in preparation for a multichannel sound installation I am pondering 

the question what sort of amplification to use. it will be a small 

room, speakers should be on all four walls and the ceiling, at least 

The possibilities for sound reinforcement are quite endless, of 

course, and I haven't decided what path to follow. But I came across 

http://www.control4.com/cp/43-D8B8AE43/index.htm

It is a 16 channel (8 stereo) input, 16 channel output amp with 120 

Watts of power per channel (at 8 Ohms). Unfortunately it's only RCA 

(asym), the outputs aren't exactly Speakons and still it costs about 

of course speakers are extra, but 16 channels at this price seems not 

so bad if the quality is as good as the copywrite suggests....

Has anyone used this or a similar amp? what *do* people use? recommend?

in preparation for a multichannel sound installation I am pondering  
the question what sort of amplification to use. it will be a small  
room, speakers should be on all four walls and the ceiling, at least  
10 channels, sometime in 2009.

The possibilities for sound reinforcement are quite endless, of  
course, and I haven't decided what path to follow. But I came across  
this amp:

It is a 16 channel (8 stereo) input, 16 channel output amp with 120  
Watts of power per channel (at 8 Ohms). Unfortunately it's only RCA  
(asym), the outputs aren't exactly Speakons and still it costs about  
2000 USD.

of course speakers are extra, but 16 channels at this price seems not  
so bad if the quality is as good as the copywrite suggests....

seeking-amping-for-multichannel-installation

I'd be a bit suspicious of a 16-channel amplifier... Generally the largest ones I've ever seen are 8-channel, and even some of them are pretty crappy. Amplifier specifications are extremely unstandardized and are routinely pumped up by the marketing department. So, your 16-channel amp might put out 120 watts per channel, but who knows if this is while it's severely clipping in the final moments before it spontaneously combusts? Also, that amp looks like it is made for consumer home theater applications. For an audio installation environment, you'd probably want something a little more robust.

Do you need 10 channels of amplification because you're sending out 10 different channels of audio? If some or all of your audio is the same, you can double up speakers onto amp channels (or, if you use 70-volt speakers or series-parallel wiring, you could easily put all 10 speakers on one amp channel).

If you need 10 channels of amplification, you'd probably do better using three 4-channel amps, or a 4-channel plus an 8-channel. They'd be higher quality, would have balanced inputs, and maybe even Speakon outputs. Take a look at these:

http://qscaudio.com/products/amps/cx/cx4/cx4.htm

Crown CTS4200 (4-channel) or CTS8200 (8-channel) (expensive)

http://www.crownaudio.com/amp_htm/cts.htm

Biamp MCA8050 (8-channel 50W) or MCA8150 (8-channel 150W) (cheap)

Crown 660A (cheap, 6-channel, 60W per channel)

http://www.crownaudio.com/ca_htm/ca-a.htm

All of these are commercial quality amplifiers, and I've listed them in order of quality. I design commercial audio/video systems for a living, and I use these amps all the time. I'd stay away from the no-name 16-channel amps.

I'd be a bit suspicious of a 16-channel amplifier... Generally the largest ones I've ever seen are 8-channel, and even some of them are pretty crappy.  Amplifier specifications are extremely unstandardized and are routinely pumped up by the marketing department.  So, your 16-channel amp might put out 120 watts per channel, but who knows if this is while it's severely clipping in the final moments before it spontaneously combusts?  Also, that amp looks like it is made for consumer home theater applications.  For an audio installation environment, you'd probably want something a little more robust.

Do you need 10 channels of amplification because you're sending out 10 different channels of audio?  If some or all of your audio is the same, you can double up speakers onto amp channels (or, if you use 70-volt speakers or series-parallel wiring, you could easily put all 10 speakers on one amp channel).

If you need 10 channels of amplification, you'd probably do better using three 4-channel amps, or a 4-channel plus an 8-channel.  They'd be higher quality, would have balanced inputs, and maybe even Speakon outputs.  Take a look at these:

QSC CX254 (expensive)
http://qscaudio.com/products/amps/cx/cx4/cx4.htm

Crown CTS4200 (4-channel) or CTS8200 (8-channel) (expensive)
http://www.crownaudio.com/amp_htm/cts.htm

Biamp MCA8050 (8-channel 50W) or MCA8150 (8-channel 150W) (cheap)
http://www.biamp.com/amplifiers.php

Crown 660A (cheap, 6-channel, 60W per channel)
http://www.crownaudio.com/ca_htm/ca-a.htm

All of these are commercial quality amplifiers, and I've listed them in order of quality.  I design commercial audio/video systems for a living, and I use these amps all the time.  I'd stay away from the no-name 16-channel amps.


i have used 2 of these for an outdoor 12 channel-installation this 

http://www.autocostruire.com/catalog/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=12&products_id=309&language=en&osCsid=de528de66be76a8921a415586ba77623

Am 02.11.2008 um 13:01 schrieb K9 Kai Niggemann:

> in preparation for a multichannel sound installation I am pondering 

> the question what sort of amplification to use. it will be a small 

> room, speakers should be on all four walls and the ceiling, at least 

> The possibilities for sound reinforcement are quite endless, of 

> course, and I haven't decided what path to follow. But I came across 

> It is a 16 channel (8 stereo) input, 16 channel output amp with 120 

> Watts of power per channel (at 8 Ohms). Unfortunately it's only RCA 

> (asym), the outputs aren't exactly Speakons and still it costs about 

> of course speakers are extra, but 16 channels at this price seems 

> not so bad if the quality is as good as the copywrite suggests....

> Has anyone used this or a similar amp? what *do* people use? 

i have used 2 of these for an outdoor 12 channel-installation this  
summer (running 4 months):
http://www.autocostruire.com/catalog/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=12&products_id=309&language=en&osCsid=de528de66be76a8921a415586ba77623

was very pleased with the sound.
hans
www.hans-w-koch.net

> Hi,
>
> in preparation for a multichannel sound installation I am pondering  
> the question what sort of amplification to use. it will be a small  
> room, speakers should be on all four walls and the ceiling, at least  
> 10 channels, sometime in 2009.
>
> The possibilities for sound reinforcement are quite endless, of  
> course, and I haven't decided what path to follow. But I came across  
> this amp:
>
> http://www.control4.com/cp/43-D8B8AE43/index.htm
>
> It is a 16 channel (8 stereo) input, 16 channel output amp with 120  
> Watts of power per channel (at 8 Ohms). Unfortunately it's only RCA  
> (asym), the outputs aren't exactly Speakons and still it costs about  
> 2000 USD.
>
> of course speakers are extra, but 16 channels at this price seems  
> not so bad if the quality is as good as the copywrite suggests....
>
> Has anyone used this or a similar amp? what *do* people use?  
> recommend?
>
> thanks for any help!
> Kai
>


Quote: k9 wrote on Sun, 02 November 2008 04:01

----------------------------------------------------

I've been using a Niles amplifier in an installation for the past 5 years:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000226762/interactiveda8765-20

Quote: k9 wrote on Sun, 02 November 2008 04:01
----------------------------------------------------
> Hi,
>
> in preparation for a multichannel sound installation I am pondering  
> the question what sort of amplification to use. it will be a small  
> room, speakers should be on all four walls and the ceiling, at least  
> 10 channels, sometime in 2009.
>

i prefer powered (built-in amp) speakers for my installations. i love the mackie SRM450's: loud, clear and tough.

seeking amping for multichannel installation