Amplifier for Tannoy Speakers

Mike P.

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I'm running a pair of 2-year old Tannoy Mercury V1 speakers, which have an impedance of 8 ohms and power rating of 70 watts per channel, for my home stereo system and my current, very old amplifier has a power output of 45 watts and recommends speakers with an impedance of 8 to 16 ohms.

I need to replace the amplifier and am looking for guidance on the optimal maximum power output of the amplifier for these speakers. I've read conflicting recommendations on the one hand that the speaker and amplifier outputs should match and on the other hand that the amplifier should be as low as 50% of the speakers.

Some expert/experienced advice would be appreciated.
 
A low powered amp pushed too hard will clip and distort which will damage speakers very quickly - much quicker than overdriving them with a more powerful amp for a short period.

A better compromise is to get a higher powered amp as the odd peak above 70w is unlikely to do any harm.
 
Thanks for the reply HeadBanger

I was thinking in that direction and am considering an amp made by Onkyo - the A-9030 - which is the same make as my cd player and delivers 65W per channel. From what you are saying, this would seem to fit the bill.
 
That is about the same as the current Tannoy V1i.

In all honesty, I think any amp between 40w and 100w channel will work fine. More realistically, amps between 40w and 80w, because those are the amps you are likely to be able to afford. 100w/ch amp and higher, tend to get expensive.

I think, you choices are going to hinge more on your Budget than anything else.

So, what is your working budget?

Common amps are the Yamaha AS300, the newer Yamaha AS301, the Yamaha AS500, the newer Yamaha AS501, the Marantz PM6005, the suggested Onkyo amp, perhaps Cambridge Audio amps, other Onkyo Receivers.

Start with this -

BUDGET?

Stereo or Surround Sound?

What features do you really need?
Streaming? Phono In? Tone Controls? Sub Out? DAC with Digital Inputs? Other?

How big is the room?

Likely in your price range, whatever it is, there will only be a few possible amps that meet your needs.

Steve/bluewizard
 
Thanks for your input BlueWizard.

£100 to £200 is probably my budget. It's stereo sound only; my current Akai (yes, ancient) set up was surround sound, but I've dispensed with the satellite speakers. Would like Tone Controls and of course need the obvious Volume Control, but don't need Streaming/Phono In or much of anything else. It'll be used solely to play CD's.

It's a through lounge/diner - length about 10 mtrs, width 4 mtrs.

I favour sticking with the same make for the CD player and Amplifier.
 

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