How much power is enough?

BigBankBii

So I recently revived my old Harman Kardon Sig 2.1 amp. Mid-quality Denon AVR as pre-amp. HK is 100x5 @ 8ohms.
I'm considering a pair of Rti A7's, but keep seeing reviews about a need for real power in order to properly enjoy these. Is HK's 100 watts per good enough?
Perhaps I bi-amp the mains and run the surrounds off the Denon?
Thanks for any help...

PrazVT

I'm looking at the manual - and the important stuff is here:

5 x 100w all channels driven 20Hz - 20KHz @ 8ohms
Current Capacity: 100A

The wattage is a little lower, but it's very high current - I think the A7s will perform well with that amp - and definitely much better than off of the Denon. You should be able to hear an improvement - experiment!

If Denon bi-amp functions applies to the pre-outs as well (or you get 2 RCA Y-adapters and connect them to the front left/right pre-outs), it's not a bad idea to try passive bi-amping for the mains and then run surrounds off of the receiver - see how you like it. Just my 2 cents.

SRTer

BigBankBii wrote: »

So I recently revived my old Harman Kardon Sig 2.1 amp. Mid-quality Denon AVR as pre-amp. HK is 100x5 @ 8ohms.
I'm considering a pair of Rti A7's, but keep seeing reviews about a need for real power in order to properly enjoy these. Is HK's 100 watts per good enough?
Perhaps I bi-amp the mains and run the surrounds off the Denon?
Thanks for any help...

You should be fine. It really will depend on how much volume your trying to make and how much room your trying to fill. I think if you had closer to 150 watt or better, you would have all that you really need.

BigBankBii

Cool thanks!
Yeah, I was thinking about the Y adapter method. But would my mains then overpower the center channel?

cfrizz

Just go into the system and recalibrate all speakers again.

RuSsMaN

How does it sound thus far, on selections you are familiar with? The HK will do the job, but you can reap the benefits of seperate amps also.

Cheers,
Russ

BigBankBii

My JBL's are too harsh for HT use and a bad match for the Polk center. Hence, I'm looking for better/matching mains. Just wanna make sure I've got enough power...

tonyb

Your fine, don't sweat it.

jbooker82

My RTi A7 hit 106db with about 60 watts from my Carver amplifier. That is with my onkyo at reference.

blueboxer

In my SBC it was about 550.

djperez81

BigBankBii wrote: »

Cool thanks!
Yeah, I was thinking about the Y adapter method. But would my mains then overpower the center channel?

Ya they might overpower and you want your front stage to blend. I think the HK would give you cleaner power than your denon. But see what sounds good to you. Like praz said the HK is high current and is 100wpc all channels driven vs your denon which isn't. Play around with your setupband see what sounds good to you. An SPL meter would really help you out if you are worried about your center being overpowered.

BigBankBii

Oh yeah! Make no mistake, Tge HK is fully hooked up. My first separate and the upgrade is amazing.

In light of this thread (and playing around), I raised my Denon xover and my sub to 120, and the mids and highs had an immediate and dramatic improvement. And equally suprising, my Klipsch sub sounds pretty good in blend. Gonna try this for a while and see how well rounded it remains in HT. That HK is a fine amp!

tonyb

Are you using both crossovers....receiver and the subs ? Should only use one bro, turn that one on the sub all the way up to it's highest value.

djperez81

What sub you running?

BigBankBii

It's at it's highest, which is about 125hz. Pre is set to 120hz. I really only even tried this because I'm considering adding some smaller monitors for my HT setup, which would require the sub to be up that high. Had low expectations for the Klipsch Synergy 12, but it sounds pretty good.