a pair i think next level up is 9k a pair 804 d3's i cant do that

 

[Andrein]

Don't you both have the same avr? Maybe there's something to that angle but since neither of you have done a proper comparison, you might still be surprised by what a proper comparison might yield without expectation bias rolled into the mix....

This entire thing is all one big bias. My bias is not worse than yours))) I dont care much about measurments. I will do that as well. But if you played music instruments professionally you would rely yourself more like i do)))

 

[lovinthehd]

No. Diff avrs. I have yamaha a860. Not marantz

Hetfield also has a Yamaha, believe same model....

 

[lovinthehd]

This entire thing is all one big bias. My bias is not worse than yours))) I dont care much about measurments. I will do that as well. But if you played music instruments professionally you would rely yourself more like i do)))

I'm talking about a blind level matched comparison....but indeed I am not a professional musician.

 

[Andrein]

Wow big hit for me i know there are exotic speakers out there but the cm10's are about 4k a pair i think next level up is 9k a pair 804 d3's i cant do that

I meant Pogre's speakers actually. If new amp didnot give him anything this makes me think his speakers are not good enough. Also some people can hear more than others. If you cant hear some frequencies amp wont help you...

 

[Hetfield]

Ok have with this thread. I'm stepping out because people cannot take what people say for what it is. Don't tell me I didn't hear a difference, and big one. These threads always turn into this. Don't tell me what I did or did not hear. I didn't question Porge, he didn't hear a difference then he didn't. It surprises me but that's what he heard.

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[Andrein]

Hetfield also has a Yamaha, believe same model....

Actually following advice from AH, i am replacing a860 with a1060 given the weak preout in a860 and drop in prices on prev generation of yamaha avrs

 

[lovinthehd]

Ok have with this thread. I'm stepping out because people cannot take what people say for what it is. Don't tell me I didn't hear a difference, and big one. These threads always turn into this. Don't tell me what I did or did not hear. I didn't question Porge, he didn't hear a difference then he didn't. It surprises me but that's what he heard.

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Not until you eat that hat

And get rid of the tapatalk ad!

 

[Andrein]

Not until you eat that hat

And get rid of the tapatalk ad!

Seriously, you could be more polite tbh.

 

[LuisEcho]

Ok have with this thread. I'm stepping out because people cannot take what people say for what it is. Don't tell me I didn't hear a difference, and big one. These threads always turn into this. Don't tell me what I did or did not hear. I didn't question Porge, he didn't hear a difference then he didn't. It surprises me but that's what he heard.

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HETFIELD thanks for your opinion im new to this world but enjoy what ive learned so far

 

[Pogre]

Seriously, you could be more polite tbh.

You just implied my speakers suck!

 

[Andrein]

You just implied my speakers suck!

I said it might be the problem with speakers. Maybe not. All agreed that speakers are more important, right? So...

 

[Swerd]

Every time i ask a retailer about low volume fidelity they are always trying to sell me more power, separates, or stereo amps. I have a Marantz sr6011 that has decent power but i am looking for fidelity.

I can only repeat what Pogre, lovinthehd, and KEW have already said. If your speakers have good fidelity at high volume, but not at low volume, it's not the amp, it's the speakers. A higher powered amp can create more headroom (lack of clipping) when there are peaks in the music, but it cannot affect the sound quality at low volumes.

@LuisEcho – Please help by better defining what you mean by "low volume fidelity".

• Do you mean frequency range? Is there less sound only at the low or high frequencies?
• Or do you mean something else? Is the overall sound quality different? As KEW described above, "do your speakers sound poor at low (volume) levels and then come into their own once you open them up?" Does music sound as if it's coming only from inside the speaker cabinets at low volume? And at high volume does the music sound as if it's coming from outside the speaker cabinets?

Both of these types of 'low fidelity' are due to the speakers and not the amplifier power.

In my experience, the type of low fidelity I described in my second bullet is due to poor off-axis dispersion of sound by the drivers used in the speakers. Widely dispersed off-axis sound is what helps speakers create a wider image and sound stage. Some speakers do that only at higher volumes, and other speakers can do that at both low and high volumes. No amp that I know of can affect that.