Amplifier output power vs. electrical system input voltage

[emilimo701 10+ year member]

I'd like a little clarification on amplifier wattage ratings.

I see things like "10000 watts RMS @ 13.8v, 15000 watts RMS @ 14.4v" and wonder... don't the amps have voltage regulators?

Are these ratings meant to imply that the output signal gets louder as voltage increases? Since the system voltage tends to vary, wouldn't you not want this type of behavior in order for music to stay at a constant relative volume?

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[Volvowith18psi 10+ year member]

Im not a pro in audio by any means, however, I read those ratings and base my purchase on what amp can deliver on the minimal volts; IE.. 10000 @11.9v, that way, you charge at a higher voltage and thus get more power, which helps to fight Independence rise your naturally gonna get, and voltage drop on load. It all means your gonna get that rated power no matter what (hypothetically speaking)

 

[Julian 10+ year member]

there are two different types of regulation in amp power supplies and one type in the amp itself-----in the power supply there is input regulation and output regulation-----and there is degree of regulaton----input regulation means that the supply is designed to operate over a certain range of supply voltage---for example 10 volts to 16 volts----this means that the amp should perform well no matter what the supply is----now the degree of regulation determines just how good the amp stays within spec throughout that range----some amps are very tightly regulated and some are not at all and loose power at the lower voltages---as far as input regulation i would opt for good regulation-------power supply output regulation refers to the ability of the amp to maintain its rail voltages at a fixed voltage as the amp is called on to change from no load to full load----this factor determines more than any other thing the dynamic ability of the amp----if the supply is tightly regulated the amp will have the same continuous power as peak transient power----if it is loosly regulated the amp will have the ability to produce undistorted musical peaks much higher than its continuous rating----- for this spec i would always choose the least regulation if the continuous power was the same between two amps-----the problem is most people don't know the difference between the two and seldom is it specified------there is a third kind of regulation-----this is output signal regulation and it indicates the ability of the amp to maintain a constant output regardless of load------this spec determines damping factor------as long as this spec is 30 or higher it is more than adequate.......

by the way---there are no totally unregulated amps in either of the three catagories if the amps have switching supplies (meaning over 50 watts per channel)--some amps are just more tightly regulated in some areas than others--- an unregulated amp would never work in a car at all

 

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

I like when amps are rated @ lower voltages as well.. Prime example is DD. If ur electrical system is top notch then u will get even more power out of the said amp. If its rated at a higher voltage m say 14.4, youwill have a hard time keeping any car maintaining a 14.4 under full load conditions,

wrong. DD doesnt make power like most amps when on a beefy electrical system they make power at 11-13 like rated.

 

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

Exactly, they make rated power at a lower voltage than alot of other amps. So at 11-13 they do rated, but at 14.4 they do even more.. Am i still wrong in my logic that if u feed a DD amp more voltage than it is rated at, u will get more wattage out of it?? S if my electrical ***** and i am at 11.5 -12 volts, then i upgrade my electrical and i stay at a constant 14, i will make the same power as i did at 11.5?? If thats the case then ive been looking at the glass half empty , not half full.

the DD amps usually fall off from power gains at 14.6 you dont gain but maybe 100w from 12v and 14. they are just made to be stable in the real world is all.

 

[Imtjnotu 5,000+ posts]

wrong. DD doesnt make power like most amps when on a beefy electrical system they make power at 11-13 like rated.

thats what he said idiot....DD makes power on 12v and makes a crap ton more on 14v......do u even read or u just quote people saying garbage

 

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

Well shoot man. Im glad u told me that, ive been watching those DD guys talk about the lower voltage ratings and stuff, i thought u would get alot more than 100 watts jumping from 12v to 14v. As high as they are new, i woulda expected more from them. Heck, those M3s and M4s arent a good sight for the old wallet.

dd is under rated anyway from 12.8. so you may see an extre 5-600 and think its from voltage. im around alot of DD from the franklin county cruisers. i have some experience //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

thats what he said idiot....DD makes power on 12v and makes a crap ton more on 14v......do u even read or u just quote people saying garbage

Re: Amplifier output power vs. electrical system input voltage

I like when amps are rated @ lower voltages as well.. Prime example is DD. If ur electrical system is top notch then u will get even more power out of the said amp. If its rated at a higher voltage m say 14.4, youwill have a hard time keeping any car maintaining a 14.4 under full load conditions,

his first post retard. i was explaining you wont gain anything from higher voltage from DD. maybe you should read first?

 

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

thats what he said idiot....DD makes power on 12v and makes a crap ton more on 14v......do u even read or u just quote people saying garbage

and //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif they do not make a crap ton more maybe 200w at 14.4.

 

[BIGJEFF64 10+ year member]

since nooone said it yet ill toss in the monkey wrench!!

when talking about rated power @ whatever voltage u need to keep in mind ur signal input voltage as well. u can gain them all u want but with a smaller signal input voltage ur not gonna get all the "CLEAN" power the amp is putting out hence why alot of people use line drivers or eq's. also u need to consider what the amps respond to as far as input voltage goes but that varies from amp to amp

 

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

since nooone said it yet ill toss in the monkey wrench!!
when talking about rated power @ whatever voltage u need to keep in mind ur signal input voltage as well. u can gain them all u want but with a smaller signal input voltage ur not gonna get all the "CLEAN" power the amp is putting out hence why alot of people use line drivers or eq's. also u need to consider what the amps respond to as far as input voltage goes but that varies from amp to amp

sh1t just got technical

 

[BIGJEFF64 10+ year member]

and //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif they do not make a crap ton more maybe 200w at 14.4.

i agree DD amps are somewhat impressive but by far not worth the money IMO

 

[Imtjnotu 5,000+ posts]

[quote name='CAT MAN']Re: Amplifier output power vs. electrical system input voltage
I like when amps are rated @ lower voltages as well.. Prime example is DD. If ur electrical system is top notch then u will get even more power out of the said amp. If its rated at a higher voltage m say 14.4, youwill have a hard time keeping any car maintaining a 14.4 under full load conditions,



his first post retard. i was explaining you wont gain anything from higher voltage from DD. maybe you should read first?[/QUOTE]
you really dont kno wtf ur talking about thats it its official.....


@TaylorFade.....

 

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

[quote name='BIGJEFF64']i agree DD amps are somewhat impressive but by far not worth the money IMO[/QUOTE]

this is where i would disagree.

if i was doing a setup that needed the car off and i ran 14v batts. best believe DD is my ish. If i had a lil extra cash and wanted some good power for daily its my ish.

---------- Post added at 04:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:05 PM ----------

[quote name='Imtjnotu']you really dont kno wtf ur talking about thats it its official.....


@TaylorFade.....[/QUOTE]
yeah what do i know. im only fooling with DD on a daily basis.

 

[BIGJEFF64 10+ year member]

sh1t just got technical

when someone has a 2k at 13.8V and only gets 1600 clean power at that voltage but he only is gettin 3V input signal voltage cuz teh amp like 5v or higher