small amp and bigger speakers question

[barryWest]

I've currently got a set of paradigm 7se's (rated at 15-100W) being powered by a pioneer SA-6800 which is rated at around 45W per channel. No problems here.

However, can a marantz 2216 provide enough juice to drive these speakers? I'm going to be picking up a 2216 regardless, and have plenty of smaller bookshelf speakers that would maybe match up better, but was curious about this question. I normally don't blare my music so don't need something that can produce club level volumes. Most of the time the volume knob on my SA-6800 doesn't go much past 2 or 3.

 

[Tripqzon]

do you mean 2 to 3 o'clock or 8 to 9 o'clock?

 

[Tripqzon]

If you don't use the volume on the 6800 past 8 to 9 o'clock you're not even pushing a watt to your speakers unless your source has an extremely high output level feeding into the 6800.

I don't know what the sensitivity of the Paradigm 7se's is and that will play a roll in just how hard you'll have to push the 2216 for moderate to loud levels.

For casual listening I would think it would do just fine. I wouldn't expect to have a loud party with it though.

 

[karlo]

while probably not an issue w/ big Klipsch classics , cerwin vegas ,university , electro-voice....

underpowering vifa/peerless/audax drivers with 16 wpc will suffer , and when i'd
least expected to damage them , would pop a tweeter with that receiver .

if getting an amp that small..i'd at least get one with some headroom.
...while not as pretty as that marantz/superscope/whatever, an harman kardon
hk-350i(20wpc) or the like will at least give those speakers room to breathe.

my experience with those tiny marantz amps is that they're pretty stiff up to max output, then brickwall clipping.

 

[barryWest]

do you mean 2 to 3 o'clock or 8 to 9 o'clock?

Sorry, should have been a bit more specific about that. The volume dial on the pioneer goes from 0 to 10, and that's what I meant. So yeah, that would be about 8 to 10 o'clock depending on the source. The source is normally my ipod, so depends on the bit-rate of the recording.

 

[titan57nl]

At those volumes i dont foresee any problem. Bigger amps, with more muscles make the music sound more effortless.

If the marantz might struggle...you will hear that immediately.

 

[jimbofish]

I have a 2215 and two 2230s and find that the 2230s have to be set to about 12 o'clock to equal the 2215's volume at 10 o'clock, even though the watt rating is higher. :scratch2:

If your 2216 is similar to my 2215, you'll be surprised at the volume you'll get from it :thmbsp:

 

[crazyjeeper]

I've got a 15wpc 4415 and it at 12 noon is easily loud enough to disturb my neighbors (apartment).

 

[33&athird]

I've got a 15wpc 4415 and it at 12 noon is easily loud enough to disturb my neighbors (apartment).

Yeah, my pioneer sx-525 is a small 17watt rms receiver, and I use some bookshelf epi's (t/e-70) and it is painful to be in the same room at the 12 o' clock on the volume knob, for me anyway (some other members must really love to rock with the wattage they pull). My mothers panasonic all in one (sigh...yes with thrusters) is maybe around 10watts and it brings down some noise as well (and the trusters aren't terrible...it's second from totl for the year).

But with your question...I would try it and see if it sounds alright...though keep in mind there are "amp killer" speakers (not yours..I think) that are just too power-hungary and really bare down on the amps. What your really in need of knowing is not the wattage (lower end watts is important though)...but the efficency, or sensitivity of the speakers will determine how the amp, and speakers react.