We are looking at Cary Audio, Anthem, and Parasound as options for a new line. Anyone currently or recently worked with these products (primarily Surround Processors and amps)? Comments concerning performance, control issues, etc would be appreciated.

Keith

I've been using Anthem for several years with great success. Great sound, very flexible product, and firmware upload upgradeable. Very clean distribution, as well.

I will second the Anthem line from Sonic Frontiers. I own a AVM30 and a PVA7 for my Media room. Rs-232 control works fine and IR is solid. IR rear input ports, triggers, balanced ouputs, even for the second zone. It is as close as I can get to the Lexicon and keep my marriage.
May be tough to get depending on your area. Most reps want to pair it with the Paradigm speaker line.

Oh I almost forgot...How many companies do this?
[Link: anthemav.com]

This message was edited by GotGame on 06/16/05 11:27 ET.

Lexicon is followed closely by Anthem.

It is the only processor that is priced lower than a Lexicon that I would actually sell or own. Their control from IR or serial seems to be extremely robust and easy to work with.

I have a lot of respect for Cary from their tube amp days, but I have to think this is a "me too" reaction from them.

We have sold the Parasound gear previously, and loved it. We stopped due to the Australian distributor being useless. RS-232, Discrete IR, even some nifty pass-throu on the processors. And top notch sound Q to boot. Great Stuff!

I am looking at an Anthem AVM2 and it's a piece of ****. I spent over an hour trying to reconfigure the surround mode for a given input. Ok it's an early unit and I sure hoped they learned a bit from this screw up. Not having the remote nor the manual doesn't help either. ( And the early B&K piece of **** is an other example of an audiophile company who did not get but have improved their com protocol. I'd elaborate but too few here program and it wouldn't be understood. ) I am sure the newer units have improved ( as if they could not improve upon a zero ) but I would venture carefully into a pond where some mind thought this was a product worthy of release. I DOES SOUND GOOD---as if I care as it's playing through those sonorous Sonance in walls ( I only programmed this job ).

Nonetheless, my experience with this "product" would cause me to run like mad from this Candian disaster. If pressing the effects button does not cause the unit to change its surrond mode there is a problem in conceptiualizing a user interface. If the IR window is so sensitive that blowing air at the same time an IR code is generated caused problems ( a slight exaggeration ). I am sure this is a unit whose sound DJNORM would approve. But what they know of egonomics, judging from this effort is tanimount what this Administration knew of Iraq when they began this war.

Parasound just works. They get it, got it and continue to get it. They may not be as Audiophile approved as the Anthem but their stuff works and is a dream to control. Ballsy amps, tuners with direct control ( as in we can now listen to 101.1 --only in NY would this be understood ).

I do love my Carry Audio 300Bs. These DJNORM would approve. However, give me a Crestron DAP8 any day. I've been dying to audition it against either the Lexicon MC12 or the Meridian. I have more than a sneaking suspicion that it will more than hold its own against the Lexicon and be a very close second ( at a lot less money ) to the Merridian.

Alan

We don't sell Parasound, but I had to program a remote to work one once, and it worked very well... Didn't sound half bad, either. I believe we have both a DAP8 and an 861 in the store at the same time - I think I'll try that test if I get a chance... You've made me curious...

PS I tried listening to 101.1 this week while driving in to NYC... I just didn't get it... What is this new format? "eclectic everything, but not new, and not loud"??? I'll stick with WNYC.

We are a Parasound and an Anthem dealer, we also are the only STATEMENT dealers in our area, if you want a serious piece, do the statement gear, it is amazing to hear the steering on this thing, it is scary accurate. The Parasound is really reliable but the setup of the Anthem is far more advanced and capable.

sell and install both the Anthem and Parasound Halo lines, really like both, the Athem sounds better and has a far more advanced setup menu, but the lack of OSD through the component video (on both) really sucks. The Parasound Halo has BNC video and XLR audio, and the Anthem only has XLR, no BNC. Both have multizone with Anthem having 3 zones. You can't go wrong with either brand.

What's your guys side by side comparrison between performance and build quality of the Anthem Statement power amp line and the Parasound Halo power amp line?

Have not heard the Statements but the JC1's from Parasound...OMG! great design and sound for its intended application. Got a pair on the floor to demo.

" The JC 1 Monaural Amplifier might possibly be the world’s finest power amplifier. Parasound, John Curl and CTC Builders collaborated in the design of this amplifier to create a new standard for elegance, sonic precision and value. The JC 1 provides 400 watts into 8 ohms with 135 amps of peak current. Its 25 watts of pure Class A power is user-switchable to 10 watts of Class A power when heat dissipation is a concern. "

The Anthem offers untouchable performance and capability for the money. In addition, the support Anthem and Paradigm give to their dealers is unmatched.

Alan, sorry to hear you're having trouble with the old AVM-2. The basic user interface has not changed from the original. Yes, running it without a remote is harder, without a manual harder yet. Nonetheless, I think you would find it an excellent unit once you were into it a little bit. I'll give you an example....

A client of mine has two surround rooms with a single rack of electronics, incuding an AVM-20, same basic thing as an AVM-2. One room is a 5.1, the other larger room a 7.1. I was able to serially load the different sets of surround parameters into the AVM depending on which room was selected, something I'm not sure is possible with many other units.

If you need help with your headache AVM-2 please feel free to give me a ring.

i secound that setting up the anthem without the manual is brutal.
Great stuff though with tons of advanced setup options and great control.

I was not trying to set up the Anthem only change the surround mode for that input. Only you have to go into setup to accomplish that. A monumentally supid programming error. Many good surround preamps are difficult to setup. The DAP8 is full of features including parametric EQ but changing a surround mode is not equivellent to setting up a unit. Proceed and Mark Levinson are also chock full of features that take some time to setup but if you want to change the surround mode it's a discrete button press ( or a cycle press on the pre/pro but the unit will change its surround mode.) While programming a DAP8 is not easy changing a surround mode is a mere button press; just like every other surround processor/receiver you could name. Except the Anthem.

Alan