looking for more volume

[admin_exported]

Hi Guys

Currently running a cambridge 640a amp through kef iq7 speakers and play a lot of music through my i-pod through the cambridge docking station....I am looking for more volume as when I have a party etc it just does not seem loud enough! and you turn it up and the amp cuts out.....What are my options for more volume...power amp perhaps???

thanks

 

[Anonymous]

Is the volume using your i-pod more quiet than on other inputs such as CD or DVD etc.? If so, can you adjust the output level on your I-pod?

 

[Tony_R]

murgord:
Hi Guys

Currently running a cambridge 640a amp through kef iq7 speakers and play a lot of music through my i-pod through the cambridge docking station....I am looking for more volume as when I have a party etc it just does not seem loud enough! and you turn it up and the amp cuts out.....What are my options for more volume...power amp perhaps???

thanks

Looking at the specs for the Cambridge (if it's the v1 model) it's 65w rms per channel. You must be having some seriously loud parties if you're able to push this to it's maximum....

My only recommendation is to purchase a more powerful amp - I think the IQ7's are rated to 150w RMS so you could go as high as that - in which case you could go for one of the more powerful Cambridge models such as the 740 (100w per channel) or the 840 (120w per channel) or a NAD C370 (120w per channel).

To hear the difference in loudness, you need to double the power (approx.) so the 120w models would seem to be the way forward...

My guess is your next posting will be how to get your speakers repaired though....

 

[Anonymous]

how do I adjust the output level on my i-pod ...because there is quite a bit of volume difference between my i-pod docking station and a cd.

thanks

 

[Anonymous]

I'm sorry but I don't know the answer to that as I don't own an I-pod. I do know that the Cambridge amp and Kef speakers work very well together and unless your listening room is as big as the Albert Hall, you should be able to get it plenty loud enough without your amp switching into protection or your speakers straining.

 

[chebby]

http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/summary.php?PID=287&Title=Azur+840W+Class+XD%99+power+amplifier

x2 for bridged mode to get 500watts per channel

 

[Tony_R]

murgord:

.....it just does not seem loud enough! and you turn it up and the amp cuts out.....

I think it's safe to say that lack of volume from the iPod is not the culprit here..

If the amp is reaching cut out point then plainly it cannot deliver enough power to satisfy the volume requirements.

As another poster commented.. your room nust be the size of the Albert Hall (either that or you and your fellow party goers are deaf)

 

[Gusboll]

You could try adjusting the volume level in i-tunes. Select all tracks, right click, click on 'Get Info', click the options tab and you will see a volume slider. Try upping it just one notch and you should hear a huge difference.

Warning! When you do this for the first time, if you've got thousands of tracks on there it will take at least a couple of hours to synchronise. Once you've done that though, whenever you add new tracks just follow the same procedure before you synchronise.

 

[Anonymous]

Make sure that the ipod doesn't have the volume limit on. You should be able to do that in the settings. I think as default this is switched to "on" so that people don't damage their hearing.

I would be astounded if the reason was the need for a more powerful amp particularly as CD volume is fine and only the ipod is a problem.

 

[Anonymous]

This may sound obvious and forgive me if it is, but do you have the remote control for the Cambridge ID10 (is this your dock?) and if so have you turned the output volume of the ID10 up?

See here...

http://www.pplaudio.com/modedemploi/cambridgeaudio/id10.pdf

If you don't have the remote control you will need to buy it ...

http://www.richersounds.com/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=CAMB-ID10-REMOTE

This should work but you may wish to test it first to ensure it solves your problem

Hope this helps

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies guys

Tried setting the i-pod volume up did not really make a difference! spoke to a guy in a shop today and he suggested audiolab mono blocking the 2 speakers which he said would give me a lot more volume than say a quad 909 power amp and i could control it through the cambridge 640a ...open to any suggestions this is a big,big room I am trying to fill!

thanks

 

[Tony_R]

murgord:
Thanks for the replies guys

Tried setting the i-pod volume up did not really make a difference! spoke to a guy in a shop today and he suggested audiolab mono blocking the 2 speakers which he said would give me a lot more volume than say a quad 909 power amp and i could control it through the cambridge 640a ...open to any suggestions this is a big,big room I am trying to fill!

thanks

In big rooms, the secret is to get the speakers raised off the floor, usually to a height above head height. (It helps if you have a stage).

I have previously done the sound production for a medium sized theatre, and I had two large speakers, driven by a 250w per channel amp.

I have to say that it wasn't necessary to run this at full volume to achieve adequate levels.

However, speaker placement was crucial. To test this, I set some music playing and took a walk around the theatre, and there were definate dead spots which were easily eliminated by careful placement of the speakers. This was a small amount of 'toe in' crossing almost through the center of the theatre.

Hope this helps.

 

[Anonymous]

murgord:
Thanks for the replies guys

Tried setting the i-pod volume up did not really make a difference! spoke to a guy in a shop today and he suggested audiolab mono blocking the 2 speakers which he said would give me a lot more volume than say a quad 909 power amp and i could control it through the cambridge 640a ...open to any suggestions this is a big,big room I am trying to fill!

thanks

Did you see my reply about the output volume of the dock itself murgord?

You can only change it using the remote.

This has solved the problem for others and before you go mad spending money you may not need to it must be worth a try.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks el capitan

I have the volume set right up with the remote and it is just slightly under the volume level of the cd so me thinks i do need more power and I am thinking mono-blocking may be the answer but am not sure how it would work with the cambridge 640a (v2) appreciate anybodys advice/input here!!!

thanks

Murray

 

[Messiah]

How big is this room??

 

[Anonymous]

12foot by 37foot glass on 3 sides.

murray

 

[Anonymous]

so if i monoblocked with 2 say audiolab 8000m amps would this work with the cambridge 640a v2 and would it give me a big boost in volume???

I appreciate your patience here.

Murray

 

[up the music]

It does seem that you've got ITunes/dock set up to eek out all the available volume. I don't use ITunes so somebody else may be able to ay whether a batch normailiser might get more volume into the amps input. As somebody earlier pointed out though if you're gtting the amp to cut out a lack of input level doesn't look to be the problem.
I don't know under what conditions the Cambridge will shut down but if this is due to thermal load you could try moving the amp to somewhere better ventilated or use a cooling fan for parties.
Trying to get the speakers above your guests is a valid point. Peoples bodies do absorb a lot of sound. Another idea is to crank the volume up progressively during the night. If you go full throttle from the start you'll not appreciate how loud it is after half an hour. Once your ears are adjusted to the volume level give it another slight nudge up.
One possibility that struck me is that the amp may be using a lot of it's power reproducing deep bass. If you use a seperate sub you'll be able to take some strain off the amp. You may well find it'll go louder that way.
How about running additional amps and speakers to get a more even distribution of sound for parties. as you're currently running one pair I imagine it's easy to deafen sombody near the speakers but somebody else at the other end of the room could hold a polite conversation without the music being too intrusive.
All that glass sounds bad to me. I imagine this is a conservatory or something with quite a high ceiling too.
I've got a pair of Mackie SRM450's going spare. If you're in Yorkshire invite me round to your party, I'll bring them and your volume problems will be taken care of.

 

[manicm]

murgord:

Hi Guys

Currently running a cambridge 640a amp through kef iq7 speakers and play a lot of music through my i-pod through the cambridge docking station....I am looking for more volume as when I have a party etc it just does not seem loud enough! and you turn it up and the amp cuts out.....What are my options for more volume...power amp perhaps???

thanks

If I'm correct your dock should bypass the iPod's volume so I don't think the problem is there, you're perhaps expecting a bit too much?!

 

[Anonymous]

Your all looking at this from the wrong perspective. Changing to a 150watt or more amp will not make the volume that much louder, as 60watts on those sensative speakers is quite loud enough for parties in most houses! You need to change your speakers if you want to go louder (can't imagine how loud you must want it, because my iQ30s on my 100watt Arcam A32 is just stupidly loud and perfectly clean if needed. Look at something like the Wharfedale Vardus VR400 speakers for when you are partying (superfi.co.uk do a smashing deal on them) or get yourself a PA system by the likes of JBL, Mackie or Wharfedale.

 

[Anonymous]

probably I am expecting too much from my current set up...that is why i am asking for advice on the best way to get a lot more volume and i just dont want to make an expensive mistake by buying a power amp(quad 909) when say the audiolab monos would give me more volume???

murray

 

[up the music]

If you want 'a lot' more volume Hughes 123 is right. You really need to be looking at PA kit. A bigger power amp along the lines you're thinking with your speakers will give more volume, but not 'a lot'. Obviously PA kit sacrifices quality in favour of grunt and robust engineering.
Without PA grunt I don't see how you'd get a decent spread of sound in that room without a second pair of speakers.
Do people complain it's not loud enough? What sort of music do you play?

 

[Anonymous]

I play a real mix of music at the partys ...people dont complain it is not loud enough but if you are at the far end of the room it just does not seem loud enough....if i did wire up a second set of speakers would that not put more strain on my amp thus reducing the volume even more?

murray

 

[Anonymous]

murgord:
I play a real mix of music at the partys ...people dont complain it is not loud enough but if you are at the far end of the room it just does not seem loud enough....if i did wire up a second set of speakers would that not put more strain on my amp thus reducing the volume even more?

murray

To a certain extent it would, but you would get a louder sound from that amp. Why don't you just do what I do and get yourself some trashy speakers and amp for when you do parties and then chuck them after? Spent £20 once and they lasted at least 2 hours before smoke started pouring from the crossovers!

 

[Tony_R]

What you really need is something like this << click - 500w speaker £99 each

And an amp to go with them << click 200w amp £200

This will make as much noise as you could want..

With reasonable fidelity - and spare your Kef speakers and Cambridge amp.

I think you can get stands for those speakers too..