# Parasound Really is Amazing



## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
My garage is chock full of various broken pieces of AV Gear. Here is just a few of the top of my head. A Marantz MA700 with a broken Binding Post? Check. Sony DVP-CX995V 400 DVD Changer that I probably spent 1000 hours entering in Disc Titles and constantly rearranging before it stopped reading discs? Check. And finally a Parasound HCA-1000a that I used to run Bridged to drive whatever Center Channel was being used in my HT.

The 1000a stopped working and I figured it was just a fuse. Upon taking it apart and replacing the Fuse, nothing. As I have several other Power Amplifiers, I just placed it in the broken toy collection. Somehow after the failed "surgery", I lost all the screws to the Casing as well.

2 Weeks ago it dawned on me that Parasound's HCA Series offered a 10 Year Parts and 5 Years Labor Warranty so I figured I would give the folks at Parasound a call. To my great surprise, it was purchased 9 years and 11 months ago and was given a RMA Number.

I thankfully still had the original packaging and an additional box as Parasound insists on Double Boxing. So off I went to the Post Office as The UPS Store charges a kings ransom these days. For instance, I recently sent Leonard back the Darblet DVP-5000 he so kindly let me check out. A 2 pound package going from Sarasota, Florida to Gainesville, Florida cost me around $20. It was Insured for the full purchase price. At the USPS, the 35 pound box containing the HCA-1000a going from Sarasota, FL to San Francisco only cost me $30. This included $400 of Insurance and a Tracking Number.

Yesterday, I called Parasound just to see how things were going only to find out that they had already repaired and shipped back out the amplifier. Even better, it ended up arriving today looking absolutely brand spanking new. While way past the Labor part of the Warranty, Parasound charged me nothing.

Upon hooking it up to serve as my Center Channel Amplifier, I was greeted with deafening Ground Loop endemic to every Parasound Amplifier I own before placing a Cheater Plug on. (HTS, Underwriters Laboratory, Ralph Nader, and Joan Claybrook neither condone or advocate the use of Cheater Plugs) After being rid of the hum, I stand astonished at just how amazing my Martin Logan Stage sounds with the 1000a in Bridged Mono Operation.

Looking into the specs of the HCA-1000a, while rated at 125 x 2, it actually has quite similar specs to the Emotiva XPA-3. The 1000a uses a 785VA Toroidal Transformer to the XPA-3's 850VA. In respect to Filter Capacitance, the 1000a offers 40,000uf to the XPA-3's 60,000uf. So per channel, the Capacitance is identical and the Parasound a slightly smaller TT. Again, the 1000a is a 2 Channel and of course the XPA-3 is a 3 Channel Amplifier. The HCA-1000a is THX Ultra Certified and was Designed by legend John Curl as well.

The 1000a is actually almost identical to the current Parasound Halo A23. The A23 does offer a slightly larger TT (1.0 kVA vs 785VA) and a slightly larger Capacitor Bank (48,000uf vs 40,000uf) and a much snazzier Industrial Design. However, while costing $950 to the HCA-1000a's $650, the Halo Warranty is only 5 Years for Parts & Labor. This holds true for the entire Halo Range.

All I can say is if looking for a solid Power Amplifier on the Used Market, the 1000a is an amazing value. They usually sell for around $300 for a mint one and a good bit less for one with blemishes.
Cheers,
JJ


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## Wardsweb (Apr 2, 2010)

Always glad to hear a happy ending. I just gave one of these away, as I have way to much stuff. I guess my buddy got a better deal than I thought. Pay it forward.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Wardsweb said:


> Always glad to hear a happy ending. I just gave one of these away, as I have way to much stuff. I guess my buddy got a better deal than I thought. Pay it forward.


Hello,
That is a wonderful item to giveaway! I am sure they will be quite happy with it.
Cheers,
JJ


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Thanks for the write-up JJ - I must say that I had never heard of Parasound amps until you suggested them to me a while back. The more reviews I read on them, the more I figure to one day own one.


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## Peter Loeser (Aug 11, 2012)

This is encouraging JJ. I am trying to solve a couple of problems with an HCA-1205A with the help of a couple of other HTS forum members (here). It's a tad rough cosmetically, but I picked it up used for about 380 bones before shipping, so even if I have to spend something to getting 100% working it still seems like a bargain. I love the sound (when it works) so I still have me heart set on keeping it. If I can't get it going on my own, it sounds like a phone call to Parasound may be worth my while. Thanks for sharing your experience.


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## Anthony (Oct 5, 2006)

I had a Parasound 850 for a while. It had a humming capacitor in the power supply that I could hear from the listening position. I sent it back for warranty repair, they didn't fix anything and said it checked out. Of course I could still hear the hum, so I wrote a letter to Parasound detailing my frustration.

The president replied to my letter and they agreed to take the 850 back and upgrade me to the 1250 model for free. Needless to say, I was shocked and delighted that they would take the extra effort to make this right.

That was years ago and I've since upgraded my power amp, but I'll always back Parasound for their customer service!


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## sub_crazy (Nov 17, 2007)

Parasound is one of my favorite audio company's and there service has always been excellent. I am hoping they come out with a new pre-pro when the economy improves as the C2 I had was great and my best friend still uses it to this day. 

This reminds me, I still have an old Parasound HCA-1200II which was modified by Parasound to go with there GMAS-18 sub. I am going to get it out and try it again when I get a chance, great sub amp.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Anthony said:


> I had a Parasound 850 for a while. It had a humming capacitor in the power supply that I could hear from the listening position. I sent it back for warranty repair, they didn't fix anything and said it checked out. Of course I could still hear the hum, so I wrote a letter to Parasound detailing my frustration.
> 
> The president replied to my letter and they agreed to take the 850 back and upgrade me to the 1250 model for free. Needless to say, I was shocked and delighted that they would take the extra effort to make this right.
> 
> That was years ago and I've since upgraded my power amp, but I'll always back Parasound for their customer service!


Hello,
Parasound CEO Richard Schram really is one of the nicest folks I have ever spoken and dealt with. As I have owned multiple Parasound Amplifiers, I have had an opportunity to interact with them time to time and was always most pleased with the end result.

My 3500, 2205, and Aragon 8008bb are all really high powered, but there is something about the 1000a being run in Bridged Mode that just makes a Center Channel come alive. It is simply astonishing just how much better my Stage sounds.
Cheers,
JJ


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## FJR (Jul 5, 2012)

I totally agree, Richard is pretty amazing. I don't yet own any Parasound but I hope to in the future - P3 for certain if they add HT bypass. Now that you can get the A21, A31 and A51 ( I believe) in black as well as the original silver, they are such a phenomenal bang for the buck and look great also.


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt (Apr 13, 2006)

Thanks for the story, JJ :T Parasound garnered a reputation back in the 80s and 90s as a company offering excellent products. Haven’t heard much about them lately, so I’m surprised (and pleased) to hear they’re still around.

Regards, 
Wayne


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Wayne A. Pflughaupt said:


> Thanks for the story, JJ :T Parasound garnered a reputation back in the 80s and 90s as a company offering excellent products. Haven’t heard much about them lately, so I’m surprised (and pleased) to hear they’re still around.
> 
> Regards,
> Wayne


Wayne,
Parasound's Halo Line has garnered rave reviews. However, as most of the Halo Amplifiers seem to be the much lower priced HCA Series in much fancier Industrial Design, I do have some misgivings about the value. Especially with the Parts Warranty going from 10 Years to 5.

Stereophile awarded the Halo JC1 Monoblocks "2003 Amplifier of the Year" Award. In addition, it garnered rave reviews from the Absolute Sound, Secrets of Home Theater & High Fidelity and countless others. However, these $6500 Monoblocks are heavily based on the $2500 HCA-3500. The 3500 shared the same chassis, but were completely separate down to dual Power Cables and Power Switches.

I am a huge fan of the HCA Series which was discontinued when the Halo Series arrived. Their New Classic Series stuff does not compare to either the HCA or Halo for that matter in my estimation.
Cheers,
JJ


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