Review and Measurements of Crown XLS 1502 Amp

[mixsit]

Hi .
I m Miguel from Portugal ,and i m a newbie to this kind os amps... i would like to have some help please.
I m thinking on buying 2 buttkicker bk lfe ( 400watts - 1500watts amp recomended) . I have spend already many hours trying to find the best option , and here in Europe i have acess to Crown , Dayton and Behringer ... i see that the magic of the buttkicker happens on 5hz till 40hz +- i think ... i read that many amps have a filter that dont let the amps go below 20hz ...??? will this xls 1502 or 2002 will be a good option ? will they go till 5hz with good power , or they have the filter blocking? or any one can recomend a better model , not noisy , easy to setup , with rca entrie , and maybe good dsp with delay option ?
Thanks very much , will apreciate very much all the help .

This '5Hz territory is out of my experience so decided to poke around. Pulled up a random Danley power amp just for starts (they're known for 'a bit of sub gear :>) https://www.danleysoundlabs.com/products/amps-dsp/dna-5k4c/ Specs there start at '20Hz there as well.
But then this https://www.cnet.com/reviews/buttkicker-lfe-review/ leads to this;
https://www.homecinemacenter.com/ButtKicker-Power-Amplifier-BKA1000-4A-p/bka1000-4a.htm
Which at least says '5Hz' and is (suspiciously cheap..!?) why not that?

 

[Alice of Old Vincennes]

Specs look as good as many recent high priced amps.

 

[Atratusnex]

Would like to see the even cheaper Crown XLi 800 tested, if possible. @amirm ​

 

[HammerSandwich]

You'll have to be patient until Amir reviews it in 2019.

 

[mhardy6647]

You'll have to be patient until Amir reviews it in 2019.

 

[nniemiec]

i used this amp for (2) years was never convinced it was that great despite the measurements. tube SET with hi efficiency is far superior in every regard. just my experience......this amp maybe is alright for subs at best?

 

[Sal1950]

tube SET with hi efficiency is far superior in every regard.

Maybe in 1938 for telephone signals, not today.

 

[nniemiec]

so what's the ideal pairing w. a crown ?

 

[Sal1950]

so what's the ideal pairing w. a crown ?

What it was designed for, Pro Audio applications.
They sell boatloads of them for that.

 

[nniemiec]

interesting, i have no idea what makes an amp "professional" aside from watts?

 

[Ron Texas]

interesting, i have no idea what makes an amp "professional" aside from watts?

It can drive 2 ohm loads and there is built in DSP which can be used in bi or tri amp systems or for bass management. Lots of little things like speak on connectors, TRS inputs, pass through for chaining. They can take a beating. Mine sat 3" above floodwaters and another week in that flooded, humid, mold infested house and was fine when I plugged it in. That was over 4 years ago, and it still works.

 

[mhardy6647]

interesting, i have no idea what makes an amp "professional" aside from watts?

Maybe a sponsorship decal on it?
Like this Mac. It's professional -- or at least it was.

Jerry Garcia's 'Budman' McIntosh MC2300 power amp sold for $378,000 at Sotheby's

The auction also featured seven other MC2300s from Grateful Dead's legendary Wall of Sound

www.whathifi.com

 

[Sal1950]

interesting, i have no idea what makes an amp "professional" aside from watts?

Also many have cooling fans that are needed to make their power rating without going up in smoke.
Most HiFi people wouldn't be happy with that noise in the listening room.

 

[Ron Texas]

Also many have cooling fans that are needed to make their power rating without going up in smoke.
Most HiFi people wouldn't be happy with that noise in the listening room.

The fan in my XLS 1502 is inaudible.

 

[dc655321]

The fan in my XLS 1502 is inaudible.

Is that because you are not taxing the amp (hence, no fan usage)? Or is it just that quiet?

 

[Ron Texas]

Is that because you are not taxing the amp (hence, no fan usage)? Or is it just that quiet?

It's quiet. I suppose it could ramp up under heavy load, but by then the music is so loud it would disappear anyway.

 

[EJ3]

interesting, i have no idea what makes an amp "professional" aside from watts?

Many times one can replace the fans with much quieter computer fans. Also, if you live somewhere (like I did for 17 years) where the outside air temperature only gets down to 75 F & is in the 80's or low 90's mostly & the AC is always on, the "Professional" amps cooling fans may not ever come on (unless you are driving them really hard).

 

[Neddy]

The fan in my 1502 is also inaudible. I can see the fan blades through it's faceplate in the rack from where I sit, so can see when it's running.
But generally something I wouldn't expect from a pro amp. I've replaced a number of fans with Noctuas, but never gave it a thought with this one.
Amazingly feature rich and durable for the power and cost.

 

[nniemiec]

so if the SET tube amp had fans it would sound better you think?

 

[mhardy6647]

so if the SET tube amp had fans it would sound better you think?

Wait -- I'm an SET fan... what are you getting at here...

what?
oh...
umm...