Motion Actuator Kit Build Quality

The TES-100 is very compact and features gold plated push style binding posts that can accommodate wire sizes from 18 AWG to 10 AWG. The transducer ships from the manufacturer with mark free rubber isolators that reduce tactile transmission from the chair to the floor. The isolators also compensate for the height disparity when the TES-100 is installed under the leg of the chair. The manufacturer claims their Linear Direct Drive system offers better performance with this new technology over conventional shakers because the action is direct, requiring very little excursion to produce the effect. Lower excursion generally provides more accuracy and a quicker response time.

  

The A200 Amplifier is a mosfet stereo amplifier that produces 85 watts per channel into 6 ohms and 170 watts bridged mono. The amplifier is about the size of a long shoebox. The front faceplate is 1/8-inch thick-machined aluminum and contains the channel one, channel two gain controls and the power On/Off button. The front faceplate also has four non-dimming LED indicator lights. The A200 offers flexible input/output configurations including: Stereo RCA and TRS balanced inputs, Stereo output 5-way binding posts and stereo XLR speaker outputs. The A200 is capable of running in bridge mono mode and the switch for this operation is also located on the back of the amplifier. The overall exterior build quality and fit/finish of the amplifier is excellent. It looks like an audiophile piece of equipment and would fit in any rack filled with high dollar components.

Removing the top cover, we found the components to be of average quality; however given the price of $499 for the amplifier, we were a little less than impressed with the size of the power supply and filter capacitors. One other thing we noted was the amplifier didn't have a variable cross over. This makes it necessary to utilize the optional BMP-3S pre-amp ($249) for a total of about $748 to power two TES-100's. This is a fairly low price to performance ratio considering you can purchase the massive Buttkicker BKA-1000 with a 1000 watt amplifier with variable low and high pass filters for $499.

Buttkicker BKA-1000

Crowson Technology A200

The BMP-3S Pre-Amplifier is a small pre amplifier that aesthetically matches the A200 amplifier. The small pre-amp is a little larger in size than the typical garage door opener. The front of the BMP-3S has a variable gain control and a variable low pass filter from 20hz-500hz. The non-dimmable power indicator LED is placed between the control knobs. On the back of the pre-amp you will find RCA right and left inputs, RCA right and left outputs, One RCA LFE input and One RCA Mono output. The little pre-amp operates with 12 volts DC and utilizes a 100mA adapter (wall wart) for power. Once again the little pre-amp looks like an audiophile grade piece of equipment with its brushed aluminum face plate and gold plated RCA connectors. We would have liked to have seen the inclusion of a remote control with the amp or pre amp because turning the system on or off, or adjusting the gain must be accomplished at the system rack. Some would label this lazy, we say relaxation is part of a good home theater system and the less we have to move from our seats, the better.