# Crown amplifiers???



## rf5000 (Mar 13, 2010)

Hey Amplifier Experts,

So I was thinking of going with all Emotiva amplifiers in my new 9.2 home theater system. I have (7) Definitive Technology RLS II in walls for the mains, center, and four rear surround channels. I have (2) Definitive Technology RLS III speakers for the front heights. They all are rated at 10-350 watts each. Originally I thought of going with two Emotiva XPA-5 amplifiers so that I could push 200 watts to each speaker. I of course would like to push more but want to be a bit economical in my decision. What do you guys think of an amp like the Crown CTS8200? Is this made for home theater applications? Does it have just as good of specifications, distortion, etc as the Emotiva? The reason is that the Crown is a eight channel amplifier, but if I use it as a four channel bridged, I can push 350 watts per channel to each speaker. I just don't want to give up anything compared to the Emotiva. What do you guys think?


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

rf5000 said:


> Hey Amplifier Experts,
> 
> So I was thinking of going with all Emotiva amplifiers in my new 9.2 home theater system. I have (7) Definitive Technology RLS II in walls for the mains, center, and four rear surround channels. I have (2) Definitive Technology RLS III speakers for the front heights. They all are rated at 10-350 watts each. Originally I thought of going with two Emotiva XPA-5 amplifiers so that I could push 200 watts to each speaker. I of course would like to push more but want to be a bit economical in my decision. What do you guys think of an amp like the Crown CTS8200? Is this made for home theater applications? Does it have just as good of specifications, distortion, etc as the Emotiva? The reason is that the Crown is a eight channel amplifier, but if I use it as a four channel bridged, I can push 350 watts per channel to each speaker. I just don't want to give up anything compared to the Emotiva. What do you guys think?


Hello,
Crown makes a quality product. They are far more in the Professional Amplifier arena than Home Theater, but provide excellent value. One issue with most Pro Amps is that most use Fans that can be fairly loud. I suppose it all depends on where you are planning on setting up the amplifier and how sensitive you are to fan noise.
JJ


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## rf5000 (Mar 13, 2010)

But how are they compared to say amplifiers made for home theater?


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## rf5000 (Mar 13, 2010)

Then again on Crown's wesite they list these under the category of cinema so they must be geared towards home theater. Does anyone have any experience with these? Are they loud? They are very expensive new. Do they keep up with high end Parasound, Krell, etc. home theater amplifiers?


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

I'm not sure on the price of the Crowns but i believe you would be more then satisfied with Emotiva. Yes you could use the Crowns for HT but i think that you would have an overkill of power for those speakers unless used wisely, if it were me i'd keep the prosound amps for the DIY sub market and stick with dedicated HT amps for my mains JMO.:T


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## Guest (Jan 25, 2011)

I can't really say what the amp your looking at is like, but I have a XLS 402 and I find it very clean and musical at any volume. A few folks on this forum talked me in to it back when they were on sale. I'm so glad I jumped at it.

You might want to hit up the forums and ask them. http://www.crownaudio.com/forums/

What you are looking at is NOT cheap. Do you need that much power?

Would this work? http://emotiva.com/upa7.shtm They also have mono amps that put out more power.


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## nholmes1 (Oct 7, 2010)

I've done a few theaters with Crown amps and they just work, and sound good. Some do come with fans but not all and they seem to last forever. Then again emotiva is a hard value to pass up.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Crown makes a quality product and by no means would the Emotiva be a step up. You are going to be just fine using the Crown.


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## rf5000 (Mar 13, 2010)

So the crown is an 8 channel amp at 190w per channel. It can be used as a four channel and then does 350-400w per channel. For my speakers which are rated at 10-350w and 92db sensitivity, do you think this will be too much for them? I know the amp also has gain controls on the back for each channel. What do you guys think?


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## rf5000 (Mar 13, 2010)

To clarify, I would be using three of the four channels to push 350 to 400 watts to my left, center, and right. Would that be too much for them?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

There is no such thing as "too much power" You cause more damage by driving speakers with an underpowered amp. As you state you can adjust the gain control to suite the speakers.


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## rf5000 (Mar 13, 2010)

And you agree that the power coming from these crown amplifiers is as good if not better then Emotiva ampifiers?

Also, this crown amp takes input connectors that are phoenix stlye barrier connectors. How would I connect if my receiver only has a rca preamp out?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Their would be no audible difference between the two thats for sure. You can get adapters for the phoenix style connectors on line but as already mentioned the Emotiva does have the proper unballanced inputs. I think it will come down to price, what can you get the crown for is it close to the Emotiva?


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## ojojunkie (Jun 23, 2010)

Crown amps are as good as other amps. I used to own one before which planned to use in my HT setup but fan noise was very distinct in my small space.


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## rf5000 (Mar 13, 2010)

Can you post a link to these adapters? DO the adapters sacrificae any signal strength, qulaity, or any performance whatsoever?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

You can build your own adapters, all you need is the phoenix connectors form any electronics store and cut some rca cables and splice them in and no there would be no quality loss going that route.


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

As said before you can never have too much power as long as it's used wisely.:T


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## tcarcio (Jun 27, 2007)

I run 3 Crown amps in my HT and they are great. I go from unbalanced to balanced cables useing a samson s-convert like this 



 I then go from the s-convert which is an xlr connector to the amps with xlr to pheonix connectors like these...http://redirectingat.com/?id=3631X6....com/forums/newreply.php?do=postreply&t=38578


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## rf5000 (Mar 13, 2010)

Do u notice fan noise?


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## tcarcio (Jun 27, 2007)

I have 2 Crown cts-600's that are virtually silent and 1 xls-402 that is more noticeable but they are all in a closet in the adjoining room so it's a non issue for me.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
I really think it will come down to where you are going to have your amp setup in respect to fan noise.

If in a smaller room, something like the Emotiva might be the best call.
Cheers,
JJ


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## eusoro (Dec 12, 2010)

I've tried Rotel 1090, Parasound halo a51... Have not tried emotiva yet but I ran into a crown CTS 1200 ... and "My Goodness" it puts a serious whooping on my RTIA9... They sing good... It took me a while to get the right wiring and connections ... You will happy if you dare to try... Using onkyo 3007 as Pre/pro


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## goyop (May 4, 2010)

Crown makes and has made great amps forever. They still carry one of the best warranties in the business. That alone should tell you something. There is no such thing as a more musical amp versus another. The issues seem to be fan noise (I have no idea what fan is in the amp you are looking at) and price. 

If you run a high powered amp at any type of level you will need to ventilate something. Either the amp or the cabinet. Amp power = heat period. My Onkyo is like a space heater so I found some 140 mm virtually silent fans for the enclosure.

If cost is no issue get the Crown. They also retain a high resale value. 

Good luck


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## B Run (Mar 6, 2011)

I'm running a Crown to my SVS and it slams! I haven't had any issues with it, built like a tank and it's very quiet.


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## Gregavi (Sep 22, 2009)

You should consider the Gemstone Blue Diamond. They held their own against the likes of the Plinius Odeon ($10,000) and Lexicon LX-7 ($6000) in the Home Theater Amplifier shootout in MN. Almost all the judges there considered the Gemstone to be by far the best power amp when considering cost. If I didn't have my Cinenova, I'd be looking seriously at the Gemstone.


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## Tufelhundin (Jan 25, 2010)

Gregavi said:


> You should consider the Gemstone Blue Diamond. They held their own against the likes of the Plinius Odeon ($10,000) and Lexicon LX-7 ($6000) in the Home Theater Amplifier shootout in MN. Almost all the judges there considered the Gemstone to be by far the best power amp when considering cost. If I didn't have my Cinenova, I'd be looking seriously at the Gemstone.


I have seen mention of this Shootout in a thread while doing a search over on AVS for Cinenova just yesterday....I wish I was Sateside at this time for I'd love to help you get rid of your Cinenova.:T


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## Gregavi (Sep 22, 2009)

You'd have to pry it from my dead hands.:crying:

I wish 2 things. The Cinenova was part of the shootout and that I was there (or better yet, _it_ was here. I'd rather be in Santa Barbara than MN.) I'd love to see how it compared with other amps in its class.


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## Tufelhundin (Jan 25, 2010)

Gregavi said:


> *You'd have to pry it from my dead hands*.:crying:
> 
> I wish 2 things. The Cinenova was part of the shootout and that I was there (or better yet, _it_ was here. I'd rather be in Santa Barbara than MN.) I'd love to see how it compared other amps in its class.


This is what I continue to hear from Cinenova owners....and this is why I may hold off on an Amp until I return to the States. Due to weight issues I was going to try and get a used Sunfire Sig, but I may just hold off and get what I truly want.


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## billybeek (Mar 27, 2011)

On some Crown units the fan blades can be replaced with a different blade pitch that are quieter


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
Fan Noise is the major issue with using Pro Amps in HT as they are Designed to be Rack Mounted in a Control Room and not in the same Room as the Playback.

Indeed Crown and Behringer have Companies who make mods that result in lower noise. What does concern me is whether or not it is at the cost of reduced airflow. Part of the reason these Companies are able to offer high power Amplifiers is that in place of costly Heat Sinks, they use Fans to provide cooling.
Cheers,
JJ


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## billybeek (Mar 27, 2011)

Hey B Run what stuff are you using I am also using SVS & Crown, fantastic...


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## B Run (Mar 6, 2011)

I was using the Crown Com-Tech 400, but I realized it wasn't 4 ohm table in bridged mode, and it didn't have a high pass filter and almost damaged my sub before I realized what happened. I sold it and ended up buying a 500w Bash amp and have been VERY happy with it. The sub i'm running is a SVS 16-46 and I love it.


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## thebuckaman (Jan 16, 2009)

I would look at the Electrovoice CPS 8.5.

It is 8x500 watts and is a real performer. Tons and tons of power.

Better than the Crown in output (and only 2ru!)

Similar price too.


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