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Post by miata57 on May 19, 2017 15:09:31 GMT -5
Hello All,
I was wondering if there is a significant difference in sound quality between the USP-1 and the much more expensive XSP-1. I have been holding back thinking there may not be, so was hoping some XSP-1 owners could give me some feedback.
My system is rather modest. I am using UPA-1 monoblocks, the XDA-2 DAC and the ERC-3 CD player along with the new T1 Speakier towers.
Any feedback would be appreciated.
Thanks
Howie
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Post by clearear on May 19, 2017 15:28:31 GMT -5
I have a USP-1 (sounds great) but haven't heard the the XSP-1. That said I've read that they are very close sound-wise so I'm pretty happy sticking with what I have.
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klinemj
Emo VIPs 
Honorary Emofest Scribe
Posts: 14,740
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Post by klinemj on May 19, 2017 15:31:00 GMT -5
I felt it was worth it for me. a bit clearer, lower noise floor, and smoother control of volume.
Mark
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Post by garbulky on May 19, 2017 15:45:37 GMT -5
Hello All, I was wondering if there is a significant difference in sound quality between the USP-1 and the much more expensive XSP-1. I have been holding back thinking there may not be, so was hoping some XSP-1 owners could give me some feedback. My system is rather modest. I am using UPA-1 monoblocks, the XDA-2 DAC and the ERC-3 CD player along with the new T1 Speakier towers. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks Howie You'll gain more upgrading your DAC. Go DC-1 direct to your monoblocks and profit! |
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Post by monkumonku on May 19, 2017 16:02:14 GMT -5
Hello All, I was wondering if there is a significant difference in sound quality between the USP-1 and the much more expensive XSP-1. I have been holding back thinking there may not be, so was hoping some XSP-1 owners could give me some feedback. My system is rather modest. I am using UPA-1 monoblocks, the XDA-2 DAC and the ERC-3 CD player along with the new T1 Speakier towers. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks Howie If you have a 2-channel system then why not just use the XDA-2 for a preamp? But if you want a separate preamp, I think the USP-1 should work fine. I have had both that and the XSP-1. The only thing I didn't like on the USP-1 was the volume control when used with a remote because the gradations in volume weren't fine enough. At 9:00 on the dial it was already pretty darn loud. The XSP-1 has finer control, a nice display and is more versatile, but you pay a lot more money for it, too. On my USP-1, I couldn't hear any noise or hiss until past 2:00 on the dial and if you ever turned it up that high you'd damage your hearing. When the USP-1 was released, it received pretty much universal praise in the Lounge, with people remarking about how quiet, neutral and excellent a unit it was (and I agree). When the XSP-1 was released, then some people said it was a significant improvement over the USP-1 because it was so quiet and neutral. But how much more neutral can neutral be? Neutral is neutral. I had the units at different times so I didn't compare them directly but I'd be happy with either of them. I never noticed that one sounded different from the other. And if the USP-1 was so good then how could something else be a significant improvement? |
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Post by garbulky on May 19, 2017 16:10:34 GMT -5
XDA=2 doesn't sound very good as a preamp in my opinion.
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Post by Gary Cook on May 19, 2017 17:58:10 GMT -5
Owning both a USP-1 (on loan to a friend) and an XSP-1 (in my system) there are lots of interesting comparisons. As a pre amp they are both very impressive and super value for money, neither is bad choice. What I have noticed since upgrading to the XSP-1 is that there's not a huge difference in the sound quality, it's there but it's pretty subtle, not at all day and night or smack you in the face. I also believe the 3 dimensional sound staging of the XSP-1 to be slightly better, again pretty subtle. What is more obvious is the XSP-1 has the advantage of being fully balanced, quad differential and handles balanced inputs through to balanced outputs. In my case this means that I can have a balanced connection via XLR's all the way through the system from the ERC-3 to the XPA-1L's (my XPA-1L's are located next to their respective speaker so long interconnects). This makes the system itself dead silent, external (induced) noises are non existent, there is nothing to interfere with the music. With the USP-1 and RCA connections I used to get the odd infrequent noise, hardly noticeable until they weren't there with the XSP-1.
My suggestion, if you listen to your stereo system a lot then the XSP-1 is worth the upgrade.
Cheers
Gary
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Post by sheetmetalworker on May 19, 2017 18:48:24 GMT -5
Hello All, I was wondering if there is a significant difference in sound quality between the USP-1 and the much more expensive XSP-1. I have been holding back thinking there may not be, so was hoping some XSP-1 owners could give me some feedback. My system is rather modest. I am using UPA-1 monoblocks, the XDA-2 DAC and the ERC-3 CD player along with the new T1 Speakier towers. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks Howie You'll gain more upgrading your DAC. Go DC-1 direct to your monoblocks and profit! I liked that match up also. DC-1 to monoblocks. |
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Post by Gary Cook on May 19, 2017 18:53:02 GMT -5
Guys, he has a turntable and an ERC-3 so a DAC isn't of much use for them  Cheers Gary |
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Post by garbulky on May 19, 2017 20:46:17 GMT -5
Well if he has an XDA-2 that ERC-3 is going through it probably.
The DC-1 analog preamp is imo very transparent.
I reccomend the XPS-1 (phono preamp version for about $150 or something). Or get teh Emotiva SP-1 which is a bit more expensive that makes the DC-1 a fully fledged preamp.
Only thing is the sub integration may be somewhat tough. But....you can make the sub integration work with the DC-1 by using the RCA to go to the subs and the XLR to the UPA-1.
The XSP-1 works very well with the UPA-1's. You'll get nice punch, a "sophisticated sound" and overall good tone though there is a tiny amount of treble laid backness - but not much. I can tell you that right now.
However if you ever step up to something more transparent like the XPA-1's, you may find the XSP-1 a limitation vs the DC-1 direct to the DAC which was audibly more transparent to me. And its analog input was definitely not a throwaway, and I felt it to be more transparent than the XSP-1 overall.
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Post by teaman on May 19, 2017 21:15:47 GMT -5
Well if he has an XDA-2 that ERC-3 is going through it probably. The DC-1 analog preamp is imo very transparent. I reccomend the XPS-1 (phono preamp version for about $150 or something). Or get teh Emotiva SP-1 which is a bit more expensive that makes the DC-1 a fully fledged preamp. Only thing is the sub integration may be somewhat tough. But....you can make the sub integration work with the DC-1 by using the RCA to go to the subs and the XLR to the UPA-1. The XSP-1 works very well with the UPA-1's. You'll get nice punch, a "sophisticated sound" and overall good tone though there is a tiny amount of treble laid backness - but not much. I can tell you that right now. However if you ever step up to something more transparent like the XPA-1's, you may find the XSP-1 a limitation vs the DC-1 direct to the DAC which was audibly more transparent to me. And its analog input was definitely not a throwaway, and I felt it to be more transparent than the XSP-1 overall. Since the advice is for him to drop an extra grand revamping his system maybe he should just start over....lol |
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Post by brubacca on May 19, 2017 21:30:46 GMT -5
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Post by pedrocols on May 19, 2017 21:36:50 GMT -5
If you only have one source I think you will be better off without either the USP-1 or XSP-1.
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Post by garbulky on May 19, 2017 22:13:24 GMT -5
Well if he has an XDA-2 that ERC-3 is going through it probably. The DC-1 analog preamp is imo very transparent. I reccomend the XPS-1 (phono preamp version for about $150 or something). Or get teh Emotiva SP-1 which is a bit more expensive that makes the DC-1 a fully fledged preamp. Only thing is the sub integration may be somewhat tough. But....you can make the sub integration work with the DC-1 by using the RCA to go to the subs and the XLR to the UPA-1. The XSP-1 works very well with the UPA-1's. You'll get nice punch, a "sophisticated sound" and overall good tone though there is a tiny amount of treble laid backness - but not much. I can tell you that right now. However if you ever step up to something more transparent like the XPA-1's, you may find the XSP-1 a limitation vs the DC-1 direct to the DAC which was audibly more transparent to me. And its analog input was definitely not a throwaway, and I felt it to be more transparent than the XSP-1 overall. Since the advice is for him to drop an extra grand revamping his system maybe he should just start over....lol How is that an extra grand? That's cheaper than the XSP-1 he wants to buy teaman! Now don't get me wrong, he will still find the XSP-1 an upgrade to his system |
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Post by miata57 on May 21, 2017 18:10:37 GMT -5
Hello Again,
Thanks for all your replies! I think based on your comments and some serious thinking I am going to hang on to my UPA-1 and concentrate on getting some Magnepan .7 speakers which should yield more of an upgrade.
Cheers
Howie
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Post by pedrocols on May 22, 2017 9:41:46 GMT -5
Hello Again, Thanks for all your replies! I think based on your comments and some serious thinking I am going to hang on to my UPA-1 and concentrate on getting some Magnepan .7 speakers which should yield more of an upgrade. Cheers Howie I used to run my MG12 with a pair of UPA-1s. I put a video on youtube a while back. |
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Post by leonski on Jun 6, 2017 14:41:59 GMT -5
Hello Again, Thanks for all your replies! I think based on your comments and some serious thinking I am going to hang on to my UPA-1 and concentrate on getting some Magnepan .7 speakers which should yield more of an upgrade. Cheers Howie Do you know what you're getting into with Maggies? You'll need a minimum of 3 feet and more like 4 or 5 feet between the speaker and front wall. You'll also need to experiment with tweeters 'in' or 'out' for best image and sound field. Be prepared! For a test, you may have tried the MMG which I think are still sold on a 30day 'money back' basis or with full credit for a year. Some kind of deal like that. CALL magnepan, since they don't do e-Mail! If you like the MMG, you'll probably also love the .7 I've been a Maggie owner for maybe 35 years, starting with a used pair of MG-1 Depending on where you live, they even come up used and are a terrific and easy DIY speaker for additions like stands and various rewiring schemes. For example? After a year or so of trouble free ownership, you may want to simply REWIRE to remove the fuse and fuseholder from the circuit. Other internal connections can be simplified and consensus is huge sound improvement. Schemeatics are easily sourced and are correct. PM me for some detail. |
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