All-action Amplifiers
An audio amplifier is a device that makes a quiet sound much louder – What could be simpler?
Driving Sounds is all for simplification, and the above statement is the limit of many people's knowledge. Some don't even want to know more, but a quick look at the number of different models of amplifiers sold and installed would have even the most perfunctory of customers asking questions. The fact is that once you get to a specialist level, the performance expectations become much higher. Therefore, it becomes necessary to employ specialist products.
Why do you need an external amplifier when upgrading your audio system? The answer is that although the power output of your head unit is probably quoted at 4 X 50 Watts, this is often a peak power measurement rather than the far more helpful RMS figure and could be measured with up to 10% distortion. Distortion destroys speakers and ears if you are not careful. It also makes what you are listening to sound less like the original sound recorded by the artist. Also, an onboard amplifier, in even a reasonably sophisticated head unit, is built into a tiny box with no room for sophisticated circuitry required to help it run at a high level for long periods. A speaker upgrade and improved sound are possible without an amplifier, but if you require extended bass or a significant improvement in fidelity, you will need to upgrade the amplifier.
Many vehicles already feature external amplifiers when delivered from the factory. This helps to save space in the dashboard area. It may also contain some processing and have multiple outputs for feeding numerous speakers. Once again, these tend to be low-powered devices, and the processing they carry out usually needs to be improved to match the performance of upgraded speakers. Onboard processing attempts to make very cheap and nasty speakers sound better and protect them from overzealous volume and bass tweaks.
Recent years have seen a revolution in amplifier design. Class D amplification not only sounds as good if not better than some Class AB products but is also so efficient that products have become very compact without the need for forced-air cooling.
Most car owners looking for an audio upgrade want all products hidden from view. Cars are becoming more stingy on stowage space, so a tiny amplifier with significant power is very positive.
Class D amplification is also happy to drive a low-impedance load offering additional flexibility for a system designer. With the advent of electric vehicles, current consumption has become a primary consideration. Most class D amplifiers we have seen would have a negligible effect on the range of an EV.
In terms of musicality, Class D amplifier design has been refined over many years, and different approaches use different components. As is the way of the world, high-quality components cost a little more, but with some amplifiers on the market, it is well worth it. Audison SR amplifiers, for instance, rapidly gained a reputation for audiophile quality, and all of Audison’s Class D offerings sound superb.
Speakers may operate over different frequency ranges. A tweeter, for instance, will be fed just high frequencies, whereas a subwoofer, just low ones. Most amplifiers will have switchable filters built in to provide some optimisation of output frequencies. Amplifiers with built-in Digital Signal Processors (DSPs) are becoming increasingly popular. A DSP allows endless tweaking possibilities to get the best out of your upgraded speakers. They can even straighten out the sometimes very odd signals coming out of the factory standard head unit.
It is not wise to select your amplifier on power alone. For a start, the unit for power is non-linear. Purchasing a 100watt amplifier will not give you twice the output volume of a 50watt amplifier or anything like it.
From a music lover's perspective, the most crucial attribute is that an amplifier makes quiet noises bigger but with as little interference to the original sound as possible!
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