Parasound DAC-1100HD

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cmy330go
cmy330go Posts: 2,341
edited October 2005 in 2 Channel Audio
Is anyone familiar with this unit? I am in need of upgrading my cd playback on my 2ch rig and have found one of these for $275. Is it worth that? I thought it would be a cheap way to try a dac.

EDIT: I see that new CDP vs. DAC is a bit of a hot topic around here. So what is your opinion? Would I be better off with my old sony and a used dac, or just a new player like the Cambridge Audio Azur 540C ($349 at Audio Advisor)??

Thanks for the help!
HT
Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

2 CH
Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
Post edited by cmy330go on
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  • fredv
    fredv Posts: 923
    edited October 2005
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    Very difficult call, only the one who listened to both can give some reasonable ideas. The DAC's price seems to be reasonable. If it is local and you don't mind a little lost, you can buy and try it to see you like it. If you like it, keep it and don't look back. If not, resell it.

    -fredv-
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,091
    edited October 2005
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    +1 to what fredv said. I've stopped blanket endorsements of Dac's because some people just don't think there is a difference or if there is it isn't worth it. IMO, if your Sony cdp is in good working order to do transport duties for a while I think you'll be better off with the Dac.

    No doubt the Cambridge is a nice unit. This is my opinion, YMMV.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
    edited October 2005
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    I was on the fence about this until SCompRacer brought one over to my house and let me listen/compare in my rig. My current CDP (Kenwood) is starting to go & the DAC he brought over was more expensive than a new CDP. There was a noticeable difference in my rig with the DAC. I was just about to purchase the Azur 540C when someone (phuz) decided to sell what I thought was a better CDP for not too much more than the Azur shipped. I figure that if I don't get the result I'm looking for I can always add a DAC later. My $.02 :)

    I'd get the demo unit from AA for $299 + ship. Still has 30 day return.
    Audio: Polk S15 * Polk S35 * Polk S10 * SVS SB-1000 Pro
    HT: Samsung QN90B * Marantz NR1510 * Panasonic DMP-BDT220 * Roku Ultra LT * APC H10
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  • dkg999
    dkg999 Posts: 5,647
    edited October 2005
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    If you're going the CDP route, I would seriously look at getting the Azure 640 over the 540. I think that transport wise they are the same, however I tried both and for reasons unexplained the 640 sounded much better. More open, and less British sounding.
    DKG999
    HT System: LSi9, LSiCx2, LSiFX, LSi7, SVS 20-39 PC+, B&K 507.s2 AVR, B&K Ref 125.2, Tripplite LCR-2400, Cambridge 650BD, Signal Cable PC/SC, BJC IC, Samsung 55" LED

    Music System: Magnepan 1.6QR, SVS SB12+, ARC pre, Parasound HCA1500 vertically bi-amped, Jolida CDP, Pro-Ject RM5.1SE TT, Pro-Ject TubeBox SE phono pre, SBT, PS Audio DLIII DAC
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  • W WALDECKER
    W WALDECKER Posts: 900
    edited October 2005
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    cmy330go wrote:
    Is anyone familiar with this unit? I am in need of upgrading my cd playback on my 2ch rig and have found one of these for $275. Is it worth that? I thought it would be a cheap way to try a dac.

    EDIT: I see that new CDP vs. DAC is a bit of a hot topic around here. So what is your opinion? Would I be better off with my old sony and a used dac, or just a new player like the Cambridge Audio Azur 540C ($349 at Audio Advisor)??

    Thanks for the help!
    i would spend the $275.00 get the DAC and try it out. if you are happy with it great! if not you can resell it recoup your money and explore other avenues. it is my personal feeling that to benefit fully from a DAC the other gear needs to be of a high enough resolution to take advantage of the improved digtal to analog audio signal or you may not notice that much of a difference. and this also goes for high end one box CDPs as well. good luck..........WCW III
    Rogue Audio stereo 100 tube amplifier - Lector Zoe preamplifier with 6H30 pi's
    .Audience AU24SE speaker and ic cables- Chord Qutest DAC - Black Cat Silverstar II 75ohm digital cable-Tyler Acoustics Linbrook Signature system with large bass cabinets to accommodate 10" Seas magnesium woofers.2xhmpsuownoj.jpg
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    edited October 2005
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    Thanks for the tips and suggestions guys!

    I think I'm going to try both and compare.

    I do have one more question.
    My cd player is about 7 years old, in great shape, has no playback problems, and sounds respectable as is, however it is sony. Do you all think that it is good enough to use with an external dac?

    Thanks Again
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • fredv
    fredv Posts: 923
    edited October 2005
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    My Sony cdp is even older, the adcom DAC (sold to me by a fellow Polk member) simply gave it a new life. So, I will say it is good enough.

    -fredv-
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  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
    edited October 2005
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    A Parasound 2000-Ultra DAC made my 10 year old Kenwood shine IMO. From what I've heard a Sony beats a Kenwood any day.
    Audio: Polk S15 * Polk S35 * Polk S10 * SVS SB-1000 Pro
    HT: Samsung QN90B * Marantz NR1510 * Panasonic DMP-BDT220 * Roku Ultra LT * APC H10
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    edited October 2005
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    fredv wrote:
    My Sony cdp is even older, the adcom DAC (sold to me by a fellow Polk member) simply gave it a new life. So, I will say it is good enough.
    peersool wrote:
    A Parasound 2000-Ultra DAC made my 10 year old Kenwood shine IMO. From what I've heard a Sony beats a Kenwood any day.

    Thanks for the info! I guess I'll try to snag the dac and see what happens. :)
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,091
    edited October 2005
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    cmy330go wrote:
    Thanks for the info! I guess I'll try to snag the dac and see what happens. :)

    Sounds like a solid plan :) Sonys are known to be very reliable transports.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • W WALDECKER
    W WALDECKER Posts: 900
    edited October 2005
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    heiney9 wrote:
    Sounds like a solid plan :) Sonys are known to be very reliable transports.

    H9
    they sure are!
    Rogue Audio stereo 100 tube amplifier - Lector Zoe preamplifier with 6H30 pi's
    .Audience AU24SE speaker and ic cables- Chord Qutest DAC - Black Cat Silverstar II 75ohm digital cable-Tyler Acoustics Linbrook Signature system with large bass cabinets to accommodate 10" Seas magnesium woofers.2xhmpsuownoj.jpg
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    edited October 2005
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    Sorry but I have a new question.

    Has dac technology improved much in the past 10 years? Seems this model is about 10 years old, and I'm just curious if there are other newer options in the same price range that might be a beter choice?
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • Normanality
    Normanality Posts: 297
    edited October 2005
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    peersool wrote:
    A Parasound 2000-Ultra DAC made my 10 year old Kenwood shine IMO. From what I've heard a Sony beats a Kenwood any day.

    Interstingly enough, that same Parasound 2000 Ultra made my brand new Marantz DV-6500 CD/SACD player sound 100% better. I based my purchase on a few reviews stating how clean the sound was with the 24bit DAC onboard.

    At that price level, I'm not sure how much an older lower end DAC will improve over a good CDP with a decent DAC.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,091
    edited October 2005
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    cmy330go wrote:
    Sorry but I have a new question.

    Has dac technology improved much in the past 10 years? Seems this model is about 10 years old, and I'm just curious if there are other newer options in the same price range that might be a beter choice?

    Generally speaking it goes back to idea of seperates. A seperate Dac even a unit 10 years old will sound better than a stand alone. There haven't been huge changes in technology. The chipsets have been updated but I still believe a stand alone Dac that atleast uses 20 bit dac chips is going to outperform most stand alone cdps. What chipset does the unit you are buying use? Is it a dual Dac configuration? The Burr Brown PCM-63PK is a very popular choice for that vintage unit. It's a soild chipset that is leaps and bounds above the 16 bit PCM-54HP which was common much earlier. Even newer yet is the Burr Brown PCM-1702 and 1703 both 20 bit chip sets. It's also possible that the Parasound may use Wolfson chipsets which I know nothing about other than there are also very good.

    Bottom line is a 10 year old DAC in most cases will sound better than a newer stand alone cdp. And most certainly will sound better than a stand alone cdp of the same era. The unit is designed to much more exacting standards and has much more precision electronics used.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    edited October 2005
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    heiney9 wrote:
    Generally speaking it goes back to idea of seperates. A seperate Dac even a unit 10 years old will sound better than a stand alone. There haven't been huge changes in technology. The chipsets have been updated but I still believe a stand alone Dac that atleast uses 20 bit dac chips is going to outperform most stand alone cdps. What chipset does the unit you are buying use? Is it a dual Dac configuration? The Burr Brown PCM-63PK is a very popular choice for that vintage unit. It's a soild chipset that is leaps and bounds above the 16 bit PCM-54HP which was common much earlier. Even newer yet is the Burr Brown PCM-1702 and 1703 both 20 bit chip sets. It's also possible that the Parasound may use Wolfson chipsets which I know nothing about other than there are also very good.

    Bottom line is a 10 year old DAC in most cases will sound better than a newer stand alone cdp. And most certainly will sound better than a stand alone cdp of the same era. The unit is designed to much more exacting standards and has much more precision electronics used.

    H9

    Thanks a lot! That was very informative. The DAC I'm considering has Two Burr-Brown PCM 63P-J 20 bit. I would guess very similar to what you mentioned above.

    With that said I think I'm going to make an offer on it. Wish me luck!

    Thanks again guys! :)
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • crossroadazn
    crossroadazn Posts: 69
    edited October 2005
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    I have 2 DACs one Monarchy Audio model 22A and one P.S Audio Ultralink, yes either one improves the sound of my system but differently. The P.S Audio it has a better dynamic, inner details and wider soundstage. On the Monarchy Audio it has more refine sound very easy listening from top to bottom smooth and round with deeper soundstage, detail very good only better by the P.S Audio. But system dependents any DAC could sound different in a system. My system:
    SilverLine Audio SR-12 modified external x-over, vertical bi-amp with x2 Dynaco St-70s, Sunfire super true sub jr, Onix x-88 as transport, Dared SL-2000A tube pre. with Prima 5z4 and matched RCA 12AT7s, cables Mit-T2 speakers and ICs, Synergistic research ICs, Audio Quest power cables, power wedge & power pac AC conditioners,Target amp stands and Sanus audio stand.
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  • ND13
    ND13 Posts: 7,601
    edited October 2005
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    crossroadazn wrote:
    Dared SL-2000A tube pre. with Prima 5z4 and matched RCA 12AT7s,

    Please tell me your opinion on the Dared pre. I've been entertaining this unit, but I have to admit that it's mainly for the remote and looks. I like the look of it and I need another tubed pre at this time.

    Thanks,

    Noel
    "SOME PEOPLE CALL ME MAURICE,
    CAUSE I SPEAK OF THE POMPITIOUS OF LOVE"
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  • crossroadazn
    crossroadazn Posts: 69
    edited October 2005
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    Hi Noel. The Dared pre. is very good sounding I replace it from Acurus 11 and what a world of differents, the vocal is so good and transparence now i can hear every detail from the singer voice : lips, breathing and chestiness ( lol ). The soundstage is spaces, instrument localization and air..It is truely great product and fun tubes rolling.
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  • ND13
    ND13 Posts: 7,601
    edited October 2005
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    crossroadazn wrote:
    Hi Noel. The Dared pre. is very good sounding I replace it from Acurus 11 and what a world of differents, the vocal is so good and transparence now i can hear every detail from the singer voice : lips, breathing and chestiness ( lol ). The soundstage is spaces, instrument localization and air..It is truely great product and fun tubes rolling.

    Thanks, that's what I was hoping to hear from someone, as I hadn't found anyone that had experience with that particular unit. I believe that I will try one as soon as I can scrape up the $$$. If you don't mind, what did you pay for yours? I see them for $399 all the time, nib. Is that a good price for one?

    Thanks again,
    Noel
    "SOME PEOPLE CALL ME MAURICE,
    CAUSE I SPEAK OF THE POMPITIOUS OF LOVE"
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  • crossroadazn
    crossroadazn Posts: 69
    edited October 2005
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    $399 is the price I paid thru dealer from ebuy, you should up grade to NOS tubes when you get it this will improve the sound . I donot have any problem with it. I wish it can be review with other different amps, well not many " audiophile " gives it a good chance when it come from China. Lots of these amps and preamps are using circuit topologies or similar to old Mcintosh, Marantz, etc.. Happy listening.
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  • ND13
    ND13 Posts: 7,601
    edited October 2005
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    Thanks for all the info, but I have purchased a Dodd MLP from another member and it will most likely be the last pre I will ever have to buy.
    "SOME PEOPLE CALL ME MAURICE,
    CAUSE I SPEAK OF THE POMPITIOUS OF LOVE"
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  • ohskigod
    ohskigod Posts: 6,502
    edited October 2005
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    hey Noel, niiiiiiice!!!!!

    you gotta tell me how that thing sounds when you get it fired up.
    Living Room 2 Channel -
    Schiit SYS Passive Pre. Jolida CD player. Songbird streamer. California Audio Labs Sigma II DAC, DIY 300as1/a1 Ice modules Class D amp. LSi15 with MM842 woofer upgrade, Nordost Blue Heaven and Unity interconnects.

    Upstairs 2 Channel Rig -
    Prometheus Ref. TVC passive pre, SAE A-205 Amp, Wiim pro streamer and Topping E50 DAC, California Audio Labs DX1 CD player, Von Schweikert VR3.5 speakers.

    Studio Rig - Scarlett 18i20(Gen3) DAW, Mac Mini, Aiyma A07 Max (BridgedX2), Totem Mites
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  • ND13
    ND13 Posts: 7,601
    edited October 2005
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    Should have it by Wednesday or Thursday, next week.
    "SOME PEOPLE CALL ME MAURICE,
    CAUSE I SPEAK OF THE POMPITIOUS OF LOVE"
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  • crossroadazn
    crossroadazn Posts: 69
    edited October 2005
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    ND13 wrote:
    Thanks for all the info, but I have purchased a Dodd MLP from another member and it will most likely be the last pre I will ever have to buy.
    The last pre ? :D
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  • beardog03
    beardog03 Posts: 5,550
    edited October 2005
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    ND13,

    I too have purchased my final pre (I`m pretty sure ! :o )...should be here soon..

    You have been moving in giant leaps and bounds since PolkFest..! :eek:

    GO, brother,GO... :D
    Cary SLP-98L F1 DC Pre Amp (Jag Blue)
    Parasound HCA-3500
    Cary Audio V12 amp (Jag Red)
    Polk Audio Xm Reciever (Autographed by THE MAN Himself) :cool:
    Magnum Dynalab MD-102 Analog Tuna
    Jolida JD-100 CDP
    Polk Audio LSi9 Speaks (ebony)
    SVS PC-Ultra Sub
    AQ Bedrock Speaker Cables (Bi-Wired)
    MIT Shotgun S1 I/C`s
    AQ Black Thunder Sub Cables
    PS Audio Plus Power Cords
    Magnum Dynalab ST-2 FM Antenna
    Sanus Cherry wood Speak Stands
    Adona AV45CS3 / 3 Tier Rack (Black /Gold)

    :cool:
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