Question about input voltage

[AstrixNix]

I had a friend of mine help me look over my amp and when I asked him about the power/wattage he pointed to the specs on this link:

http://www.amazon.com/Phoenix-Gold-TANTRUM-2-Channel-Amplifier/dp/B000AQ8O5M

And said that since the input voltage is rated at 18volts, and my car battery is only pushing 12 volts max, then the amplifier is pushing less RMS than it is rated at. How can I fix this?

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[adulbrich 5,000+ posts]

Your system charges at 14.4v if it is normal.

I looked, and Amazon is the only site I saw that mentioned 18v input voltage. I'm assuming that it just means it can be run on a 16v electrical system. 16v charges around 18v.

Specs should have been taken at 12v or 14.4v. I forget what PG rates their equipment at.

I know their old school stuff was under-rated. Great SQ gear

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

you are both assuming "input voltage" is DC battery input and not AC signal input. 18VAC is a common high-level input voltage rating. i assume that is what they are referring to - that the amp has high level inputs (specs say "differential inputs" which commonly accept up to 18VAC).

adjust the gain and put on low level input and you can get rated power out.

 

[AstrixNix]

Thanks so much for the help guys. I am trying to learn all I can.

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

It's not signal voltage.

Actually I think it's a misprint altogether.

Here's the manual: http://download.phoenixphorum.com/Manuals/Amplifiers/Tantrum/Ta500_Ta300manual.pdf

Signal voltage is 100mv to 4v (I have never seen anything rated for 18v -- such an amp may be out there, but it's rare).

DC voltage up to 15.5.

Nothing special about it. Just a typical good quality 2 channel amp.