Turbosound TL-1800 - Manual (Page 9)

user manual
TL series
TL series manual
page 9
Amplifier considerations
Turbosound speaker enclosures should be driven by high quality power amplifiers designed for
true professional use. Such amplifiers will have balanced inputs, DC and RF fault protection, and
well-designed cooling systems for reliability. Turbosound power amplifiers such as the TMC-
T1000 are available and recommended for this purpose.
The program power listed in the loudspeaker’s technical specification is the best guide to the size
of amplifier required for general-purpose applications. The amplifier should therefore be capable
of delivering long term broadband power equal to the loudspeaker’s program power rating at the
loudspeaker’s stated nominal impedance. This approach allows sufficient headroom to generate
good dynamic range.
RECOMMENDED AMPLIFIER POWER RATINGS:
The amplifier's rated r.m.s. continuous power output (20Hz – 20kHz, per
channel) should be equal to the program power handling of the
loudspeaker at its nominal impedance.
In general, the more powerful the amplifier the better it will sound, provided that it is not driven
into sustained clipping. It should be understood that overdriving an insufficiently powered
amplifier is more likely to cause loudspeaker damage – the total energy in a heavily clipped signal
is far higher than in an unclipped signal – than operating a more powerful amplifier within its
ratings.
Equalisation
TL series enclosures are designed to provide smooth and even frequency response. They do not
need excessive amounts of external equalisation to overcome the sonic deficiencies often found in
many lesser designs.
In order to compensate for the room acoustics, TL series enclosures require only minimal
equalisation. As in any system, over-equalisation introduces phase shifts, distortion and a
reduction in headroom, usually causing more problems than it cures. Under most circumstances a
1/3 or 1/2 octave graphic equaliser will generally be adequate, with the fader settings applied
smoothly and as little as possible for the required room compensation. Most rooms will have
resonances that will be excited at particular frequencies needing some
cut to help tame the sound.
These problems are most pronounced at the lower frequencies where loudspeakers generally
exhibit very little directional control. If you find that the system needs a lot of
boost at lower
frequencies you may need additional sub-bass units. It is good practice to use as little equalisation
as possible, aiming to cut frequencies rather than adding large amounts of boost.