multi-channel amp size height

I'm using an Anthem A5. Built like a tank and a
great home theater amplifier. It is powering 4 surround
in-wall Linn speakers in a 7.1 system. It should meet
your height requirement and it also has balanced
inputs. Good luck.

I have a B&K 125.7 (125W x 7) that I also like. It's about 5.5" high on feet or ~3U if you were to rack it and has both balanced & unbalanced inputs. They also make a 200 watt version that their website shows at the same height but the picture looks taller so I question that dimension.

I use an Anthem pre/pro with mine and considered their amps too so I would checkout Vmk's recommendation as well - however their balanced amps are more expensive and taller.

I had a height problem in addition to being a little concerned about how hot a five channel amp would run, and I settled for a Theta Intrepid. I've owned a boat load of amps over the years, and IMHO the Theta gets high marks for both 2 channel stereo and 5 channel surround sound.

It's only 6 1/4 inches high, 17 5/8 inches wide, and 20 1/2 inches deep. It runs luke warm to the touch in stereo, and after being driven hard in 5 channel, it's warm... but not anywhere near being hot.

It's got both RCA and XLR imputs, and turns out 100 watts rated @ 8 ohms with all five channels being driven.

As we speak, there's a Theta Intrepid on Audiogon for the asking price of $1,390 (it's not mine if you're wondering). The Theta might be what your looking for.

Thanx to all!-As for the Theta brand...that name has always meant high dollar uber-expensive...where can I start my research to educate myself about their brand/history/design philosophy
THANX AGAIN!

Brushro... You're correct that Theta has produced high quality products for a long long time. There's a July 2002 review of the Theta Intrepid on Stereophile's web site, and another review done in January 2003 on the Enjoy the Music web site (www.enjoythemusic.com). Besides these, the Theta web site has reviews(www.thetadigital.com). I went from a pretty nice 2 channel mono block Class A tube system... to Rotel's big reciever... to the Theta system I've got now. Everything I've got is off Audiogon. My pre-amp is the Casanova which isn't Theta's top of the line. I'm having a lot of fun with my Theta equipment, becasue I can immediatelly hear what tweaks and cable changes do. Before the Theta's, I wondered if my ears were up to the task.