zapco Z-AP Series, Руководство пользователя, Страница: 6 / 11

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Class, Power, Heat
When buying or selling a car audio amplifier you need to consider more than just the power output. The basic design platform of the amplifier (Amplifier Class) will
influence how the amp will work in any given situation, for any given user. All amplifiers make small signals bigger and in doing so create heat. Class A produces the
most heat and Class D produces the least. If the amplifiers are not properly cooled, they will get too hot and problems will arise. Either the amp will be damaged, or
protection circuits will engage to shut the amp off until it has cooled down enough to safely work again. Conversely, better cooling will allow an amp to make more
power, longer, without damage or thermal shut down.
Class A/B amplifiers are used when audio fidelity is the primary goal and efficiency is of secondary concern. Class A/B amps have superior sound quality but with
lower efficiency, they generate more heat and need more cooling.
Sound Quality and Dynamic Range : Our amps are designed solely for the best possible sound quality, so we do not current limit the amps. This gives Zapco amps
more Dynamic Range that other amplifiers. Dynamic range, the ability to go from very quiet to extremely loud without distortion, is a major reason Zapco amps
sound better than others. So, with Z-AP amplifiers, consumers have more dynamics plus the sound quality of class A/B amplifiers. If the Zapco Class A/B are used at
the maximum dynamic range without distortion, they don’t need so much cooling and never will shut down. But if they are driven into its distortion the amplifier
will more easily reach maximum temperature and will shut down.
Critical : Volume does not make a system sound loud. Distortion sounds loud. With clean sound it is easy to drive an amp to full power and not know it because it
still sounds clean. But when the power requested of the amplifier takes it into distortion the amplifier will overhead and shut down... and possibly be damaged.
Zapco offers both Class A/B and Class D amps. Class A/B for the user who puts sound quality and dynamics first, and Class D for the user who wants big power in a
small box.
Installation and Cooling : All the amplifiers need cooling, whether they are class A/B or class D. For cooling, the heatsink of the amplifier needs to exchange heat
with air around it. So, the amplifier cannot be covered or put in a space where there is not enough air or ventilation. As noted above, in many cases a good installation
needs to use external fans to make the ventilation more efficient. Some amplifiers have fans inside, but the problem is not solved if the fans cannot have an exchange
of air with the environment.