Please message me and I'll let you know what I need.  Thanks.

@SWL, Derrick is correct. the 1500 might be overkill, but the XLi 800 might be what you are looking for with those speakers. Never heard them. Not a bad option. Reasonable price at PE and can return if you don't like it. (I think you'll keep it) Balanced inputs (plus RCA) are an added bonus as well as the SpeakOn connections in addition to the normal five way binding posts.  It's just a hobby, have fun with it. 

I have an "ideal" as well, just get there sooner than most on here. I do recognize crap when I hear it real quick. I have disappointed several enthusiasts when I fail to hear a minute difference. "you didn't hear that cricket fart in f sharp?". At first, I wished I could but then figured out I got to my goal sooner and cheaper than others. Compared to the other 95% of the population, I'm a snob. My only point was the my Crown experience has been nothing but positive. The original purpose of your thread. The "golden ear" comment was simply to qualify my statements as one old man's opinion. I do have a much nicer system in my home but as good as it is, it doesn't supply any more enjoyment than my outdoor system, which is the point. LS outdoors is kinda magical. There have been numerous threads. Everyone reaches a "good enough" point where the subtle difference is either not noticed or worth the additional expense.

@ClaudeJ1   "All threads, sooner or later, get hijacked. So put your axe down." I don't mind thread drift, but I don't want to hijack his thread   "You did it by making two different points." I replied to two statements you made: You are not correct about either point: the value of said dime, or your definition of what inflation is.   "I agreed with one and not the other." I must have missed where you said that you agreed. "Whether, silver, paper, copper, or gold plated, a DOLLAR is a representative denomination of what it can purchase at a given point in history." Did you really mean to say that?

All threads, sooner or later, get hijacked. So put your axe down. You did it by making two different points. I agreed with one and not the other. I just wanted you to segregate and amplify, which you did (pun intended). Practice what you preach.

•Powerful AB+B class circuitry yields maximum efficiency with minimum crossover “notch” distortion.   I believe this why they sound so good.   For a more HT friendly application, the HCA line from Parasound are pretty close to sound (at least to my ears), with added 12 volt trigger.  

Weighing in at 88 lbs, I purposely ran a 30 amp service to my audio closet for one of these. I'm sure there are probably modern day amps that are more efficient with less power requirements. But how cool would it be to tell people you have a dedicated 30 amp circuit for your power amp?    

I worked-up this derivation quickly yesterday. If there are any errors then somebody please inform me (politely!) and I will correct them. Derivation of Cutoff Frequency.pdf

The "Chief" regularly used two Crown D-75A units with a EV DX-38 crossover to test/fine tune the LaScala two way with K-510 horn...just saying.  You can buy them on eBay for $100.; maybe worth a try with little risk financially.   I have found these to be very listenable and nicely configured with mono switch, XLR connections and adjustable gain features...YMMV.  

Can you post the schematic?  I would like to see what you have designed.  My late friend Frank collaborated with Claus Byrith about 20 years ago iirc on a variable fb SET which offered some very interesting ways to adjust the soundstage as well as harmonic content.   Maynard