Speaker wattage

[Jimmy82]

I've recently got my hands on a vintage technics audio system with 2 loudspeakers but i don't know the wattage and it isn't written anywhere.The speakers are the nb-304 12'' 4 way (Technics? googled it didn't find it).Can someone tell me a way to find the wattage?

 

[markw]

It really doesn't matter. Just use your ears and your head.

Speakers can absorb gobs of power for short periods of time.

Just keep an ear on things and if it starts to sound bad, turn it down NOW!!! Not a few minutes later, NOW!!!

 

[j_garcia]

What markw said. The wattage rating for a speaker is almost irrelevant because you won't really know how much power they are using at a given time since, electrically speaking, things change depending on what the speaker is playing and how loud. As long as you have enough power for the levels you are trying to get out of them, you should be fine.

 

[tcarcio]

Agreed, It usually isn't power that blows speakers it's distortion. If you use common sense you will be fine. I run my speakers with amps that are at least twice the power they are rated for with no problems.

 

[PENG]

Go with what Mark said and don't take it to the bank when people told you not to worry about power. The fact is, call it distortion if you prefer, ultimately it is current that does the damage. Try cranking the volume of say a Bryston 14B up high enough for more than a few seconds I guarantee it will blow any of the old Technics speakers, distortion or not.

 

[j_garcia]

Go with what Mark said and don't take it to the bank when people told you not to worry about power. The fact is, call it distortion if you prefer, ultimately it is current that does the damage. Try cranking the volume of say a Bryston 14B up high enough for more than a few seconds I guarantee it will blow any of the old Technics speakers, distortion or not.

That's where the common sense part comes in Sure, you can send too much current to a speaker, but that isn't likely to happen in normal listening IMO. I have hooked up very high power amps to some crappy little speakers and even when intentionally trying to damage them I found it was more difficult than I thought, however my brother managed to blow one of the speakers in my car in a few minutes by cranking it.

 

[yepimonfire]

That's where the common sense part comes in Sure, you can send too much current to a speaker, but that isn't likely to happen in normal listening IMO. I have hooked up very high power amps to some crappy little speakers and even when intentionally trying to damage them I found it was more difficult than I thought, however my brother managed to blow one of the speakers in my car in a few minutes by cranking it.

agreed i've used small 50w max rated minimus speakers (old radioshack speaker) on 100w amps and pushed them to the limit without any problems, woofers normally don't blow from over powering them, they will knock against the pole piece or the heat will melt the glue and stuff separating the coils from shorting and get ruined that way, but there will be loads of distortion that is very noticeable before that happens tweeters are what you have to watch because they have very small thin voice coils and since they are so small they can't dissipate heat as well, but you will also notice bad distortion before they go. most speakers are safe with 100w amps, and, unless your trying to fill a very big room or use it as a PA speaker, you're not going to be able to stand a high enough volume to blow them. just listen at a reasonable volume and they shouldn't blow, and like everyone else has said, if you can hear distortion or the speaker making it's own noise, turn it down.