Parasound

[hifinutt]

At Cranage Parasound were exhibiting some nice stuff . in particular a nice A23+ and some nice compact z amps

In 18 pages i couldnt find an owners thread which seems odd . however any owners care to share their thoughts ? . are they reliable ?

do they give long term satisafaction?

 

[graham67]

I have the older Parasound P5 pre and.think.its a great piece of.kit for the money. Fully featured with a great Burr Brown DAC, useful MM/MC phono stage, balanced inputs & outputs and as you mention it even has tone controls and balance control which is essential in my very non symmetrical listeming position. Its got plenty of punch and has proven an unlikely but great match for my Quad 405. Fabulous connectivity enables it to support a Windows PC, Logitech SBT, Pioneer CD transport all via the onboard DAC and two turntables one via the phono input and another via an offboard phono stage. And there are still 4 (or 5?) vacant analogue inputs!
I'd love to try the matching power amps one day........

 

[JANDL100]

I had a Halo A21 power amp for about 18 months. A long time for me.
Very good sound, if ultimately a bit on the smooth, warm side of the fence.

 

[hifinutt]

thanks , the a23plus seems very suitable possibly for my verity speakers and if it sits on the warm side of the fence thats brilliant

 

[newlash09]

I had a parasound halo integrated, which was used in conjunction with my marantz avr in my living room HT system. I used it as a power amp for the front L&R speakers in the HT, and had a chord2qute feeding it as a dedicated 2 channel system. I didnt have a vinyl setup at that time.

It was very smooth sounding, actually mellow might be a more suitable word. The best part was that I had my sub wired through the halo integrated, so that I could use the same sub for both my HT and 2 channel system. And i had the entire chain programmed on a logitech harmony elite controller, which just switched everything with the touch of a button on the app on my phone. The flexibility that parasound products bring is unmatched. And every peice of functionality they provide is of a good quality. Nothing thrown as a box ticking excercise.

I only sold mine as I wanted to try a Devialet amp. Which didnt turn out to be the upgrade I thought it would be. I've heard their A21 stereo power amp at several friends at the end of various speakers, and they never disappointed. However, they do bring out the typical parasound house sound at the end of everything. They are unfazed by speaker loads, but have a slightly laid back sound with what seems like a slight roll of in the treble. Though I wouldnt call them warm, maybe just a tad shy of being neutral. Every box of theirs is very very compitetive at its respective price point. A brand that I like and have high regard for. Along with their chief designer Mr.John Curl who is one of the greats of this era.

 

[JANDL100]

I did find the A21 to be a little warm sounding

I believe that you do need to be careful about associating the legendary John Curl with Parasound. I think he was only involved in the design of a minority of components during his time with Parasound.
The JC named gear, seems likely, also the A21. But not, for example, the A23.

 

[newlash09]

I did find the A21 to be a little warm sounding

I believe that you do need to be careful about associating the legendary John Curl with Parasound. I think he was only involved in the design of a minority of components during his time with Parasound.
The JC named gear, seems likely, also the A21. But not, for example, the A23.

Yes sir, the A23 by his own admission was not his design. But the halo integrated and the A21 were his designs, as is the JC labelled gear.