Parasound 2250

Jockos

Anyone have any experience with a parasound 2250 amp? I'm thinking of getting one to power my LSI 15's. I like the sound of the adcom 555 bipolar trans. but would like a more updated design.

Jockos

cfrizz

I've never heard the 2250 but I own the 1500A. I can tell you that it is a great amp that is built like a tank!

Get it, you can't lose!

dorokusai

I presume you mean the HCA-2205? It's a monster, from the the same era as most of the more common HCA series amplifiers. It's a different circuit design ala John Curl with an HCA signature, heavy, solid low end but with a darker high end...but that's just words. The HCA series all sound the same to me, with the Halo the only departure from the normal sonics attributed to Parasound.

heiney9

Jockos wrote:

Anyone have any experience with a parasound 2250 amp? I'm thinking of getting one to power my LSI 15's. I like the sound of the adcom 555 bipolar trans. but would like a more updated design.

Jockos

Not neccesarily voting for either one (they are both great amps) but I am curious why you think the Adcom is outdated? Is it just because of the age? I can tell you they don't build them (in general) like they used to and the GFA-555 is a very well built design. Updated doesn't always mean better. Look more at the sonic attributes of a piece of gear and not neccesarily how new it is, etc. I agree for the most part I prefer bi-polar to other designs, always exceptions of course

YMMV

H9

Emlyn

The 2250 is in the new replacement line for the old HCA (or Classic) line. Although I don't have personal experience with the new line, it seems to be a step below the old HCA line, targeting the market a little lower than before because the Halo line occupies a slightly higher market position than the old HCA did.

Parasound 2250 amp

I'd recommend taking a serious look at the Halo A23 instead for a few hundred $ less new. The peak current output of the A23 is the same 45 amps per channel as the 2250, although the power output is rated at only 125 watts/channel. It sounds like a larger amp than it is. I ran an A23 with LSi15's and it actually sounded better than using a Rotel RB-1090, a Rotel RMB-1075 (single and biamped), and even a B&K 7270 series II biamped to about 700 watts per channel. The damping factor of the A23 is high, which seems to be what the LSi15's thrive on rather than just high wattage. You could also try to pick up an A21 on the used market for the cost of a new 2250, but then you'd lose the warranty. The 2250 amps are also designed to be cooler running than the Halo line and the old line because they operate in Class A/B. The Halo line is biased to run in Class A to an extent, with the operation in Class A extended more the further up the product line one buys.

dorokusai

Oh, I thought he meant the old one...nevermind. Thanks for the correction Emlyn

Emlyn

dorokusai wrote:

Oh, I thought he meant the old one...nevermind. Thanks for the correction Emlyn

I'd rather have the 2205 than the 2250 too.

cfrizz

I thought the 2250 is the replacement for the 1500A. The 1500 was the last 2channel amp of the Old Classic series before they updated the web site with the new classic line starting with the 2250. The 1500A is 205wpc & the 2250 is 250wpc.

dorokusai

That's correct, it's probably the model line replacement for the older series. I thought he might have had a typo earlier, which made me think of the 2205....which is a better amp as far as versatility. Emlyn is dead-on.

Jockos

Thanks guys