Have you ever played your system "really" loud?

They're not just compressions and rarefactions you know, they're Naim compressions and rarefactions. So much better mannered!

Ocassionally I do play my system loud, when the alcohol is there and great rock is to be played, espescially recordings from live concerts.  I feel that need to fulfill that feeling, a bit like an addiction to nicotine (I gave up fags 8 years ago but sometimes I have that craving).

Pev posted:

Yep - no neighbours within a quarter of a mile (had a live rock band playing in the garden until after midnight with no complaints ). When I had a party my NAP250 would regularly cut out  so I had to get 135s. My Nova doesn't suffer from the same problem.

I think the physicality of music is part of the experience, especially at a live gig when it feels like your internal organs are being rearranged.

Pardon?

Exactly that here, 250 forever over heating, 135`s no probs!

TOBYJUG posted:

 

Minh Nguyen posted:

 When the kidneys are in good health, the ears will receive the five sounds. ATB Minh

I always thought that when the liver was in rude health, thats when the ears were at their best.   Psychosis of the river should be shown to flow in only the one direction.

 

The liver is related to the blood and eyes.

At a gig tonight, that reminded me how hifi should sound, with bass and bass drum that not only made loose clothing vibrate, but also my hair. Out of interest I whipped out my phone and checked the sound level - according to the app, average between 105 and 110dB (unweighted). The background audience level betweeen songs when not applauding was just over 80dB.

I have done this more often than you might imagine.  

When we added the Herbie Footers on the Verdier TT and the ProAC D40R’s, we needed to see how loud it could play without feeding back. Superline>552>500.       It is easy to turn it up to 12:00 and further.   Everything sounds great.    A little loud.   The CD555 can do this even better.    

This is not an every day sound but it is fun to show off.   

Playing the system loud was a common occurrence in the early 70's, young single and sharing a three bedroom house with a couple of other guys. The stereo system got a constant workout........  As time went on the frequency declined, marriage, apartment living, children, career....... life happens.  

......but I'm not dead yet.  

Just a couple of month ago on a Friday night, I cranked the SN2 enough to have it shutdown.

.......and It just may happen again.

I appreciate your enthusiasm, but wow, that seems loud. I've never driven an amp to shut down. You must have a well-damped room.

Many years ago I managed to blow the tweeter in one of my (actively driven) SBLs. It was the track Mind's Eye from the Stiltskin album. The volume control on the 82 was cranked fairly high as I demonstrated how loudly the system could be played. Loudly enough that it was not immediately obvious that the LH tweeter had blown.  

joerand posted:

I appreciate your enthusiasm, but wow, that seems loud. I've never driven an amp to shut down. You must have a well-damped room.

The SN2 has a rated output of 80w into 8Ω, and with Naim’s linearity probably 160W into the S400s 4Ω, and given their sensitivity that is a maximum sound level of 110dB, peaks a bit more. Yes, very loud, like the gig I was at last night - hudely enjoyable. But that is 1m away from the speaker, Further away, say 4m, and with a second speaker, the direct sound level drops to 101dB, though given reflections in the room a few dB higher. Yes, still very loud, but not beyond the bounds of enthusiasm. However, that is all theoretical: in practice I wonder if the amp is capable of that for any sustained period - whilst this is only a guess, given that the SN2’s only heat radiatio is its flat sides and top, with no fins, and no fan to cut in like some amps, I suspect that running into 4Ω  would place more of a limit on continuous running, especially if anywhere without a very good flow of air around, so maybe it would trip out after playing for a while even at lower sound levels than this.

Naim amps don't double their power as the impedance load haves.

Nick from Suffolk posted:

Many years ago I managed to blow the tweeter in one of my (actively driven) SBLs. It was the track Mind's Eye from the Stiltskin album. The volume control on the 82 was cranked fairly high as I demonstrated how loudly the system could be played. Loudly enough that it was not immediately obvious that the LH tweeter had blown.  

Sounds familiar, blew both my active SBL tweeters one night, but Marilyn Manson was the culprit instead.

Alley Cat posted:

Nick from Suffolk posted:

Many years ago I managed to blow the tweeter in one of my (actively driven) SBLs. It was the track Mind's Eye from the Stiltskin album. The volume control on the 82 was cranked fairly high as I demonstrated how loudly the system could be played. Loudly enough that it was not immediately obvious that the LH tweeter had blown.  

Sounds familiar, blew both my active SBL tweeters one night, but Marilyn Manson was the culprit instead.

I think your tweeters were just going on strike as a critique of the music.

feeling_zen posted:

Alley Cat posted:

Nick from Suffolk posted:

Many years ago I managed to blow the tweeter in one of my (actively driven) SBLs. It was the track Mind's Eye from the Stiltskin album. The volume control on the 82 was cranked fairly high as I demonstrated how loudly the system could be played. Loudly enough that it was not immediately obvious that the LH tweeter had blown.  

Sounds familiar, blew both my active SBL tweeters one night, but Marilyn Manson was the culprit instead.

I think your tweeters were just going on strike as a critique of the music.

 Thought someone would say that!

I don't like all his stuff in fairness, but Mechanical Animals was utterly sublime.  I probably wasn't playing that!

thebigfredc posted:

Naim amps don't double their power as the impedance load haves.

Hmm, I thought they were supposed to excel there, but I don’t know where I heard that, as looking up in a few places I see you’re right, and thanks for the correction. So rather less loud than my calculations above.