Outlaw Audio M2200/200 VS Crown XLS 1000 - Blu-ray Forum

adept777 · 12-19-2011, 08:16 AM

Guys I know I wanted to see a post like this before purchasing my amps and did not find any so I would like to share my comparative results on the Crown XLS 1000 and the Outlaw Audio Model 2200/200 for fellows like moi

First and foremost, I am no audiophile or anything close to that but I am also not exaggerating. So, please feel free to correct any technicalities if you may. FYI - this is simply IMHO:

Outlaw Audio M2200/M200 produces a more lively sound than the Crown XLS 1000. The vocals sounds amazingly transparent as though the singer is singing right in front of you in the room, the bass sounds tight and detailed, treble is clean and pleasant to listen to. Overall it brings nuances and detail to my system.

As for the Crown XLS 1000 most importantly it is much smaller in width and length but not the height, it is way lighter in weight than the Outlaw. As for the sound stage; it does produce more "sound" and even the panning is more realistic as sound moves around the room. You will definitely know it's loud but it will not hurt your ears, it is clean. I did not notice any fan noise as claimed by some users. As a matter of fact I think the fan does not even click in. And the amp is super cool even after two movies in a row!!

Overall, I think they both stand tall in their own respective ways and it is definitely a listeners choice between sound and detail. I personally prefer the Outlaw only because of some of the details I hear from them when it comes to music. And I am not a big fan of shinning led lights distracting my otherwise dark home theater! I like the clean black look of the outlaw better. But that was definitely not the biggest reason in deciding to keep it! IMHO anyone looking to get either one should listen to them both before deciding on one.

Big Daddy · 12-19-2011, 11:25 PM

Thank you for the review.

Did you test the two amplifiers with exactly the same equipment and the same speaker arrangement?

adept777 · 12-20-2011, 02:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

Thank you for the review.

Did you test the two amplifiers with exactly the same equipment and the same speaker arrangement?

You are welcome, It is simply an inspiration from folks like yourself. I am among the many who are very grateful to you for your many awesome reviews and guides. And to answer your question; Yes, I did use the exact same components including the cables and speaker distance.

Energy CF 70, Energy CC 10, Onkyo HT RC270, AR PR171 6ft Audio Cable.

Movies:
Fight Club - Blu-ray, King Kong - Blu-ray, Avatar - Blu-Ray, A Beautiful Mind - Blu-ray.

Music:
Von Kessels: Requiem - SACD, Norah Jones: Come Away With Me - SACD, BOTDF - MiniDisc among a few others.

callas01 · 12-20-2011, 03:57 AM

awesome Adept, thanks for reviewing both the amps. I think that the Outlaw is built for the musical audiophile and the Crown is a Professional amp, so it might be that its more about sound for pro's

Glad that you really like the Outlaws. did you end up getting the 200s used?

lojack1976 · 12-20-2011, 07:31 AM

I have the Crown myself and I don't find anything lacking with it musically. It has great power and clarity, and detail has been phenomenal which I attribute more to my receiver and my speakers. Keep in mind that it is a Class D amp, so it will have some sonic differences from the Outlaw which is Class AB. It's all a matter of one's tastes. I've listened to the CF-70's and I find them to be great speakers, but they are definitely a much different sound from my ML's which I love.

Touching on the subject of the fan the Crown being Class D runs very cool and the fan will rarely come on. When it does it spins pretty slowly and its totally inaudible. This is one of the reasons I went with it over the QSC GX3 that I was also considering which is Class AB. The GX3 is pretty quiet as well, but not quite as quiet as the Crown, and of course it pulls a lot more powr from the wall. Anyhow, I'm glad you found what you were looking for in the Outlaws. I'm sure they are great amps.

adept777 · 12-20-2011, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lojack1976

I have the Crown myself and I don't find anything lacking with it musically. It has great power and clarity, and detail has been phenomenal which I attribute more to my receiver and my speakers. Keep in mind that it is a Class D amp, so it will have some sonic differences from the Outlaw which is Class AB. It's all a matter of one's tastes. I've listened to the CF-70's and I find them to be great speakers, but they are definitely a much different sound from my ML's which I love.

Touching on the subject of the fan the Crown being Class D runs very cool and the fan will rarely come on. When it does it spins pretty slowly and its totally inaudible. This is one of the reasons I went with it over the QSC GX3 that I was also considering which is Class AB. The GX3 is pretty quiet as well, but not quite as quiet as the Crown, and of course it pulls a lot more powr from the wall. Anyhow, I'm glad you found what you were looking for in the Outlaws. I'm sure they are great amps.

oh no lojack1976, I am not claiming the Crown to lack musicality. I am just saying that my ears seems to hear more from the Outlaws. It maybe due to that fact that the Outlaw does produce more acoustic quality.

lojack1976 · 12-21-2011, 02:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adept777

oh no lojack1976, I am not claiming the Crown to lack musicality. I am just saying that my ears seems to hear more from the Outlaws. It maybe due to that fact that the Outlaw does produce more acoustic quality.

In describing the Outlaw you say it has more detail and on the other hand you say the Crown produces a wider sound stage. Now you're saying the Crown doesn't lack musicality, but then you turn around and say the Outlaw has more acoustic quality. I'm not saying you're wrong to prefer one over the other, but I gotta say that an amp has very little bearing on detail and musicality in general. You either get a lot of(or a little) clean or distorted power. Class AB amplification will sound a little different than Class D amplification and different amps will handle transients differently, but things like detail and the sound stage is dependent on your processor and speakers. Now, if you used the Crown with the crossover enabled then you will get different results since that would be in addition to the crossovers used on your receiver. You should have the amp set to Stereo Bypass for best results. Anyway, I'm glad to hear that the Outlaws turned out to be optimal choice for you since you not only got the power you wanted, but you also got the aesthetics. Enjoy!

Blu Balls · 12-21-2011, 05:16 AM

I'm considering the Outlaw 2200 Monoblocks and was just curious on your opinions having used them first hand. I have Energy CF50's and a CC10. If I was to get 2 Mblocks to power the CF50's and let my receiver (Pioneer VSX 1120-K) power the center, will I hear a considerable improvement or should I just wait until I have better/larger speakers?

adept777 · 12-21-2011, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lojack1976

In describing the Outlaw you say it has more detail and on the other hand you say the Crown produces a wider sound stage. Now you're saying the Crown doesn't lack musicality, but then you turn around and say the Outlaw has more acoustic quality. I'm not saying you're wrong to prefer one over the other, but I gotta say that an amp has very little bearing on detail and musicality in general. You either get a lot of(or a little) clean or distorted power. Class AB amplification will sound a little different than Class D amplification and different amps will handle transients differently, but things like detail and the sound stage is dependent on your processor and speakers. Now, if you used the Crown with the crossover enabled then you will get different results since that would be in addition to the crossovers used on your receiver. You should have the amp set to Stereo Bypass for best results. Anyway, I'm glad to hear that the Outlaws turned out to be optimal choice for you since you not only got the power you wanted, but you also got the aesthetics. Enjoy!

I am sorry but I don't know the technicalities of what a class AB or class D stands for or what it means (please educate if you can) but like I said I do prefer the sound of the outlaw better. I have tried the several available setup modes on the amp and I do currently have it set to bridge mode.

What I mean to say by wider sound stage is that it sounds loud, big. I seem to hear more treble and such when connected to it. I am not going to say it does not have any musicality about it as everyone has their own interpretation of music. All I am saying is it does not feed my needs. Nevertheless I am more than sure that it will make happy anyone else who buys it.

adept777 · 12-20-2011, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by callas01

awesome Adept, thanks for reviewing both the amps. I think that the Outlaw is built for the musical audiophile and the Crown is a Professional amp, so it might be that its more about sound for pro's

Glad that you really like the Outlaws. did you end up getting the 200s used?

Yes I ended up buying two of the 200s. So in total I have one 2200, two 200 and one crown xls 1000. I have already went a little over my budget but I am not complaining. LOL

12-19-2011, 08:16 AM	#1
adept777 Active Member Member since:Apr 2011 Location:Annapolis, MD Home Theater Gallery:10 4K collection:5 Blu-ray collection:328 DVD collection:3	Outlaw Audio M2200/200 VS Crown XLS 1000 Guys I know I wanted to see a post like this before purchasing my amps and did not find any so I would like to share my comparative results on the Crown XLS 1000 and the Outlaw Audio Model 2200/200 for fellows like moi First and foremost, I am no audiophile or anything close to that but I am also not exaggerating. So, please feel free to correct any technicalities if you may. FYI - this is simply IMHO: Outlaw Audio M2200/M200 produces a more lively sound than the Crown XLS 1000. The vocals sounds amazingly transparent as though the singer is singing right in front of you in the room, the bass sounds tight and detailed, treble is clean and pleasant to listen to. Overall it brings nuances and detail to my system. As for the Crown XLS 1000 most importantly it is much smaller in width and length but not the height, it is way lighter in weight than the Outlaw. As for the sound stage; it does produce more "sound" and even the panning is more realistic as sound moves around the room. You will definitely know it's loud but it will not hurt your ears, it is clean. I did not notice any fan noise as claimed by some users. As a matter of fact I think the fan does not even click in. And the amp is super cool even after two movies in a row!! Overall, I think they both stand tall in their own respective ways and it is definitely a listeners choice between sound and detail. I personally prefer the Outlaw only because of some of the details I hear from them when it comes to music. And I am not a big fan of shinning led lights distracting my otherwise dark home theater! I like the clean black look of the outlaw better. But that was definitely not the biggest reason in deciding to keep it! IMHO anyone looking to get either one should listen to them both before deciding on one.

12-21-2011, 05:16 AM	#8
Blu Balls Power Member Member since:Oct 2008 Location:Northern Illinois Blu-ray collection:70 Blu-ray reviews:73	Outlaw 2200 I'm considering the Outlaw 2200 Monoblocks and was just curious on your opinions having used them first hand. I have Energy CF50's and a CC10. If I was to get 2 Mblocks to power the CF50's and let my receiver (Pioneer VSX 1120-K) power the center, will I hear a considerable improvement or should I just wait until I have better/larger speakers?

12-19-2011, 11:25 PM	#2
Big Daddy Blu-ray Champion Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Jan 2008 Location:Southern California Home Theater Gallery:79 Blu-ray collection:122 Trading Score:1	Thank you for the review. Did you test the two amplifiers with exactly the same equipment and the same speaker arrangement?

12-20-2011, 03:57 AM	#4
callas01 Blu-ray Prince Top contributor Member since:Jun 2008 Location:Riverside, CA Home Theater Gallery:42 Blu-ray collection:230 DVD collection:47	awesome Adept, thanks for reviewing both the amps. I think that the Outlaw is built for the musical audiophile and the Crown is a Professional amp, so it might be that its more about sound for pro's Glad that you really like the Outlaws. did you end up getting the 200s used?

12-20-2011, 07:31 AM	#5
lojack1976 Blu-ray Guru Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Aug 2008 Location:7 Cities, VA Home Theater Gallery:62 Blu-ray collection:203	I have the Crown myself and I don't find anything lacking with it musically. It has great power and clarity, and detail has been phenomenal which I attribute more to my receiver and my speakers. Keep in mind that it is a Class D amp, so it will have some sonic differences from the Outlaw which is Class AB. It's all a matter of one's tastes. I've listened to the CF-70's and I find them to be great speakers, but they are definitely a much different sound from my ML's which I love. Touching on the subject of the fan the Crown being Class D runs very cool and the fan will rarely come on. When it does it spins pretty slowly and its totally inaudible. This is one of the reasons I went with it over the QSC GX3 that I was also considering which is Class AB. The GX3 is pretty quiet as well, but not quite as quiet as the Crown, and of course it pulls a lot more powr from the wall. Anyhow, I'm glad you found what you were looking for in the Outlaws. I'm sure they are great amps.

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