Ideal wattage for Omega speakers?

Ultralight · « **on:** 22 Apr 2015, 03:58 pm »

Question. I've seen a common line regarding Omega speakers by both the Omega website and also owners. Something along the lines of, 'Works with as little as two watts...'.

Questions -

1. If someone wanted the SET sound, would it be better to get a little 2-8 watt SET amp, than say, something with 22-26 watts from tube amps such as the 845 tubes?

2. And what's the max watts for the Omega speakers in general?

3. Do most Omega owners use tube amps ? Or do many use solid state?

Thanks!
UL

Nailbunny7 · « **Reply #1 on:** 22 Apr 2015, 04:35 pm »

Quote from: Ultralight on 22 Apr 2015, 03:58 pm

Question. I've seen a common line regarding Omega speakers by both the Omega website and also owners. Something along the lines of, 'Works with as little as two watts...'.

Questions -

1. If someone wanted the SET sound, would it be better to get a little 2-8 watt SET amp, than say, something with 22-26 watts from tube amps such as the 845 tubes?

2. And what's the max watts for the Omega speakers in general?

3. Do most Omega owners use tube amps ? Or do many use solid state?

Thanks!
UL

1. I can't really imagine most people need more than 8 watts or so, but it never hurts to have more power, though an 845 tube amp may get pretty expensive.

2. I wouldn't really worry about the max wattage too much. It would be unbearably loud long before you hit max wattage, I think.

3. You can use either solid state or tube amps. People tend to like the tube amps because they sound nice and play nicely with high efficiency full range drivers. What matters most is that the amp is of good quality.

RDavidson · « **Reply #2 on:** 22 Apr 2015, 04:48 pm »

Well stated NB.

I personally loved my First Watt J2 with 3xrs (when I had my 3xrs). I'm planning to get another pair of Omegas within the next few months. Anyway....I completely agree 100%. It is less about what type of amp to use as it is the quality of those first .5 - 2 watts where Omegas are cruising along beautifully. Some amps (often higher power amps) just don't sound their best unless pushed a little. At that point you'd be blown out of the room or your speakers destroyed. I think this is also a big reason you see many Omega owners using amps with less than 10wpc. Lower powered amps tend to come on song much more quickly as they have less total headroom. With Omegas, one doesn't typically need a ton of extra headroom anyway.

Holygeezer · « **Reply #3 on:** 22 Apr 2015, 10:37 pm »

Hello Ultralight,
I am running my Outlaw 1.5 Way Towers with a Dayens Ampino Integrated Amp. It is 25 watts at 8 ohms/40 watts at 4 ohms. It is a solid state design and sounds sublime. It is also extremely affordable as it costs between $600-$700 new. I got mine used for $360. When running my CD player with the amp I usually have the volume knob somewhere between 8 and 9 o'clock. I can't speak to tubes as I have never run an amp with them. But many folks love tube amps with their Omegas. I can't imagine anything sounding better than the Ampino to my ears. I no longer have any desire to try anymore equipment. I just sit back (or dance around) listening to music now.

sruffle · « **Reply #4 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 01:47 am »

This is probably a stupid question but is there such a thing as too much power? My amp is 200 watts into 8 ohms. This is way more than needed but I am curious if this presents a danger to blowing out the speakers.
I would like to hear Omegas bit don't have the right amp to match.

Having never heard a single driver speaker, I am very curious to hear the Omegas

RDavidson · « **Reply #5 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 02:05 am »

Well, no. You can't really have too much power. The problem is you have to attenuate the volume A LOT, which can introduce compromises also (unless you have a REALLY good preamp). I'd almost be willing to bet that you'd get better results with a small, inexpensive, class D amp vs a 200 wpc behemoth.....unless that behemoth maybe runs in class A for its first few watts.

sruffle · « **Reply #6 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 02:13 am »

Thanks for the reply. My amp really isn't practical to even try with these speakers. I am interested in the single driver low watt tube amp concept but have to go all in to try it out. My speakers are 4 ohm 89db sensitive and my amp is high powered. With that setup, a low powered amp won't drive my speakers and my amp is too much for a single driver speaker....

RDavidson · « **Reply #7 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 02:27 am »

Well, not necessarily.
What amp and preamp do you have?

sruffle · « **Reply #8 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 09:46 am »

I am using a Rogue Audio Medusa anda passive preamp. The preamp is a DIY based on the Tortuga kit. The Rogue has 31db gain.

DaveC113 · « **Reply #9 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 10:29 am »

It's worth a try... I'm using a 300 WPC amplifier right now with great results.

Audiophile58 · « **Reply #10 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 11:15 am »

I have found that a very well built SET amp such as my Jas Bravo 2.3 is a 18wpc it can drive Any Omega
Loudspeaker with tons of finesse,punch,and control. The power supply and transformer quality is key.

I have seen many times a 20 wpc Vacuum tube amp beat a 100 wpc solid stste. That is where the quality
Comes in A 150 wpc receiver for example has very small power supplies compared to a dedicated amplifier.
My integrated SET integrated it's power supplies are almost 35 lbs thst will give excellent control and stability
When dynamics call for it.
Thst is why I allways look for build quality first ,then watts per channel to see what I truly need .

Omega Loudspeakers not using a Xover are very easy to drive.the better the better the electronics the
More refinement you will be rewarded with.

RDavidson · « **Reply #11 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 01:35 pm »

Quote from: DaveC113 on 23 Apr 2015, 10:29 am

It's worth a try... I'm using a 300 WPC amplifier right now with great results.

+1 You're still using a Crown XLS, right Dave?
It's been awhile since I listened to a Class D, but from what I recall, their sound quality is pretty consistent regardless of how much attenuation is needed.
I was kind of assuming Sruffle had a 200wpc class A/B, which could still be just fine if that was the case. Class D definitely changes things a bit.

Absolutely worth a try.

DaveC113 · « **Reply #12 on:** 23 Apr 2015, 01:44 pm »

Yes, it has adjustable gain and is a great match with my 6SN7 Aikido tube preamp.

sruffle · « **Reply #13 on:** 24 Apr 2015, 12:58 am »

Thanks for the input. It sounds like it is worth trying. Having never heard a single driver speaker, it would be nice not to have to get both an amp and speakers to try one.

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #14 on:** 24 Apr 2015, 01:09 am »

Quote from: Ultralight on 22 Apr 2015, 03:58 pm

Question. I've seen a common line regarding Omega speakers by both the Omega website and also owners. Something along the lines of, 'Works with as little as two watts...'.

Questions -

1. If someone wanted the SET sound, would it be better to get a little 2-8 watt SET amp, than say, something with 22-26 watts from tube amps such as the 845 tubes?

2. And what's the max watts for the Omega speakers in general?

3. Do most Omega owners use tube amps ? Or do many use solid state?

Thanks!
UL

1- Big Triodes as 211,845,805 have great control and harmonics in the bass, its a different league from the 2A3,300B. I prefer the Big Triodes.

2- The max continous-RMS is the specified in the datasheet.

3- Tubes amps are the usual success receipt.
Good luck

Audiophile58 · « **Reply #15 on:** 24 Apr 2015, 02:32 am »

I have used several tubes and they all have a certain flavor .one tube not mentioned at all us the Russian
6C33C know as the tube the Mig fighters used ,and high end Lamm Audio as well as Batt use with the three
Dimples on top. It is very rugged in my 18 wpc ,Jas Bravo 2.3 it is a pure class A SET integrated and use the great 5ar4 rectifier tube, one per channel,and a pentode 6ac7 driver tube. This has attributes of a 845 as well as a 300 b
But not as lush in the mids but Very 3 dimentional with a excellent top end as well as tight controlled Bass.
If on a budget under $2,500 .

Audiophile58 · « **Reply #16 on:** 24 Apr 2015, 03:16 am »

This is not a easy answer. If you have a SPL level meter how loud do you like to play in DBs ?

How big is your room ? And how High is your ceiling ? I stated in a earlier writing that a well built amplifier with less wattage can have much better control and play louder then a amplifier with 2 times the rating. the build quality, and size of their power supplies and transformers are many times the deciding factors.

RDavidson · « **Reply #17 on:** 24 Apr 2015, 03:41 am »

Well, beyond build and parts quality, circuit design plays an even larger role in the grand scheme of things. One can throw $$$ worth of great parts in a great box, but this alone doesn't equate to a great amplifier.

hdrider · « **Reply #18 on:** 25 Apr 2015, 12:25 am »

I am using a Decware Rachael SET 6 watts @ 8 ohms into my new (150+hours) Omega 7XRS in walnut and it is beyond praise. Plenty of power, plenty of volume. SO happy I have taken this part and I am looking forward to the 8'' sub I ordered from Louis this week to arrive in a few weeks. Now I am going to listen to a few records before the Mrs. comes home and we start our weekend. Happy listening, Chris.

Dsaldivar · « **Reply #19 on:** 25 Apr 2015, 03:35 am »

I am using a Musical Paradise (with EL34 tubes, with KT76's the amp sounds really great) with an output of 6 watts per channel to drive my Omega Alnico Super Monitors. No more watts are needed to enjoy the music. I think high quality watts is better than a lot f them. I set the volume to a little bit more than just 9 o'clock (makes sense?) and is already too loud. I suspect I am not using more than 2 watts most of the time.
My initial impressions are very positive i will report later after the speakers have more playing hours.

Dan

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