almikel Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 Hi guys, a question not specifically related to DIY, but likely DIY people have thought about the question.... Is there a "typical" gain set on power amps, or are most power amps designed with a gain such that a full range input signal will provide maximum power output (ie a 60W amp will have twice the gain of a 30W amp)? Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMM Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 (edited) In pro audio gear 4dBu (1.23Vrms) input level is considered somewhat of a standard. Whether or not the amp is configured such that 4dBu at the input of the power amp equals maximum power is a secondary matter. In consumer gear pretty much anything goes. All of the amps i've come across have a gain somewhere in the region of 20 to 50. If it is an exceptionally powerful amp there will usually be an inbuilt preamp stage as running the power amp stage at higher gain will increase distortion. The amount of gain in the preamp and poweramp stages together is almost always more than is necessary as it is considered better practice to have to attenuate 'correct level' input signals than to run out of gain when a lower-than-optimal input signal is used. A 120W amp would require twice the voltage gain to reach maximum power compared to a 30W amp because power is proportional to the square of the voltage. A 60W amp only requires 1.41x that of a 30W. Edited August 1, 2014 by TMM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decky Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 Low gain would be under 20dB - high gain would be above 35dB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almikel Posted August 8, 2014 Author Share Posted August 8, 2014 cheers guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hochopeper Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Most consumer amps I've seen are around 30dB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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