CRICKET CR-2250. The art of audio

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CRICKET CR-2250

The art of audio

CRICKET CR-2250

AZ#5-6/1999

Solid, thoughtful design of the front panel. Very ergonomic (with one caveat, which is below). Beautifully crafted, large illuminated dial gauges show power output into a rated 4 ohm load. "Glass" recessed into the panel, so that accidental scratches do not threaten them.

CRICKET CR-2250

Changeable backlight color (green and blue) and strict forms of the silver panel, plus the presence of high and low level inputs, as well as a direct input from the front panel (3,5 mm mini-jack) will allow you to integrate the amplifier into almost any audio system, even to the old receiver. Line outputs will allow you to build up the system in the future. Exceptionally small dimensions and a built-in cooling system will allow you to install the amplifier together with the source in a two-din place, or by showing a little imagination - in another suitable place, since there is plenty of it (place) on the panel of modern cars.

Should look great under a ceiling or in a high panel. I would not advise putting domestic cars near the stove. However, this is an amateur. IMHO, it is in discreet, but well-thought-out systems that the advantages of this model will be fully revealed. But it's hard to call it budget... (at the time of this writing, the price criteria were not the same as now)

Adjusting the bass boost (up to +6dB at 45Hz) from the front panel may be handy for some listeners (if the amp is within reach). But it was definitely not worth putting the crossover cutoff frequency control on the front panel and placing it next to the entrance - you can easily knock it down when you connect a player / discman, and passengers are tempted to twist such a cute little knob ...

CRICKET CR-2250

Incidentally, the switchbuilt-in crossover (FULL / HPF / LPF) is on the board, as well as the amplifier sensitivity control. It would be more logical to bring this regulator to the front panel - it would be much more convenient to use the amplifier. And so the adjustment of the sensitivity of the amplifier in the system can only be done in the removed state, and switching the operating modes of the crossover with a screwdriver through a hole in the upper casing requires dexterity.

The middle position of the switch is not as easy to catch as it seems, so it's easier to remove the cover and switch by hand before installation.

Circuitry and installation

The amplifier is declared as Full MOSFET. This is true, the output stage is made on field-effect transistors, like the power supply. Powerful transistors are mounted on the so-called. "heat pipe". It's like a radiator turned inside out, a kind of hedgehog in the womb. External section - square, internal - an asterisk.

The radiator is located along the axis of the amplifier, the cooling air is blown by a miniature fan from front to back. Air is taken through the perforation of the case near the front panel, so you should pay attention to this during installation. The fan turns on automatically at the command of the temperature sensor.

CRICKET CR-2250

The amplifier itself has protection against overheating, overload or short circuit in the load, plus load protection in case of failure of the amplifier. Given the cost of good acoustics - the measure is not superfluous.

The input impedance is high enough for car amplifiers - 22 kOhm, so if the installation is unsuccessful, there is a risk of background. A tunable second-order filter is installed at the amplifier input (the cutoff frequency varies from 50 to 250 Hz). The filter can be used as a low-pass filter or high-pass filter, or even excluded from the path.

Together with the filter, a fairly narrow-band high-Q bass boost is used (resonant frequency 45 Hz, frequency rise starts below 100 Hz). The filter and booster are made according to traditional circuits on miniature surface-mounted operational amplifiers. By the way, all low-signal circuits are surface-mounted.

The signal to turn on comes only from the control wire, the high-level inputs are not involved in control. The high (1-10v) and low (0,2-3v) level inputs can, in principle, be used together (for example, "just a receiver" and a changer with a controller). But such a trick requires the adoption of some minimal pairing and foolproof measures.

All low-signal circuits (in its front part) and power circuits (central part) are mounted on the main board. Electrically and structurally they are isolated. The cross section of the power conductors corresponds to the declared power. An interesting feature of the installation is the drivers (end stages) of the amplifier and power supply. They are made by conventional printed wiring on separate small scarves installed in the main board on the connectors. From the point of view of installation, this is not very clear, there is still room there.

The advantage of a modular design - flexibility, perhaps there are some design or technological options for the main scheme - is difficult to judge. In any case, fixing these boards with a drop of glue looks like a mockery in a car amplifier. It is necessary to lay at least a piece of rubber between the board and the cover, if the clamp was too lazy to put.

The power supply makes a good impression, but the power headroom does not seem to be great. If in a normal connection the amplifier provides 2x50W into 4 ohms, then in a bridged one - only 150 (and not the expected 200). This is also indirectly evidenced by the given level of channel separation - only 50dB. True, in car amplifiers this parameter is often a secret even for the manufacturer ...

A very high damping factor (at least 100) and the ability to operate on a load from 2 to 8 ohms, in a conventional, bridged or tri-mode connection, expand its scope. Harmonic coefficient (0,1% - a common value for FETs) - may seem huge after bipolar amplifiers, but actually provides better sound quality than 0,01% for bipolar ones.

In general, no circuitry "highlights" could be found, just a high-quality set of proven solutions. And constructively - just lovely. I fell in love with him ... Despite the shortcomings ...

Photos taken from www.caraudio.ru

Publication: www.bluesmobil.com/shikhman

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