Passive crossover power usage

It really depends. Get a hold of XSim crossover simulator or other such device.

The big power wasters isn’t the frequency filters but the equalizer and amplitude leveling resistors.

Look at it this way. Almost all multi-way speaker systems use drivers with drivers that don’t exactly have the same sensitivity to the amp signal. That is, for the same signal a tweeter may be at 96 dB but the woofer at 88 dB.

The only way to equalize these is to "pad" the tweeter level down so it’s at the same relative output given the same amp input. That’s where the power wasting is mostly concentrated, but Zobel, notch filters, baffle step, impedance compensation, etc. can also waste power as heat. This is also why you see such large cement resistors in crossovers. 5W resistors are typical, while 25W resistors are also possible. That’s all wasted heat.  BTW, resistors are not the only place where power waste can occur, but they are the most obvious.

This is one area where active crossovers are undeniably better. Amplitude matching in the signal domain takes microwatts.

Thanks @erik_squires .  That's why I ripped the crossovers out of my speakers and use a Marchand 3-way electronic crossover and four amps to run my speakers. Two mono blocks for the woofers and two stereo amps for the mids and highs.

A lot more control and after I got over the tendency to catalog crossover level settings by "album" it is very nice.

Regards,

barts

  That's why I ripped the crossovers out of my speakers and use a Marchand 3-way electronic crossover and four amps to run my speakers.

So you knew the answer already and I wasted my time?

There is some power dissipated in the crossover and it depends on what level you are running your amp.  I'm a flea watt guy and there i almost no heat generated. But I built my new crossovers with 10 to 30 watt resistors so they won't blow if someone hooks a zillion watt amp up to them.  Remember for 10dB increase in volume, you need 10x the power.  So if a teenager has a party you could blow the crossover...there are actually stories on the internet about this.

I don't like electronic crossovers.  I hate processing the signal any more than I have to.  Many readers have no such feelings. They use equalizers, ss preamp, ss amps, etc and the signal goes throught a million components before it gets to the speaker....so to each his own.

Jerry