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difference between two seemingly identical amplifiers

zimpahzimpah Posts: 1
in Crown Amplifiers

Hi everyone. This may be a stupid question, but it's something that I have always wondered about.

What is the actual difference between, for example a Crown I-Tech 6000 and I-Tech 8000 as far as internal components? I have owned a few of both. In fact, i've owned a few I-Tech 4000 as well. If you open them up, they're all identical inside, at least as far as I can tell. I literally can't see any differences. They all weigh the same amount. They all have the same current requirements. But they all put out different levels of watts. 4000 watts up to 8000 watts.

Same thing goes for two Lab Gruppen amps I have. The C10:8X and the C20:8X. They're identical as far as I can tell. Same weight, same dimensions, same power input requirements. But one amp puts out 2000 watts and the other puts out 1000 watts.

What is different inside these amps that makes them output more or less wattage than the other? And if they're essentially identical inside, why not have all of them output the maximum amount of power. Obviously aside from reasons of marketing and sales. If marketing/sales/profits were not an issue, would there be any reason why each amplifier couldn't output the same amount of power?

Thank you to anyone who can shed a little light on this subject for me. Like I said, my question may have an obvious answer, and I may be totally wrong about the amplifiers being identical. But it seems like they are to me. And I'd love to understand what the differences are between them.

EZ

Answers

  • scytechscytech Posts: 148

    Rail voltages, for one! For the Itech series, each amplifier model has a different maximum rail voltage. Something like 20Vdc difference between each level. This means a different SMPS module for each model.
    And there is other stuff too, like different output mosfet drivers, gate drive cards and front end cards.
    Also notice the amount of rail caps on the output modules! Different voltage ratings and number of cans per side.
    So even if they look alike, there are lots of micro differences between the different models. They are not exchangeable.
    Also, the output coils are specifically designed for each amplifier model!

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