XMC-1 vs. XSP-1 2.2 Channel Music and beyond

[papabear]

Hello!

I'm undecided about buying a Certified XMC-1 and XPA-3 to replace a Sony STR-DA5700es as part of my stereo/multi-channel set up.   The stereo part is handled by a XSP-1 feeding a Emo XPA DR2.  Center, RR and LR speakers are fed by the Sony.  Listening is split 80% stereo and 20% MCH.  Dirac Live for Emotiva is what interests me in the XMC-1 Gen 2.

I'm concerned I may lose in pure 2- channel that I may gain in DSP and MCH,

Looking for your thoughts and experience with these two pieces.

Thank you

[AudioHTIT]

I gave up my XDA-2 and XSP-1 when the XMC-1 came out and felt it was an improvement. Actually the analog sounded pretty much the same, but since I play more digital sources the improvement in DAC made the difference. I also appreciated having a single box, and because I replaced my previous surround processor as well, actually went from three components to one. Don’t overlook that the XMC-1 has a very good DAC.

[papabear]

Thank you very much for your feedback.  I might just give it a try.  Just stumble upon a review in Audioscience Review.  The XMC-1 is one of the few processors that are recommended.

[klinemj]

Oct 21, 2020 11:59:00 GMT -5 papabear said:

Thank you very much for your feedback.  I might just give it a try.  Just stumble upon a review in Audioscience Review.  The XMC-1 is one of the few processors that are recommended.

I also switched from using an XSP-1 for 2 channel once I got the XMC-1. The sound was identical.

I currently use my XMC-1 as a 2.1 channel preamp but use an external DAC as I found one I like even better than the XMC-1's DAC. But, the XMC-1 has a great built-in DAC.

I did stop using DIRAC in 2-channel once I started using the external DAC...I like the sound better. And, I found a trick to run a sub in Reference Stereo that works great for me (even though most say you can't do that...you can.)

Mark

[routlaw]

I have both the XMC-1 as well as the XSP-1 Gen 2 and in my system I can hear a difference between the two and prefer the XSP-1 for pure two channel music. This question has arisen several times on this forum and the general conclusion seems to favor Mark's and AudioHTIT opinion however, so take my thoughts on the matter with a grain of salt. I do detect a bit more clarity, and liveliness which to me is more involving when using the XSP-1. By comparison the XMC-1 in Reference Stereo Mode seems just a tad more blunt or dull while the XSP-1 produces a slightly more vivid presentation. These differences are not night and day or dramatic though. like many here I also used the XMC-1 for a couple of years as a two channel analog pre-amp in addition to its HT capabilities and was quite happy with it.

Considering the DAC in the XMC-1 for what ever reason I have never been able to warm up to it when used just for music, but its certainly more than adequate for home theater. So in this regard I agree with Mark you can probably do better for a music stand alone dac if budget allows.

[Gary Cook]

It is worth keeping in mind that the XMC-1 does not do analogue bass management. It only does bass management digitally, which means if it receives an analogue input the XMC-1 will convert it into digital using an ADC, then perform the bass management and then convert the digital to analogue via a DAC for passing to the power amplifier/s. That means 3 x DAC/ADC/DAC conversions and you will be hearing the XMC-1 DAC anyway (not the source DAC) as it is the final DAC. If you want to run 2.1 or 2.2 stereo from an analogue source, say a TT and a digital source using its analogue outputs, then the XSP-1 would be the better choice. Plus if you have a fully balanced / discrete source then the signal can pass fully balanced through the XSP-1, bass management does not "unbalance" the signal like it does in the XMC.

Cheers
Gary

[papabear]

Thanks again to everyone. Very interesting contributions indeed!