Headroom

The amount of level an amplifier or effect can handle before it starts to clip, measured from its normal operating point up to the point of distortion.

More headroom means a cleaner, more dynamic sound at a higher volume, which is why a high-wattage amplifier stays clean while a low-wattage one breaks up early. The concept applies to pedals, preamps and converters too, where a device with insufficient headroom will compress or clip transients even if its nominal level looks fine. For guitar, headroom is a design choice rather than a virtue: a player who wants a clean pedal platform needs it, and one who wants valve distortion needs its absence.

Example: a 100-watt amplifier stays clean at club volume, while a 15-watt amp at the same loudness is already compressing and dirtying up.

Headroom

See also