The Black Hole......

Well some of us do sound systems for live performances. One of the design factors is the AC mains power substation. Goals can be as high as 105dB at 120 meters.

I used to have a next door neighbor who would play loud enough that outside the house and into my place it was above 65dB on the "A" weighted scale.

I did solve the problem. I bought the house!
 
Specific figures in the power of the amplifier are associated with the sound pressure that acoustic systems create. The calculation also has a conception of the sensitivity of these speakers. There are such formulas. They show that in order to create a sound pressure that reproduces the piano at its peak, it is about 110dB, for conventional speakers with a sensitivity of 96dB / W / 1m, an amplifier power of 25W is sufficient. However, for speakers with a sensitivity of 86 dB / W / 1m, 300W is required from the amplifier.

For speakers with a sensitivity of 90 dB / W / 1 m, 1000 W of amplifier is required to create a sound pressure at a peak of 120 dB. This is a level of studio quality.

I repeat that all these three calculations are for a small room with an area of ​​20m2 and a ceiling height of 3m. Or at a distance of 1 m from the speakers, if they are in an open space.
And these powers are musical peaks, and not constant, like for example the noise of a take-off airplane, etc.
Well, the sensitivity of my Quad ESL63 is 86dB /W / 1m.
So according to your math, I would need a 300Watt amplifier.
Apart from the fact that this sort of power would blow my electrostats to pieces, with my 100 Watt Amp I can almost drive the neighbourhood to despair.
So may I take your figures as academic and non consumer relevant ?

Hans
 
Well, the sensitivity of my Quad ESL63 is 86dB /W / 1m.
So according to your math, I would need a 300Watt amplifier.
Apart from the fact that this sort of power would blow my electrostats to pieces, with my 100 Watt Amp I can almost drive the neighbourhood to despair.
So may I take your figures as academic and non consumer relevant ?

Hans
If the speaker power is not specified in the formula, then it always exceeds the power of the amplifier. That is, an ideal case is described. I hope everyone has the common sense not to connect a 3 W speaker to a 100 W amplifier or a 300 W speaker to a 1 kW amplifier. etc.


But I will tell you a secret that even your electrostatic speakers will not burn out. unless you specifically rape them for all 1000W.
 
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Oh yes absolutely, you are right.
Obviously nobody in the Philips studio felt the need to produce insane levels to reproduce their recordings before editing.

Hans
After such words, I can now guarantee that people like you burn their electrostats.


What I wrote about concerns professional use in suitable separate or highly isolated rooms so as not to make noise to others.
Secondly, and most importantly, NOBODY forces you to listen to music with all the sound pressure of 120 dB that your unique equipment can provide. This feature is an option, not an obligation. And this option is intended for use by professionals for studio work, and not for voicing rap at a drunken party.
 
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Thanks GUNFU, you stated it better than I could.
In my situation, I often fight for LOWER POWER, but better fidelity.
For example, I might prefer a 100W amp for myself, because my speakers are of moderate sensitivity, 94 spl, and I live in an apartment building that has a fairly low tolerance for loud musical reproduction from other apartments (mostly older ladies, close to my age). I have a dual 400W amp (JC-5) with a voltage swing that I can never use. What a waste!
Yes, it must be admitted: It is the advertising department that likes the big numbers!
In fact, the JC-1+ was supposed to be rated at 500W into 8 ohms, but I complained, because the Class A area would have to be reduced from the original JC-1 (400W) if we used the same heatsink. Several prototypes passed by my lab, before they finally changed the power transformer to a more reasonable voltage. I bet that it upset somebody, somewhere between here and Taiwan, but I was not happy. After all, most of us listen seriously at 25W or even less, and this MUST be Class A if at all possible. I am not interested in making the ultimate Class B amp, (or Class D amp for that matter), I will leave that up to the rest of you. In fact, apparently they went back to the original voltage that the JC-1 used for the last 18 years, but could rate it at 450W (that must have made somebody happy) because we had increased the power supply by 50% so it didn't sag as much at full power, so it gave us slightly more output before clipping.
Right now I am listening to NPR with my 2W Telefunken portable radio, happily. If I want a little more, I turn on my dual 100W amp that I designed for Parasound over 25 years ago that drives my Sequerra MET 7's. And only when I want to listen to a vinyl record, or really high quality FM, do I turn on my WILSON SASHA speakers (that go down to 2 ohms). The little Parasound amp, the HCA-1000 that I use with the 7's would sound awful with the more difficult to drive Sashas, so I am forced to use a more powerful amp than I really need in order to get effortless performance at listening levels. That's how it goes!