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Looking to finally go active. Been thinking of doing this for some time, now. I've been told I will hear an increase in volume. How big a difference is there when switching to active? My amp is an Arc Audio KS900.6. Will I actually notice a big increase in volume? Will this give my front stage more head room? That is the one thing I always wanted while going passive.
A slight increase based on raising or lowering crossover points and for headroom , you just need an amp that is purring along ,but, has more power in reserve ! [ if your amp is maxxed out and struggling to keep up . . . Get a BIGGER amp ]
I'm not sure how much of a volume increase to expect. I'd guess not much. It'd probably make more of a difference in a PA or live sound system in which you were trying to fill an insanely large area with sound. Don't think it's that big of a deal in a car or the average sized room in a home. If you decide to go active, I'd keep the passive on the tweeter. https://www.audiofrog.com/community/...ve-crossovers/
I've read that passive crossover zap power from an amp. Thus, if going active, you will see an increase in power (volume). Is this not the case?
http://www.tomsguide.com/forum/38680...passive-active
Maybe 10% , you won`t be able to hear a difference!
If you switch from passive to active could it sound different? Probably. Will it be leaps and bounds louder? Probably not. Can your mind convince you it's louder? Yes. If passive crossovers caused that significant of a power loss, nobody would use them.Quote:
Originally Posted by Blackhawk Fan
Let's use passives even though we will have to get an amp 3 times bigger to hear the speakers ! Phase shifts are Great !
Headroom comes from having "power" in reserve or to spare.Quote:
Originally Posted by Euphonic
Passive crossovers take part of the power that would be going to the speakers and dissipates it as heat, so it's a less efficient system. Going active means that the sound is adjusted before the amp, so the speakers get the amp's full output. Since you will be manually adjusting your crossover points, slopes, gains, etc., you can custom tailor the sound to your environment (which is the whole point). Your highs may sound brighter, your mid may have more kick, and you may get a bit more output...it will definitely sound different that the passive system you're used to. So if you were to put a meter on it to compare, it might be physically louder, or it may not...but if it sounds louder to your ears, then it is louder.
:thumbup:
I had some down time at work so I did a quick test with a Kenwood passive crossover. On the input, I had 10.69 VAC with a 400hz tone. On the midrange output I had 9.93 VAC with a 4 ohm load. So, yes, it takes a bit of power to run and there's a chance it gets worse as the power increases and the longer it plays because of heat. At the end of the day though, it's an insignificant amount at normal listening volumes. If the main goal is to be able to shape the sound to your personal preference, go active. If you're in search of a huge increase in volume, buy a bigger amp. Or do both and be happier yet.
For reference, one click down on the volume knob lowered the output by 2.64 VAC.
To go from a whisper to a shout, add a Zero.
100 W - 1,000 W
Any improvement ?
Actually, I have not converted, yet. "Life" got in the way with some car malfunctions and I recently cracked a tooth which is going to require an implant...which is quite expensive. And, I am headed to Florida for a week's vacation. When I come back I plan on delving into it.
But, getting back to my original inquiry I was thinking that since each driver was getting it's own channel to receive power (instead of left front, right front, etc. getting a channel when running passive) that was why it may sound louder. I am running Morel components and while going passive the right front (tweeter and midbass) get power from one channel. And, obviously, the left front will get the same power. But, going active each midbass will get it's own channel and each tweeter will get it's own channel off the amp to receive power. This is why I was thinking it was going to sound louder.
Tweeters are `amplitude` dependant and cap from passive will provide additional protection , Time alignment yields minimal results on tweeters.