HomePod Apple Homepod Speaker Driver Output ?

[TrueBlou]

Why does it matter (honest question), if the HP (or any speaker system), produces sound that is louder then most people need, and the HP seems to fit that category, then what does it matter what the wattage is?

It doesn’t, not really. So many things combine to make an audio system work.
There’s only one important factor, whether it sounds good to you or not.
It’s why there are so many different (quality) HiFi amplifier and speaker makers, we don’t all hear the same thing.

But wattage is a damn near meaningless way to try and compare one system to another. Something anyone who’s serious about HiFi or Home Cinema will quickly learn. It’s there, by and large as a boasting factor and for people who just want to pick the “most powerful” one they can get.

If wattage were the be all and end all then a cheap 100 bucks sound-bar with 500W of output would sound better than a several thousand bucks setup of, for instance, Arcam and Monitor Audio with 100W yes? No, of course not.

What’s more important is the ability to generate, well pure clean power for want of a better description.

You will, if you’re a HiFi nut come across stories, or know of someone who’s willing to spend many thousands on a simple 20W Valve Amp. Why? Because the good ones can blow the arse off of some amps with 5 or 10 times the wattage.

It’s an incredibly complex field, one that’s definitely worth looking into if you’re interested. There’s plenty of online resources and books that will explain the finer details. But the one overriding factor is power and clean controlled sound, isn’t directly attributable to wattage.

Oh, if you’re curious on what one way to help tell, if you’re in a shop for instance, and just can’t decide between a couple of amps after considering all of your options (and I do just mean traditional ones here, not valve amps) and you just can’t come to a conclusion, pick the heavier one.
The array of components and the quality of them, required to make a good, powerful amp end up making it heavy.

I’d definitely not suggest that as your only way of making a decision and it’s anything but scientific. But it’s something I (and friends and many a journalist) have noticed in my 20 odd years of HiFi, the better sounding ones often seem to be the heavier ones, go figure.

 

[maflynn]

Because I am not in the U.S and I cannot try a speaker for 14 days and decide which speaker is better. To try it I have to buy it and when I am comparing and contemplating a variety of speakers I need to be very sure and accurate with my analysis on which one is better ! So to compare between different speakers I need the watts RMS figure.

And what does a wattage give you so that you can make an informed decision?

I remember as a teenager, people crowing about how many watts their system produced, and all I got from that is, yeah, it can be louder, but we already know the HomePod can be plenty loud. So what do you gain by comparing watts?

 

[augustya]

All Apple/HomePod apologists here !! lol !!

 

[maflynn]

All Apple/HomePod apologists here !! lol !!

I don't know if that's directed towards me, I'm just trying to understand the wisdom of using watts as a measurement to help with a purchase decision.

You mention that you are unable to see one up close, so you want this info. I'm just trying to understand how exactly that will help you

 

[falainber]

Why does it matter (honest question), if the HP (or any speaker system), produces sound that is louder then most people need, and the HP seems to fit that category, then what does it matter what the wattage is?

HP does not fit this category. It's a small speaker with small sound. It is not going to work well in large rooms.

 

[TrueBlou]

All Apple/HomePod apologists here !! lol !!

Not at all, same reason why Amazon/Google don’t report the wattage of their speakers. It’s pointless for comparison purposes beyond the type of consumer who also believe that more megapixels make better photos.

Wattage is not an indicator of audio quality, that cannot be stressed enough. It can not be used to determine if one system sounds better than another. Ever.

Doesn’t matter if it’s smart speakers/HiFi/Home Cinema amp/Sound-Bar. The same principles of audio reproduction apply.

If you want the best sounding system possible, forget smart speakers and invest in a cheap amp/speaker package it’ll sound better.
If you want a good sounding small speaker system with smarts, look at Sonos, Apple, Google Home Max. Forget Echo for sound quality, in my own personal experience it’s pretty damn poor. Without smarts look at Kef, M-Audio and quite a few others, though you’ll be paying more. But that’s if audio quality is more important than functionality.

 

[Mr.Blacky]

All Apple/HomePod apologists here !! lol !!

The Apple Homepod has OVER 9000 WATTS!!
Now what? Do you know if it will sound good for you? Because as far as I know, some watt figure doesn't tell you anything, what kind of sound a speaker produces.

 

[Endorphine88]

All Apple/HomePod apologists here !! lol !!

People are just trying to understand your reasoning. Watts are not the focus here and Apple does not list this number because it's not as important to them as it is to you. If watts are important to you, I think you're looking at the wrong product, because the number here is definitely low (check report below). Hope this helps.
https://images.apple.com/environment/pdf/products/homepod/HomePod_PER_jan2018.pdf

 

[2979382]

My Gripe is it just has one, just one woofer so I wonder a BASS lover like me how much is he going to get out of a such a compact speaker ? in terms of BASS !!

Having a single woofer means nothing. Listen to a Bose Soundlink Mini or even Micro and you'll be shocked at how deep and powerful the bass is. Neither of those have an actual woofer believe it or not. It's just carefully crafted sound using mid-range drivers. I am not a homePod fan at all, but that having an actual woofer ought to make it sound at least as good as a Bose.