Parasound, Bryston, or Crown

[The Dude]

Has anyone compared the Parasound HCA750a to something like the Bryston 2b-lp or Crown D75as?

 

I have tried the Brystons and did not care for them.  The Crowns are good, but would to hear if anyone had issues with the Parasounds.  Any turn on thump? Any major floor noise (may not be the correct term) or excessive gain noise?

[JohnA]

I had an HCA-1000A and an HCA-1203A.  No noise, even through La Scalas.  Slightly, maaaybe, possibly warm sounding, smooth, get out of the way of the music sound.  I loved them.  I also had an early ACT-3 pre/pro.  IT had a high noise floor, but the input gain controls on the Parasounds cut that to barely audible, a useful feature. 

 

FWIW, after the Klipsch upgrade to the ACT-3 it was a low noise, easily used, easily calibrated, OUTSTANDING sounding pre/pro, essentially an Aragon Stage 1.  If lightning hadn't killed it, I'd still be proudly using it. 

 

What I didn't like was sending the 1203A back twice to have the turn on relays replaced under warranty.  I sold both immediately after getting the 1203A back after the 2nd repair.  They were replaced with an Acurus A125x5.  Upon initial listening, I thought the Acurus *might* have had an angstrom less bass, probably because I had read that online.  So, also have a look at Acurus for similar bottom of "high-end" amps. 

[edwinr]

Andrew Robinson from hometheaterequipment.com is a fan of Crown amplifiers.  Here's a link to a thread where he discusses pros and cons of using pro audio gear at home.  It's interesting reading: 

 

http://www.hometheaterequipment.com/threads/1319-Crown-Audio-XLS-Drivecore-Series-Amplifier-The-OFFICIAL-Thread?s=a4d621b36879edf20f818897939c73cb

[The Dude]

I am currently running Crown d45s and am quit happy with them.  I thought about going with something with a little more power, if I was going to spend the money, I thought I would try something different.