| Model: | HCA 3500 |
| Category: | Amplifier (SS) |
| Suggested Retail Price: | $2195 |
| Description: | Stereo Amplifier |
| Manufacturer URL: | Parasound |
|
Review by ccd on June 27, 1999 at 05:05:05 IP Address: 168.191.57.188 |
Add Your Review for the HCA 3500 |
What a beast! Over 100 lbs., fully dual mono design right down to dual power cords, this a well-built amp. A quick comparison with a competitor shows the quality. The Parasound has handles for carrying, the Rotel 1090, which weighs almost as much as the Parasound, does not. The XLR connectors on the back of the Parasound are metal, part of the XLR connectors on the Rotel are plastic. Rotel should have taken a closer look at this product before they introduced their much awaited 1090.The Parasound is biased to Class A for the first 15 watts and is AB for the rest of its 350W/channel power. This amp generates a fair degree of heat and requires adequate ventilation. The amp has a huge power supply, 1.4kVA per channel and 120 amps peak per channel! Very impressive!
If you have inefficient speakers, this amp has got to be a candidate. The only power failing is that it is not rated to drive 2 ohms loads.
Sound Quality - Sound quality in the bass regions is outstanding. In the upper registers, unfortunately, the amp lacks detail in comparison with some more expensive amps. I have a Spectron Digital 1 amp here for comparison. Although the Digital 1 generates 300W/channel, its bass sound anemic compared to the Parasound. In the upper regions, the Spectron is much more detailed. I have another SS amp here and the Parasound compared favorably to it in all frequencies.
| Product Weakness: | Lack of detail in mid/upper range. |
| Product Strengths: | Raw, brute power. |
| Associated Equipment for this Review: | |
| Amplifier: | Spectron Digital 1 |
| Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): | Marchand Passive Preamp |
| Sources (CDP/Turntable): | CD - Dennon |
| Speakers: | Custom (Manger and AFT 8 drivers) |
| Cables/Interconnects: | Custom |
| Music Used (Genre/Selections): | Mostly Jass |
| Room Size (LxWxH): | 20' x 12' x 9' |
| Room Comments/Treatments: | None |
| Time Period/Length of Audition: | 2-3 hours |
| Type of Audition/Review: | Home Audition |
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