Noobie budget upgrade amp/speaker matching

[Noobie]

Hello all. Just registered here to get some advice from the experts. My existing super budget "system" is a pair of the Dayton B652 bookshelves powered by a Lepai 2020a+ amp. I'm upgrading the speakers to Pioneer B22 bookshelves, but I'm concerned that the Lepai will not be able to drive them effectively. I'm really completely new to this, and trying to understand the relationships of watts to impedance, etc...as the name suggests, I'm a neophyte. Do I need a more powerful amp to drive the Pioneers? If so, I'd like to keep it as cheap as possible...under $100, lower if possible. I've been looking at the Dayton DTA 100a, various Topping models, and the Sherwood 4105 receiver, although I definitely prefer the smaller size of the stand alone amps. I will only be using this to power the bookshelves. Any suggestions?

 

[j_garcia]

Stick with that amp for now and see how it does once you get the speakers. They are mid-range sensitivity at 86dB, but that amp should be able to handle them at average listening levels. I am running my BS22-LRs off a low power amp and they're doing fine.

 

[Grador]

I completely agree with the advice above, there's no reason to look at a new amp until you're convinced yours will not work.

To give you a little information on wattage and impedance. Wattage is voltage multiplied by current. With a higher impedance load you get less current flowing across so for the same wattage you'll need more voltage. On the other hand lower impedance is easier for current to travel through, so the same wattage will require more current and therefore lower voltage.

Providing current is generally a more difficult thing for amplifiers to do than providing higher voltage, which is why people often call lower impedance speakers a "more difficult" load.

 

[Noobie]

That's what I was hoping to hear! The speakers just arrived, so I'll try them with the Lepai. Thanks for the replies!

 

[hizzaah]

Don't forget to post back with your impressions!

 

[Noobie]

Okay, first impressions. These sound a-MA-zing! Keep in mind that I'm a noob, and this is a (massive) step up from the Dayton B652s. I also have the M-Audio AV40s (which I actually like a lot), but it seems unfair to compare them since they're designed as studio monitors. I don't know all the audiophile lingo, so bear with me. As one would expect, these have much more clarity than the Daytons, but the biggest surprise is the amount of clear bass they produce. The B652s were a bit fatiguing with harsh highs before breaking in (I think I do subscribe to the burn in "theory"). Even after that, I found it much more comfortable to use the tone control on the Lepai to back off the treble. There is no need for any of this with the Pioneers. They sounded great from the first note, and I happily disabled the tone control on the Lepai, because it seems to obscure the sound a bit. It's obviously early days yet, and I haven't had a chance to bring the volume up for a sustained period of time (live with others), but I have no doubt that it will handle it well. My concerns about matching the Lepai with the B22s seem to have been unfounded. I notice the volume doesn't ramp up as quickly (or probably as high; haven't tested yet) as with the Daytons, but it gets more than loud enough for the 300 sq ft room where they're located. I have to sing the praises of the Lepai...for less than $20, it continues to impress me as "the little amp that could." If there's anyone out looking to build a super budget 2.0 system like the Lepai-Dayton, I strongly recommend you consider extending your budget to include the Pioneer B22 for superior sound quality. My hat is off to the designer Andrew Jones! I should also mention that the speakers look much nicer in real life than in the photos. The build quality seems very high, and I'm actually kind of digging the wood grain, even though I didn't think I would.