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The new Parasound integrated vs. other delights

Parasound has a new integrated that retails for $2500 I think. Anybody have experience or opinions on it? Their p5 + a23 is cheaper and I like that both have a high pass / low pass x-over built in. I can get an old Krell kav-300i for half that price, but it's old, has no crossovers, and I hate that the volume isn't a knob. Eventually I'll upgrade and for now I'm dreaming about what to upgrade to. What integrated would YOU grab (new or used is fine) for $1.5-2k? The Musical Fidelity m3i catches my eye. Somebody here suggested Rogue or Plinius and a "salesman" suggested Anthem 225 and NAD 390dd. What should I REALLY be considering? (p.s. solid state, not tubes).
Thanks!

~☆MUSIC IS A SAFE KIND OF HIGH☆~
128x128labguy

Showing 5 responses by zd542

zd542
5,339 posts
 
"I can get an old Krell kav-300i for half that price, but it's old, has no crossovers, and I hate that the volume isn't a knob."

It was a very important piece of gear from a historical perspective, but for sound quality, not so much.

"What integrated would YOU grab (new or used is fine) for $1.5-2k?"

I would grab the one that has enough power to drive my speakers, and has sound quality to suit my personal taste. Which one are you going to get?
zd542
5,339 posts
 
I don't think you got the meaning of my first post. If you want good recommendations, you have to supply as much info as you can. At the very least, you need to list your speakers. Speakers and amps works almost as a pair. If you don't do a good job matching them, you'll have nothing but problems.

Also, list room size and the overall type of sound that you prefer.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
"~☆MUSIC IS A SAFE KIND OF HIGH☆~
Labguy (Threads | Answers | This Thread)"

Maybe, but its more costly and addictive than drugs.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
What are we shooting at?
zd542
5,339 posts
 
"04-09-15: Mesch
Glad you enjoy the guide. Regarding phase, I just hook up my equipment such that proper phase is maintained from source to speakers and not worry about it. I have had preamps that reverse phase and therefore require one to reverse phase between amp and speakers for phase realignment. I never messed with phase tones. Not all music is recorded in the same phase anyway. Most important is that both channels are in the same phase."

Phase invert selectors are fairly common on high end products. You'll most likely have one on a source or preamp (or both).
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