Audio Video News

Home theater enthusiasts with relatively efficient speakers are unlikely to need more than 100 watts per channel, but affordable multichannel amps in this power range are strangely hard to find.

Into the breach leaps Outlaw Audio. On March 31, the direct-sales manufacturer introduced its model 7100, a seven-channel, 100-watts-per-channel home theater power amplifier with a list price of only $899. The 7100 delivers all the amplification necessary to compliment the latest 6.1 and 7.1 channel surround processors. The compact amplifier is also space-conservative, measuring 5" H x 17.2" W x 16.2" D and weighing 51 lbs.

US – designed and built, the 7100 features high quality parts and modular configuration. Each channel has four discrete output devices and 20,000 microfarads of total filter capacitance. With all channels driven, the 7100 is capable of 100 watts/channel into eight-ohm loads; it can reach 165W x 7 with four-ohm loads. Total harmonic distortion is vanishingly low, spec'd at <0.05% at rated output, all frequencies, and at <0.01% at 1 kHz. Other significant ratings include a power bandwidth of 5Hz - >100 kHz +0/-3 dB; a damping factor >400 from 10Hz-400Hz; -90dB crosstalk from 20Hz-20kHz, and a slew rate of 50V/usec. One volt of input signal will drive the 7100 to full power.

At the heart of the amp's high current power supply is a 1.2kVA toroidal transformer with two separate windings for each channel, ensuring enough current for even the most demanding transients and special effects. The need for cooling fans is eliminated by individual heatsinks for each module. Protection circuits include heat sensors and over-current detectors. A low-voltage trigger input allows timed remote power-up and power-down with preamps and processors similarly equipped.

The Outlaw Model 7100 power amplifier is available solely through the Outlaw's Hideout at a cost of $899. Special "Outlaw Family" pricing is available for owners of other Outlaw electronics, or when purchased as a package with the Model 950, according to the March 31 announcement.