Speakers suitable for digital surround?

Posted by Jim Millsap [IP: 207.36.131.214] on January 16, 1999 at 19:40:05:

In Reply to: Speakers suitable for digital surround? posted by Paul Godden on January 15, 1999 at 00:39:26:

Paul,

First, I agree with Bob. Also, I am not familiar with your speakers. Are the 18" subs powered or not? If they are not, then the Yamaha would be an aweful choice. Actually, even if they are powered, I would not get a receiver. Receiver's are not able to produce massive amounts of current like seperate amplifiers. The transformers are too small. There is a reason why they cost less. And as far as side speakers? Well you'll still need another amp and processor. The Yamaha DSP-A1 is "7 channels", however the 6th & 7th are front effects at 1Khz only. They are not full range. If you want to have side speakers you would need a processor like a Lexicon DC-1/DC-2/MC-1 that outputs 7 channels. The 6th & 7th are for side speakers, not just effects at 1Khz.

With ProLogic, receivers were ok because the rear surround speakers were never given a full range of frequencies. They didn't need a lot of current to handle lower frequencies.

With DD & DTS, the signal now allows for full range frequencies to the rear speakers. Since there is a lot of dynamic range(IE: From dead silence to a massive explosion VERY quickly), at fairly loud volumes, you can expect just about any receiver to clip/shut off/pop the speakers/or blow a fuse.

Don't get too caught up with Power ratings. Actually if your speakers are rated at 200Watts RMS, any lesser amplifier will not properly drive them IMHO. That is unless your speakers have a very high sensitivity rating. Then you might be ok.

Question: How far can you turn the volume up on a receiver? Not very far before problems occur. And by how far... I mean during a REALLY BIG EXPLOSION!!! If you had a 400Watt seperate amplifier, you would most likely not experience any shutdowns or pops in your speakers unless you crank the Amp all the way up(which is stupid to do in the first place).

Also remember that an Amp rated much higher has more room for dynamic range, and the distortion is greater near the Amp's limitation. So if it's a 100Watt amp, the closer you get to 100Watts, the more distortion you will get. Same with a 400Watt amp. But then again, you would not use all 400Watts in the size of room you have. The idea goes that you shouldn't receive any additional distortion at louder volumes than your amp normally generates at lower volumes.

Finally, the current draw on a receiver is pretty demanding. If you have just 2 speakers drawing a lot of current, that would put a strain on the Receiver's Amp. Now imagine 5 speakers trying to go from dead silence to a massive explosion. ALL AT THE SAME TIME. Talk about demand.

I would recommend the new Signature Cinema Grand 5 Channel amp shown at the Las Vegas CES show. As far as a processor that's not too expensive, you might want to consider the new Rotel, Acurus ACT-3, Or even Sony. I myself am waiting for the Lexicon MC-1. And Lexicon is the only company that offers trade-in credit and upgrades. At least that I am aware of.

Hope this helps.

Jim Millsap

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