85w speakers 100w amp?

[Coolguy55]

I'm a bit worried now about the speaker and amp config I was planning to buy. I was planning on buying a pair of Klipsch R-15M speakers which are rated 85w continuous and an amp in a few weeks, but recently saw an Onkyo tx 8020 100w (50 wpc) stereo amp on sale for about $100 and dumbly bought it (which I thought was a steal). I did quite a bit of research before hand but never found anything that clearly stated "this many watts amp will be good for a speaker that has a rating of this many watts", and now I'm seeing that underpowering a speaker can damage it.

So can someone tell me if all's good or not? I hope I didnt waste that $100 since it's non-refundable.

 

[Kenton82]

To be honest it depends how hard you want to push your system. You will not cause any damage to your speakers provided you do not run the amp at too high a level for any amount of time. This setup will be fine for general listening purposes, i wouldn't worry too much. If you are planning to really push up the volume i always suggest buying an amp that is slightly more powerful than the speakers you wish to use. That way you have a good amount of 'headroom' so that the amp does not over work, and the speakers have a good quality, strong signal.

K.

 

[13thmonkey]

is it 85W for each speaker, or combined, I'd actually imagine that is a per channel value for the speakers (unless the marketing folks have stuck their oar in).

 

[helpstar]

PMPO or RMS wattage?

 

[Dukediablo2]

Klipsch R-15m speakers are highly efficient and will operate easily on a wide variety of amplifiers. They have 94dB @ 2.83V / 1m sensitivity so doesn't require powerful amplifier. The high frequency on those speakers are kind of harsh, but it depends on the taste of listener.
So I don't see any problems of pairing that amplifier with speakers. But yes next time buy more powerful amplifier than the speakers to be sure you are able to maximize the sound output.

 

[Dukediablo2]

PMPO or RMS wattage?

50w RMS @ 8ohm

 

[Coolguy55]

To be honest it depends how hard you want to push your system. You will not cause any damage to your speakers provided you do not run the amp at too high a level for any amount of time. This setup will be fine for general listening purposes, i wouldn't worry too much. If you are planning to really push up the volume i always suggest buying an amp that is slightly more powerful than the speakers you wish to use. That way you have a good amount of 'headroom' so that the amp does not over work, and the speakers have a good quality, strong signal.

K.

Thanks for all the quick replies, i'm only going to be using this setup in my small bedroom at moderate volumes when browsing on my phone or doing work, maybe with the occasional turn-up, so i'm assuming i should be fine with this amp then. I will definitely look for higher powered amps when buying speakers next time. I'm going to see if i can find a pair of the R-15M's and try them with the amp before purchasing.

But may I ask, how will I know if i'm pushing a pair of speakers to the point the audio is clipping? Is it something you can hear?

 

[Dukediablo2]

To be honest it depends how hard you want to push your system. You will not cause any damage to your speakers provided you do not run the amp at too high a level for any amount of time. This setup will be fine for general listening purposes, i wouldn't worry too much. If you are planning to really push up the volume i always suggest buying an amp that is slightly more powerful than the speakers you wish to use. That way you have a good amount of 'headroom' so that the amp does not over work, and the speakers have a good quality, strong signal.

K.

Thanks for all the quick replies, i'm only going to be using this setup in my small bedroom at moderate volumes when browsing on my phone or doing work, maybe with the occasional turn-up, so i'm assuming i should be fine with this amp then. I will definitely look for higher powered amps when buying speakers next time. I'm going to see if i can find a pair of the R-15M's and try them with the amp before purchasing.

But may I ask, how will I know if i'm pushing a pair of speakers to the point the audio is clipping? Is it something you can hear?

You may hear some amount of distortion (changes in sound clarity) coming from your speakers.

 

[helpstar]

Yes, you will hear it.