Opinions on Marsh P2000 preamp?

Owning a Marsh P2000 and having tried other preamps, i will say that i was not overtly impressed with it initially and that it takes quite a while to really settle in. Why the longer settling time, i don't know.

I ran it for a while in one system, trying various cables, power amps, etc.. The results were always decent but nothing to write home about. I even took it over to my brother's place to try it in his system. Same results. I then put it back into the box and it sat for a while. At that point, i somewhat considered it a "dust collector".

After selling the pre-processor that i was using in my HT system, i stuck the Marsh in there as a "temporary fill in". While this took me down to strictly two channel, it was at least convenient in having a full function remote until i could figure out which pre-pro i wanted to try next.

The results ??? WOW is all i could say !!! It was the best that system had ever sounded by a long, long, long shot. I'm not just talking against pre-pro's either as i had tried other amps and preamps in that system with those speakers before. It was phenomenally "liquid" and lifelike with the specific combo of cables, amp and speakers. You could literally go into other parts of the house and think that a band was playing down in that room. One of those "magic combo's" that i half-hazardly stumbled across.

Unfortunately, i did want to have surround sound for my HT system as i did not invest in a matched set of rears, center and subs along with another amp not to use it. Obviously, this preamp could not remain in that system. Nor was i about to make use of this preamp / amp / speaker combo in another system, as that would mean having to replace the mains with similar models. No matter what i tried, i just didn't get the same results with different speakers using the same preamp / amp combo. For some reason, the three of those pieces just really "melded" together.

With all of that in mind, it only helped to reinforce my thoughts of how important system synergy is. While i would have written the P2000 off as an average piece of gear, i know that it is capable of truly phenomenal performance in the right system. Then again, that could be said of many, many pieces.

The key is to finding components that suit your needs in terms of features and performance and then working with them to achieve the sonic goals that you want out of that system as a whole. Obviously, some components are easier to work with while others may be tougher, but the end result will always be the same if you put forth the effort: an ear opening experience and education that you will never forget. The Marsh P2000 was one of those experiences and learning tools for me. Sean
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My initial results were very similar to Bob's i.e. the P2000 was very mellow and warm, really laid back mids with a slight amount of "tizziness" to the extreme top end. It was so laid back in fact that music seemed slower, lacked pace, etc... The "tizziness" did mellow out but it took quite a bit of time. That is what i was referring to in terms of the long break in period.

Just a while after i had initially tried a P2000 out, I had received an email from an "inmate" at AA and said that his P2000 was phenomenally bright in his system. Bright as to the point of being an "ear bleeder". Obviously, there is a LARGE amount of system synergy ( or lack of it ) taking place with this specific piece of gear.

I will say that the P2000 does respond to power cords. I will say that i found that the Custom's "High Value" and "#11" cords were not a good match for this piece in my system. I had much better luck with a Kimber, TG Audio and cords that i've built. All of these really opened up the mids and lower treble to a great extent. This is not to say that the Custom Power Cord's don't work or are junk, only that they weren't a good match for the Marsh in my system. Just as i found the Marsh overtly "mellow" to begin with while others found it bright, one might also run into the same situation with PC's, etc...

As Bob stated, you might want to try one in YOUR system. That is the only way you'll know for sure. Keep in mind that it does NOT have a phono section buit in. Other than that, the FULL function remote makes this a very nice unit to "toy around with". Sean
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