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Review: CM Labs 914 Amplifier

Category: Amplifiers

Long before Levinson,Krell,Threshold,and others there was CM Labs of Danbury,CT. This little high end company produced some of the most musical solid state power amps.The build quality is robust,and is a total mil-spec amp. The 914 is one of the first,if not the first of the high speed power amps. The power output is 125 Watts RMS into 8 ohms,with less than 0.1 percent THD,at any freqency from 20 to 20,000 Hz. 175 watts RMS into 4 ohm. IM Distortin less than o.1 percent up to rated power.Frequency response +- 0.1 dB from 20 to 20,000 Hz at full power.Damping factor better than 500 at 8 ohms!!Circuitry is fully differential,full complementary common-emitter output.Is built to MIL spec A8625C,Type 2.More important than all the above impressive specs,is the sound quality. This is without doubt one of the finest and most musical power amps I have owned. Clearly in the same league as Threshold,Levinson,and others in the high end spectrum.Seldom seen in for sale or auction. People that have then just dont get rid of them--Thats how good they really are in the real world of high end audio. But if you ever get a chance to acquire one,Grab it fast

Associated gear
Acoustat Speakers,HK T-60 TT,Threshold Preamp

Similar products
Bryston,Adcom,Van Alstine
ferrari
dangus-4aa1
1 posts
 
I have a CM920 which I'm attempting to repair. If anyone has a service manual or schematic or any hints on things like bias settings, please let me know. I got this amp at an estate sale, partly disassembled with the output devices in a plastic bag. So far I've traced the circuit boards and duplicated them in CAD, since the old amp boards were damaged in a few places and drawn schematics on paper but not on CAD yet.

dangus (at) direct.ca or at triant.com
ferrari OP
617 posts
 
You might try a post on the www.diyaudio.com site. I have found that site useful in getting hard to find information.
alaindexe's avatar
alaindexe
75 posts
 
I own a CM Lab 911 for quite a long time. I had tubes amp before that. The CM lab doesn't have all the refinement of the Leak amp I had but it could compete very well with my HK citation II. It was also way better that an old Bryston 4B. I have a review done back then when the amp came out, around 68 or 69... the reviewer was pretty enthusiast about the 911. I also have the company's spec sheet and the electronic schema if this may be of any help to someone...
manny55's avatar
manny55
21 posts
 
Yesterdays equipment that are still highly competitive sound wise , Threshold fet 10 preamp , Audionics of Oregon BT-2 preamp and CC-2 Power amp , B and K 140 amplifier , Dalquist DQ10 speakers, Spica TC-50 Speakers , DCM Time Windows and many many more . Dont make the mistake of thinking that just because its an old design it isnt solid sound wise . AAHH...the good old days.
ingelsj
2 posts
 
Hi Ferrari,

I ran across your threads on the CM Labs amplifiers and you appear to have knowledge about CM amps. I read the review on the CM914 and it appears to be a great piece of equipment. I recently purchased a CM915 professional power amp and I can't find any info about this amp. It looks very different than the photo you provided of the 914. AUDIO is stamped in lower left corner. My 915 reads CMLabs. I'm assuming the 915 was a later model produced in 1983. It appears certain models were available by custom ordering. I have a photo that I can provide. My ISP or browser sometimes has problems posting to the forum. Any info you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
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