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Pre Klipsch Aragon vs Parasound amps (1 Viewer)

James W. Johnson

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Alright , I have a Parasound HCA-1500A and love it but I am having some amp envy problems with the pre-Klipsch Aragon amps...mostly due to their monsterous specs and weight.

I am seriously considering selling my fairly new HCA-1500A and concentrate on getting all Aragon amps instead.

Has anyone owned both amps? If so tell me about your experience.

thanks
 

Kevin T

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can't speak for the parasound, but i know for a fact that the aragon is a stellar performer. i've owned an 8008x3b, 8008bb, and a pair of palladium ii monos. i sold the 8008bb to purchase the palladium ii monos. i recently sold the 8008x3b to free up some $$$ to focus on two channel performance. and i'm currently trying to sell the palladium ii monos to finance a purchase of a plinius sa-102.

kevin t
 

Ricky T

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James,

Nice HT room. What speakers are you using? Mean looking Aragon Soundstage in the rack :wink:

I've owned several Parasound amps, with the 1500A being the first and a pair of bigger 2200II being the last. Great amps, great value. I am now using three Aragon PalladiumIIs and an 8002 (betcha this 45lb amp rated at 125x2 does about 200 wpc like the 1500A). IMO, the current used prices for classic Aragon amps is one of the best deals going right now.

A couple of friends helped me put together a quick data sheet of amps. Does anyone know if I can attach an Excel file to my post?
 

James W. Johnson

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I'd love to see that data sheet, you could just snap a pic of your desktop with the Excel file displayed...otherwise send it to me in an email and I'll host it on my website.
 

James W. Johnson

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That is a big statement and based on my Soundstage build quality I almost believe it.
Parasound amps use pretty high quality guts but their chasis leave alot to be desired compared to some other amps on the market.
I have some pics of the guts of my HCA-1500A on my PC.

How about snapping some pics of your Aragon's guts?;)
 

James W. Johnson

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Oh and I better put on my flame suit but I cannot understand what all the Hype is about that new Gemstone amp..1.6Kva transformer and 125K uF for 7 channels? I am not that impressed and the guts of the Gemstone are even less impressive. I am not looking for trouble , just help me understand. Basic math says my HCA-1500A with a 1kva transformer and 60k uF that is rated at 205/315 will walk all over the Gemstone per channel.

The Gemstone has heatsinks built into the chasis like the Aragons and many esoteric amps for that matter but that is about it. The cheap stick on name tag is also another red flag in my book.


I dont mean to pick on Gemstone either but I just happen to run into the 'rave' about them over at AVS yesterday.

Parasound 1500A on top , Gemstone on the bottom..

The Parasound uses Nichicon Great Caps capacitors and other high quality parts.
Also the Parasound is a pure class A amp up to 15 watts..there is no way the Gemstone is class A up to much more than a few watts per channel with that dinky PSU.




Now this is a 7 channel amp.... :D,
 

James W. Johnson

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I'll tell you ..after researching amps again I think I just sold myself on Parasound again. :D I think I'll start shopping for more Parasounds to finish my amplification for my HT. :)
 

Yogi

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I have listened to Parasound and Aragon (pre Klipsch) with the same set of speakers (but not a truly level matched DBT) and to my ears I like the warm laidback tonality of Parasound better than the analytical presentation of Aragon...YMMV

Parasound, IMHO is great value in amps and unless you can't sleep at night due to your Aragon lust don't even bother changing amps.
 

Ricky T

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James,

YGM.

Is the 1500A your only current amp? So you need 3 more amp channels for a 5.1 setup? Your DIY speakers are 99dB sensitive?
 

James W. Johnson

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Is the 1500A your only current amp?
>
Yes
So you need 3 more amp channels for a 5.1 setup?
>
Yes
Your DIY speakers are 99dB sensitive?
>
Yes but don't figure that into the equation because I change speakers so often that its not even funny.



Did you want me to post your amp chart Ricky?
 

Kevin C Brown

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James- Take it from experience. :) Get the best amp you can afford and desire. Then, you're not second guessing yourself for the next x years.

If you haven't already, make sure to check out the reviews at:

http://www.ecoustics.com/Editorial/R...lpha_Name/All/

http://www.ecoustics.com/Editorial/R...lpha_Name/All/

And www.audioreview.com .

Parasound makes great amps, but for I'd go for Aragon myself.

Funny one: Parasound typically gets reviewed as more "warm" than Aragon, but Richard Hardesty did an amplifier review in Widescreen Review a few years, and he said that Parasound sounded forward to him (I think he actually reviewed 3 different Parasounds). (He reviewed maybe 60 amplifiers over a 3 year span or so.) How any particular amp will sound to you, depends on your room, your associated electronics, your speakers, etc.
 

Ricky T

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James,

You could post the chart. It has been approved by Mr. Kevin Brown :)

What is your total budget for amps? Figure you can sell the 1500A for 500 bucks.
 

James W. Johnson

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Well Ricky I have mulled it over and I think I am going to stick with Parasound after all, that is unless some incredible deal comes my way.

 

Ricky T

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James,

What Parasounds are you going to get?

Did you post the other page/tab, which depicts that I was a Parasound amp slut. I've also owned (still have)Parasound cd players, dacs, tuner, and 5.1 preamp/decoders.
 

James W. Johnson

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I am not sure what other Parasound I will get yet.

Here is that other chart..thanks again for sharing this Ricky, I for one appreciate it.

I still may go Aragon if the right deal comes along..I am even open to an ATI amp as well....that Onecall deal on the ATI 2505 for around $1400 is a sweet deal.

Id really like to stay under $1500 for 5 channels.

 

Kevin C Brown

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James- Use Ricky. :D

Actually, he is a really good resource for the following:

IMO, and I *think* Ricky would agree, that some Parasounds are more or less in the same league as B&K, Rotel, etc. But some of them are a cut above. Ricky knows which ones.

I'd also put ATI a cut above B&K, Rotel, etc, because at the 200x series and above, they are said to be truly fully balanced. But I would take the better Parasounds over ATI though. $1500 for 5 channels with Aragon would be tough to do. (8008x3 plus an 8002?)
 

Richard Burzynski

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James:

I owned an ATI1505 + NHT speakers. I've listened to Ricky's Parasound and Aragon amps numerous times. Ricky has always used NHT's in his system.

All three brands are quite good - but I would give the following recommendation (just my opinion):

(1) Aragon
(2) Citation
(2) Parasound
(3) ATI

I think the Aragon's are the best sounding SS amps I've listened to of the bunch. I list Citation and Parasound as a tie, but they do sound different - Parasound IS warmer to me ears, this is a preference thing not quality. I put ATI last as it is brightest of bunch. Please note the differences between all of these amps is slim, no one brand "kills" the others - they are all quality amps with mucho power reserves and wonderful overall sound. You really can't lose with any of them

Rich B.
 

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