Emo XSP1 Gen2 Vs Parasound P5

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  • BlueFox
    BlueFox Posts: 15,251
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    I haven't owned a piece of gear since a 70s receiver that has tone controls, and that includes multiple AVRs. To be honest, I never think about them, nor miss them.
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,794
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    Tone controls are evil.
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."

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  • macromark
    macromark Posts: 6
    edited January 2016
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    xcapri79 wrote: »
    Welcome to the Polk Audio Forum. Let us know how you like the Emotiva XSP-1.
    So far, so good. I hooked the unit up on Monday and kept it running until last night to "burn it in"... even though Emotiva doesn't mention this anywhere on their site or in their documentation. There are a couple threads about this in the "Emotiva Lounge", and most folks suggest the "burn in" is really for your brain to get used to the new sound... not to benefit the electronics in any way. I guess that's a matter for another thread.

    Initially, I was concerned about the gain/noise in the phono stage, as that was the show-stopper for the P5. With that unit, I had to max the volume to get a comfortable listening level and the background hiss was very noticeable. Fortunately, the XSP clears that hurdle really well. There's more than enough gain in the phono stage to handle my 23R with no noticeable background hiss - in fact, if I leave the volume setting alone and switch between inputs (including phono), all are dead quiet!

    While I'm on the subject, the XSP volume control takes a little getting used to since it's not limited to 360 degree operation. It can take quite a bit of "cranking" to get it significantly louder or software. Of course, that allows for some very precise changes, especially with the LED display. I'm guessing this works really well with the handheld remote and it probably why it was designed this way. No, I haven't put batteries in the remote yet!

    The 23R documentation doesn't include a suggested load impedance value so I had to adjust this by ear. On the P5, my cart sounded best at 47k ohms. 47k is not available on the XSP and 1k (the max setting) sounds best to my ears.

    Initially (Monday), my records sounded a bit "flat"... compressed and lacking body. Not a good start! Tuesday's session was better, but of course, I was also listening to different albums. On Wednesday, I pulled out a few better quality pressings (Supertramp's "Crime of the Centure" from MoFi, Dave Grusin's "Discovered Again" from Sheffield Labs and a really clean copy of Bowie's "Scary Monsters.." I know.. what's that doing in the list? :smile: ) Everything sounded great! That was a fun session. Looking forward to hearing more...
    F1nut wrote: »
    Tone controls are evil.
    Only is they're used for evil! I don't mind tone controls if they're well designed and they can be disabled. Both of these preamps have them and in both cases, they can be disabled with a switch. That's the setting I use. The XSP tone adjustments are limited to +/- 3db (not sure of the center frequency) but the effect is pretty subtle. So, even if you felt compelled to use them, you couldn't do a lot of damage.
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  • Mikey081057
    Mikey081057 Posts: 7,127
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    Back in the day a friend had a pre without tone controls... He always said they were unnecessary . My tube integrated has no tone controls... If you don't like the tone then roll some tubes.
    My New Year's resolution is 3840 × 2160

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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 10,716
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    I've used the tone controls on some "badly recorded" media...
    but you are right, subtle. 6 db total swing.
    "a digitally-controlled analog resistor ladder network with 0.5dB per step resolution for volume, the XSP-1 Gen 2 maintains signal integrity and near perfect channel matching - even at very low listening levels."
    As I mentioned, I leave the tone contols on but flat usually.
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  • cfrizz
    cfrizz Posts: 13,415
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    Congrats and enjoy.
    Marantz AV-7705 PrePro, Classé 5 channel 200wpc Amp, Oppo 103 BluRay, Rotel RCD-1072 CDP, Sony XBR-49X800E TV, Polk S60 Main Speakers, Polk ES30 Center Channel, Polk S15 Surround Speakers SVS SB12-NSD x2
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  • Joey_V
    Joey_V Posts: 8,519
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    So did you end up with the P5 or the Emo?
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  • Upstatemax
    Upstatemax Posts: 2,623
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    Joey_V wrote: »
    So did you end up with the P5 or the Emo?

    Because of a TT cart mis-match, I think he settled with the Emo.
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  • macromark
    macromark Posts: 6
    edited January 2016
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    Upstatemax wrote: »
    Joey_V wrote: »
    So did you end up with the P5 or the Emo?

    Because of a TT cart mis-match, I think he settled with the Emo.
    Correct. My goal was to improve on what I had by just swapping out the pre-amp. The P5 is a really nice piece of gear and the company is very responsive. If it matched my cart well, that would have been the end of it for me.

    The Emo is aesthetically not as nice (my opinion)... but the higher gain and much lower noise floor work better with my cart. I'm happy with the sound.

    Next project for me: I'm about to send my vintage amp out for reconditioning. Anyone ever heard of an Acoustat TNT-120? :)
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  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,906
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    Nice amp there and yeah, I'd say it's time for a refresh. Think Frank Van Alstine had a hand on that somewhere along the line. They make some darn nice speakers too.
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  • Nightfall
    Nightfall Posts: 10,067
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    Couldn't you have just used a SUT?
    afterburnt wrote: »
    They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.

    Village Idiot of Club Polk
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  • macromark
    macromark Posts: 6
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    tonyb wrote: »
    Nice amp there and yeah, I'd say it's time for a refresh. Think Frank Van Alstine had a hand on that somewhere along the line. They make some darn nice speakers too.
    The TNT-200 was designed by Jim Strickland. The TNT-120 is a smaller version of that. Roy Esposito was a tech at Acoustat and reportedly was involved in the 120 design. He is the guy that will be doing the work on the unit next week.

    Yes, the speakers are great too but they are LARGE. I have a pair of model IIIs that have been in storage for a long time since they really don't fit my living space.

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