Parasound P5

[macddmac]

The new Parasound preamp should be out late next month.
I've been itching to see this baby all summer as I'm planning a 2.1 system for my living room.
I decided to email their marketing department tonight and was answered within a few few minutes by Richard Schram himself! Wow, Friday night and he's working late.. Gotta love it.
he attached the following to his response and since there was no copyright on the info ill share it with y'all.
Cheers, Mac





P 5 Features and Specs 8-23-13
New features the P 3 didn’t have

- Very high quality DAC with Coax, Optical and USB inputs
- Improved sound, specifications and versatility
- Home theater bypass function for integration with a surround sound system
- Analog bass management
- Creates an independent sub channel to accompany L and R channels
- Subwoofer output with front panel level control
- RCA and XLR subwoofer outputs
- Variable high pass and low pass crossovers
- Crossovers can be switched off for full range L, R and Sub output
- Phono stage compatible with MM, MC-100 Ω, MC-47k Ω cartridges
- Front panel Aux input with additional 12dB gain stage (compensates for low output voltage of portable MP3 players and smartphones
- 65 watt power supply
- 0.5w standby power consumption meets Energy Star requirements
- Alps motorized potentiometer instead of an IC for volume control
- Available in both silver and black

Other Features

- 5 RCA line level inputs
- 1 XLR balanced input (parallels Input 5 RCA jacks)
- Coax and optical accept up to 192 kHz
- USB accepts up to 96 kHz
- Balanced XLR and RCA left and right outputs
- 1 balanced XLR and 2 RCA subwoofer outputs
- Bass & treble controls with defeat switch (Tone on-off from remote or front panel)
- Headphone jack with 10 ohm output impedance
- Rear panel IR input and loop output jacks
- 12v output trigger
- Automatic turn on with 12V trigger or AC power
- Fixed level record output
- Headphone jack automatically mutes the L, R, Sub out jacks
- Motor-driven potentiometer volume control
- Bass & treble tone controls with defeat button
- Balance control
- Remote handset includes tone on/off button
- Gold-plated RCA jacks
- Rack mounting adapter available
- Parasound 5 year parts, 5 years labor warranty
- (For USA purchases only)

Specs

DC Trigger Requirements
+9 Vdc to +12 Vdc, 2 mA

XLR Pin Identification
1 = Ground (Shield)
2 = Positive
3 = Negative (Return)

Dimensions
Width: 17-1/4” (437 mm)
Depth: 13-3/4” (350 mm)
Height, with feet: 4-1/8” (105 mm)
Height, without feet: 3-1/2” (89 mm)

Net Weight
14 lb. (6.3 kg)

Shipping Weight
21 lb. (9.5 kg)

Power Requirement
Standby: 0.5 Watts
Power On: 20 Watts
100-250 Volts, 50-60 Hz (Automatic)
Frequency Response
10 Hz - 100 kHz, +0/-3 dB

Total Harmonic Distortion
< 0.01 %

Crosstalk
> 70 dB at 20 kHz

Input Sensitivity
300 mv: 1 Volt Out
Total Gain: 10 dB
Maximum Output: 7 Volts

Input Impedance
Unbalanced: 24k Ω
Balanced: 100k Ω per leg

Output Impedance
Unbalanced: 100 Ω
Balanced: 470 Ω per leg

S/N Ratio - Line Inputs 1-5
> 108 dB, input shorted, IHF A-weighted
> 88 dB, input shorted, unweighted

S/N Ratio - DAC Inputs
> 108 dB, input shorted, IHF A-weighted
> 90 dB, input shorted, unweighted

S/N Ratio - Phono Inputs
MM > 80 dB, input shorted, IHF A-weighted
MM > 70 dB, input shorted, unweighted
MC > 67 dB, input shorted, IHF A-weighted
MC > 55 dB, input shorted, unweighted

 

[RichB]

Conceptually, I like this product but I cannot get over the desire to have only one preamp that has a great analog and digital performance.

Do you have picture of the black version?


- Rich

 

[macddmac]

Richard said it would be up on their site soon

 

[Lulimet]

What is the MSRP?

 

[macddmac]

950.00 ish

 

[sharkman]

I've been tracking the P5 as well and will be very interested to hear feedback upon its release. It would be perfect for me with its dac for digital input.

 

[Irvrobinson]

These next generation pre-amps, like the P5, the Classe CP800, etc, are nice extensions of the pre-amp concept, but some of the feature choices in the P5 leave me scratching my head. Some make perfect sense, like integrating a DAC with the pre-amp. DAC integration is cheap, and might improve sound quality by eliminating an analog gain stage and a set of cables. Analog bass management makes a lot of sense too, with subs becoming de rigueur. Some feature choices I'm having more trouble understanding. Old-fashioned tone controls? Five analog inputs but only one coax digital input? Perhaps I'm just talking with the wrong people, but most people I know have forsaken analog sources beyond vinyl, and the people I know still into vinyl would never consider a product like this. A front panel USB input would have been very handy.

If the $950 price is accurate, and the build quality is comparable with other Parasound preamps I've seen, then that's a pretty good value. A much better value, for example, than my Benchmark DAC-1-HDR, although if you want boards stuffed in New York I suppose premium pricing is a given. The Classe is priced in another category altogether, but it is far more sophisticated than the P5, though I doubt it sounds any better.

Back to the P5, I wonder if the crossovers apply to the balanced sub output? The back panel layout and silk-screening imply that they don't.

 

[RichB]

^^^

I know Parasound are not fans of HDMI but if you put 6 HDMI inputs that pass-through video and processed audio in the DAC, it would be a no-brainer.

- Rich

 

[sharkman]

I don't think I've heard of a 2 channel pre amp with any HDMI inputs, since those are for multi channel home theatre applications.

As for the old fashioned tone controls, some can take 'em or leave 'em, but it doesn't hurt to include them with a defeat function. Goes along with the analogue inputs. Some will have an old school reel to reel or tape deck as odd as it sounds. I've got an Oppo 95 that I'd prefer to do the converting. At this price range you can't please everybody but it does appear to have good bang for buck.

 

[macddmac]

^^^

I know Parasound are not fans of HDMI but if you put 6 HDMI inputs that pass-through video and processed audio in the DAC, it would be a no-brainer.

- Rich

My only beotch would be not enough digital inputs- most devices I own already have hdmi+ digital outs.
this one is for a stand- alone 2.1system I'm putting together so hdmi's no biggie for me.
btw, A-21 or can I getaway with an A-23 for a 4ohm MTM with 88db sensitivity and not regret it?

 

[Irvrobinson]

As for the old fashioned tone controls, some can take 'em or leave 'em, but it doesn't hurt to include them with a defeat function. Goes along with the analogue inputs. Some will have an old school reel to reel or tape deck as odd as it sounds. I've got an Oppo 95 that I'd prefer to do the converting. At this price range you can't please everybody but it does appear to have good bang for buck.

FWIW, if the P5 had been available when I was buying the Benchmark DAC1-HDR, I probably would have chosen to purchase the P5 instead.

 

[gostan]

950.00 ish

is this price correct? Last winter the suggested price was indicated at $1450.

 

[Steve81]

is this price correct? Last winter the suggested price was indicated at $1450.

That's what they've got on their press releases.

 

[PENG]

is this price correct? Last winter the suggested price was indicated at $1450.

Don't forget they are made in Taiwan and the USD has strengthened since.

 

[sharkman]

I've heard from different sources that the price is indeed 950. Just looked on their site and it's not up just yet.

 

[sumerian]

Can some body help me understand why a plain JC2 Pre Amp is 4000$ and this P5 is 950$ with DAC

 

[sharkman]

State of the art design, cost no object parts(by comparison) and performance. If you think 4000 is expensive(I for one do!) try products by Macintosh, Conrad Johnson, Krell or Esoteric! Not my cup of tea exactly, Esoteric makes a mono block amp that lists for 25,000.

 

[Irvrobinson]

Can some body help me understand why a plain JC2 Pre Amp is 4000$ and this P5 is 950$ with DAC

The JC2 uses all discrete circuit devices and is fully balanced from input to output, the P5 is IC-based and isn't fully balanced. The JC2 channels are on separate circuit boards, the chassis uses shielded compartments, a heavy chassis and a really overbuilt power supply, and it weighs 24lbs. The P5, with a lot more functionality, weighs only 15lbs. They represent two different levels of design and build quality.

 

[macddmac]

Can some body help me understand why a plain JC2 Pre Amp is 4000$ and this P5 is 950$ with DAC

A whole lot more engineering and parts in a JC-2.. Fully balanced/ differential circuits, input to output. Top of the line stereo preamp in the Halo category. For analog purists with deep pockets whereas the P5 will be marketed to : A- guys like me that have a smaller budget.
And or B: who don't have any qualms with digital sources and also like a subwoofer in their 2 channel setups.
ymmv.
Cheers,Mac

 

[sumerian]

Thanks for the replies guys...