what is too much?

[dystrother]

Hi all,

i have recently put together my first system. I have an Onkyo TX-SR503 receiver, two advent audigy towers, a harman kardon DVD22 dvd player and a Sony Wega 15'' LCD tv. The question i have is how much sound can i put into my speakers before its comes to the point where i am hurting the speakers. I replaced the surrounds on the woofers...and i am getting a sub soon, but i dont want to ruin my speakers. Im new to my custom systems(that is, this is the first time i actually have a system that i could potentially hurt by turning it up too loud). I found a volume where i dont think it harming my speakers and thats pretty good, but when i get the subwoofer will that take more pressure off the woofers in the speakers allowing for more soundage? thanks

[topspeed]

Just use common sense and you'll be OK. When the sound starts to distort, dial it back a notch or three and you should be fine. FWIW, clipping from your amp is far more dangerous to your transducers than overdriving your speakers. Of course, neither are a good thing.

A sub will fill in the lower octaves, but it won't have much of an affect on the soundstage. However, depending on where you set your crossover, it is possible the sub will reduce the stress on the woofers of your mains.

Hope this helps.