"Slam"--what is it, is it really accurate?

For an easy and decent "quality bass/slam" demo, head down to BEst Buy or equivalent with your Iphone or equivalent and give the fairly new Sennheiser Momentum circumaural headphones ($300) a listen. These deliver a decent example of what good detailed bass with slam should sound like, even off a decent quality standard issue portable audio device sans any special amplification.

"Slam" sells , meaning people tend to like it, and is a big part of many modern recordings these days, especially in pop and music realms involving synthesizers, etc.

It can occur naturally as anyone who has sat close and listened to a drum or any sort being played knows well.

Most forms of live music (save perhaps most forms of classical chamber music or perhaps acoustic folk) have a certain "slam" factor, that varies case by case. Proximity of listener to players usually is means more slam.

My opinion is that if the slam is in the recording, I want it to be delivered accurately along with the rest. Its a big part of being able to convince the listener that what is being heard is real and not just a recording, even though it is.

TO enable that, speakers must not be undersized for the target room, amp must be capable of driving speakers to the max, and a good quality source is needed.

THen the recording is enabled to do its thing, slam or otherwise.

YEah, I hate thumping bass with no texture or detail as much as the next audiophile worth their salt, but love it when done well.

I've been comparing headphones lately.

Good headphones, like many popular Sennheiser and Audio Technica models, deliver the slam well along with all the rest.

THose along the "Beats" track may deliver slam but not good sound all around.

Others, even some pricey popular ones, are simply junk and turn to jelly with any "slam" present in the recording. Bose headphones were the biggest offenders in this regard I have experienced recently.

No doubt slam is a more common element mixed into many (not just pop/hip/hop/electronic genre) more modern recordings, many of which sound very good, but only when the playback is up to the task.

Its noticeable in most well recorded CD from mid 90's on. That's about the time where I have read some fundamental standard EQ changes (for the better) were implemented in teh recording industry. ALso coresponds with the start of teh infamous "loudness wars". These days CDs are much louder (hence more "slam") so the game has changed. OF course many pop recordings targeting getting attention from the masses are overdone and are sonic atrocities in many ways, but many more are not and done quite well albeit at louder levels overall on average than in early years of CD.

So this gives recordings a bias towards "more slam" compared to many live experiences, but that'snot to say slam does not occur in live performances both acoustic and electronic as well, as noted above.

"Inefficient" systems will have more trouble delivering louder recordings with more slam well in general. EIther more efficient amps, more efficient speakers, or perhaps even both are the tickets to getting to a good place in regards to a playback system being able to deliver all the goods in any recording, for better or for worse.

Luckily, I am finding more sonically great moments when I listen to recorded music these days than ever before in my 50+ years, in recordings of all types both old and new. So hopefully, that is a good omen in general.

"Slam" done well has always been a sell point for many of the best "audiophile" recordings over the years.

Nowadays, its a lot more common, for better and for worse, and not so novel. You do not have to buy a special "audiophile" recordings in many cases to get it done well. Off course it is also often "overdone" as a selling point as mentioned. THat's entertainment! Nothing new there with teh entertainment industry overdoing something and even beating it to death regularly.

"What I don't have a clue about is whether the Signatures are capable of slam/dynamics given a much more powerful amp"

Looking at specs of SE version of your Legacy speakers (can't find same for IIs), and assuming they are similar, I'd say, yes they should definitely be capable of "slam" in most rooms if in good working order.

I'd also say that given the power recommendation from Legacy for SE version, assuming similar to yours, of up to 300 watts, a bigger and beefier amp would yield additional dividends in the slam department.

Most vendors underrate the maaximum power handling of their speakers in order to play it safe and so as not to scare off buyers, but in general, I would tend to throw the kitchen sink amp power wise at speakers like those. A good quality 500 w/ch into 8 ohm Class D amp is what I would try. I landed on mine for my big OHM speakers for exactly the same reason. 250 w/ch Class D should deliver nice dividends as well.

I use my 500w/ch Class D amp even with my tiny similarly efficient Triangle Titus monitors, along with all my larger and more power hungry models.

As long as you listen to your ears for any signs of stress or breakup with more challenging recordings at a particular volume before going louder, you are not likely to damage most good quality speakers that are in good condition.

Your more likely to damage a speaker by blowing a tweeter if you attempt to crank up an underpowered amp too high and clipping occurs.

More power keeps clipping out of the equation. That creates dynamics and slam and is also easier for most good speakers to digest to boot.

Lots of info here on various threads regarding Class D amps.

I've been using Bel Canto ref1000m monoblocks for a few years now and think those to be rock solid still and a very good value used. That's really the only ones I can vouch for based on extended listening. I've heard other good ones as well in recent years from Jeff Roland and Audio Research. Other that would be of interest for me due to value potential would include Wyred4Sound and DSonic. I would probably avoid older Class D amps in order to access current possibilities in that the technology continues to advance significantly still.

The recording as much as anything else will determine how the "slam" goes down, track by by track.

More slam than ever in many modern recordings these days. Slam sells! Even good headphones like most Sennheiser phones these days do it VERY WELL!!!!

Home audio buffs: beware! Portable audio is cutting into that turf more and more these days (along with all the rest), so best to get it right and at an affordable price.

MT,

Just wanted to point out that the very act of reattaching the wires alone could result in a better connection than prior, though the folding part probably can't hurt.