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Fans on amps.

Ive been checking out some posts about fans by amps but cannot find anything about them being good or bad for the amps. This is what I would like to know. Ok. I have a Krell Fpb 600 and I listen to my music about a 28-30 volume on my ARC Ref 6 which is pretty loud most of the time depending on recordings. Tonight I felt my amp like a lot of times and felt very hot like u could fry an egg on top. This is the normal with a few hrs of listening. Anyway I put a fan on the right side of amp and about a half hour later I checked the right side and was significantly cooler I mean like a night and day difference between the right and left top and heat sinks. I was wondering if adding 2 fans one on each side to cool the amp down would do more harm than good. Would I get more life out of the amp with fans ? Or are amps designed like that without using fans and just heat sinks to get rid of the heat. Btw my amp has plenty of ventilation as it is on the floor. Thanks. 
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wspohn's avatar
wspohn
578 posts
 
Fans on power amps are rarely quiet enough for listening to acoustic music. 

One friend had a fan cooled power amp and when we tried to listen to solo violin it was like attending a concert with a DC-6 winding up for take off in the room. Had we been listening to loud rock it probably wouldn't have mattered.

You can get away without fans if you have proper heat sinks, but that is expensive. Take a look at the pics of these Classe Class A amps:

https://www.aussieaudiomart.com/details/649274239-pair-of-classe-dr3-vhc/images/1228060/

The amps put out into the hundreds of watts of heat just sitting there (a bit less if they are converting some of the current into sound.

Another friend had some fan cooled Crown (commercial) amps - I couldn't listen to them with the fans going beside us.
ieales's avatar
ieales
1,201 posts
 
The amps mentioned sound like PA amps which are not designed for HiFi home use.

Any system that is audible when not playing isn't HiFi.

There are many sound apps available for smart phones. Broadband, ambient noise should be below 40db or below 30db 1/6octave. If there is any delta between amp off and on at 1m, the fan is TOO LOUD!!
baddodge's avatar
baddodge
16 posts
 
I put fans computers  big ones that are quite. If I would hear them I just turn it up more. I have had some dish unit shut down because it was too hot. Since the fans no shut downs.
ieales's avatar
ieales
1,201 posts
 
I just turn it up more
For decades cognoscenti have played material at optimum level for the system and the material.

It's one reason recording studio control rooms are so well sound proofed.

Adjusting levels to compensate for ambient noise often compromises the sound quality.

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