Reading Amplifier Power Ratings

Video Transcript

" Now, one of the big selling points in amplifier power. What is power in an amplifier? Well we kind of went over what power is, but how much power an amplifier puts out is a totally different story. For example we have a five-hundred watt mono block, we have a thousand watt mono block, we have a four channel here. This four channel is claiming six hundred watts of power, that's a hundred and fifty watts per channel to the four channels out. But that might only be for a millisecond per channel. More than likely this amplifier probably puts out twenty-five to fifty watts RMS per channel on a four OM load, and maybe sixty watts per channel on a, sixty to eighty watts out on a two OM load. That is called RMS power which is continuous power. Peak power is totally different. This amplifier does not put out the amount of power that's advertised, that they can advertise it though because it might put that out at optimum conditions with sixteen volts running through the amp for a couple milliseconds at a time. So when you're looking at amplifiers, you have to say what is true power, what is the RMS, what's the minimal power rating, the nominal power rating, per se and the maximum power rating. You have to look for all those, and those are usually in the fine print in the instruction booklets or the over catalog, or the product overview, back, back, back way in the way in the day they didn't even advertise those informations to the public, but yeah, so most of the time amplifiers aren't really putting out the amount of power they say, but there are exceptions to that. And once again, those are like many of the digital mono blocks or high quality AB class amplifiers. This amplifier actually puts out in excess of what it advertises. This amplifier right here, excess is a...advertises three-sixty by four, so you're getting a over, you're getting about eighty-five watts per channel, ninety watts per channel RMS, but that's out of four OM load, so it's making the power that it's stated at four OMs. At two OMs you'll put in excess to that. This amplifier will put in excess of seven-hundred watts, seven-hundred-fifty watts, but it's only ready to have three-fifty. Once again, this is Kepco amplifier, the power is at least going to be true at four OM, because they start rating their power at four OMs where the average manufacturer is going to get their peak power rating from a two or one OM load. So it's usually true what they say, you get what you pay for. You spend more, you get a little more. And that's a little but of breakdown between true power, RMS power versus peak power or factory-rated power. There you go. That's all about the power."