Tell us about your stereo!

[gcczep]

Stuff in stuff out

Bruce that Carver is the things of legends are made. He had more than one legendary story or product in his time. my memory was that the 80's was a time where he produced a particularly significant amount legends and all kinds of stories.

You have keeper there Bruce don't let it go. and for goodness sake set'er up j/k

George, surprised you plan to parting with the Parasound, that's a AV minded model right like 6 channels ? Otherwise I may have had some interest in her if you ended up parting ways with it.

Hafler makes good amps. Amps are always obsolesence proof. Bruce does have vintage stuff.

Yep Jim, the Parasound is on the block. It is a beast of a piece but it would just lay about unused again. All six channels driven, 135 watts at 8 ohms 4 and 200 at 4 ohms. Level pots for all inputs. Very versatile amp. Mono bridging. Loop capable so the user don't have to have splitters. There's some nicks to it but overall in great shape cosmetically. $650 shipped if you want it.

 

[mrJim]

^^Looking up some specs on her right now the important one

Weight
71 lbs. net

Circa 1995 right?

She must be beast for AV WOW! Parasound must of been proud of her. Circa 1995 right?

Jim

 

[gcczep]

12...oh...6

It is 71 pounds with rack handles front and back. 1995 and I only used 4 out of the 6 channels bi-amping the Martin Logans. I spoke to Richard at Parasound who told me that you get an extra calculated 20% more power if you are not using the other two. I was using the other 2 channels to bi-amp a Mirage OMD-C2 but decided to use the other A-2000 for it.

I read somewhere that the Halos were built along the same lines as the older HCA's unlike the Classics that they currently have.

 

[LG]

71 lbs that is a Beast...

Amps of that size are almost burglar proof along with providing enormous amounts of raw clean power.

George, back to your comment about the subtle differences between different brands of amplifiers, I've always noticed that certain brands have a distinct sound, not so much the entry level gear but the mid-range and up you can definitely hear the difference.

Having recently owned vintage models of JVC, Kenwood, Marantz, Pioneer, Sansui and Yamaha they do have 'personalities' that you can hear yourself. My personal preference was always toward Yamaha, they had such nice clean power and so many cool features on the front panel that made them versatile, but the other brands also had their individual strengths too.

 

[gcczep]

Group casings...

Amps wise. I've had Sunfires, Parasounds, Atlantic Techs, an Outlaw and Adcoms. I still have a 2-channel ES Sony in a box. The Parasounds had a clean but forward sounding sonics. The Sunfires were great...loud yet clean not to mention efficient. The AT's are more laid back but great balance overall. The Outlaw was OK but was meh. Adcom? I had a 7607. It ran hot without being driven too hard...the less said the better too.

Signatures also appear in components. I've owned receivers in the past prior to going separates... I class them all this way. My takes are:

Marantz, Denon: "darker" sound...really good with analog sources... Marantz was better on music with the Denon with flicks.

Pioneer, Yamaha, Onkyo, Harman Kardon: a bit brighter and sharper, detailed... Pioneer would take the top in this group for me.

Sony and well...by itself: tends to lean toward a more digital sound. I had a TA-E9000ES however that was outstanding. Their receivers other than the venerable tank STR-DA777ES I haven't been keen on.

I've never owned a Kenwood or a Sansui receiver... I owned an entry level JVC which was OK. I would love to have tried a Nakamichi but never came across one other than my liking for their cassette decks.

 

[mrJim]

71 lbs that is a Beast...

I know 71 lbs even the current Halo A21 only weighs in at 60lbs, the mono capability is really cool as well. BONUS


George... did the HCA-1206 I think you mentioned you had it running mono, did it happen to run a bit warm temp wise ?

Jim

 

[gcczep]

Tale of The Tape

I know 71 lbs even the current Halo A21 only weighs in at 60lbs, the mono capability is really cool as well. BONUS


George... did the HCA-1206 I think you mentioned you had it running mono, did it happen to run a bit warm temp wise ?

Jim

Jim, I did not bridge it because it is only for 8 ohms not 4 ohm speakers. The unit ran hot [not enough to fry an egg on top hot] only because it was bi-amping ML SL3's which are power hungry. They are at 4 ohms at 87 dbs efficiency not to mention they are really large towers. Obnoxiously large I might add. Typically the MLs should be ran by separate mono-blocks or at least a pair of two channel amps per speaker with at least 200 at 8 or 350 at 4 power capability. The heat were dissipated through the large heat-sinks at the sides and its fins. The top cover was cool.

When I ran it with my less than demanding Polk bookshelves and 6 ohm Mirages, they did not break a sweat and was barely warm to the touch. 8 ohms with 88 or more efficiency? Those would be eaten up as snacks.

These are its specs:

Continuous Power Output
> 135 watts RMS x 6, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 8 ohm, all channels driven
> 200 watts RMS x 6, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 4 ohm, all channels driven
Continuous Power Output - Bridged [mono operation two channels]
> 350 watts RMS, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 8 ohm ONLY, each bridged channel, 3+4, 5+6
Current Capacity
30 amperes peak, per channel
Slew Rate
> 130 V/μsecond
Frequency Response
12 Hz - 120 kHz, +0/-3 dB
Total Harmonic Distortion
< 0.07% at full power
< 0.03% typical levels
IM Distortion
< 0.04%
TIM
Unmeasureable
Dynamic Headroom
> 2 dB
Interchannel Crosstalk
> 75 dB at 1 kHz
> 56 dB at 20 kHz
Input Impedances
50 kW per channel, without looping inputs 1/2 to Ch. 3/4 or Ch. 5/6
25 kW per channel, if looping inputs 1/2 to either Ch. 3/4 or Ch. 5/6
17 kW per channel, if looping inputs 1/2 to both Ch. 3/4 and Ch. 5/6
Input Sensitivity
1.0 V THX Reference Level
S/N Ratio
> 118 dB, input shorted, IHF A-weighted
Damping Factor
> 800 at 20 Hz
Dimensions
19" wide x 7" high x 18.5" deep (7 5/8" high with feet)
Weight
71 lbs. net

 

[mrJim]

^^George yeah I was taking a serious look at those specs. I wanted to see how they would match to ML40's that are 4ohm

I pulled all the specs off the Parasound site and was reading them. knew you had the ML's and they eat up the up the power. then for some reason I thought you mentioned running bridge, then I scratching my head.

Jim



"not to mention they are really large towers. Obnoxiously large I might add." that's not a bad thing they are sweet

 

[gcczep]

Matchmaking help...

Jim,

If I had those 40's, I would treat them the same as my SL3s when hooking up. Loop 1 to 3 and 2 to 4. 1 and 3 to the left. 2 and 4 to the right. Just bi-amp 'em and roll with it. Two interconnects and 4 speaker cables. I don't think the amp's temp would go up as your 40s are not as power hungry as the Stats. They are the conventional types with drivers as opposed to panels.

I drove some Polk LSI 9s also 4 ohms with the Parasound and did not heat up at all. Granted they are bookshelves but big bookshelves.

Just food for thought...

 

[gcczep]

Draw The Lines...

Jim,

Using only 4 of the 6 channels, I have to add that you will be running 440 watts total [220 per connection top and bottom] to each speaker. The juice will be cleaner coming from two separate lines instead of just one via a bridge.

-George