Amplifier Clearance Requirement

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Paratus, Feb 6, 2023.

  1. Paratus

    Paratus Well-Known Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Portland
    I purchased a new integrated amplifier (Michi X5) and upon reading the manual I discovered in the, "Important Safety Instructions" section a blurb that read, "You must allow a minimum of 20-inches of unobstructed clearance around the unit." I'm assuming this is for adequate heat dissipation and that a clearance specification is probably quite common to one degree or another for amplifiers in general.

    My question is how strict is this requirement? I'm hoping there is a lot of margin in that number. The left and right side as well as the front there will be no issue meeting the 20" distance, but the backside is a different story and could very well pose a problem for me. I might be able to move the unit perhaps 10" away from the backwall, but 20" will be tricky. If this is a hard-and-fast rule is there a way around it like using a fan to compensate for the shorter distance to the wall? I usually only listen to music no longer than 1 to 2 hours per session and the room is airconditioned and will never get above 70 degrees if that helps in answering the question.

    Thank you!
     
  2. Glmoneydawg

    Glmoneydawg Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario Canada
    I doubt 20" in all directions is necessary....just my 2 cents....very nice purchase:)
     
    Last edited: Feb 6, 2023
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  3. pscreed

    pscreed Upstanding Member

    Location:
    Land of the Free
    The only direction I would be concerned with is up. Heat rises. I almost wonder if it’s a typo for 2” otherwise.

    Congrats on the amp BTW that thing looks like a beast.
     
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  4. Glmoneydawg

    Glmoneydawg Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario Canada
    That's what i was thinking...5cm or 2"....decimal point displaced?As you said with heat rising,overhead space would be the only relevant space required.
     
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  5. FuzzyNightmares

    FuzzyNightmares Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oregon
    I break the rules for clearance every time I fire my amp up. I also hold my hand in there to see what all the fuss is about and have no problems

    ymmv
     
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  6. shadowhillway

    shadowhillway fully immersed in The Wired

    Location:
    United States
    maybe it was meant to read "20 centimeters". about 8 inches seems probable.
     
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  7. Lowrider75

    Lowrider75 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    This amp may run hot but it's
    hard to believe you would need 20". My Class A tube amp requires 9" and it runs hot!
     
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  8. Paratus

    Paratus Well-Known Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Portland
    For those thinking it's a typo that was a good thought, but I don't think it's a typo. I cross checked against the integrated it's replacing, the RA-1572 mkii, and the spec for its clearance is 4". The X5 is much larger, so I'm sure they meant 20". However, it seems most replies seem to point towards this spec being a bit overblown, so I'll give it a go at a smaller distance and monitor how hot it gets behind the amp.
     
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  9. harby

    harby Forum Resident

    Location:
    Portland, OR, USA
    Heat/Power at 4 ohms at 1/8th power: 2194 BTU. An obscure way of saying 643 watts of heat for 43.8 watts of audio per channel. Efficiency 13% (actually worse since 643 watts heat + 88 watts to your speakers = sucking down 730 watts), and getting worse at lower volumes.

    There are heatsinks on each side that are open on the top and bottom. Best would be to allow convection currents to easily carry heat through these and away. The rear I'd guess that your cables provide enough margin.
     
    Last edited: Feb 6, 2023
  10. Ampexed

    Ampexed Forum Resident

    Location:
    Santa Fe, NM
    I find it hard to believe the 20" figure. I worked on the design of a similarly powered stereo amplifier a couple years ago, and that specifies only a couple inches both above and below. 8" or so on top and a couple below would seem reasonable on your amp.
     
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  11. Frank Bisby

    Frank Bisby Forum Resident

    I hate to be endlessly cynical but……

    I’d say this was written by a lawyer and not an engineer. If ever something wrong an unreasonable 20 inch buffer would absolve the manufacture of liability. It might last void any warranty.

    There are some power tubes that get absurdly hot but I don’t think k that’s what you’re dealing with.
     
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  12. Rick58

    Rick58 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Eagle, ID, USA
    I’d agree that 6” or so above and behind should be plenty. A couple on the sides …
     
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  13. Hanks3

    Hanks3 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin, Tx
    You are totally fine. If you have clearance on the sides with the X5 you are good to go.
     
  14. Ampexed

    Ampexed Forum Resident

    Location:
    Santa Fe, NM
    Solid state amps like this always have a thermal cutout switch, usually at 85 C attached to the heat sinks. One of my more fun activities on a recent amp design was repeatedly driving the amp with 20kHz at full power for two whole weeks as it would go into thermal protection, cool down, and come back on. Rinse, lather, repeat. I couldn't get the damn thing to blow up!
     
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  15. Ampexed

    Ampexed Forum Resident

    Location:
    Santa Fe, NM
    And don't forget clearance below! The fresh air has to come from somewhere. ;)
     
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  16. shadowhillway

    shadowhillway fully immersed in The Wired

    Location:
    United States
    image from manual: (click for full size)

    [​IMG]
     
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  17. Ampexed

    Ampexed Forum Resident

    Location:
    Santa Fe, NM
    Funny, they don't specify airspace below that amp! As my above post mentions, the fresh air has to come from below in order to cool the heat sinks. And obviously don't place the amplifier on shag carpet or anything which blocks airspace below - it may have feet which raise it adequately on a hard surface, but that doesn't hold on soft surfaces. Seems their overly cautious lawyers don't know how cooling works.
     
  18. Lowrider75

    Lowrider75 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    Oh come on. 20" on the sides. You'll need to put it in the center of your room.
     
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  19. Ampexed

    Ampexed Forum Resident

    Location:
    Santa Fe, NM
    Or hang it from the ceiling by a rope. :pineapple:
     
  20. Lowrider75

    Lowrider75 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    That will get you 20" underneath the amp :)
     
  21. Dominator

    Dominator Forum Resident

    Location:
    North Carolina
    Looking at the drawing my interpretation is that you need a total of 20 inches of combined clearance between the sides, the back and the top.
     
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  22. Hanks3

    Hanks3 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin, Tx
    The thing weighs 100 pounds, it might kill someone.
     
  23. head_unit

    head_unit Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles CA USA
    I'd note that heat rises, but it also has to flow. That means it does need ideally some clearance at the sides and underneath...if that's not possible then a little help might be good, these are very cool ha ha
    Equipment Cooling - ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS - Component Fan Systems - AC Infinity
     
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  24. PineBark

    PineBark formerly known as BackScratcher

    Location:
    Boston area
    Whoever wrote that spec for 20" all around lives in a fantasy world.
     
  25. Rick58

    Rick58 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Eagle, ID, USA
    Sorry, the feet have to provide enough clearance under the thing. And if someone insists on putting it on a carpet or squishy surface … they aren’t qualified to own it. Send it to me.
     
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