Will I damage/achieve anything testing with an old/underpowered amp?

meduk1

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Scenario: I've got some MA RX6 speakers (6 ohms 40-125W) powered by a yamaha 2067 av amp.

I'm curious to know what these would sound like under a dedicated stereo amp and if I'm missing out on anything. I have an old Marantz PM4200 (8 Ohms/4 30 / 40 W) lying around that I could use to do some listening tests.

Would I:

a) damage anything using a fairly low powered amp
b) actually achieve my goal of hearing if a stereo amp adds any quality due to the low power/age/relative cheapness of the marantz

Thanks.
 
Scenario: I've got some MA RX6 speakers (6 ohms 40-125W) powered by a yamaha 2067 av amp.

I'm curious to know what these would sound like under a dedicated stereo amp and if I'm missing out on anything. I have an old Marantz PM4200 (8 Ohms/4 30 / 40 W) lying around that I could use to do some listening tests.

Would I:

a) damage anything using a fairly low powered amp
b) actually achieve my goal of hearing if a stereo amp adds any quality due to the low power/age/relative cheapness of the marantz

Thanks.

I used to own the PM4200 some years ago and I found it punched well above it's weight. As has been said give it a go - IMO it will not damage your speakers.
 
You'll probably find in really world measurements the Marantz isn't far off the power rating of your Denon. The Denon is a nice amp but as with all AV receivers it'll struggle to output its claimed power!

The Marantz should certainly drive your speakers however I wouldn't advise cranking to volume up to high as it'll start clipping and damage your drivers.
 
As I have said many times before -

It is never overpowered or underpowered amps that damage speakers; it is always the guy running the volume control.

Also keep in mind that when tested for Sensitivity ratings, speakers are only driven with one watt. ONE WATT.

Yes, under extreme circumstances underpowered amps are more dangerous, but as I said, the danger isn't the underpowered amp, the danger is the idiot running the volume control pushing things to extreme circumstances.

In short, assuming the amp is not broken or flawed in some way, you should be fine.

Steve/bluewizard
 

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