Parasound P6 VS PS Audio Stellar Gain Pre/DAC

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  • joecoulson
    joecoulson Posts: 4,943
    Congrats Drew. I’m sure you’ll be very happy with the S300 and I’m sure you’ll love the pre. It’s really good gear.
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  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    That BHK Signature Preamp is drool worthy.
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  • DaveHo
    DaveHo Posts: 3,514
    You guys are killing me. Is Wally still selling the Stellar GainCell Pre @ $1079? If so, I think I'm going to bite & move the Parasound P5 on down the road.
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  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,538
    When I purchased 2 weeks ago, he said he had 1 silver one left at $1199.00 delivered. But it never hurts to check...
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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  • JayCee
    JayCee Posts: 1,500
    edited January 2019
    DaveHo wrote: »
    ...Wally still selling the Stellar GainCell Pre @ $1079?

    As of 28 Jan mailing list, "$1,199.00 delivered Only 4 to sell at this deal". When I called about an advertised "photo shoot" open box for the BHK's he told me they were BNIB. Had the original PSA tape and never opened when I received them.

    The email ads continued to advertise photo shoot for weeks if not months. Just a guess but I believe he uses it as a bit of a hook to advertise such low prices. He does wheel and deal.
    Clipdat wrote: »
    That BHK Signature Preamp is drool worthy.

    I have 2 Parasound HCA-1500A amps that Big Sky Audio upgraded in 2012. With one of them I've been running an Oppo BDP-105 as a pre in my HT and been very happy. Also, the PSA DSD was directly feeding the other 1500. Have an Adcom GFP-750 pre, a great pre mind you, but the DSD always sounded better direct as a digital pre.

    When researching the BHK pre and 250 the one constant I read was if you're on the fence get the pre first. It is phenomenal. I've wanted to switch back and forth between the DSD into the 250 but it's such a PITA to move my rack....and the current configuration sounds so good. Also, what I've read about the DS Jr and Stellar pieces leads me to believe they are great bang for the buck.

    I really love my Parasound 1500s and they'll never leave my house but the PSA is great value for the money. Granted, it's a significant cost over my normal used gear habit but I plan to have the PSA's for a long time. I look at PSA as the Polk of mid to high end gear. PSA competes on a level costing significantly more money, IMHO.
    Post edited by JayCee on
    ➀Speakers: Polk1.2tl's (Uber Mods) ➁Pre/Amp/DAC: PS Audio BHK Signature & 250, DirectStream ➂Cables/IC's: MIT S1Bi-Wire/S1 Balanced +Avel Lindberg 1000VA "Dreadnought" ➃Power Conditioner: PS Audio P15 Power Plant ➄Power Cords: Core Power Technologies Gold, DH Labs Power Plus DIY w/Neotech NC-P301 & P311ends ➅Streaming: Roon ROCK on wifi'd NUC, TP-Link WAP, & Uptone EtherREGEN, AfterDark, Emperor Double Crown Clock, Black Modernize LPS, PS Audio AirLens⟿Ω☯☥☮⟿🔊♩♪♫♬♩♪♫♬♩♪♫♬
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  • jdjohn
    jdjohn Posts: 3,148
    And don't forget about their power products as well - AC power cords, conditioners, etc. I picked-up a used PowerPlay IPC-9000 a while ago, which is an older generation power conditioner, and I like it a lot. PSA will still service older gear, if needed. I like the fact that they have choices to fit various budgets.
    "This may not matter to you, but it does to me for various reasons, many of them illogical or irrational, but the vinyl hobby is not really logical or rational..." - member on Vinyl Engine
    "Sometimes I do what I want to do. The rest of the time, I do what I have to." - Cicero, in Gladiator
    Regarding collectibles: "It's not who gets it. It's who gets stuck with it." - Jimmy Fallon
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  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,538
    edited January 2019
    They showed 4 on the website when I purchased too, but on the phone he said 2. One black, one silver. Of course I snatched the black one. Mine was factory sealed as well. The say "open box" to get around selling below MSRP agreements.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    I'm actually very excited to potentially shatter my preconceived notions of Class D inferiority!
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  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,538
    I can't speak to the class D part, but the pre has some muscle. Enjoy.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    Planning on trying it with the Bryston amp first so I can hopefully hear what just the preamp brings to the table, and then I will swap in the S300.
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  • jdjohn
    jdjohn Posts: 3,148
    Clipdat wrote: »
    I'm actually very excited to potentially shatter my preconceived notions of Class D inferiority!
    And therein lies the rub. Just as we have preconceived notions about more expensive components or cables sounding better, there is a preconceived notion out there that class D sounds inferior. I'll be interested to see what you think!

    Full disclosure: not long after getting my S300, I stumbled across a Symphonic Line power amp that I couldn't resist, and I'm still using it at the moment...mainly because it's so friggin' heavy that I don't want to move it, but also because it acts a space heater in these cold winter months :D
    "This may not matter to you, but it does to me for various reasons, many of them illogical or irrational, but the vinyl hobby is not really logical or rational..." - member on Vinyl Engine
    "Sometimes I do what I want to do. The rest of the time, I do what I have to." - Cicero, in Gladiator
    Regarding collectibles: "It's not who gets it. It's who gets stuck with it." - Jimmy Fallon
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  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    That's cool. If anything, it'll be an even more eye opening experience then when you go back the S300 again.

    How many hours total did you log on the S300 so far?
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  • jdjohn
    jdjohn Posts: 3,148
    Looking back at my original PSA SG thread, https://forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/179314/ps-audio-stellar-analog-cell-amp-versus/p1 I purchased the set in June of last year, and then got the Symphonic Line amp in October, so I probably had a solid three months with only the S300. Of course there was a little comparison period with my McCormack in June, and then more comparison with the Symphonic Line in October, but in between, it was all the S300.

    I was just about to say I should do another swap this weekend, but I've recently put a 'new' turntable in the mix, so I need to keep my baseline intact with the other gear for now while I evaluate the new tt.
    "This may not matter to you, but it does to me for various reasons, many of them illogical or irrational, but the vinyl hobby is not really logical or rational..." - member on Vinyl Engine
    "Sometimes I do what I want to do. The rest of the time, I do what I have to." - Cicero, in Gladiator
    Regarding collectibles: "It's not who gets it. It's who gets stuck with it." - Jimmy Fallon
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  • joecoulson
    joecoulson Posts: 4,943
    What TT did you get?
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  • jdjohn
    jdjohn Posts: 3,148
    *
    joecoulson wrote: »
    What TT did you get?
    A sort of rare Logic DM-101 here: https://forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/185076/logic-dm-101-turntable#latest I just added some new pics B)
    "This may not matter to you, but it does to me for various reasons, many of them illogical or irrational, but the vinyl hobby is not really logical or rational..." - member on Vinyl Engine
    "Sometimes I do what I want to do. The rest of the time, I do what I have to." - Cicero, in Gladiator
    Regarding collectibles: "It's not who gets it. It's who gets stuck with it." - Jimmy Fallon
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  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    Stellar preamp gets here Wednesday.
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  • joecoulson
    joecoulson Posts: 4,943
    Sweet!
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