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Thread: Silent fan on Crown MA3600VZ

  1. #1
    Senior Member baldrick's Avatar
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    Silent fan on Crown MA3600VZ

    I've just bought a Crown Macro Tech 3600VZ, the sound is great but the fan makes way too much noise so that it can not be used in a hifi setup.

    Is there a way too shutoff the fan (and keep an eye on the temp) or replace it with a more quiet fan? I was hopeing it was a normal "PC fan" that I could just unplug, but this fan is nothing like the ordinary PC fan, and I guess that explains the noise it makes

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    Senior Member jeenie67's Avatar
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    ...whhhhrrrrr!

    ...I replaced all the fans in my Crowns with whisper fans bought online for about $4 a crack. Search the sites. All you need to know is the metric outside dimensions, the bolt hole spread, and depth. The re-wiring a chimpanzee could do! I found exact replacements that are 100% silent! Jeenie.

  3. #3
    Senior Member baldrick's Avatar
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    Did you have the same amp? It only seams to have one big fan (apox 4")and it's not the same type as I've seen before in other amps. Before I took a look I was hopeing I could replace it with a silent PC fan, but this fan seems to be somthing totally different tha the usual 12v fan.

    the best would ofcourse be to replace it with a silent fan, the other option is to unplug it if I find a way

    Here's a picture of the amp (and fan) inside:


  4. #4
    Senior Member baldrick's Avatar
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    I've just found out how this thing is wired, there are 3 smaller wires that goes to the printcard, they look very much the same as normal PC fan wires/plug. But when I disconnect that, nothing changes. I then realsed that there are one wire to each powersupply, I unpluged thoes and everything was quiet... VERY quiet, the amp didn't power up at all So it seems that to get the amp turned on I need to have the fan installed. Maybe I could shortcut the wire but this I don't dear until someone tells me it's good.

    Any advice how I can turn of/bypass the fan

  5. #5
    Senior Member jeenie67's Avatar
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    Hi again. Crown buys most of it's fans from outside sources. Try and disconnect it from it's mounting. On the fan there should be all the data you would need to replace it with a quieter unit. The ones I pulled were made in...where else...China! Xinruilian brushless DC fans...12 Volts DC.. 0.17 amps. 4 hole mounting....kinda' tough to get at! Jeenie.

  6. #6
    Senior Member SMKSoundPro's Avatar
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    Exclamation

    NO!!!

    a Crown MacroTech 3600 NEEDS THE FAN!!! to create the low voltage to power the "preamp" circuits!!!

    YOU cannot unwire the fan, unless you create a low voltage power supply in its place.

    If you look at the schematic for a Macro Tech 2400, you will see the "Motor Transformer" which creates voltage for the low voltage circuitry.

    This is why it is SO important to keep the fan filters clean. When this fan fails, the "preamp" stuffs does not turn on, and nothing else works.

    These amps were designed for Pro sound install and touring rigs. Not for home home hi-fi.

    Scotty.
    Attached Images Attached Images  
    One step above: "Two Tin Cans and a String!"
    Longtime Alaskan Low-Fi Guy - E=MC² ±3db

  7. #7
    Senior Member jeenie67's Avatar
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    A fan is a fan....a motor is a motor. The unit does not know the difference. It is different from what I replaced, but....just replace the fan motor with an identical voltage and amperage unit. There are only two wires, hot and neutral. The rest stays original. The noise is all in the manufacturers choice of bearings and fan blade angle. CFM should remain close to the original, but a little less is OK. For home use the unit can handle it. For Pro-Sound I would not recommend it.

  8. #8
    Senior Member baldrick's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by jeenie67 View Post
    Hi again. Crown buys most of it's fans from outside sources. Try and disconnect it from it's mounting. On the fan there should be all the data you would need to replace it with a quieter unit. The ones I pulled were made in...where else...China! Xinruilian brushless DC fans...12 Volts DC.. 0.17 amps. 4 hole mounting....kinda' tough to get at! Jeenie.
    Unfortunately you are wrong, you are talking about the normal kind of fans, not the kind that is on my amp

    Quote Originally Posted by SMKSoundPro View Post
    NO!!!

    a Crown MacroTech 3600 NEEDS THE FAN!!! to create the low voltage to power the "preamp" circuits!!!

    YOU cannot unwire the fan, unless you create a low voltage power supply in its place.

    What are you thinking?

    Scotty.
    Sound like you know what you are talking about. I've tried unwire the fan and it doesn't hurt because the amp will not power up! But I agree that I probably need a low voltage power supply in instead of the fan, do you have any idea how I can fix this? Or is it just a stuipd idea to try and just sell the amp instead. Like it is now I have no use for it since it's WAY to noisy

  9. #9
    Senior Member SMKSoundPro's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by baldrick View Post
    Sound like you know what you are talking about. I've tried unwire the fan and it doesn't hurt because the amp will not power up! But I agree that I probably need a low voltage power supply in instead of the fan, do you have any idea how I can fix this? Or is it just a stuipd idea to try and just sell the amp instead. Like it is now I have no use for it since it's WAY to noisy
    Dear Baldrick,

    I know of no way to take the fan out of circuit, unless you create a +15 & -15vac power supply to take the motor transformer's place.

    I have many Macro tech amp's here in my nightclub, and LOVE THEM!!! They are the deal for me.

    I know of many other amps that are home hi-fi oriented or even Pro amps that are good for your application. This Crown 3600 is NOT one of them!

    Scotty.
    One step above: "Two Tin Cans and a String!"
    Longtime Alaskan Low-Fi Guy - E=MC² ±3db

  10. #10
    Senior Member baldrick's Avatar
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    I'm beging to realise that it was not a good idea to buy this amp, I thought it would be the perfect match for a pair of 2245, but I did never thought about this problem. I have a Crown Studio Reference powering my 250s and I can hardly hear the fan on that, so I thought the MA3600 would be something similiar, buy boy I was wrong

  11. #11
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    keep experimenting

    I have a few Crown XLS 802s with VERY noisy fans. I'm experimenting with a few options. One option is cutting the fan wire and using a pancake fan instead. Another is to use no fans.

    I also think there are variations in the thermal curcuits in these amps as one does not turn off without a fan. Another, however with no fans turns off when driven to moderate levels.


    Anyway, I will sort this issue out eventually. I will be intersted in knowing how folks resolve the issue inthis thread.

  12. #12
    Senior Member jeenie67's Avatar
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    Hola....somewhere in all these posts someone substituted a resistor in the fan circuit to slow it down...this would be for that style of cooling fan....for the Macro....good luck! Looking at it's picture it wouldn't be impossible, but hard to substitute just the fans motor with something else...leaving the existing circuitry the same. Anything CAN be done!
    Last edited by jeenie67; 03-21-2009 at 04:58 PM. Reason: keyboard glitch!

  13. #13
    RE: Member when? subwoof's Avatar
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    No means NO

    do not change anything on the 3600's fan circuit.

    That model has the highest "heat" density of any of their pro amps and needs a substantial airflow EVEN at idle to maintain it's cooling. By contrast the macro reference has a chassis with twice the internal space, a VERY VERY good low noise ball bearing fan but uses the SAME main board and output section...

    And yes that is special type called a "fanformer" where the low voltage AC is created for the +/- 15 volt supplies. you cannot lower it's voltage with a resistor.

    If it bothers you that much remote the amp or buy a different model. Just how much power are you looking for? How many channels?

    I fix and own a lot of crowns and when one of those cooks it's a costly repair.

    sub

  14. #14
    Senior Member baldrick's Avatar
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    I've just found a way so that I can use my new amp, I drilled a hole threw to the wall to the room next door and placed the amp there It's not ideal but it works.

    For what you are saying I just got an idea, could I use the fan of the MacroReference if I can get one?

    Since you are mentioning the MacroReference, do you know the difference/simmilarity between it and the StudioReference?

  15. #15
    RE: Member when? subwoof's Avatar
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    no means no again

    do not change the fan, period.

    There are many differences and I cannot type that much. look at crowns website and you can download all the manuals / schematics and see.

    http://www.crownaudio.com/gen_htm/legacy/legacamp.htm

    ALL the older MA/MI/PB/PT/MR/SR/CSL/CT type grounded bridge amplifiers use the same design basics but differ in size, power, blinky lights, interfaces/jacks and of course, cost.

    Like you would take a MG on a road rally and a van with kids to a soccer ( sorry - football ) game the reverse is not recommended BUT can be accomplished.

    It's just not what the designers had in mind for the target group that uses / buys them.

    SKOL

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