USP 1 vs. Receiver as Preamp

[chicagoemo]

I have a 2 channel set up with the XPA 2. Currently I'm using an OK 5.1 receiver as the preamp.

What's the benefit of using the USP 1 or a comparable preamp please?

Thanks

[hemster]

Hey ChicagoEmo,

An OK receiver will have OK quality too. Might be fine for HT usage but if you listen to 2-channel music, I'd say that the USP-1 will have a marked improvement! I'm sure others will chime in here..

[moehoward]

usp1 is a night and day improvement from my mmc1.been listening to my erc+usp+xpa2 setup. went back to my mmc1 via optical cable for party mode. i couldnt believe how dull and lifeless it sounded. i hope this helps.

[BillBauman]

Apr 13, 2010 7:25:10 GMT -5 moehoward said:

usp1 is a night and day improvement from my mmc1.been listening to my erc+usp+xpa2 setup. went back to my mmc1 via optical cable for party mode. i couldnt believe how dull and lifeless it sounded. i hope this helps.

moehoware, you compared the USP-1's apples to the MMC-1's oranges. The USP-1 does not have an optical input, so you used the very high quality ERC-1 DAC to convert the digital music to analog, then send it through the USP-1's very high quality analog inputs out to the amplifier. With the MMC-1, you took the digital information from the ERC-1, transferred it to the MMC-1's aging and inferior DACs, converted it to analog there, and sent it out to the amp.

While I don't doubt that the USP-1's analog input stage is better than the MMC-1's, the different would not be nearly as severe were you to use the analog outputs of the ERC-1 into the analog inputs of the MMC-1. You would also have a much more apples to apples comparison.

[moehoward]

bill,i know and acknowledge your assertion, but even the rca jacks to the direct inputs cant come close to the sound of the usp. once again, night and day(at least to my ears)

[BillBauman]

Apr 13, 2010 12:15:31 GMT -5 moehoward said:

bill,i know and acknowledge your assertion, but even the rca jacks to the direct inputs cant come close to the sound of the usp. once again, night and day(at least to my ears)

I've never owned either, but that's not a statement I would question. The USP-1 has gotten a lot of praise, and the MMC-1 is probably just not up to the task of going head-to-head with such a high quality 2-channel pre. Your comments are another testament to the excellent sound of the USP-1. I'm hoping the UMC-1 is close enough that I can use it for dual-duty and be happy with its 2-channel performance.

[roadrunner]

Bill B

Only your ears, and your expectations, can tell you if the UMC-1 is good enough for dual purpose usage. The UMC-1 is definitely a step up over previous pre/pros for analog performance. However, if you have high quality analog source equipment for input to the USP-1, you will find that the UMC-1 is not up to the same sound quality. As Lonnie pointed out when the USP-1 was first launched, the USP-1 will have better analog sound quality than any previous or current Emotiva pre/pro.

When you consider that all the pro reviews of the previous Emotiva processors received rave reviews for their sound quality that should speak volumes for just how good the USP-1 really is. I compared my MMC-1, both analog and digital inputs, to the Integra 9.8 and the MMC-1 was far better in its analog performance. The MMC-1 also bested the Integra on digital inputs, but that comparison was much closer than the analog comparison was.

I believe the OP was looking at an old Onkyo 5.1 receiver (the 787 if I remember from another thread). That older Onkyo was a nice sounding unit, in its day, but it would not begin to compete with the USP-1 -- or even the MMC-1 for that matter. If the OP has high quality media and will be playing it on high quality source gear, the improvement from using the USP-1 versus his old Onkyo will be night and day. ;D

[BillBauman]

I'm gonna go with what roadrunner said.

[moehoward]

ditto. what he said.

[chicagoemo]

Roadrunner, good memory. Yes I have the Onkyo 787. I like Bill's idea of waiting for the XDA1. Thanks all for the comments and advice. Steve

[BillBauman]

Apr 13, 2010 17:56:18 GMT -5 chicagoemo said:

Roadrunner, good memory. Yes I have the Onkyo 787. I like Bill's idea of waiting for the XDA1. Thanks all for the comments and advice. Steve

That'll confused people.

I spoke to Steve on the phone and recommended waiting for the XDA-1 and use it as a pure digital preamp. I'm going to write up the concept over at Emonatics in a little more detail at some point. Basically, it's the XDA-1 is going to be a Digital Audio Preamp/Processor. At its price, it has the potential to become legendary.