# Crown power amps for subwoofer duty?



## RAJBCPA (Jul 31, 2021)

Well, most would say this is a horrible idea, I've been using a dozen or so cheapie Crowns to power the old Pro-JBL 18 inch woofers for +25 years,

They have [1] loads of BIG punch! POW! [2] they can be bridged increasing wattage! POW2!

The downside? They often produce an audible HUM which is NOT a ground loop issue [This is a transformer issue, I am told? Recently, as I was moving a cheap Crown unit out of a 19 inch rack, I dropped it about 1 or 2 inches high. It was still plugged in and IMMEDIATELY it began a loud HUM.

I've tossed 6 or 7 in the trash [recycling] so far, I'm done with these.

I'm contemplating buying an expensive Crown. One current offering gets 2000 watts bridged [into 1 channel] for 4 ohm loads for $1200.00.


Question: Are these amplifiers built better and do not HUM often? Which Crown amps are built in the USA? 

If you believe subwoofers should not be powered with DISCO amps, what would you suggest should be used?

OK - one more. I've been a collector of old Altec Lansing and JBL speakers for 50 YEARS with +50 in my home!

I was rummaging through my garage today and found an ALTEC woofer 15 inches [Voice of the Theater 416] . This woofer was redone by a professional service company in NJ in 2005. The voice coil gap is so small it takes a few attempts by a very skilled professional to get it play without scraping. This and a powerful alnico motor results in VERY HIGH efficient driver. 

Since I do not have a box, I would need to build one or buy it. Would this driver be a good choice for subwoofer duty?


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## FarmerBob (May 5, 2011)

Back in the "Disco" days, Crown was the amp I used. Especially for W-Bins and Highend Subs.

I use(d) Crown, Crest, Caver, Yamaha (my favorite these days for home installs - good clean power), Behringer, Adcom (have a GFA-1A on my office sub).


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## Lemoncadillac (May 6, 2020)

The "Horrible idea" is you are thinking of buying a $1200 sub amp. You can pick up a decent newer receiver with LFE (or a regular mono hook up) on CL for under $100. So many options if you have a $1200 budget.


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## sealman (Jun 10, 2013)

Lemoncadillac said:


> The "Horrible idea" is you are thinking of buying a $1200 sub amp. You can pick up a decent newer receiver with LFE (or a regular mono hook up) on CL for under $100. So many options if you have a $1200 budget.


I don't think a receiver is what he needs. Unless I am mistaken he is talking about an amp to power some 18 inch subs.


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## BP1Fanatic (Mar 28, 2011)

I'm using a Technics 100w per channel receiver to power a 18" bass bin on 1 channel and a two 12" BP4 coffee table on the other channel.


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## Mazza (Jun 27, 2010)

I and many others would say that Crown amps are a grand idea for subs.

I have two of their XLS drive core amps in my HT running six 15" subs.









I've also used them for driving my mains and they are clean and without hum or hiss. The biggest plus for me is they have completely silent running fans. The only time the fans ramp up is when things are too loud to hear them. 

I was prompted to try the Crown after watching this video.....

Audio Equipment Isn't MAGIC - Audio Advice with Andrew Robinson - YouTube


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