Cheap amp in audio system

skizzerflake

skizzerflake

Audioholic Field Marshall
I am looking for a replacement amplifier for a stereo system. I am also on a mailing list for a music catalog that sells very powerful 2 channel amps for PA systems. Typical is a Crown amp, which sells for about $300 for a 200 WPC rack-mount amp. Has anybody out there ever had any experience using an amp like this for a home audio system? Is sound quality OK or are there any contraindicators?
 
nav

nav

Audioholic
Crown makes nice amplifiers, you can likely trust whatever specifications they provide. I can't see why one of their amplifiers wouldn't live up the sound quality you'd expect. The downsides of pro-audio equipment in home theater or home audio systems are potential fan noise, different cables or jacks (XLR or quarter-inch jacks instead of RCA or five-way binding posts, for instance) different line-level voltages, and frequently out-of-place aesthetics.
 
highfihoney

highfihoney

Audioholic Samurai
When it comes to amplifiers im a big fan of crown amps,ive ran quite a few crown's & i currently have a crown amp running in one of my systems.

There are a few guys here who run Behringer a500 amps that speak well of them but i have no hands on experience with that amp so i cant speak as to how they perform from useage,now crown on the other hand i really like especially their CE line of amps.

You will be fine running most any pro amp but do stay away from the bottom of the barel pro gear like Blue Ice,Pyramid ect,they are total junk.
 
no. 5

no. 5

Audioholic Field Marshall
I am thinking about going the same route as you skizzer, :) the FR of the Crown amps I have looked at are almost ruler flat (+ 0dB, - 1dB) :cool:, but as Nav pointed out, the balanced to unbalanced connection, of a pro to consumer product may need some attention; I think any new Crown amp would only have balanced XLR and 1/4 inputs, you would need some adapters, or a bal/unbal converter, Parts Express has at least one: Part Number 245-868.
 
highfihoney

highfihoney

Audioholic Samurai
the balanced to unbalanced connection, of a pro to consumer product may need some attention; you would need some adapters, or a bal/undal converter, Parts Express has at least one: Part Number 245-868.

Hey fellas,dont give the cables a seconds thought,no matter what connections you need or any combination of connections any guitar shop or dj supply will carry & have in stock every cable you need & dirt cheap too.

When i buy cables i buy peavey cables from the guitar center,they are built to be yanked around 1,000 times & are as cheap as anything you can find on the internet,i just picked up a pair of peavey 25 ft xlr to rca cables for $12 each,if you have a guitar center store near you they have everything & blow internet prices out of the water on everything in the store.
 
skizzerflake

skizzerflake

Audioholic Field Marshall
Crown makes nice amplifiers, you can likely trust whatever specifications they provide. I can't see why one of their amplifiers wouldn't live up the sound quality you'd expect. The downsides of pro-audio equipment in home theater or home audio systems are potential fan noise, different cables or jacks (XLR or quarter-inch jacks instead of RCA or five-way binding posts, for instance) different line-level voltages, and frequently out-of-place aesthetics.
I think I could work out the connections. As for fan noise and cosmetics, the amp would be in a cabinet and not very visible. I know Crown has been around for a long while and is a workhorse in PA systems. What surprises me is that they are pretty cheap compared to almost any home audio amp. Two of them bridged to monoblocks would really deliver light-dimming wattage for a stereo system.
 
highfihoney

highfihoney

Audioholic Samurai
I know Crown has been around for a long while and is a workhorse in PA systems. What surprises me is that they are pretty cheap compared to almost any home audio amp. Two of them bridged to monoblocks would really deliver light-dimming wattage for a stereo system.
If you think at some point you will end up monoblocking 2 stereo amps why not save up a bit more & buy the best crown pro amp ever made & never worry about power again no matter what speaker your driving,these puppies retailed for over $5,000 & can be had dirt cheap if you wait for the right deal.

I have the Studio Reference 1 & its as good of an amp as you'll ever find.

http://www.poweralley.com/Studio ref2.htm
 
G

gcmarshall

Full Audioholic
i have had good luck with the audiosource amp one/a's. they can be run bridged/mono at 200 wpc. not so great for music (a little bright and harsh), but for movies where the sound is often less noticeable, they provide very good, strong performance for little money (about $200 each, last time i checked).
 
skizzerflake

skizzerflake

Audioholic Field Marshall
i have had good luck with the audiosource amp one/a's. they can be run bridged/mono at 200 wpc. not so great for music (a little bright and harsh), but for movies where the sound is often less noticeable, they provide very good, strong performance for little money (about $200 each, last time i checked).
This is a music system exclusively. I am trying to replace my beloved Carver 400 WPC amp which got hit by lightning last summer after many years of wonderful service. I don't use this system a lot so I am trying to replace the amp without spending a lot.
 
M

moverton

Audioholic
This is a music system exclusively. I am trying to replace my beloved Carver 400 WPC amp which got hit by lightning last summer after many years of wonderful service. I don't use this system a lot so I am trying to replace the amp without spending a lot.
Find a used NAD from 20 years ago. 2400,2600,2700. you can get them for 200-300. There are a lot of other great amps that are 20 years old and therefore very cheap. I just know the old NAD line well. Good amps generally do not wear out. If they do have a problem it is usually cheap to fix (relative to buying new). Or find a used Carver like you had.
 
majorloser

majorloser

Moderator
I'm running seven Behringer A500 all bridged for almost 500 WPC. They are still less than $200 shipped each.

They work great, don't have fans (like other pro amps) and run very cool even after hours of continuous usage. As far as I'm concerned, they have one and only down side: they don't have a 12V trigger. But that's not a big deal for me since I only turn on the amps that are needed.
 
skizzerflake

skizzerflake

Audioholic Field Marshall
Find a used NAD from 20 years ago. 2400,2600,2700. you can get them for 200-300. There are a lot of other great amps that are 20 years old and therefore very cheap. I just know the old NAD line well. Good amps generally do not wear out. If they do have a problem it is usually cheap to fix (relative to buying new). Or find a used Carver like you had.
I might end up doing that. My only reservation to vintage gear is the "pig-in-a-poke" factor and the hassle of returning something that doesn't work. In fact, when the Carver got blown up, it was fed by a pre-cd NAD preamp that I got pristine from a guy on EBay, still in its original packing in a turntable-only system. That preamp survived the lightning and continues to work quite well (it's hooked up to a small power amp now). The Vandersteens that it would drive are quite power hungry and a small amp just won't do.
 
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