Thanks for posting this video Clint. I have a question for you & your viewers. I have a pair of vintage Qln speakers. I am using the Parasound Halo P6 Preamp as my primary DAC. I am looking for a 2nd preamp that is detailed & is slightly on the warm side of neutral. I have narrowed my preamp search down to 2 units...the Parasound JC2PB & the McIntosh C49. Which would you choose & why? Thanks!-
Ty for info Clint. One last question does that mean turn gain on jc2 all the way down? What gain are you using for jc2? Also I’m planning on getting a mararntz sacd player..what marantz is in your video. Ty david
Oh, I put them in their detent at 12:00 I think. I think you should adjust the preamp L&R gains so that your normal listening volume is between 11:00 and 1:00 on the volume knob. That's normally the sweet spot on the volume knob. The current version of this Marantz player is the SA-14S1 and it's black now. Now more champagne color unfortunately for quite a few years. It was discontinued when I made this vid even.
I have an opportunity to purchase a pair of JC1’s for 7K. My question is these amps have been out for some time. Have there been upgrades? If so do you know what they are? Also, has new amp technology now surpassed the JC1’s. For example, I have listened to the integrated simaudio neo 340i which was fantastic. Thoughts?
JDK K "new amp technology" is all about trying to come remotely close to the inefficient great sounding amps of the past, by degrading the sound with designs that produce less heat (wasted energy). Do you really want lesser sound quality to save a couple cents per listening session? Electricity is pennies for a KW hour (blasting 1000 watts for an hour is 5-10 cents and who listens that loud?) Digital technology gets better, so DACs have improved, but analog sound has been perfected since the 70's. What has improved is the components than make up the amp, but not much (if anything) has changed in components since the JC1 were introduced. The JC1s are 25 watts class A, so they waste energy as heat, but class A is as good as it gets for sound quality. Tube amps are class A (always on) and no technology can make up for the crossover distortion when transistors turn off and on (there is always a lag time). Technology usually improves things, but audio is an exception where it degrades with added technology, because you can't beat "linearity" (which is and only is class A amps). Digital is great for storing music (and even the conversion back to analog has losses, but there aren't any good noise free analog sources) , but everything else should be linear (analog), because preamps and amps are analog, speakers are analog, our ears are analog, reality is analog. A class D amps uses high speed switching to mimic the "always on" characteristics of class A amps without producing as much heat, but any switching will always cause noise and distortion. Analog is already perfect (a linear stream of reality), so how is any technology going to make that sound better. It can't. It can only make amps more efficient at the cost of sound quality. Analog audio is pretty simple (that is the way you want it, because anything extra that isn't needed only corrupts the sound quality), so no one is going to come up with a design that someone else hasn't already trying in the last 50 years. The best electronic components make the difference and top components are rather pricey and can add up in hurry considering the number of components in an amp.
Not many reviews of this great preamp. I would like to upgrade my NAD 658 with this unit. It does however lack a streamer like my NAD. Somehow, I think the performance of the Parasound would be a big step up and extra details of the music would be heard with the JC-2
Yea, this preamp is 100% performance, but only about 5% features. It's a fully differential balanced Class A preamp, so everything that can be done to reduce noise has been done. Therefore, you won't find a DAC, phono inputs, a screen, or any streaming of course, but what you get is amazing sound. Just source selection, and volume control.
Hello Clint, Another stellar review....you do a very fine job! I'm revisiting this video and wondering if your thoughts are the same today as when you first did the review. I'm considering this unit, but it's getting fairly dated, and wondering if an upgrade is around the corner. I've never been one who's liked the idea of no tone controls, as I like to push the bass and treble, as I predominantly listen to hard rock/ metal. I'm currently using Bryston model T speakers, and have 600w mono blocks. You work with a lot of fine products daily, and wondering if there is anything else that's dazzled you in the preamplifier arena? Have you heard the Wyred 4 Sound stp-se?....cheaper I know, but favourable reviews. Thank you Clint! Take care.
Thank you. The JC-2 is by no means dated. It's not like it's got an old version of HDMI or anything. It's an amazing analogue 2 channel pre-amp. The only "update" they've had was to offer a BP model that has home theater bypass for $500 more. One thing that's dazzled me is the new Halo P5 preamp. It's not up to this level for sure, but for $1100 it's pretty great for when you'd like a more fully featured preamp. For the ultimate in performance the JC-2 is still top dog. I have not heard the Wyred piece.
Hi Clint I just bought jc2 bp. My amp is A21. Wondering what your gain setting is set to on Jc2 and A21..and do they have to match gain setting. Appreciate your help.
Great, fantastic combo. The gain knobs on the amp should be turned all the way up to THX, so the gain stage will be taken out of circuit. The preamp just has a volume knob, so set it wherever you want to get the volume you like.
Hey Clint that is an awesome sounding and looking system , for what i can hear thru my iPad ..lol. I have a question ? I own the jc2 and a pair of jc1's , but I see you have the Adam subwoofer along with the speakers... My question is how did you connect a the subwoofer being there is no subwoofer out on the jc2 ?? I want to connect a sub To my jc2.. I have a pair of Wilson watt puppy 5 I am using .. Please help,me how to connect a sub, I have a Sunfire jr. Sub with 2 eight inch speakers.. It does not have any balance in or out on it.. Thanks Clint please help,me out here ...thanks bro'.
***** I didn't have a sub in the room when I made this video. But, once I added the Adam subwoofer, all I did was connect the sub from the L&R RCA outputs on the JC-2 and the JC-1 amps with the XLR outs. It works just fine. Enjoy your system, it doesn't get much better than that! PS: The sub has to have left and right inputs.
Thanks for the response Clint. But if I use the RCA on the JC2 , don't I have to select RCA , On the back and you said connect the amp to the XLR's. I thought I can only pick RCA or XLR's, not both..?
***** No, you can just use both. They are simultaneous outputs. You have to select only one input, but outputs are both active, there's no switch to select.
+Dave Jones The JC-2 is better than just about every solid state preamp I've heard, though I haven't heard every one. One thing you can be sure is, if it competes with the JC-2, it will cost a lot more.
It is pretty much better than anything you care to mention. If however you can somehow get away with not having a pre amp at all, then that should be better.
Hey thank you for your review, i have the a21 and i'm planning to do a 2 channel setup and i want to know what is the different in the sound quality vs this one and the P5. thank you..
Stharling Toribio Excellent amp choice! The JC-2 is on another level. Lower noise floor, lower crosstalk, holographic imaging etc. Then again it doesn't have a phono stage, DAC, crossover, subwoofer management and tone controls like the P5 does. Both are the best I know of at their respective price points. Ultimately your budget and needs will decide.
@SubL0ck It's by Erin Boheme - "Let's make the most of a beautifull thing" from the album "What Love Is". She was super young when she recorded that album but has a pretty mature voice.
@Photo314159 ha thanks for the clarification was looking at adv on Stereophile mag. I dunno if you can help but you seem to know your stuff I have a pair of JBL 4350 they sound unbelievable. Im a bit behind with the audiophile world in terms of components. My 4350's have a set of Audiosource amps and Preamp, they sound magnificent with even the mediocre equipment that many would say im using. Im converting my cd collection to 32bit cd but i dont know what i need to change to get the actual 32bit
Too bad my Canadian money isn't good enough for Parasound. WTF, I should be able to buy one online. I understand that if there isn't enough market, it isn't worth it for a company to set up shop and have a bunch of reps in Canada, but I just want to buy a God damn unit to go with my JC1 mono blocks.
![BRASIL vs. PERÚ [4-0] | RESUMEN | ELIMINATORIAS SUDAMERICANAS | FECHA 10](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/tbyOJKXfQnI/mqdefault.jpg)
Thanks for posting this video Clint.
I have a question for you & your viewers.
I have a pair of vintage Qln speakers.
I am using the Parasound Halo P6 Preamp as my primary DAC.
I am looking for a 2nd preamp that is detailed & is slightly on the warm side of neutral. I have narrowed my preamp
search down to 2 units...the Parasound JC2PB &
the McIntosh C49.
Which would you choose & why?
Thanks!-
Ty for info Clint. One last question does that mean turn gain on jc2 all the way down? What gain are you using for jc2? Also I’m planning on getting a mararntz sacd player..what marantz is in your video. Ty david
Oh, I put them in their detent at 12:00 I think. I think you should adjust the preamp L&R gains so that your normal listening volume is between 11:00 and 1:00 on the volume knob. That's normally the sweet spot on the volume knob. The current version of this Marantz player is the SA-14S1 and it's black now. Now more champagne color unfortunately for quite a few years. It was discontinued when I made this vid even.
I have an opportunity to purchase a pair of JC1’s for 7K. My question is these amps have been out for some time. Have there been upgrades? If so do you know what they are? Also, has new amp technology now surpassed the JC1’s. For example, I have listened to the integrated simaudio neo 340i which was fantastic. Thoughts?
JDK K "new amp technology" is all about trying to come remotely close to the inefficient great sounding amps of the past, by degrading the sound with designs that produce less heat (wasted energy). Do you really want lesser sound quality to save a couple cents per listening session? Electricity is pennies for a KW hour (blasting 1000 watts for an hour is 5-10 cents and who listens that loud?) Digital technology gets better, so DACs have improved, but analog sound has been perfected since the 70's. What has improved is the components than make up the amp, but not much (if anything) has changed in components since the JC1 were introduced.
The JC1s are 25 watts class A, so they waste energy as heat, but class A is as good as it gets for sound quality. Tube amps are class A (always on) and no technology can make up for the crossover distortion when transistors turn off and on (there is always a lag time). Technology usually improves things, but audio is an exception where it degrades with added technology, because you can't beat "linearity" (which is and only is class A amps). Digital is great for storing music (and even the conversion back to analog has losses, but there aren't any good noise free analog sources) , but everything else should be linear (analog), because preamps and amps are analog, speakers are analog, our ears are analog, reality is analog.
A class D amps uses high speed switching to mimic the "always on" characteristics of class A amps without producing as much heat, but any switching will always cause noise and distortion. Analog is already perfect (a linear stream of reality), so how is any technology going to make that sound better. It can't. It can only make amps more efficient at the cost of sound quality. Analog audio is pretty simple (that is the way you want it, because anything extra that isn't needed only corrupts the sound quality), so no one is going to come up with a design that someone else hasn't already trying in the last 50 years. The best electronic components make the difference and top components are rather pricey and can add up in hurry considering the number of components in an amp.
Not many reviews of this great preamp. I would like to upgrade my NAD 658 with this unit. It does however lack a streamer like my NAD. Somehow, I think the performance of the Parasound would be a big step up and extra details of the music would be heard with the JC-2
Yea, this preamp is 100% performance, but only about 5% features. It's a fully differential balanced Class A preamp, so everything that can be done to reduce noise has been done. Therefore, you won't find a DAC, phono inputs, a screen, or any streaming of course, but what you get is amazing sound. Just source selection, and volume control.
Hello Clint,
Another stellar review....you do a very fine job! I'm revisiting this video and wondering if your thoughts are the same today as when you first did the review. I'm considering this unit, but it's getting fairly dated, and wondering if an upgrade is around the corner. I've never been one who's liked the idea of no tone controls, as I like to push the bass and treble, as I predominantly listen to hard rock/ metal. I'm currently using Bryston model T speakers, and have 600w mono blocks. You work with a lot of fine products daily, and wondering if there is anything else that's dazzled you in the preamplifier arena? Have you heard the Wyred 4 Sound stp-se?....cheaper I know, but favourable reviews.
Thank you Clint! Take care.
Thank you. The JC-2 is by no means dated. It's not like it's got an old version of HDMI or anything. It's an amazing analogue 2 channel pre-amp. The only "update" they've had was to offer a BP model that has home theater bypass for $500 more. One thing that's dazzled me is the new Halo P5 preamp. It's not up to this level for sure, but for $1100 it's pretty great for when you'd like a more fully featured preamp. For the ultimate in performance the JC-2 is still top dog. I have not heard the Wyred piece.
I don't see any reviews about this Parasound EQS-1 Stereo 10-Band Equalizer / Analyzer
Hi Clint I just bought jc2 bp. My amp is A21. Wondering what your gain setting is set to on Jc2 and A21..and do they have to match gain setting. Appreciate your help.
Great, fantastic combo. The gain knobs on the amp should be turned all the way up to THX, so the gain stage will be taken out of circuit. The preamp just has a volume knob, so set it wherever you want to get the volume you like.
Anything good to be said for the old Parasound 2100 pre?
Hey Clint that is an awesome sounding and looking system , for what i can hear thru my iPad ..lol. I have a question ? I own the jc2 and a pair of jc1's , but I see you have the Adam subwoofer along with the speakers... My question is how did you connect a the subwoofer being there is no subwoofer out on the jc2 ?? I want to connect a sub To my jc2.. I have a pair of Wilson watt puppy 5 I am using .. Please help,me how to connect a sub, I have a Sunfire jr. Sub with 2 eight inch speakers.. It does not have any balance in or out on it.. Thanks Clint please help,me out here ...thanks bro'.
***** I didn't have a sub in the room when I made this video. But, once I added the Adam subwoofer, all I did was connect the sub from the L&R RCA outputs on the JC-2 and the JC-1 amps with the XLR outs. It works just fine. Enjoy your system, it doesn't get much better than that! PS: The sub has to have left and right inputs.
Thanks for the response Clint. But if I use the RCA on the JC2 , don't I have to select RCA , On the back and you said connect the amp to the XLR's. I thought I can only pick RCA or XLR's, not both..?
***** No, you can just use both. They are simultaneous outputs. You have to select only one input, but outputs are both active, there's no switch to select.
Hey =) What's the song playing in the beginning?
Is this better than Simaudio pre amps?
+Dave Jones The JC-2 is better than just about every solid state preamp I've heard, though I haven't heard every one. One thing you can be sure is, if it competes with the JC-2, it will cost a lot more.
It is pretty much better than anything you care to mention. If however you can somehow get away with not having a pre amp at all, then that should be better.
Hey thank you for your review, i have the a21 and i'm planning to do a 2 channel setup and i want to know what is the different in the sound quality vs this one and the P5. thank you..
Stharling Toribio Excellent amp choice! The JC-2 is on another level. Lower noise floor, lower crosstalk, holographic imaging etc. Then again it doesn't have a phono stage, DAC, crossover, subwoofer management and tone controls like the P5 does. Both are the best I know of at their respective price points. Ultimately your budget and needs will decide.
@SubL0ck It's by Erin Boheme - "Let's make the most of a beautifull thing" from the album "What Love Is". She was super young when she recorded that album but has a pretty mature voice.
Thank you Clint i did not know that.
hows this against the JC3??
THIS PREAMP IS GREAT....
@Photo314159 ha thanks for the clarification was looking at adv on Stereophile mag. I dunno if you can help but you seem to know your stuff I have a pair of JBL 4350 they sound unbelievable. Im a bit behind with the audiophile world in terms of components. My 4350's have a set of Audiosource amps and Preamp, they sound magnificent with even the mediocre equipment that many would say im using. Im converting my cd collection to 32bit cd but i dont know what i need to change to get the actual 32bit
@Photo314159 thanks for your time much appreciated
Maybe a tour of your listening room sometime?
I'd appreciate that very much.
@Photo314159 Thank you so much :)
Too bad my Canadian money isn't good enough for Parasound. WTF, I should be able to buy one online. I understand that if there isn't enough market, it isn't worth it for a company to set up shop and have a bunch of reps in Canada, but I just want to buy a God damn unit to go with my JC1 mono blocks.
sorry take a coffee br!!!
116dB SNR is irrelevant. Big yawn ....
Why is it irrelevant ?