Parasound P6 or ??

pkquat
pkquat Posts: 742
edited September 2020 in 2 Channel Audio
I currently have a Parasound P5 and like its input versatility. Key features besides good sound and balanced out are digital input and HT pass thru. I figure the DAC is better than a 30 yr old CD player, or cheaper CD player, and I can connect a streamer or other digital source. Reviews and comments here say the P6 is better than the P5. A P6 is offered near me for $1100, maybe $1000 if I am lucky. I am not sure if it is worth the upgrade price at this time. I may even keep the P5 as a secondary system pre-amp.

Any other better used options to keep an eye out for?

I recently got my McCormack amp and it has been everything I thought it would be and more. Speakers are currently fully modded 2.3TLs.

Comments

  • joecoulson
    joecoulson Posts: 4,943
    I am thoroughly enjoying my P6
    It’s bass management, amazing volume control and great SQ make it something I don’t think about upgrading much.
    The HT bypass is such a great option and very necessary for my system.
    Worth $1100 jump for sure. Especially when you should be able to get at least halfway there selling the P5 (should you decide to let go)
  • afterburnt
    afterburnt Posts: 7,892
    edited September 2020
    I had to get something better than the P5 DAC I didn't like it at all. Otherwise it's a great piece of gear. The phono stage was lacking too. I understand that the P6 improved on both.
  • joecoulson
    joecoulson Posts: 4,943
    And to be totally transparent, I don’t use either the DAC or the Phono.
  • If you don’t have a dedicated streamer and or DAC for the price of the P6 upgrade I would consider keeping the P5 and getting a CA 851N or CXN v2. Great streamers with plenty of digital inputs that you connect all your digital sources to. I think the major improvement of the P6 is improved DAC and volume control?
    Living Room
    Parasound HINT 6, Yamaha Aventage RX-A 1060, Yamaha BD-S681, Cambridge Audio Azur 851N, Polk S60, Polk S30, Samsung 60" LED

    Office
    Cambridge Audio 851A, Auralic Aries Mini, LSiM 703s

    Douglas Connection ICs and Cables
  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,420
    edited September 2020
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)


    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
  • pkquat
    pkquat Posts: 742
    I should have put a budget on my thoughts, and as I look at it further, maybe take streaming out of it and just say a DAC+preamp combo or all in one for under ~$1500. Right now phono is not super important to me.

    @rburgess714 The Cambridge units are very nice. I have been wishing for something like that, but I wish they had additional analog inputs and an HT bypass. I see they have a USB storage input, but I only found reference to a thumb drive. Do you know if they support portable HD's? Some similar devices don't have enough power, or have issues with the size.

    I also now realized most AVRs don't have a digital out any more. I had thought I could use an AVR for a streaming interface, and probably an audio library and then connect it to a DAC, but it looks like that is no longer possible. TBH streaming from Spotify etc. is not really on my radar yet, it is more my own library on a portable HD.

    @afterburnt what didn't you like about the P5 DAC? Was it truely the DAC or also the analog section? What did you go with instead? Have you heard a P6?
  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,420
    Okay so just keep looking. Be patient and something with find you ( or visa versa) look for 6SN7 or 12AU7 tube pre's. Tubes are cheap and sound good. Tons of them out there if you wait. My system sounds great with a cheap DAC. Far better with a good one
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)


    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
  • afterburnt
    afterburnt Posts: 7,892
    edited September 2020
    pkquat wrote: »
    @afterburnt what didn't you like about the P5 DAC? Was it truly the DAC or also the analog section? What did you go with instead? Have you heard a P6?

    The P5 DAC didn't play well with LSiM 707 I thought I just didn't like the speaker. If memory serves me I liked the Oppo 103 better than the P5. I tried a few other DACs and really wasn't satisfied until I started running a Cambridge CXNv2.

    I have never had my ears on the P6.

    PS The CXNv2 will support a portable HD.

  • invalid
    invalid Posts: 1,270
    audioluvr wrote: »
    Okay so just keep looking. Be patient and something with find you ( or visa versa) look for 6SN7 or 12AU7 tube pre's. Tubes are cheap and sound good. Tons of them out there if you wait. My system sounds great with a cheap DAC. Far better with a good one

    I totally agree with this statement, I would definitely look for a 6sn7 tube preamp. They sound better to me than any solid state preamps in the same price range, you have to spend substantially more to get comparable sound from a solid state preamp.
  • marvda1
    marvda1 Posts: 4,862
    Amplifiers: Norma IPA 140, MasterSound Compact 845, Ayre v6xe, Consonance Cyber 800
    Preamp: deHavilland Ultraverve 3
    Dac: Sonnet Morpheus 2, Musical Paradise mp-d2 mkIII
    Transport: Jay's Audio CDT2 mk2, Lumin U1 mini
    Speakers: Rosso Fiorentino Volterra II
    Speaker Cables: Organic Audio Organic Reference 2
    Interconnects: Argento Organic Reference 2, Argento Organic 2
    Power Cables: Argento Organic Reference, Synergistic Research Foundation 10 and 12 ga.
    Puritan PSM156
  • invalid
    invalid Posts: 1,270
    The Don Sachs model 2 would be an excellent choice

  • pkquat wrote: »
    I should have put a budget on my thoughts, and as I look at it further, maybe take streaming out of it and just say a DAC+preamp combo or all in one for under ~$1500. Right now phono is not super important to me.

    @rburgess714 The Cambridge units are very nice. I have been wishing for something like that, but I wish they had additional analog inputs and an HT bypass. I see they have a USB storage input, but I only found reference to a thumb drive. Do you know if they support portable HD's? Some similar devices don't have enough power, or have issues with the size.

    I may have not been very clear but I was suggesting keep the P5 and adding the Cambridge 851N as your digital front end, connecting to the P5, as I think the DAC would equal if not best the P6 DAC. It has digital inputs galore and a great streamer. I am not sure how it would work with a portable HD.
    Living Room
    Parasound HINT 6, Yamaha Aventage RX-A 1060, Yamaha BD-S681, Cambridge Audio Azur 851N, Polk S60, Polk S30, Samsung 60" LED

    Office
    Cambridge Audio 851A, Auralic Aries Mini, LSiM 703s

    Douglas Connection ICs and Cables
  • afterburnt
    afterburnt Posts: 7,892
    I can't imagine it wont work with a portable HD since it works great with the CXNv2. @pkquat I run my P5 in a kind of Hybrid system (I still haven't hooked up the surrounds) with the above streamer and I am pretty happy with it. The 851N has got those "Beefy Guts" and I am tempted to move up to it one of these days but the CXN has really surpassed my expectations.
  • jdjohn
    jdjohn Posts: 2,987
    Well yeah [cough], that Don Sachs tube pre would be a great choice :) Also, the PS Audio Stellar Gain DAC/Pre might be an option to consider. The DAC is quite sufficient, plus it has balanced input/output options, great volume knob and remote control.
    "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
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  • markmarc
    markmarc Posts: 2,309
    I have the P6, it's a nice preamp, no doubt about. But if I had to do it over, I'd have passed and continued to use my Simaudio HAD230 DAC as a pre. My reasoning is that the internal DAC, while nice, is not close to what the Simaudio provides. Save your $$ and get an off board quality DAC.
    Review Site_ (((AudioPursuit)))
    Founder/Publisher Affordable$$Audio 2006-13.
    Former Staff Member TONEAudio
    2 Ch. System
    Amplifiers: Parasound Halo P6 pre, Vista Audio i34, Peachtree amp500, Adcom GFP-565 GFA-535ii, 545ii, 555ii
    Digital: SimAudio HAD230 DAC, iMac 20in/Amarra,
    Speakers: Paradigm Performa F75, Magnepan .7, Totem Model 1's, ACI Emerald XL, Celestion Si Stands. Totem Dreamcatcher sub
    Analog: Technics SL-J2 w/Pickering 3000D, SimAudio LP5.3 phono pre
    Cable/Wires: Cardas, AudioArt, Shunyata Venom 3
  • joecoulson
    joecoulson Posts: 4,943
    ^ I would have to agree here. The P6 is a great pre for me, but I do not use the onboard DAC. So if given the choice between a new P6 or a sep DAC, I would go the latter first. Keep the P5 (for now)