Minimum Speaker Wattage

zeusthrax
zeusthrax Posts: 4
edited March 2005 in Speakers
I have just bought STRDSA5000ES. Wattage power on this puppy is 170W per channel (at least that’s what advertised in the manual). Do you think if I put 200W speakers, they will work fine i.e. they wont flutter etc or do I need to get tad bit higher?

Thanks
Post edited by zeusthrax on
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  • Early B.
    Early B. Posts: 7,900
    edited March 2005
    Don't worry about it. It'll work just fine.
    HT/2-channel Rig: Sony 50” LCD TV; Toshiba HD-A2 DVD player; Emotiva LMC-1 pre/pro; Rogue Audio M-120 monoblocks (modded); Placette RVC; Emotiva LPA-1 amp; Bada HD-22 tube CDP (modded); VMPS Tower II SE (fronts); DIY Clearwave Dynamic 4CC (center); Wharfedale Opus Tri-Surrounds (rear); and VMPS 215 sub

    "God grooves with tubes."
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  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited March 2005
    If you are asking whether you need to buy speakers with a higher power rating... no.

    You could put speakers with a much lower rating than 170 W and be just fine. I ran 45W speakers on 375 wpc for years with no issues. Your ears protect the speakers...
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner
    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
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  • John K.
    John K. Posts: 822
    edited March 2005
    ZT, keep in mind that speakers use only the amount of power that they need for a certain loudness level; the amplifier, regardless of its maximum power capability, doesn't force more on them than they want. At a typical comfortably loud average listening level most speakers use about 1 watt. Brief split second peaks might use as much as 100 watts or more depending on factors such as distance of the listener, size of the room, dynamic range of the program material and the average level at which the listening is happening. As T2 points out, amplifiers with far higher maximum output capability than the speaker rating can be safely combined because all that extra power isn't actually being used.
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  • zeusthrax
    zeusthrax Posts: 4
    edited March 2005
    Thanks all. I had same thoughts but just wanted to make sure before I buy speakers
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  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited March 2005
    You're welcome...

    While I'd quibble a bit with JK's numbers, that's the essence of it...

    Also know that speaker ratings are for continuous power and they can handle transient, short-term peaks much higher than their "rating".
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner
    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
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