Parasound HCA-2200

[lightwriter62]

Hello all,
I have the opportunity to buy a like new amp at a very good price, a Parasound HCA-2200 mk-I. I googled it, seems the mk-II is preferred. I don't really need another amp, and I was hoping someone here had some experience with the mk-I, and could tell me if it was special enough to spend $300 on it.
Thanks, Kent


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[lightwriter62]

Bump


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[Alaric]

The 2200, not the MK-II, doesn't have much used pricing history that I can find. The information I could find about the amp indicated the capacitors were questionable coming out of Taiwan at the time they were made and a re cap may be a good idea. If it were my money I would probably pass on it, but, while it isn't the John Curl designed MK-II, it isn't likely to sound bad. Used Parasound amps show up on Audiogon here and there if you have your heart set on their gear, and I've seen some good stuff at decent prices. A little patience could get you a nice deal. Our resident Parasound guy (Chris D) has been pretty busy lately but maybe he'll stop in. The Parasound gear I've heard has generally been very good on the bang/buck ratio, and I wish I had some more meaningful input for you. Hopefully some other members will chime in with some help.

And welcome to the 'Guide! :later:

[wkhanna]

good advice by Lee (as usual).

and yes, welcome to the family!

[Burke Strickland]

Kent, perhaps instead of "bump", you could have explained to us why you are even considering purchase of an amplifier you say you don't really need (as you did in a follow up post at one of the other sites where you've posted this same inquiry):

I don't have a use for it at the moment, but I think I'd like to try it on my main system, and later on in planning on building an eighteen inch sub with a miniDSP, 1000watts bridged into 4ohms, with a dampening factor of 1000, and super clean power as well. I kinda appeals to me.
Kent

A quick Google search could have yielded John Curl's own advice on what to do with the first version of the Parasound HCA-2200 to make it more like his Mk II iteration, which would require some soldering to replace or remove certain parts that seemed to interfere with clean output. It might have also yielded the information that the price you've cited is about half what the amp has gone for elsewhere (although as Lee accurately stated, there's not a lot of online price history on this model), which leads to the question "is this one in good working condition?" or is the owner just desperate to clear some space in their rack or storage room?

If it is in good working order, risking $300 might be reasonable for the purposes you've outlined. (Of course you'd have to judge that based on other spending priorities.) A lot of people lose more than that on trades and used equipment sales to try something different.

Good luck, and enjoy!

[lightwriter62]

Thanks guys for all your responses, sorry if I was too cryptic in my post, but I am feeling a sense of urgency, as I didn't want to lose an opportunity, nor do I want to blow any money. So far, in asking this question on several forums, I've only heard back from one guy who has actually heard one, let alone, anyone who has owned one.
Burke, I did do all the googling I could, and I too read John Curls old thread on AK. I found 2200s on hifishark for sale in The US for $675, and one in Russia for over $1000.
Now, I can't believe that a JC amp can sound that bad, but even so, JC did offer a fix, but IIRC, the mk2 is a true dual mono, whereas the mk1 is not. I think if I do get it I'll try it on my mains, just to see if I like it better than my Bryston 4B, and, as I pondered, I could use it to power my sub build in the near future, all of which is subject to change, as one of my AVRs went up in smoke this afternoon.
Any idea if I should go go a used Pioneer Elite SC-68 for $350, or a new Harman Kardon AVR 3700? I will be using it as a pre on my mains, for both two channel music and surround. Or, I am open to any suggestions and advice.
Thanks again, Kent


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[Alaric]

The Parasound will sound-different-than a Bryston 4B. Before the JC recommended modifications I will go out on a limb and say the 4B will be more detailed, probably noticeably so. After the mods it will likely be a matter of personal preference but the 4B will still probably extend the detail a little further in to the top end. The Parasound amps I've heard don't lack in soundstage or musicality in comparison to the Bryston (I personally prefer the Parasounds) but system synergy will play its part as well. Example: My speakers are very detailed and sensitive, with some amps and sources they can be considered bright or harsh. With my amp they help out the shortcomings it has and let the things it does well shine. A Bryston with my speakers is fatiguing after a while (IMO), but a Parasound is much easier to live with. As always this is IMO and YMMV. Given the pricing stated here it sounds like you have a great opportunity to do some amp rolling, and that can only be good.

[lightwriter62]

Hi Alaric,
Thanks for your insights, I am currently running a vintage pair of Klipsch Epic CF3s, series two, and I just got a pair of series one to replace them. These Klipsch speakers seem to be a bit on the bright side, and I've been using some EQ (I know) with them to compensate for what I hear. When I ran RTA with some pink noise, there was a huge spike at 4khz, and I've been tweaking it ever since. Next I'll be trying REW, and importing the results into equaliser APO, that should flatten things out a bit. BTW, overall these speakers sound really good.
Kent


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[Alaric]

In a broader design sense, Klipsch speakers seem to have a similar design philosophy to Paradigm. Depending on the outcome of the mods to the Parasound, I think you'll like it. It should be roughly like my set up (only the Parasound is a better amp) in execution. The Bryston "house sound" has been described as clinical, and dry, but that depends a lot on the supporting gear so I think it is an unfair characterization. But what you describe with your current setup doesn't surprise me. I'm going to take back what I said in a previous post and encourage you to go for the Parasound if you can. If nothing else you can probably get your investment back reselling it if you decide to, and it should broaden your experience with different setups. If you get it, please let us know what you hear and what you think. Vicarious audio p0rn is always fun!