I know there’s quite a few audio fiends on here, obviously we’ve all got varying budgets available for this part of our hobby. Wanted to share some finds I scored to help y’all out.
About 8 months ago, I came across some amps I had never heard of: the Crestron CNAMPX-7x200, and the CNAMPX-16x60. They are both audiophile-grade class AB amps designed by Morris Kessler & produced by his fantastic amp company (Amplifier Technologies, Inc.). They were at a flea market/resale-type business, $50 each, and marked “bad”. Each amp weighs 95lbs, with two 4” 1000VA toroidal transformers and over 300 sq inches of heat sink PER CHANNEL. Owner of the shop said they couldn’t get them to power up, so they were sold as-is. A quick internet search yielded these are ATI Corp. amplifiers made for Crestron:
7x200: 7x200wrms@8ohms; actual amp dyno results 7x333wrms@4ohms with ALL channels powered, and they were within a few tenths of a watt. This beast has a 20A plug and says it draws 2400W from the wall.
16x60: 16x60wrms@8ohms; bridgeable via CNXBRMO or a “differential inverter” on 4 channels for 4x220wrms@8ohms and 8x90wrms @4ohms.
My current, budget-limited AVR is a Denon AVR-S760H, a 7.2 receiver when all channels are powered are ~70wpc… not exactly THX material even with efficient speakers. Current system is fully Klipsch Reference: R-820F mains; R-25C center; R-51M surrounds; R-41SA Front heights; and R-120SW 400wpk sub. Decent, but trying to drive the system hard revealed the limitations of the Denon’s onboard limitations. It’s got AudysseyXT but the basic level.
I had also picked up an AudioControl LC7i car audio line-level converter which can drive the RCAs with an 8.5VRMS signal & great clarity.
Back to the Crestrons, for you budget shoppers: since Crestron is a home automation supplier, Cresnet is their control network. It runs on a 24VDC power supply for activation, so if a Crestron system controller is not used, a 24VDC supply and Phoenix connectors can be used to override the lack of system integration. There is an override button on both amps; once 24VDC & GND are present, make sure the magnetic breakers and power switch are “on”, and push the red override button on the back panel to turn on the amp. Voíla! The amp(s) will work!
Trying to speed this up: Built a massively overbuilt cantilevered shelf in the utility room next to my TV room. AI calcs say it should hold nearly a ton indefinitely. Actual load was projected at ~300lbs max.
Denon AVR-S760H front, center, and surround channels feed the LC7i, which are then routed to the 7x200. Until I can snag another AudioControl LCxi to line-level convert the Front Height channels, only 5 channels of the 7x200 are utilized. The Front Heights are powered by Zone 2 set to Front Height, so ~70wpc to the R-41SA. That means front, center & surround now have up to ~340wpc for peaks, vs. ~80wpc on the Denon. It has COMPLETELY changed the dynamics of the entire system; it will easily sustain THX-level absolutely continuously (105dB) and while playing around with the system I’ve seen peaks in the low 120s in a 16’x16’x9’ room with MLP @ 11.5’ from the screen. Peaks well into the mid-120+dBs if called upon in max HT-mode.
Regarding the 16x60, I have about 8 channels worth of in-ceiling speakers throughout the rest of the house; some are stereo pairs, and some are DVC woofer with dual tweeter speakers in the JBL Arena series. These were previously powered with an AudioControl “The Architect 500” with roughly equal specs, but a much lower headroom value. Future plans involve installing a few more remaining JBL DVC Arena series in rooms without speakers. I’ve got HEOS on the 7x200, and an Alexa Echo on the 16x60 with 3.5mm split to each channel on the inputs.
TL;DR: if you come across any of the “BIG” Crestron amps (7x200 or 16x60) for less than $150-200, BUY THEM unless you’ve already spent $4k+ on your amplification. I’ll be more than happy to help you get them up and running in your system.
About 8 months ago, I came across some amps I had never heard of: the Crestron CNAMPX-7x200, and the CNAMPX-16x60. They are both audiophile-grade class AB amps designed by Morris Kessler & produced by his fantastic amp company (Amplifier Technologies, Inc.). They were at a flea market/resale-type business, $50 each, and marked “bad”. Each amp weighs 95lbs, with two 4” 1000VA toroidal transformers and over 300 sq inches of heat sink PER CHANNEL. Owner of the shop said they couldn’t get them to power up, so they were sold as-is. A quick internet search yielded these are ATI Corp. amplifiers made for Crestron:
7x200: 7x200wrms@8ohms; actual amp dyno results 7x333wrms@4ohms with ALL channels powered, and they were within a few tenths of a watt. This beast has a 20A plug and says it draws 2400W from the wall.
16x60: 16x60wrms@8ohms; bridgeable via CNXBRMO or a “differential inverter” on 4 channels for 4x220wrms@8ohms and 8x90wrms @4ohms.
My current, budget-limited AVR is a Denon AVR-S760H, a 7.2 receiver when all channels are powered are ~70wpc… not exactly THX material even with efficient speakers. Current system is fully Klipsch Reference: R-820F mains; R-25C center; R-51M surrounds; R-41SA Front heights; and R-120SW 400wpk sub. Decent, but trying to drive the system hard revealed the limitations of the Denon’s onboard limitations. It’s got AudysseyXT but the basic level.
I had also picked up an AudioControl LC7i car audio line-level converter which can drive the RCAs with an 8.5VRMS signal & great clarity.
Back to the Crestrons, for you budget shoppers: since Crestron is a home automation supplier, Cresnet is their control network. It runs on a 24VDC power supply for activation, so if a Crestron system controller is not used, a 24VDC supply and Phoenix connectors can be used to override the lack of system integration. There is an override button on both amps; once 24VDC & GND are present, make sure the magnetic breakers and power switch are “on”, and push the red override button on the back panel to turn on the amp. Voíla! The amp(s) will work!
Trying to speed this up: Built a massively overbuilt cantilevered shelf in the utility room next to my TV room. AI calcs say it should hold nearly a ton indefinitely. Actual load was projected at ~300lbs max.
Denon AVR-S760H front, center, and surround channels feed the LC7i, which are then routed to the 7x200. Until I can snag another AudioControl LCxi to line-level convert the Front Height channels, only 5 channels of the 7x200 are utilized. The Front Heights are powered by Zone 2 set to Front Height, so ~70wpc to the R-41SA. That means front, center & surround now have up to ~340wpc for peaks, vs. ~80wpc on the Denon. It has COMPLETELY changed the dynamics of the entire system; it will easily sustain THX-level absolutely continuously (105dB) and while playing around with the system I’ve seen peaks in the low 120s in a 16’x16’x9’ room with MLP @ 11.5’ from the screen. Peaks well into the mid-120+dBs if called upon in max HT-mode.
Regarding the 16x60, I have about 8 channels worth of in-ceiling speakers throughout the rest of the house; some are stereo pairs, and some are DVC woofer with dual tweeter speakers in the JBL Arena series. These were previously powered with an AudioControl “The Architect 500” with roughly equal specs, but a much lower headroom value. Future plans involve installing a few more remaining JBL DVC Arena series in rooms without speakers. I’ve got HEOS on the 7x200, and an Alexa Echo on the 16x60 with 3.5mm split to each channel on the inputs.
TL;DR: if you come across any of the “BIG” Crestron amps (7x200 or 16x60) for less than $150-200, BUY THEM unless you’ve already spent $4k+ on your amplification. I’ll be more than happy to help you get them up and running in your system.
