Parasound P6 VS PS Audio Stellar Gain Pre/DAC

Clipdat

I wish they made a version of this without a DAC for slightly less money. I would buy it.

steveinaz

It's smoothness reminds me of a Yamaha C-85 I had in the 80's. I like that the volume control is ANALOG. After 15 years of benchmark front-ends, I was worried that I was going to be disappointed. I was wrong. I'm running the Oppo in via coaxial dig, and the DirecTV DVR via Toslink.

joecoulson

steveinaz wrote: »

I'm going to exercise it's Jazz-chops when I get home.

I did experience the sometimes mentioned "remote control conflict" on the forums. PS Audio said that some companies are not properly registering their remote codes, and it can cause issues. Mine is STRANGE. My new 65" Vizio reacts to the GCD remote, but ONLY if I'm using the smartcast app page on the TV, or watching anything from it. It was an easy fix, I just switched to my Oppo to watch Netflix. No conflict there. It doesn't affect watching DirecTV on the P65-F1 Vizio.

One of the many reasons I use a Harmony remote, i just don't seem to get the cross device interference with it.

jdjohn wrote: »

Nice! Another convert in the house I agree on how it excels for low-volume listening. The matching PS Audio class D power amps are no slouch...just sayin'. I have the S300, and have to think the monoblock M700s are even better.

Joe, just let me know if you want me to bring my S300 down for the meet. It's light, and travels well.

PLEASE!! yes, would love to hear that. I have been contemplating the M700's but just not sure they would outperform the Linns
That's great thanks so much!

Clipdat

jdjohn wrote: »

I agree on how it excels for low-volume listening.

Now you have my attention.

afterburnt

https://youtu.be/Y_Ss7ODeQ4o

jdjohn

joecoulson wrote: »

jdjohn wrote: »

Nice! Another convert in the house I agree on how it excels for low-volume listening. The matching PS Audio class D power amps are no slouch...just sayin'. I have the S300, and have to think the monoblock M700s are even better.

Joe, just let me know if you want me to bring my S300 down for the meet. It's light, and travels well.

PLEASE!! yes, would love to hear that. I have been contemplating the M700's but just not sure they would outperform the Linns
That's great thanks so much!

Consider it done. Good/bad/or indifferent, it will be good to have input from the group on this class D amp. Make room for it! As you know, it has the same footprint as the preamp, and can easily be stacked. I can also scare-up a PSA power cable if needed.

jdjohn

Clipdat wrote: »

jdjohn wrote: »

I agree on how it excels for low-volume listening.

Now you have my attention.

Low-volume listening is a big strong-suit of the PSA Stellar Gain pre IME. @steveinaz called it "low-level bass linearity", and I cannot argue with that. For me, the frequency response is instant and strong across the frequency spectrum, so no need for tone controls or 'loudness' controls at lower volumes.

Clipdat

jdjohn wrote: »

Low-volume listening is a big strong-suit of the PSA Stellar Gain pre IME. @steveinaz called it "low-level bass linearity", and I cannot argue with that. For me, the frequency response is instant and strong across the frequency spectrum, so no need for tone controls or 'loudness' controls at lower volumes.

I think I'm gonna order one and take it for a spin.

jdjohn

I encourage you to take advantage of their trade-in program. You can basically get 80% of MSRP for any working piece of equivalent gear. I got about $800 credit for a B&K power amp. There's no way I would have gotten $800 on the used market for an EX-442 power amp...just sayin'.

Clipdat

It's kindof a cool concept. Although you have to factor in the costs that you'll pay out of pocket for boxing up and shipping things to Colorado.

jdjohn

Versus your time auditioning off CraigsList and getting half of current market value. I think a high-percentage value of original MSRP is worth more than the time of trying ot sell local.

Clipdat

They said they would give $500 trade-in for a pair of LSiM 703s, but it'll cost me probably $200 to ship them there.

joecoulson

Thanks so much @jdjohn it will be easy to pull the Linn power cables/rca’s and speaker wires off in my setup and substitute the PS A
I think someone also mentioned phono pre’s and would love to swap those around too as I want to see if the Vincent is as good as I think it is or if I’m leaving performance in the table.

tonyb

jdjohn wrote: »

I encourage you to take advantage of their trade-in program. You can basically get 80% of MSRP for any working piece of equivalent gear. I got about $800 credit for a B&K power amp. There's no way I would have gotten $800 on the used market for an EX-442 power amp...just sayin'.

Good to know, now you got my wheels spinin'.....dang you.

steveinaz

Listening to Heart Dreamboat Annie last night (entire album; 16/44 flac), this pre reminded me of listening to vinyl. Lots of rich tone.

tonyb

I'm interested to hear more about the pre's function on this dac. I know Steve is using it as both.

You guys diggin' what the pre amp section does on this piece ?

joecoulson

I am. It has that smooth tone but not overly colored. I run some very flat amps (Linn’s) and the overall sound is very enjoyable. Combine it with the record player and it does produce some magic. Play a CD through it and it’s not too sharp or jagged. The volume control, slope and how detailed it is at lower listening levels is amazing and probably its strongest feature.
This is why I am very curious to see how their power amps do. When we have our get together, we’ll be able to see if the class D is up to the power challenge. I am sure there is already great synergy with the pre.

steveinaz

The gain control remains in the analog realm, which in my opinion, is a good thing; regardless of source. Never been a fan of digital volume control, even though I realize the latest 32-bit set ups are really good.

Your opinion will differ depending on what pre you were using, so all of my comments are made in relation to the Benchmark DAC2 as my former preamp. The SGCD is a fuller-bodied sound. It's more upfront sounding (NOT in a treble perspective, but soundstage) and faster paced. The Benchmark is more casual, laid back, and a bit thin in comparison. The BM would be great for classical music lovers, and the PS Audio is better for Jazz/pop/rock music lovers. The BM is like a robot that does every single thing right, never makes a mistake, and can do anything---BUT, like a robot, it has no personality. You love it's dependability and accuracy, but It comes off a bit dry and lean when compared to the SGCD. Is the SGCD coloring the sound? I don't know---which came first, the chicken or the egg? But in all honesty, I prefer the tonal character of the SGCD.

I think the big stars of the SGCD show are:

1. Gain cell volume control
2. Over-sized toroidal transformer
3. It's built-in DAC

joecoulson

I always find it hard to put into words what something sounds like, you did a great job there describing what you are hearing from the PSA as I feel the same.

I have been a little fast with the upgrades to my system, so much so that I could not give a true review of any single piece. I mean when i got the new cart, I switched out the IC's on my phono pre at the same time!

I say all of this to say that the music that I used to run through the Marantz AVR as a pre to the same amps I am running now is a night a day difference in quality, musicality and pure enjoyment. Who knows how the cables,power,speakers all change that. I just know the system sounds great with EDM, rock, classical, at volume 20 and at volume 80.

Not sure I can do anything else but waste money now with adding/taking anything away. But I didn't say that..

steveinaz

Turntable cartridges can make a significant difference, on the order of speaker replacement, IMO.

Just as a reference, my comparison only involved a change of preamp/DAC; everything else in the chain was the same.

jdjohn

Previous to the PSA Stellar Gain, I had been using a Peachtree Audio Nova pre w/DAC. The Nova only has one analog input, which was one reason I started shopping around. The aforementioned volume control on the SG really is nice, which I know sounds a little arbitrary, but it's true! The volume control on the Nova was not very precise. I was immediately impressed with how quiet the SG is - no noise floor to speak of. With the Nova, I could hear the typical low-level hiss with my ear next to the tweeters. It was acceptable, and quite normal from what I read, but with the SG it was totally quiet. And like Joe mentioned, you can just keep turning it up and up.

Steve used "upfront" regarding the sound, and again I agree. I have called it very forward. There is gobs of detail, but not to the point of being clinical. Bass is uber-tight, which initially may come across as thin, but just when you say that, you realize it's there when you need/expect it. You really hear the bass instrument itself, not just a thump or bump, so you could say it's very refined bass.

I'm currently running two different phono rigs through two of the analog inputs. The only digital source I have is a Logitech Squeezebox Touch; I go digital-out with it via coax, and into the SG's DAC. What can I say? It sounds...Stellar

At the time when I bought mine, they were running a special combo price with it and the S300 power amp, and then with the trade-in program it was a very attractive deal. Again, the trade-in amount is up to (I think) 80% of original MSRP, but it has a ceiling based on the purchase price of the new gear. And of course the trade-in gear has to work So the key is finding a piece of used gear at the right price for maximizing the allowance. They have a calculator on their website https://www.psaudio.com/buying-options/trade-ups/ Click the green 'Trade In and Save' button. If you make a purchase, you have 30 days before having to send in your used gear, or sending the new PSA piece back, but you get the discount upfront.

Btw, they flip the trade-in gear at The Music Room https://tmraudio.com/

Clipdat

I'll be taking some PS Audio gear for a test drive! Just ordered the Stellar Gain Cell pre/DAC, and Stellar S300 amp.

steveinaz

Realizing this stuff really boils down to personal preferences, I hope you like it. It'll be interesting to hear your observations. I found it "settled down" pretty well after an hour of run time, though I'm sure more break-in will only improve things.

Clipdat

PS Audio quoted a 200 hour break-in for the S300 amp, so I will have to avoid jumping to early conclusions.

halo

Clipdat wrote: »

I'll be taking some PS Audio gear for a test drive! Just ordered the Stellar Gain Cell pre/DAC, and Stellar S300 amp.

I guess you can tell your lovely wife that ^^^ is your birthday present to yourself

Clipdat

Should I have sprung for the M700 monoblocks instead?!

steveinaz

Since it's YOUR money....HELL YES.

Clipdat

I suppose I can always utilize their trade-up program and get the monoblocks if I dig the sound of the S300!

JayCee

Check out Underwood Hifi (http://underwoodhifi.com)....sells all things PSA.

I started w/a PSA Directstream DAC (open box) from Musicdirect. Loved it and decided I wanted the PSA BHK Signature Pre and BHK-250 to go with it after 2 years of love with the DSD.

Purchased the BHK gear in Nov through Underwood at a significant reduction compared to direct from PS Audio. Didn't need to get rid of my extra gear on trade-in...thousands below MSRP. Don't have the same return policy as direct from PSA but I knew it'd be staying. I have well over 200 hours on the BHK's and they get better every day.

Had an issue w/the 250 when it arrived (assumed, damaged in-transit). Worked direct w/PSA and they sent a replacement directly to me within a week. Didn't even have to contact Underwood.

Have become quite a PSA fanboy....but believe they deliver w/their products.

JayCee

Stellar gear get alot of love on the PSA forum. You should be happy with it. My BHK stack...