P
pewternhrata
Audioholic Chief
Does a speaker take less power to drive if a xover is set in the receiver? I'd assume it would since lower frequencies need more?
Would be interesting. when utilizing a SPL calculator, wouldn't you be getting more spl with less power? But by how much.To an extent as the avr's amps aren't being asked to cover as much....precisely how much or how to estimate I'd like to see more about, some say it's significant, others say not.
Yes...and no. Obviously with some part of the audio band being filtered out, demand on the receiver's amps will be overall reduced. On the other hand, it's possible for a segment of audio to be quite high in level without having any appreciable low end energy to filter out.Does a speaker take less power to drive if a xover is set in the receiver? I'd assume it would since lower frequencies need more?
No. A speaker requires a certain amount of energy to make it do something but it will handle more power if the crossover removes energy in a frequency range where the speaker doesn't work well- it's the whole reason for crossovers of all types, anyway. There's no reason to try to force a driver to do something it can't and it will usually fail if this is attempted.Does a speaker take less power to drive if a xover is set in the receiver? I'd assume it would since lower frequencies need more?
So if a receiver is outputting 20 watts, the speakers will play at the same spl regardless if the receiver is set to full range or have a xover set?No. A speaker requires a certain amount of energy to make it do something but it will handle more power if the crossover removes energy in a frequency range where the speaker doesn't work well- it's the whole reason for crossovers of all types, anyway. There's no reason to try to force a driver to do something it can't and it will usually fail if this is attempted.
Lower frequencies require more power partially because humans don't hear as well at low (or very high) frequencies and because bass requires compression of the air, mids and highs don't move the air as forcefully, or as much physical volume (not audio volume level).
Yes, but for a different reason. And like others have already said, the difference in power consumption isn't usually large.Does a speaker take less power to drive if a xover is set in the receiver? I'd assume it would since lower frequencies need more?
Even if you don't EQ for the reduced hearing acuity at low frequencies, more power from an amplifier is required. As an example, if the frequency to be reproduced is halved, the cone excursion is increased by a factor of four.No. A speaker requires a certain amount of energy to make it do something but it will handle more power if the crossover removes energy in a frequency range where the speaker doesn't work well- it's the whole reason for crossovers of all types, anyway. There's no reason to try to force a driver to do something it can't and it will usually fail if this is attempted.
Lower frequencies require more power partially because humans don't hear as well at low (or very high) frequencies and because bass requires compression of the air, mids and highs don't move the air as forcefully, or as much physical volume (not audio volume level).
Also, if the DCR of the inductor in series with the woofer is high, added to the resistance of the cable between the amplifier and the crossover, the resulting reduced damping factor may be problematic if the woofer has a high Qts. With some amplifiers with a high output resistance, there wouldn't be a good transient response as the amp would be unable to control adequately the cone movement of the woofer.Yes, but for a different reason. And like others have already said, the difference in power consumption isn't usually large.
Passive crossovers in loudspeakers have a large inductor coil for the woofer. It acts as a low-pass filter. The number of winds in the coil determine at what frequency the filter acts. The more winds there are in the coil, the lower the low-pass frequency, and the higher the inherent resistance. This resistance, called DC resistance (DCR),can consume some power. The thickness of the coiled wire also has an effect on DCR, the thinner the wire the greater the DCR. You can find inductor coils with wire gauge ranging from as thin as 20g to as thick as 12g.
As the wire gets thicker the price goes up, and the coil gets physically larger. As you can imagine a 15 or 16g inductor coil can take up more space inside a speaker cabinet than a 19 or 20g coil, while they have the same inductance value.
If a crossover is placed upstream from the amp, it can be much smaller because the voltage and current of the music signal before amplification is much smaller. As a result, the losses due to DCR are much smaller. These crossovers are often called active crossovers because they are built to require an external source of electric power.
So, in theory, a passive crossover in a speaker can eat up more power than an active crossover, however the difference isn’t so great that turning up the volume can’t correct for it. In some cases, a more powerful amp may be needed, but this is less common.
This a generalization, and like all generalizations, you can find exceptions. In a 3-way speaker with a low crossover frequency between the woofer and mid-range, less than about 400 Hz, the woofer high-pass inductor coil will be very large, and depending on the wire gauge, expensive. This is why the crossovers for subwoofers are placed upstream from their amps. It also allows you to choose different crossover frequencies.
I was referring to the range where a driver doesn't operate well, if at all.Even if you don't EQ for the reduced hearing acuity at low frequencies, more power from an amplifier is required. As an example, if the frequency to be reproduced is halved, the cone excursion is increased by a factor of four.
That explains why a bigger cone area will displace more air and be more efficient in the reproduction of very low frequencies.