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Post by tsruha on Feb 3, 2017 16:59:10 GMT -5
How would you rate the phone stage compared to Lehmann's Black Cube?
I currently am using a USP-1 and for those who are familiar with both preamps, is there a benefit to upgrade to the XSP-1 GEN 2?
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Post by knucklehead on Feb 3, 2017 17:34:10 GMT -5
I think it was Lonnie who mentioned why the USP-1 phono stage sounds so good. It was lifted from the RSP-1/2 preamps - highly rated preamps from all accounts and they still sell well when they come up for sale. I've owned the USP-1 and XSP-1 and found very little difference. I'm working from memory since I never compared them side by side. Other than the inability to dim the USP-1's lights I'd have no problem owning one today if I were in the market for a 2 channel preamp.
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klinemj
Emo VIPs 
Honorary Emofest Scribe
Posts: 14,744
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Post by klinemj on Feb 9, 2017 17:28:55 GMT -5
How would you rate the phone stage compared to Lehmann's Black Cube? I currently am using a USP-1 and for those who are familiar with both preamps, is there a benefit to upgrade to the XSP-1 GEN 2? I felt it was worthwhile to upgrade from USP-1 to XSP-1. I thought the X's sound was a little cleaner over all (lower noise, clearer highs) and I found the U's jumpy volume control problematic. The X gave me much better control over volume level. Mark |
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Post by stads77 on Feb 9, 2017 17:35:23 GMT -5
I found phono stage not worth the upgrade.
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Post by jimlazaro on Feb 10, 2017 0:04:02 GMT -5
That's my question also if really worth it to get xsp-1 gen2 to upgrade from usp-1 for my future setup for turntable music Hall ikura?
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Post by jimlazaro on Feb 10, 2017 0:07:35 GMT -5
This is what I have right now.
XPA2 GEN2 and I have extra XPA2 GEN1
ERC2 CD
STEALTH DAC1
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Post by garbulky on Feb 10, 2017 10:30:26 GMT -5
This is what I have right now. XPA2 GEN2 and I have extra XPA2 GEN1 ERC2 CD STEALTH DAC1 Assuming you don't have subwoofers and are not interested in bass management. Get the Emotiva SP-1 (different product and cheaper than the XSP-1, shares the same phono stage - I think). Then run the DC-1 directly to the XPA-2 gen 2 using the DC-1. That's what I would do. The remote for your DC-1 will control your SP-1 seamlessly. You can connect the Emotiva ERC-2 CD player to the DC-1 via AES. This would be quite a good system! It also matches the DC-1 in cosemetics. emotiva.com/products/pres-and-pros/electronics/sp-1 |
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Post by tsruha on Feb 10, 2017 12:42:09 GMT -5
I sold my sub but will definitely be getting another. I bought the XSP-1 GEN 2.
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Post by Gary Cook on Feb 10, 2017 14:35:55 GMT -5
I sold my sub but will definitely be getting another. I bought the XSP-1 GEN 2. I'm sure you will enjoy it, it's not a huge, night and day, upgrade as the USP-1 is a great pre amp. I moved to the XSP-1 to take advantage of the XLR balanced discrete circuitry all the way through the system from the ERC-3 to the XPA-1L's. In the system layout now I have the XPA-1L's located close by their respective speaker which necessitates long (5 metre) XLR interconnects. As a result it wasn't a simple USP-1 out and XSP-1 in swap, there are cable upgrades as wel, RCA to Emotiva XLR and DIY speaker cables to short (1 metre) Emotiva speaker cables. The resulting sound is definitely superior, especially quietness, it's dead silent. The sound stage is also more 3 dimensional and tighter in the instrument location within that sound stage. The bass management also gives a more "integrated" sound, not that the USP-1 was slack. In summary, tiny little improvements, evolution not revolution. With an XPA-2 your comparison should be much simpler, so please post up a review when you have a chance. Cheers Gary |
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Post by jimlazaro on Feb 10, 2017 18:00:27 GMT -5
I just purchased the xsp-1 gen2. It will be using that for my turntable. So this what I'll do to my setup pls if you have advice let me know.
Xsp-1 gen2
Music Hall Ikura turntable
Xpa 2 gen2 amp
Erc2 cd with Stealth dac1
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Post by tsruha on Feb 11, 2017 7:19:29 GMT -5
I sold my sub but will definitely be getting another. I bought the XSP-1 GEN 2. I'm sure you will enjoy it, it's not a huge, night and day, upgrade as the USP-1 is a great pre amp. I moved to the XSP-1 to take advantage of the XLR balanced discrete circuitry all the way through the system from the ERC-3 to the XPA-1L's. In the system layout now I have the XPA-1L's located close by their respective speaker which necessitates long (5 metre) XLR interconnects. As a result it wasn't a simple USP-1 out and XSP-1 in swap, there are cable upgrades as wel, RCA to Emotiva XLR and DIY speaker cables to short (1 metre) Emotiva speaker cables. The resulting sound is definitely superior, especially quietness, it's dead silent. The sound stage is also more 3 dimensional and tighter in the instrument location within that sound stage. The bass management also gives a more "integrated" sound, not that the USP-1 was slack. In summary, tiny little improvements, evolution not revolution. With an XPA-2 your comparison should be much simpler, so please post up a review when you have a chance. Cheers Gary Right now I'm using a pair of Monoprice XLR cables from the preamp to the amp (they're all I have at the moment). I've been looking at different xlr cables that make sense instead of spending $200 dollars on a pair of 1' cables and still, I can't find the awg or wire strand with them. Emotiva's XLR's seem to be very high quality and they state the specs. Nothing to hide and from what I can from spending 2 days on the internet and in Guitar Center is that Emotiva is the way to go for $80 per set. What do you think is a good cable? I see you use Emotiva but wondering if you have any experience with any of the others. |
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Post by ehmokey on Feb 11, 2017 10:04:15 GMT -5
I'm sure you will enjoy it, it's not a huge, night and day, upgrade as the USP-1 is a great pre amp. I moved to the XSP-1 to take advantage of the XLR balanced discrete circuitry all the way through the system from the ERC-3 to the XPA-1L's. In the system layout now I have the XPA-1L's located close by their respective speaker which necessitates long (5 metre) XLR interconnects. As a result it wasn't a simple USP-1 out and XSP-1 in swap, there are cable upgrades as wel, RCA to Emotiva XLR and DIY speaker cables to short (1 metre) Emotiva speaker cables. The resulting sound is definitely superior, especially quietness, it's dead silent. The sound stage is also more 3 dimensional and tighter in the instrument location within that sound stage. The bass management also gives a more "integrated" sound, not that the USP-1 was slack. In summary, tiny little improvements, evolution not revolution. With an XPA-2 your comparison should be much simpler, so please post up a review when you have a chance. Cheers Gary Right now I'm using a pair of Monoprice XLR cables from the preamp to the amp (they're all I have at the moment). I've been looking at different xlr cables that make sense instead of spending $200 dollars on a pair of 1' cables and still, I can't find the awg or wire strand with them. Emotiva's XLR's seem to be very high quality and they state the specs. Nothing to hide and from what I can from spending 2 days on the internet and in Guitar Center is that Emotiva is the way to go for $80 per set. What do you think is a good cable? I see you use Emotiva but wondering if you have any experience with any of the others. TS> My experience with cables is not extensive so take this with a grain of salt. Additionally, I do not have XLR cables. However, I upgraded my speaker cables from generic 18 AWG to Emotiva's XSS 10 AWG speaker cables. The build quality is great, and most importantly I did perceive a change in sound for the better. The mid range became more natural and in particular the female voices sound more "in the room". I thought purchasing the Emotiva cables was worth the price. Attachments:
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Post by tsruha on Feb 11, 2017 11:49:34 GMT -5
Those cables look fantastic!
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Post by Gary Cook on Feb 11, 2017 14:42:35 GMT -5
I'm sure you will enjoy it, it's not a huge, night and day, upgrade as the USP-1 is a great pre amp. I moved to the XSP-1 to take advantage of the XLR balanced discrete circuitry all the way through the system from the ERC-3 to the XPA-1L's. In the system layout now I have the XPA-1L's located close by their respective speaker which necessitates long (5 metre) XLR interconnects. As a result it wasn't a simple USP-1 out and XSP-1 in swap, there are cable upgrades as wel, RCA to Emotiva XLR and DIY speaker cables to short (1 metre) Emotiva speaker cables. The resulting sound is definitely superior, especially quietness, it's dead silent. The sound stage is also more 3 dimensional and tighter in the instrument location within that sound stage. The bass management also gives a more "integrated" sound, not that the USP-1 was slack. In summary, tiny little improvements, evolution not revolution.With an XPA-2 your comparison should be much simpler, so please post up a review when you have a chance. Right now I'm using a pair of Monoprice XLR cables from the preamp to the amp (they're all I have at the moment). I've been looking at different xlr cables that make sense instead of spending $200 dollars on a pair of 1' cables and still, I can't find the awg or wire strand with them. Emotiva's XLR's seem to be very high quality and they state the specs. Nothing to hide and from what I can from spending 2 days on the internet and in Guitar Center is that Emotiva is the way to go for $80 per set. What do you think is a good cable? I see you use Emotiva but wondering if you have any experience with any of the others. I've used balanced cables with XLR connectors a lot in professional environments, microphones, instruments as well as interconnecting components and my observation is that they all sound the same. However there are very much differences in the quality of the cable and the connectors themselves. The physical deterioration in some of the cheaper "plastic" enclosed cables is dramatic, hence why I prefer the "cloth" style covering. Also the connectors, I do prefer metal connnectors although some of the molded soft plastic connectors are good quality. I avoid the hard plastic click together style as they crack easily. As a result, for me, the Emotiva cables nail the brief, excellent quality at a very reasonable price. Cheers Gary |
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