Difference between stereo amplifier and stereo receiver power output.

[manishk3008]

Hi I have been looking for a stereo setup for sometime and finally decided to purchase Polk R200 speaker pair. For amplifier, I am confused between Denon PMA 900 hne (Stereo Amp 50 W ) and Denon dra-800h (Stereo Receiver 100 W). The point of confusion is I listened to both amps and to my surprise 900HNE output was more punchy than DRA800H which has 100 W output. How is it possible amp with a lower wattage is more powerful? Are stereo receivers cutting off some frequency or some other crazy thing.

 

[Lizard King]

Hi I have been looking for a stereo setup for sometime and finally decided to purchase Polk R200 speaker pair. For amplifier, I am confused between Denon PMA 900 hne (Stereo Amp 50 W ) and Denon dra-800h (Stereo Receiver 100 W). The point of confusion is I listened to both amps and to my surprise 900HNE output was more punchy than DRA800H which has 100 W output. How is it possible amp with a lower wattage is more powerful? Are stereo receivers cutting off some frequency or some other crazy thing.

Depends on impedance at which power is rated, current, damping factor, transient or sustained power etc.
Just the power rating is an incomplete story and often a marketing strategy.

 

[Phew]

Hi I have been looking for a stereo setup for sometime and finally decided to purchase Polk R200 speaker pair. For amplifier, I am confused between Denon PMA 900 hne (Stereo Amp 50 W ) and Denon dra-800h (Stereo Receiver 100 W). The point of confusion is I listened to both amps and to my surprise 900HNE output was more punchy than DRA800H which has 100 W output. How is it possible amp with a lower wattage is more powerful? Are stereo receivers cutting off some frequency or some other crazy thing.

They both are the same power which is 100w. The stereo amplifier reads 50w+50w and the receiver reads 100w(2channel). Why does the pma-900 sound better is because there is a lot less stuff going on inside of it and also due to better components being used. If you demoed both amps with the polk R200 or a 4ohm speaker then the PMA 900 has more power at 4ohm(85w+85w vs 120 2ch) hence sounded more punchy.

 

[sandeepmohan]

Component quality is where I'd start. Unless you rip them apart, you're not going to know if they are using the same transistors, circuitry, etc.
The Receiver isn't rated at 4ohm so I'm not quite sure what kind of power delivery can be expected. Its anybody's guess. Should be higher and you'd need to measure that to know.

Did you demo the Receiver with the Eco mode disabled? This can clamp power delivery severely.

Not to say Receivers are bad. All said and done, the difference between the two should not be so far apart in terms of sound, that too from the same Brand and with identical power specifications.

 

[arj]

Hi I have been looking for a stereo setup for sometime and finally decided to purchase Polk R200 speaker pair. For amplifier, I am confused between Denon PMA 900 hne (Stereo Amp 50 W ) and Denon dra-800h (Stereo Receiver 100 W). The point of confusion is I listened to both amps and to my surprise 900HNE output was more punchy than DRA800H which has 100 W output. How is it possible amp with a lower wattage is more powerful? Are stereo receivers cutting off some frequency or some other crazy thing.

There is a difference between being punchy and having power and power ratings are only a reasonable indicator of ability to drive.

Eg the Polk R200 speaker is 86dB but goes down to below 4Ohms hence while it may need only 30-40 W for a decent volume in most rooms, it needs an amp which can give that power even at 4 Ohms.

Perhaps the Denon PMA 900 , which is built for more serious Hifi has that ability while the receiver which may err more fo convenience than audio cannot supply the same

 

[manishk3008]

Thank you all for your answers and for helping in making the decision. Placed an order for Polk R200 and Denon PMA 900hne today with audio quest x2 cable, from AV Squad Mumbai. Hoping to get delivery soon will update on the results after that.