We’re talking about conference rooms, of course, not your car stereo. You’re free to stream your 80s hair band station as loud as you please. When it comes to any amplifier application, many people are still stuck on the concept of “bigger is better.” However, you don’t actually need a big amplifier to achieve big sound. PoE+ powered amplifiers can provide exceptional sound reinforcement in conferencing applications.
In a typical conference room setting, is 70dB enough for continuous levels (i.e. not peaks)? What about 80 or 90 dB? To put this in perspective, hairdryers and lawnmowers operate at about 90 to 95dB. Once your volume level gets that high, you’re risking potential hearing loss for the people in the room. Experts recommend limiting exposure to such high decibel levels. For comparison, normal speech at 1 meter distance is typically around 60 dB SPL, while shouting is approximately 78dB.
When determining how much power your amplifier needs to deliver [NERD ALERT: we’re about to do math], here’s what you need to know:
- Speaker sensitivity
- Distance from the speaker to the listener
- Desired SPL level at that position
For example, a speaker with 89dB sensitivity would require only 7.15W to produce an 85dB signal at a distance of 3 meters, with 3dB of headroom available. Here’s the math:
With a Tesira® PoE+ amplifier, you can achieve your desired level of amplification without the need for bulky hardware. However, what about peak signals? We’ve all endured meetings with colleagues who are prone to loud, spontaneous outbursts that can wreak havoc on the audio, sometimes causing clipping in the amplifier or worse yet, causing the amp to reset. Our PoE+ amplifiers maintain an energy reserve that allows them to handle peak signals, putting an end to this challenge.
To discover whether our PoE+ amplifiers are the right fit for your installation, check out this helpful amplifier calculator that will determine exactly how much power is necessary for a given application. Don’t believe us? Contact your Biamp sales representative to schedule a live demonstration. These amplifiers truly need to be heard to be appreciated.