Question R700 power from Denon 2800

Sherzie

Hi all, while I understand the R700s require between 50-300w of power, would the Denon 2800 be under-delivering with only a maximum of 100w at 8ohms? I am hamstrung with budget but want to ensure the R700 are looked after and can live up to their potential, hence asking about the amp. Appreciate any feedback thanks.

SeleniumFalcon

Hello,
Welcome to the Polk forum. Congratulations on getting the R700 speakers, great choice. There are lots of variables that effect how much power might be needed for speakers. Can you give us an idea of the size of the listening area, the type of listening volumes you prefer (think of "loud" as requiring someone sitting beside you needing to raise their voice to be heard) and the category of music you mostly listen to?

mantis

If you have a subwoofer in that system , you can run the R700's in small and cross them over at 80hz and enjoy them fully. Unless you require higher listening levels than the Denon can provide you will be perfectly fine.

More amp power does a few things for you , it gives more dampening factor to control the woofers recoil which will provide better correct and accurate bass info and will be able to play all passages correctly without dynamic limitations. BUT you can easily over spend or over spec amp power. If your never playing at high volumes, none of that matter as long as the amp is stable at the ohm load and current draw.

Emlyn

If it's the Denon X2800H receiver that model does not have pre-amplifier outputs for anything but two subwoofer channels. That means you can't add a separate power amplifier to it which limits your options. It is however listed as 4 ohm speaker load compatible.

If you do get the R700s, as Mantis says, you'd be best off directing the lower frequencies to a subwoofer to take some of the demand off of the receiver's built in amplifier. You also have to consider what other speakers would be connected. There's a big difference in current demand if you're going to be powering a pair of main speakers vs powering seven speakers in a surround system.

You're not going to get the best out of the R700s with what you have now but if you do get them you're unlikely to damage them if you listen at volume levels that aren't too loud to where you begin to hear distortion or signal breakup. You can upgrade components later as budget allows.

mantis

Emlyn wrote: »

If it's the Denon X2800H receiver that model does not have pre-amplifier outputs for anything but two subwoofer channels. That means you can't add a separate power amplifier to it which limits your options. It is however listed as 4 ohm speaker load compatible.

If you do get the R700s, as Mantis says, you'd be best off directing the lower frequencies to a subwoofer to take some of the demand off of the receiver's built in amplifier. You also have to consider what other speakers would be connected. There's a big difference in current demand if you're going to be powering a pair of main speakers vs powering seven speakers in a surround system.

You're not going to get the best out of the R700s with what you have now but if you do get them you're unlikely to damage them if you listen at volume levels that aren't too loud to where you begin to hear distortion or signal breakup. You can upgrade components later as budget allows.

Looks like upgrading to the X3800H is the way to go for 2 reasons, 1 - you get pre outs IF you ever decide to get external amps and 2- it has more power per channel.

I'm surprised I missed that but I don't sell Denon that often and when we do, I sell the X3800H and X4800H which are badass. I should have known the X2800H didn't have pre outs, that level model the 2 level use to have pre outs

Sherzie

Thanks to all of you for adding your input. I apologise if my words mislead, I have been looking at the 700s and the Denon. I would like the system to deliver big volumes. However I think that to get the most of the 700s I need to rethink my plans, and taking out the bass would be a shame. I will demo the 600s as an alternative option and consider putting the money into a bigger amp like the 3800 or the Onkyo rz50, and to save for adding an extra sub to the Polk sub I have now. Appreciate the input.