QuestionAlso, would you happen to know much about Wharfedale speakers, whether they're good or not, and how they compare to some of the best names in the business like Polk, Klipsch, Infinity, Athena, etc? All I know is they're a U.K. company. Thanks again.
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Followup To
Question -
I own a Kenwood receiver (VR-615) that's a couple of years old, and was looking into getting a surround sound speaker set from Warfedale (Moviestar 70). Currently $150 at CompUSA, everwhere else $500-$600. Go figure. The problem is, the speakers are rated at 4 ohms. My receiver is 8 ohms. Will this present a problem? Will my receiver overheat or blow up? Thanks.
Answer -
Dear Bob,
Go with the Wharfedales. The electronics industry has (mostly) agreed that when publishing specifications for receivers/amplifiers, that the power output be rated with an 8 ohm impedance load from the speakers. This enables consumers to judge for themselves what the "true" power generating capacity of a receiver/amplifier is. From what I've been able to glean from some web sites (the Kenwood USA site is down today), the VR-615 puts out 100 watts per channel into the six surround channels. Presumably this power rating is into an 8-ohm load.
Any receiver/amplifier can drive almost any speaker. The ability of the Kenwood to drive a 4-ohm speaker is built in to its design. Some receivers/amplifiers double their power output when dealing with greater impedance loads. (BTW, the relationship between "lesser" and "greater" in impedances is inverse, so an 8-ohm load is less than a 4-ohm load.) Since Kenwood receivers/amplifiers use a fairly conventional design, they will boost the output power significantly with a 4-ohm speaker, probably not double (very few designs can actually do that, and they're expensive) but probably on the order of 140 to 160 watts per channel. You shouldn't have any problem.
TMI Dept. A speaker's impedance rating is nominal. No speaker presents a consistent impedance load to the receiver/amplifier, and, therefore, receiver/amplifiers rarely use more than a small fraction of their output power capacity. Usually, with conversation level volume, which can be pretty loud, a speaker will present a very low impedance, say, in the 10-14 ohm range. The receiver/amplifier will respond with low power delivery, say, in the 25-30 watt range. However, an orchestral tutti passage played at concert volumes will cause the speakers to present a difficult load, say, 2-3 ohms, and the receiver amplifier will respond with 150-170 watts of power. And this is all with speakers with a rated impedance of 8 ohms and a receiver/amplifier with a rated power output of 100 wpc. Cool, eh?
The Wharfedales will go exquisitely with the Kenwood. Have a great time. And thanks for choosing allexperts.com!
Kindest regards,
Kevin
AnswerDear Bob,
Wharfedale is one of the most respected names in speaker manufacturer. BTW, when it comes to the "best names" in the business, Polk, Infinity, and Klipsch make excellent speakers, but for my money British (Wharfedale, Quad, Mission, Linn, B&W, Celestion) and Canadian (PSB, Paradigm, Swan, Coincident Technology, Athena) makers have raised the excellence bar considerably over the past decade.
The real proof in auditioning speakers is how they sound to you. Take a DVD that you're familiar with when you audition speakers, so you'll have an idea of what to listen for. Get the speakers that deliver the sound you want to hear. Since speakers seldom sound the same in your home vs. the dealer showroom, make sure that the dealer offers a "no nonsense" trade back policy. Most reputable dealers will offer it for 30 days.
But rest easy with the Wharfedales--very, very good speakers.
Kindest regards,
Kevin
