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Suggestions for new AV Pre-Pro

I'm interested in purchasing a new AV pre-pro to replace my aging Outlaw 990. My speakers consist of the Focal 1027be, 1007be and cc1000be. My Simaudio I-7 is used for both 2 channel and also drives the front channels in 5.1. I have an Outlaw 7500 driving the center channel and rear speakers. I plan to use 5.1 analog outputs from the Oppo 95 into the processor and the hdmi directly into the tv so I'm not concerned about video processing. I also have the SB Touch with the W4S Dac 1 for 2 channel into the Sim, but I would also like to run a digital cable from the Touch into the AV processor for 5.1 sound. The processor should be comparable with the rest of the system.
ronrags
mikeduke
59 posts
 
Ron, I think you know me from AVS :). I bought the Integra 80.2 a few months ago. I can recommend it very highly. Plus the 80.3 should be coming out probably in a few months. As you know I have the 1027's cc1000be, 705v's. I was told by some one that the Cary was not that reliable. I say go for the Integra.
dbphd
1,633 posts
 
I've been using a Cary Cinema 11a for some time now, and, regardless of what someone told mikeduke, it's been reliable. What he may have meant is that it's buggy, and can transmit pops when a disc starts or ends or an input is switched. Yet the sound has that sense of transparency and openness I demand. In my audition of an Integra 80.1, I found that lacking. But I was not able to do a side-by-side comparison in own my system. As noted earlier, I was most influenced to buy the Cary by Michael Fremer's rave (for its sound) review in Home Theater, and I was able to hear the Cary in my system before I wrote the check to a local private party -- but that is a rare opportunity indeed.

db.
mikeduke
59 posts
 
Back when someone told me about the Cary, he made it seem like the end of the world would happen. He was basically saying that they had a QC issue. Then I started to realize that people were saying the 80.2 was sooooooo bad. It was so noisy and it had a huge delay at so much other stuff. Well, I can say that there are many anal people in audio because I notice the clicks when you change inputs and there may be a delay, but I don't find it to be an issue. If the Cary is simply like that then I have no problem saying go with that. All of the reviews I have read about it have been stellar.
That being said, in my system with an OPPO 82SE connected with a Transparent Audio HDMI cable connected to the 80.2, I am very pleased with the sound. 2ch in bypass mode sounds really good. But like I said, all of the reviews I have read of the Cary were very good as well.
mikeduke
59 posts
 
Not to mention HT also sounds very good.
ronrags's avatar
ronrags OP
283 posts
 
Mike, good to here from you again. I appreciate your suggestion, but since I purchased the Sim I-7 for 2 channel, I've become a little spoiled with the sound quality of the Sim thru the Focal speakers. What I was hoping for was a pre-pro that comes close to the Sim in SQ. I've considered the integra and marantz but I doubt they have the overall SQ as the Sim. I still listen to sacd, dvd-audio and especially dvd concerts. If I could get this SQ in both 5.1 and 2 channel from another pre-pro and 5 channel amp, I would sell my existing 5.1 set-up including the Sim and the DAC 1. As I stated in the beginning of this thread I'm not concerned about video processing. I prefer to manually set-up the 5.1 and I still use the same acoustic treatment as you. As some members have stated, the quirks in the Cary seem minor as compared to the overall sound. I'm open for suggestions if there are any other systems in the same price range as the Cary.
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