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Is Yamaha s500 powerful enough for Cerwin Vega 12"?

M

Michaellll

New Member
I have a pair of Cerwin Vegas 12", they're rated for 300 watts max and I am considering getting a Yamaha A-S500 to drive them. The Yamaha s500 is only rated for 85 watts x2 unfortunately. I'm looking for something below $500 in order to get decent sound quality and volume, ideally a Yamaha since I have read great reviews.

For some reason I can't find the RMS rating for the CV's which adds to the confusion..

My speakers are currently powered by an old receiver, a Sony TA-ax301, which is apparently rated for 110 watts which is super weird. I do not want to go anywhere above 11 o'clock on this receiver anymore while hooked up to these speakers as I'm afraid clipping will damage the tweeters... I had already replaced one, unfortunately.

Will it be safe to max out the volume on my Yamaha or will I still encounter issues with clipping? Do you think 85 watts, which is less than the Sony (I don't understand how) will be enough to power these power hungry speakers? Any tips or recommendations greatly appreciated.
 
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Welcome to AK ... No, It will likely clip even sooner. You will likely need in excess of 250 WPC. Like a Yamaha Pro amplifier.
 
So are you saying I shouldn't even look at Yamahas then? I thought power amplifiers didn't clip as easy as audio receivers hmm.
 
Michaellll said:
So are you saying I shouldn't even look at Yamahas then? I thought power amplifiers didn't clip as easy as audio receivers hmm.
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It all depends on the available power from the power amplifier be it in a receivers power amplifier ,integrated power amplifier or separate power amplifier.What model of CV's are you playing with?
 
avionic said:
Welcome to AK ... No, It will likely clip even sooner. You will likely need in excess of 250 WPC. Like a Yamaha Pro amplifier.
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Agree. Long throw 12 inch is a demanding task. probably 4 ohm too. Edit below 90 db probably ok.
 
Michaellll said:
Will it be safe to max out the volume on my Yamaha or will I still encounter issues with clipping? Do you think 85 watts, which is less than the Sony (I don't understand how) will be enough to power these power hungry speakers? Any tips or recommendations greatly appreciated.
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The difference between 85wpc and 110wpc isn't much when it comes to driving speakers. Power to SPL (Sound Pressure Level) ratios is a logarithmic function, not a linear function. If you were to double the wattage output (to 220wpc) of your Sony receiver the net gain is only 3db, hardly enough to even detect the SPL 'jump' over 110wpc. This formula holds for each doubling of power, another 3db (average) is gained. This is why I always like to say the first 50 watts are the most important ones. I have a Yamaha integrated amp, model A-S1000 with 90wpc. I'd be willing to bet it could drive those Cerwin Vega speakers just fine at very loud levels. Not all watts are the same.

Older Cerwin Vega speakers were quite efficient since high powered receivers and amps were not common like they are today. Post your speaker's model number and I think someone could find the specs.

FWIW unless you are using those speakers in a very large room you might want to consider the accumulative damage to your ears at such high volumes.
 
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