Bottom Line: Halo C2 vs Classic 7100

[slayer]

Bottom line, what is the better unit. I have not had a chance to use either yet. I can get a C2 right now for $1600. It's 5 months old in perfect condition. It only has the main remote and manual. No sidekick remote or Calibration Mic. Owner was a rich dude who paid someone to hook everything up and the installer did not leave them for him. I will have to buy them seperate.
What else would I be missing if I had bought it new?

And I can get the 7100 for less than 2K new. Is this a better choice. Looking at the rear panel construction and quality tells me to get the Halo.
Opinions needed.

[psychdoc]

I have the 7100 and absolutely love it. But, common sense has to come into play... an almost new C2 for $1600??? WOW. The big problem is with the warranty unless the guy you are buying it from is your buddy and is willing to cover you by handling any future repairs if that ever needs to be done. If that were the case, I'd go with the C2, just my opinion.

In either case you will not be disappointed. Like I said, I absolutely love the 7100 and have no regrets with not selecting the Halo. I knew both lines were going to be great. I hope you enjoy Parasound as much as me. By the way, why is the guy selling after such a short time???? Matt.

[Chris D]

slayer, first, welcome to the Guide and Club Parasound! :banana:

I would say YES, jump on that C2. As for the sidekick remote, I never use mine, so you may find no use for it either. The calibration mic is a nice-to-have, but you can do a manual calibration, too, with not too much extra trouble.

[J.H.]

I have the 7100 and would say you'd be crazy not to get a C2 for $1,600! The 7100 is awesome but the C2 I have heard is one of the best processors on the market at any price point. Thats what i have been told. J.H.

[Kingdaddy]

IMO the C2 is the best sounding Processor for 4K or under, for $1600 is a steal, go for it.

[CP-Mike]

What about warranty? If you buy used, will Parasound not honor the warranty? That'd be a deal-breaker for me unless the price was REALLY low.

[J.H.]

Parasound will not honor the warranty but you are still getting a $4,000 processor for $1,600. The warranty is great so he will have to weigh that out. J.H.

[slayer]

I own a Home Theater business and Parasound is one of my brands. I don't sell much of it and have not had a chance to use the 7100 yet. I don't sell Halo but could if I wanted to commit to a certain $ of sales a year. I sell more Denon, Marantz, Sherwood Newcastle, and ADA. I have been looking for a new Pre/Pro for myself and kept looking at the C2. I have always liked the look of the Halo products and know how good Parasound is for the $. Problem is my cost on it is still up there, more than the other half will let me spend at the moment. Cost on the 7100 is a bit more than the price I can get this C2 for. That is why I was asking which was better. The original owner is a very wealthy cat who rotates gear in and out at will. It's rotation time. He is trying to find the invoice for it and swears he never sent a warranty card in for it. Do they come with one? Plus the 7100 does not come in silver?????
I'm going to get the C2 as most of what I've read here indicates the pure goodness of what the C2 will produce. I can't wait. As far as the mic for it. I usualy just use my trusty analog Radio Shack spl meter with great results. But what I've read, the halo Mic does a better job. Can anyone confirm this?

[CP-Mike]

Allegedly, auto-setup via the mic can calibrate the distances down to 6-inch increments, as opposed to 1 foot increments if you do it manually through the OSD. But really, how much difference does a 0.5 ms difference between distance settings of 10' and 10'6" make?

[Chris D]

Hmmmm... well, first, it sounds like you need to introduce me to this rich guy so I can pick up some of his equipment, too!

No, no warranty cards for the Halo gear. The invoice would help.

If you have a Rat Shack SPL meter, you're good to go. I would say that the meter would be more accurate than the auto cal, as you really can't get any more accurate than the no-kidding SPL reading at wherever you place the meter. But I have got MINIMAL difference in readings by using the auto cal mic.

And yes, New Classic equipment only comes in black, Halo only in silver.

[slayer]

Thanks for the input guys. And thanks for the welcome banana. I can't wait to try it out. I'm going to use the XLR connections so I need to pick up some new cables.
Analysis Plus or Straightwire should do fine. I'm sure I will be doing some posting to resolve some issues. I run 2-3 subs in my system usually. I hear that when you use the 7.1 inputs, it will output to the main sub output. Has anyone figured a way around this yet?

[Chris D]

Oh, I almost forgot... yes, I think the auto-cal WOULD be more accurate in just one thing--distance settings for the subwoofer. My level and distance settings change minimally from a manual to auto calibration, but the subwoofer distance reading from auto-cal apparently doesn't really go off of physical distance to the sub(s), but sets a value that makes it sound best instead.

[CP-Mike]

Does the C2 really sound that much better than the 7100? Sure, it's a $4000 processor vs the 7100, a $3000 processor, but it's a two+ year-old $4000 processor vs a brand new $3000 processor. So what you're saying, and what I'm having a hard time swallowing, is that even though the 7100 has the newest DAC's, DSP engine, software, etc, that it still sounds inferior to the C2? Why? Besides the looks, besides the fact that it retails for more than the 7100, and besides the fact that there are more positive feelings for the C2 on this forum (due mostly to the fact that the C2 has been out much longer), what about the C2's performance is better than the 7100?

I'm not trying to put down the C2. I'm honestly interested in why it is recommended almost unanimously over the 7100, and I'm having a hard time sorting it all out. Both units get excellent reviews. Owners of each model love their respective gear. The feature sets are fairly similar, and the prices aren't so far apart as to target them towards different market segments. So I'm really confused why all of you recommended the C2 over the 7100. Was it just because it was priced so low? Please enlighten me.

[slayer]

Here is what Paul at Parasound said to me answering the same question.



Hi Randy:
Bang for the buck, I'd go with the 7100.
There is a bit more headroom (if you really like to crank it up) in the
C2 but
there is upconversion and more component inputs on the 7100. The sound
is
almost identical between the two and although they are on different
platforms,
they are built in the same factory using many of the same parts. Both
have the
same warranty.
We don't sell silver 7100's.

Hope that answers your question!

If not, email me and I'll do my best to answer any further questions!

Regards,
Paul C. Brownlee
Parasound

[psychdoc]

Hi CP-Mike,

Very good question. I have not done an A/B test so I cannot tell ya specific reasons. I have spoken to a well-informed person who has done that comparison and he mentioned that they were exceptionally close (he also didn't want to be identified for saying that). That being said, there are some obvious other differences between the units. The C2 looks very cool. The C2 is sold as the premiere/ flagship unit by being the sonic equal of the C-1 (bragging rights mean a lot to those in this hobby...and that is ok because it is a hobby).

For me, a 7100 owner, there were several reasons why I chose it over the C2 even though I could easily afford either one.

1) It is the newer unit. Although I have been a long time fan of Halo, that fact becomes a problem. I wanted something new not several years old.

2) Price. Although I could afford either unit, I don't like spending foolishly if I can avoid it. Like a few others in this club, I always check out Ebay for a great deal.

3) Everyone knows a lot about the C2, I wanted to work with the new 7100 as a novel experience and a breath of fresh air.

4) Probably least importantly, I love rooting for the underdog. The 7100 is like the brainy/fun/cute younger sister of a beauty queen. The beauty queen always gets the attention but I would rather take the fun, cute and intelligent sister to the football game. This last reason is just all about me. Kinda weird??? Maybe. But what do you expect from a psychiatrist. :W

I am in no way trying to diminish the amazing sound the Halo’s surely put out. I am just saying the 7100/ 5250 and soon to be released 2250 fit my personality better. I have loved every moment they have been in use and I plan to heavily consider buying future generation Parasound equipment as it comes out.

Take care, Matt.

[J.H.]

First of all I have written to Paul at Parasound many times and I would say he is the most honest person I have ever talked to in the HT business. He gives straight forward easy to understand answers. Very good I think. Always and I mean always writes back with an answer to your questions. I have a question too. How come no silver 7100? I have seen pictures of it so they must have made some right? Maybe it was too close in look to the Halo? Thanks J.H.

[slayer]

From what I've been told by my distributor, it is only available in Europe. But that was from a distributor, they usually know less than the dealers who buy from them.

[CP-Mike]

Thanks for your responses, Matt and Randy. I was hoping to get some more discussion out of the "pro-C2" camp. Not that there's an "anti-C2" camp, but you know what I mean. C'mon guys, can't anybody come up with a single concrete reason why the C2 is better than the 7100? So far we've ruled out sound, warranty, price, and features. The only things I could think of are balanced ins/outs and BNC connectors on the component ins/outs. Although, is the C2 even fully balanced? I seem to recall reading that the balanced ins/outs are not even implemented to their fullest extent on the C2.

Maybe this thread will get more traffic during the work week, as people try to find ways to waste time at work.

[psychdoc]

Don't forget the main reason I gave for the C2...it looks cool :T That should get some more people involved.

[Chris D]

Well, I think the info from Paul, the authoritative source directly, really can't be passed up.

If you're looking for words from the "pro-C2" guys, I would offer that while the C2 and 7100 do share some of the same parts as Paul said, the Halo gear have a different level of build quality than the New Classic.

And yes, the Halo does look COOL.

[slayer]

For me it's the damn looks! I just needed to confirm that the 7100 was not better than the C2 being it is newer. He confirmed that they are close to equal in terms of performance with the C2 having more headroom to crank it up and stay clean. So it boils down to looks. No brainer for me. C2 baby! I don't think you could go wrong either way though. I think it's a $1000 silver finish. I guess you have to factor in the MX-700 as well though. The 7100 does not have that.

[Chris D]

True, I love the MX-700. Matter of fact, I like it so much, that I bought a 2nd one for my bedroom, too. (or should I say I'm buying one--thanx, Peter)

[slayer]

I use one of the new TSU-7500 Prontos so I won't even use it. I might keep the MX-700 out so the wife and kids can use that instead of my pronto.

[goldear]

One of the features that I found useful on the C2 was the 4 aux channel outputs, giving it its 7.5 designation. These really came in handy for multiple subwoofer applications...or even extending the soundstage by adding additional side/ceiling speakers. While they draw off the existing channels, the flexibility is impressive since you can set both high and low pass filters...and mix and match any or all channels from -100 to +100.

[Chris D]

Ah yes, I forgot about that. I really need the programmable outputs for my Clark Synthesis tactile transducers. Otherwise, it would be a bit of a hassle to power and configure them. It's so easy with the C1.