Curious about the Behringer EP1500/2500 amps...

[Anamorphic]

Hello, this is my first post here and just thought I'd say "hi" while I'm at it, so... Hi!

Does the cooling fan in the EP1500/2500 amps run all the time or only when needed?

The reason I ask is because my Crown XTi 1000 (which pulls LFE duty) has a cooling fan that is completely off until it's needed, which isn't very often. I wouldn't mind getting a couple of these Behringer amps for the quad bass bins of my up and coming main channel loudspeaker project (Usher Audio D2 clones) and my pair of bass shakers. But I don't want fans sitting nearby making noise even at idle like my old Carver PM700 did.

I know there's a lot of you here running these amps, so I imagine an answer shouldn't be too hard to come by.

Many thanks in advance!

[Sonnie]

Welcome to the Shack!

You're right... there are lots of owners here, including me, but I actually have no idea if the fan runs 24/7. What I do know is I have never heard it because I did the fan mod.

[Anamorphic]

Hi Sonnie. Thanks for the welcome.

As for the amps, eventhough I could easily do that fan mod, I'd rather not if I don't have to (if you know what I mean).

If I am to get two of these amps eventually, one will be powering my mains which will be 4 ohms (bi-amped) and 99dB @ 1W/1M, and crossed over from 50Hz - 760Hz. The other will power a pair of Aura Pro Bass Shakers that I am currently powering with an old 25w p/ch Technics receiver from the 70's.

IOW, these amps will not be working hard at all and the fans should never need to be on, much less on their high-speed mode. These amps would be more or less just idling the entire time.

[Otto]

Hi there Anamorphic, and welcome to the Shack.

I don't know about the EP1500, but I have the EP2500. The fan runs all the time. As you've read, it's rather loud; too loud for me, anyway. I buried mine in a closet in the basement, and I don't have to deal with it. During initial setup, it was in my living room, and it's quite annoying.

Good luck!

[Anamorphic]

Hi Otto!

That's what I kind of figured. The Crown XTi amp is the only one I've ever seen where the fan is completely off. I think I'll just get another Crown, this time the XTi 2000 to upgrade the 1000 on my sub, then use my 1000 on the mains. For the bass shakers I can just get an Audio Source AMP100 and bridge it for 150W.



BTW, I was just listening to Duran Duran's "Relax", and this little guy ( ) smacks his face to the same exact beat as the song! LOL

[paulspencer]

I have the EP2500 running my mains at the moment (overkill) and the fans are too loud for the purpose. They aren't as loud as the entry level Crown amp I looked at when i was buying this one. Also keep in mind that the 2500 is a class T amp, which didn't concern me as I bought it to run subs. I actually do find it seems to do just fine when driving my mains, even when I'm in audiophile mode listening to the subtle nuances of jazz music.

[Anamorphic]

I don't know where people keep coming up with the EP2500 being a Class T amp. Even on Behringer's site and in their manual, they say nothing about Class T.

It is a Class H amp which means it's a normal Class A/B amplifier that uses Toshiba/Fairchild high-power output transistors and that the power supply voltage adjusts accordingly to the amplifier's power needs. It is not a digital amplifier by any means.


"Class H: A variation of Class AB. Changes the power supply voltage to the amplifier depending on the signal level. Improved dynamic efficiency. Requires complex power supply. Single tone efficiency up to 65 percent Sounds excellent—if well-designed"

[paulspencer]

I stand corrected. Now I'm wondering where I got that from - I thought I had seen it in the manual but I've checked again - yep, it's class H! I actually thought it was a slightly different form of class D

[Jerm357]

The EP1500 fan runs all the time also.

[smbear]

you can put the digikey fan in and you will not be able to hear it . its like $8.00 and a direct fit look it up on this sight even has directions.