Arny Krueger wrote:

[snip]

Letsee 40 watts is 16 dBw. Your typical home audio speaker runs 90 dB/w.
That means that this 40 watt peanut whistle can't muster 118 dB a meter from
the speaker, let alone create any kind of serious sound field in a typical
listening room. If you consider typical low efficency speakers with 83 dBw
sensitivity, now 1 meter SPL is down to 109 dB. It's really hopeless trying
to do a quality stereo with average or low efficiency speakers and a peanut
whistle for an amplifier.

Isn't 109 dB still *very* loud? The following site suggests that it's
comparable to being in the front row at a rock concert:

http://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/sound/U11L2b.html

This is the kind of volume that'll give you hearing damage if you're
exposed to it for extended periods of time. I don't see why you'd expect
that in order to get minimally "quality stereo" the set up has to be
able to produce ear-damaging volumes. Who listens to their home stereo
at this kind of volume on anything other than a very occasional basis?
Of course, if you don't care about your hearing, then by all means . . .