There was an old thread about power meters. I found this little toy that can do the job nicely.
Atlantic Quality Design, Inc., The PM-150 Audio Power Meter
Atlantic Quality Design, Inc., The PM-150 Audio Power Meter
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/solid-state/104259-my-1024w-rms-class-amplifier.html
Too bad we will never see the end of that story.
I use this gizmo a lot. Sometimes you want to know the current draw.
Amazon.com: P3 International P4400 Kill A Watt Electricity Usage Monitor: Camera & Photo
definitely worth the $20.
Amazon.com: P3 International P4400 Kill A Watt Electricity Usage Monitor: Camera & Photo
definitely worth the $20.
The device isn't measuring power if the speaker in and out jacks have virtually zero insertion loss. It appears that the device is measuring the voltage across the speakers and does not take in account the impedance of the loudspeaker.
For accurate measurement of output power, you really need to sample the current going to the loudspeaker using a low value resistor or a current sampling transformer.
Even so, you'll need to be able to calibrate the meter across the audio spectrum based upon the actual impedance of your speaker system at various frequencies.
That is why most amplifier power meters are pretty much useless. They are simply not accurate.
For accurate measurement of output power, you really need to sample the current going to the loudspeaker using a low value resistor or a current sampling transformer.
Even so, you'll need to be able to calibrate the meter across the audio spectrum based upon the actual impedance of your speaker system at various frequencies.
That is why most amplifier power meters are pretty much useless. They are simply not accurate.
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