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Powered Speaker Volume


dave1foot

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Hi,

 

There are lots of ways I could ask this question but I think simplest is best: re my Wharfedale Pro EVP-X15P speakers: using the line-in input - what happens if I turn the volume up past 0 (apart from it gets louder of course). And from another angle: how do I get the maximum volume output from these speakers?

 

I realise that gain can be complicated but I am a simple person in need of a simple answer.

 

Cheers

 

Dave

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Somewhere in the spec for your speaker, it will detail the sensitivity - this is the maximum level the the internal amp can handle without clipping when the input control is turned all the way up. Feeding in that level will give you the maximum volume. Simple enough?

 

In the absence of the speaker spec telling you anything useful, there should be a clip light somewhere - you can also use this to determine the maximum input level - turn up the input signal until the clip light comes on - back off until it goes out and that's your maximum input level / output volume.

 

If the input level control is calibrated, you could turn it down by 10dB and and feed in a signal that is 10dB higher. This will result in the same volume output but may be more useful from a gain structure perspective, depending on how you like to set things up.

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Thanks very much for your replies, much appreciated. I think I'm after something a bit simpler though. Perhaps I should have explained further: there is a volume control actually on the powered speaker which goes from -infinity through 0 to +5(ish) db. We have been running it set to 0 so far.

 

What will happen if I turn it up any further? It will get louder, but will it distort the sound, or damage the speakers etc etc?

 

Thanks in advance

 

Dave

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It looks like the "clip" light is on the front of this speaker, there should be a green light to indicate signal present and an orange one to indicate that protection circuits are activated.

As stated above try turning them up until the orange led starts to light, then back off a bit.

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What will happen if I turn it up any further? It will get louder, but will it distort the sound, or damage the speakers etc etc?

 

Depends entirely on the level that you're feeding in to the speaker. If it's a low signal, turning up that control will just make it a bit louder. If it's a high signal level, already at the amp's clip point, it'll distort (or hopefully just be caught by the built in limiter...)

One often misunderstood concept about the input controls on amplifiers is that the amplifier is always able to produce its maximum output level, regardless of the setting of that control. All the control does is change the input level required to reach that maximum output.

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