Parasound Halo C2 vs Anthem AVM 20, which is better and why? (1 Viewer)

[David Lorenzo]

What DACs are in the Outlaw 950 and how do they compare with other units under $2000?

If 2 units have the same DACs, they usually still sound different right?

 

[Arthur Vino]

they could sound different. depends on implementation..

 

[Sihan Goi]

I'd say either would probably be a downgrade from your TG3, from what I've read. Are they even in the same price bracket?

 

[Arthur Vino]

I'd take Anthem or Halo over TG3 any day..
better pro and consumer reviews..
I still think Anthem is the product to beat.. Halo C2 is very close though..

 

[Sihan Goi]

Secrets thought they were good...

 

[Miguel Stanic]

Silver Anthem AVM20 rules them all!!! It's the one I have and it makes movies RIVETING!!!

To sound CLICHE and to sound the way WE ALL sound, including magazine reviews:

"I was blown away"

"I'm hearing things that I did not hear before"

"Movies and music take on a whole new experience"

"You'd need to spend thousands more to hear a marginal difference"

"Bass is deep and tight"

"Surround sound steering is pinpoint accurate"

"The depth of the soundstage is incredible"

"TWO ENTHUSIASTIC THUMBS UP"

But seriously, the Anthem AVM20 is top notch. I would not consider anything but the Lexicon MC-12/MC-8 or the next generation PREAMP from Anthem.

 

[Sihan Goi]

I think my Tag's better

 

[Miguel Stanic]

Uuuh No!!

Tag is not better. The consumer, professional and Hollywood consensus rates PREAMPS as follows:

AVM20
Theta Casablanca
Lexicon MC-12
Integra Research RDC-7

The rest are out of gas trying to keep up.

And the OSCAR goes to ... the Anthem AVM20

 

[Sihan Goi]

Well they can rate it all they want
I'm having trouble believing that the MC-12 and Casablanca is below the AVM20 in terms of pure performance.

 

[Arthur Vino]

ye, dude. NO way in the world Lex is below AVM20.. AVM20 is unbeatable for the money, but Logic 7 Lex is a killer.. but like $9000 with Balanced outputs...

 

[Chris Rein]

Wow! This is an interesting thread. Anyone considering/interested in the new Halo line (or any pre-amp for that matter) needs to look at the Parasound Halo C1 and/or C2. The latest Home Theater Magazine review of the C1 was GLOWING. The C1 scored above 95 in all categories (with a 95 in performance and a 98 in features), and it's little brother (the C2) is very close in features/performance with the main difference being the front display.

As somone stated earlier, "Bottom line, in order to get the amount of features found in the AVM-20, one would have to buy the Lexicon MC-12 balanced for $10,000." How about the C1 for $6,000 retal? To compare "apples to apples" here, I pulled the ratings from the Lexicon MC-12 Review in Home Theater Mag (November 2001), and well, the results are interesting! And they were both reviewed by Chris Lewis.

"Parasound Halo C1 Pre/Pro"
"Build Quality - 96"
"Value - 95"
"Features - 98"
"Performance - 95"
"Ergonomics - 97"

"Lexicon MC-12 Preamp/Processor"
"Build Quality - 96"
"Value - 92"
"Features - 99"
"Performance - 98"
"Ergonomics - 95"

I wish there was an Anthem Review from the same source. :frowning: I did a search, but came up with nothing. If you wanted to do an average of the above ratings, the Paraound beats it by .2 It's purely numbers. The real treat is test driving them both and making your own decision!

You really can't go wrong with any of these choices. Hell, I have the MC-12, AVM20, Aragon Stage One and Arcam AV8 on my list of pre-pros (guess I like silver!!!). It's a tough decision which comes down to preferences, pocketbook and most of all how it works (read: sound/performs) for YOU.


Chris

 

[Seth V]

Chris Rein,

Thanks for sharing the rating comparisons between the Halo C1 and Lexicon MC-12. The results are pretty interesting, as the C1's overall score was about on par with the MC-12. I'm sure that the performance of the C2 will be just as impressive. Do you also have the C1/C2 on your list of choices?

I was really leaning towards the Anthem, that is until I started reading all the problems people were having with the new upgrade (v2.09). I wonder why Anthem released this upgrade without making absolutely sure there were no bugs with it. I know they want to stay ahead of the pack, but they should have done some intensive testing first. Is everyone that has the new uprgrade having problems with it? I know that the Halo C2 is a very new product, and not that many people have one, so I'm not sure if it has any issues or not(I'm hoping not).

SV

 

[John H]

I know that the Halo C2 is a very new product, and not that many people have one, so I'm not sure if it has any issues or not(I'm hoping not).

I was one of the first to purchase a C2 after it made it's debut. I have owned one since 02/07 and the piece performs flawlessly.

John

 

[Mifr44]

Seth,

I was really leaning towards the Anthem, that is until I started reading all the problems people were having with the new upgrade (v2.09). I wonder why Anthem released this upgrade without making absolutely sure there were no bugs with it.

The software (v2.09) is pretty stable. The issue lately with the AVM-20 appears to be with the new DSP boards for the v2 upgrade. That's a different matter, albeit just as annoying.

Michael

 

[Brett DiMichele]

Chris,

Thanks for sharing the info. I am buying a Parasound Halo
P3 Pre Amp sometime in June to add to my setup so that I
can seperate the 2Ch stuff from the movie gear.. I have
looked at new and used Pre's and can't find anything that
even remotely compares for the price. The only other Pre
I found I would consider would be PS Audio's Pre but it's
a few hundred more and I still like the Halo better

I think Parasound did a great job on the new Halo line it
all looks to be very well built components. But I don't
think you could go wrong with any of the other's mentioned
either.

 

[JimmyK]

Is everyone that has the new uprgrade having problems with it?

I've had my Anthem AVM20 v2.09 about a month and have not experienced problems.

JimmyK

 

[Camp]

I have
looked at new and used Pre's and can't find anything that
even remotely compares for the price.

Used MC-12's pop up for ~ $6k on Audiogon fairly often. While the C1 is dead sexy to look at I'd take an MC-12 over it in a second. Even a brand new MC-8 should do the trick.

 

[Arthur Vino]

MC-8 and 12 are waaay newer/better/updated over MC-1..

 

[Camp]

umm...thanks.

 

[Seth V]

Well, I finally got my replacement Sunfire TGIII today. Well, you know how the saying goes that "the 3rd times a charm", that doesn't apply to the TGIII. This one has the same popping issues as the previous TGIII I had, I'm not pleased. So I'm hanging up my hat on the TGIII and I'm going for someting different.

I am really looking into the Integra Research RDC-7 or Parasound's Halo C2. Do any of you have any thought's regarding the Integra Reasearch RDC-7? What do you all think of this unit? I'm not even considering the Anthem anymore, due to all the problems they are currently having with the AVM20.

SV