Surround Processor Reviews

The wide array of sound modes aside, a pre/pro still has to get two-channel music right, and the C1 doesn't disappoint. It sounded the best with the Revel Performa F50 speakers and the Krell DVD Standard DVD player, which I mixed in with both the Lexicon LX-7 amp and the rock-solid new Parasound A 51 amp. It also proved to be an excellent match for the Aragon Palladium monoblocks, Energy Veritas 2.4s, and Marantz DV8300 SACD/DVD-Audio player in my home A/V system. In a nutshell, the C1's profile is crisp and ultra-clean with dynamic range that doesn't quit. At no point did I find it to be harsh or overly aggressive with music, either. Even with my old Krell KAV-500 (hardly a shy amplifier) and the exuberant Energy speakers, the C1 maintained an obvious sense of control and composure, particularly in the upper frequencies. I listened intently for excess brightness in Pink Floyd's cymbal-heavy "Another Brick in the Wall" from the second Burmester collection, and I found no cause for concern, which isn't always the case with this rig. The C1 put every last detail of Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Tin Pan Alley" on the table, with a palpable sense of air and depth. Even with 16/44.1 tracks, the C1 never left me pining for the extra resolution that I'm so quickly becoming accustomed to from SACD and DVD-Audio.

Dynamics only improved as I switched over to high-resolution material—and not without a nice boost in warmth. Chesky's outstanding Swing Live SACD (Bucky Pizzarelli and company) sounded big and open, with razor-sharp detail and unmistakable immediacy. It was entirely approachable, as well, without oozing warmth or softening instruments like clarinets and brass that were designed to get the blood pumping. The bypass feature is fully successful on the eight-channel inputs—the C1 gets out of the way and lets the recording speak for itself. This especially rang true with my new SACD copy of Folk Singer from one of my all-time favorites, Muddy Waters. Being too young to have heard the legend in person, high-resolution recordings are as close as I can get, and the C1 facilitated this masterfully. "My Home Is in the Delta" was more haunting and evocative than I've ever heard it, with its slow, melancholy rhythm and stinging slide that seems to come from another world.

The C1's soundtrack performance was expectedly first-rate. The C1 gave music the same careful attention and detail that it did with CDs, while its wide dynamic range, space, and resolution gave dialogue and surround effects a real boost. Listening to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in its original Mandarin track lets you focus more on the words' sound than the words themselves, and the C1 handled this cornerstone of soundtrack performance masterfully. I ended up listening to most soundtracks in either Dolby Digital 5.1 or with THX Ultra 2 Cinema treatment. The C1 handled both virtually flawlessly. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring was an especially memorable ride, with a giant stage, a meticulously handled score, and fully enveloping surround effects. This DVD's Dolby EX track gained an extra sense of control and rear depth with Ultra 2 Cinema. The overall benefits of 7.1 may still be under debate, but, in the right hands, it can certainly be entertaining. Whatever format I used, the C1's soundtrack performance remained consistently outstanding.

At the end of the road, it doesn't really matter how long it took you to get there. What counts is what you do there, and I expect to see some very big things from the C1 now that it has finally arrived. Both music and movie performance are superb, it has just about every feature and function you can imagine, and yet it retains a clear sense of user-friendliness. By the way, it's one of the best-looking pre/pros you'll find anywhere. Ideally, all manufacturers would believe that getting things right is far more important than getting them done quickly. If the C1's story is any indication, it's clear that Parasound has taken this philosophy to heart. If you're in the pre/pro market in the mid to upper price range, there's no question that the C1 belongs on your absolutely shortest list.

Highlights

• Superior performance with music and movies
• Loaded with common and unique features
• You can easily pay a lot more for a lot less