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Crown XLS 1500

67.249.179.97
Posted on July 8, 2015 at 06:32:11
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 For shits and giggles I'm putting together a budget system. Starting with a pair of PSB Gold i's and using an Audible Illusions M3a's secondary variable outputs. Anyway, I needed to come up with cheap power and current that could drive low impedance upper bass, e.g. dips at around 2.6 ohms. I didn't want to toast my Rogue M120's.

After researching I came across some good reports on the Crown XLS 1500 and decided to pull the trigger for a whopping $239, new! I was hoping to get it last Thursday but no such luck. The amp arrived the other day, or a day late for the Grateful Dead Chicago run. I had to use a self powered PA for my outside, projection, big screen system. A bit of a disappointment but in the end it worked out better as I didn't have to worry about the PSBs getting messed up.

Anyway, I plugged the unit in yesterday and gave it a quick listen and cold, out of the box I was not happy but figure it needed to burn in so I kept it playing for about 30 hours and then gave it a listen. I still was not happy, feeling that it sounded rolled off in the highs, a bit muffled in the lows and somewhat canny sounding in the mids. I was starting to feel that I wasted my money and that the saying that "there is no free lunch" was true. However, I was willing to let it burn some more.

So, while cooking the amp, and casual listening, I decided to make a new run of Canare 4s11 speaker cables, which I was planning on using for the new system but felt that ultimately this might be waste of my time because it was beginning to look like a failed system. 45 minutes later my cables were done and I put them in, replacing the temporary double run of Monster XP I made, which was left over from the outdoor deck system. After install I turned the amp back on and then turned up the wick. Holy shit!!!!! All of a sudden everything opened up and snapped into place. I now had extended highs, articulate bass and clean and sharp midrange. What a difference. This is what I was hoping for when this straw was pulled.

I won't give a full report until I get some more time in but for $239 new I can already say this is a great deal. This amp sounds good and delivers watts without strain. It out does the Adcom 555 I owned back in the day, which could poop out when pushed hard. As to some of the reported noise, yes, if I put my ear right up to the tweeter there is some low, low level buzzing. I can not hear it from a foot away, or needless to say, from my listening seat.

Lesson learned; don't judge a component until your rule out other variables. My guess is that the Monster is high capacitance and caused all kind or uglies with the system. Ridding my self of these cables brought me from Kansas to the land of OZ!

For those that care, I'll report back in a few to let you know how things develop.

BTW, this partial review was rejected by Audiogon, huh?

 

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Did a similar experiment back in October, posted on July 8, 2015 at 08:39:55
E-Stat
Audiophile

Posts: 37584
Joined: May 12, 2000
Contributor
  Since: April 5, 2002
 Preliminary results ok, but not after a while.

Fortunately, I purchased it from a dealer with a great return policy.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, posted on July 8, 2015 at 12:46:52
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 If it holds at ok I will be keeping it, since initially it sounds much better than other fare at this price point. Remember it has to handle 2.6 ohm loads.

Eventually, it will be used in a PA system, when and if I can afford a better, higher priced fare for this system. As a forth system it gives me yet another view on my mixes and mastering.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, posted on July 8, 2015 at 13:14:08
E-Stat
Audiophile

Posts: 37584
Joined: May 12, 2000
Contributor
  Since: April 5, 2002
 Remember it has to handle 2.6 ohm loads.

The one I purchased did poorly driving the reactive load of Acoustat electrostats.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, posted on July 8, 2015 at 18:06:13
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 The one I purchased did poorly driving the reactive load of Acoustat electrostats.


They go down to 1 ohm, though and that's tough for any amp.

I was just listening to a mix I did of a large jazz band and the amp did a better than OK job. It seems to be getting better the more I use it and burn it in. So far, so good. As a matter of fact, if it didn't get any better I would be happy. For $239 it is awesome.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, posted on July 8, 2015 at 18:15:20
E-Stat
Audiophile

Posts: 37584
Joined: May 12, 2000
Contributor
  Since: April 5, 2002
 They go down to 1 ohm, though and that's tough for any amp.

What leads you to that conclusion? The following graph comes from James Strickland's white paper. I can link to that if you please.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, great buy ...., posted on July 8, 2015 at 18:41:55
A.Wayne
Audiophile

Posts: 2527
Location: Front row center
Joined: November 30, 2011
 Have you tried the crown model with the built in Eq and xover ....?

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, posted on July 9, 2015 at 06:52:16
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 My bad, my understanding was that they often went down to 1 ohm in the high treble region. I stand corrected.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, great buy ...., posted on July 9, 2015 at 06:53:31
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 Yes, the 1500 XLS has those features, however, as they stand, I only use the stereo mode.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, great buy ...., posted on July 9, 2015 at 07:53:17
A.Wayne
Audiophile

Posts: 2527
Location: Front row center
Joined: November 30, 2011
 The 1500 has Eq for the bass ..?

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, great buy ...., posted on July 9, 2015 at 10:15:47
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 Variable crossover with high pass and low bass.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, great buy ...., posted on July 12, 2015 at 14:17:15
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 So I've gotten a bit more time into the amp, as it has been my primary listening system over the past week, and here is what I can say; it is inexpensive and will work better than most inexpensive consumer grade amps for systems which require amps and watts. Although, it is a bit noisy if you turn up the amp's output gain past noon....in my case. I do have a pre-amp that puts out a good amount of voltage, so I can get around this issue and it is not much of an problem. However, ultimately, when doing so, it appears to take some dynamics away from the amp.

Therefore, I have purchased a Henry Matchbox HD to convert the consumer voltage and impedance to the pro standard. This should eliminate all noise and allow me to operate the amp at its maximum capacity.

I imagine that this might also change the signature of the amp, too. Therefore, final judgement on how good the amp can be must be put on hold until a later time. Note, adding the Henry to the system adds another $100.00 possibly making it less of a value. Maybe? If it can push it to the next level it might be an even better value but I'll have to wait and see.

BTW, right now I'm listening to a Marty Erhlich Trio, multi-track mix I mad and it is sounding good. Not as good as my big system but real good for a budget amp based system. Now I wait in anticipation for the Henry.

 

RE: Did a similar experiment back in October, great buy ...., posted on July 15, 2015 at 10:41:13
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 I'm still waiting for the Henry to arrive but in the mean time I've settled on a gain structure that provides the lowest noise. Yesterday I was kicking out some Steely Dan, a few hi rez analog transfers I made, Aja and Gaucho, as well as a 24/96 version of Everything Must Go. Needless to say it sounded impressive for such an inexpensive amp. No it is not reference quality. It is a bit dry on top with some slight midrange hardness. But the lows are tight and extended and overall dynamics are good.

So, for an e-bay special BIN new price of $209.00, this seems like a great deal and I really don't think anything can touch it at that price or maybe for 3 to 4 times the price.

This is a great way to have fun without spending serious cash. Shoot, it affords everyone to put together a great garage system for practically couch change.

Anyway, I'm sure the 2000 and 2500 are cut from the same cloth as the 1500, but with more power.....not that I can imagine needing more than 300 watts into 8 ohms or 565 watts into 4 ohms, and both should also be an exceptional value.

 

Crown , posted on July 15, 2015 at 19:10:59
hifitommy
Audiophile

Posts: 15387
Location: canyon country califiornia, orig from buffalo ny
Joined: June 9, 2000
 another item i have often wondered about along with the Behringer line of products. i do know a guy using a behringer xover with VMPS speakers successfully.

i remember the 600wpc crown making a big splash in the audiophile world.
...regards...tr

 

RE: Crown , posted on July 20, 2015 at 13:37:38
raya
Industry Professional

Posts: 662
Joined: May 9, 2014
 Below are two reports that occurred 24 hours apart but I feel that it is important to post both to give you a clear picture of ultimately what the 1500 offers.

Post 1:

Here is my next installment on this on going review. No, I didn't get the Henry yet but still a few tweaks has brought this amp to another level. I shifted the phase on my subs to better integrate the bass and give a tighter presentation. I also reconfigured how I had wired the system and finally I lifted the ground. The last, although not my favorite long term solution, did wonders to bring the noise down to where I could substantially increase the amps output gain.

The end result, so far, is astonishing, to say the least. Even if the Henry does nothing, what I currently have is a winner in spades.

Compared to my Rogue m120's the Rogue offer a bit more body and depth of soundstage. But, by golly batman, this amp is a sonic wonder for the price. $209 will get one delivered to your door and it sounds more like a $1500 to 2000 amp. Yes there is still a bit of midrange glare but hardly so. And, it is still a tiny bit dry up top but all of this is not significant and what it does right is simply incredible, honest.

I'll give one last report after receiving the Henry, but consider this review almost complete. So, buy now or cry later. It is a steal of a life time.

Post 2:

Well, the Henry has arrived and I immediately threw it in my system. Well, well, just as I thought. Gone is the noise and gone is the need for the ground lift. Also, I now have more gain than I would ever need.

Initial impressions with the Henry in place remain as before but with a very, very low noise floor, so that this is no longer an issue and on a subjective level this amp can now be called quiet and without any noise issues what so ever.

It is a dynamic amp that has an up front presentation, that gives you incredible sound for pocket change. For someone starting out and on a limited budget, this affords them to allocate more funds for source components or speakers. It is also ideal for H.T. systems, surrounds, second or third systems, or like me, to just plain have fun with trying new things that won't effect your bank account.

It does have some limitations. To perform its best it should be run balanced or you should use a consumer to pro level matcher. Right now I'm getting good results with the Henry Matchbox HD. I would suggest not using the basic Matchbox, as it might not provide a level of performances needed for critical listening.

Also, it might not be a good match with speakers that are aggressive or up front in the mid and upper mid-range.

Back in 1986, I bought an Adcom 555 for $550. This was considered a good choice as a budget reference. In today's dollar that would be around $1,200 to 1500. The Crown 1500 can be had for $209, delivered, including taxes and it clearly beats what the Adcom offered. Yes, that is almost 30 years ago but it just shows how far technology has come and what can be had for much less money.

Does it sound better that any of the fine Classe amps I've owned or nice tube amps? Well, probably not but it won't necessarily keep you up at night dreaming for that perfect amp. Well, maybe not for a while anyway. Meantime you can buy that cartridge, pre-amp, speakers or that source component that you have been wanting.

 

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