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Anthem STR Power Amp vs Parasound JC5

Hi. I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts or experiences with the Anthem STR Power amp and the Parasound JC5? Both amps seem like world class amps with similar power ratings (400W @8ohms). For context, I'm interested in them to power some Paradigm Persona towers in a 7.2.4 atmos system that is 70% games/movies and 30% music. I currently have a Parasound Halo A21 and I love it but was curious about the Anthem STR as it's gotten rave reviews (and is the sister company of Paradigm so should be a good match).

The only head to head comparison I know of so far ( HometheaterReview ) mentioned that the Anthem seemed to have deeper power reserves than the JC5 and I've gotten the impression so far that the JC5 is great for music but may not be better than the Anthem for movies. Any thoughts on that?
tistru
russ69's avatar
russ69
3,508 posts
 
"...The point here is to get a meaningful upgrade for the main 2ch part of my system..."

I think that is my problem, changing a good amp to another good amp isn't going to be a big change in most cases. For the best 2 channel upgrade for you, it would be a new 2 channel pre-amp.     
tistru OP
23 posts
 
Point taken! Currently I have a Marantz AV8802a pre/amp but I also use an Oppo UDP-205 with it's dedicated 2ch output for quality 2ch listening. Not bad...

I do plan on upgrading to an AVM90 at some point (maybe next year) with has the AK4499EQ DAC. No reviews yet, but should be among the best DACs money can buy for the time being.
russ69's avatar
russ69
3,508 posts
 
"...I do plan on upgrading to an AVM90 at some point..."

I can't comment on the Anthem, two channel purists don't spend money on channels we don't need. I won't be gentle here, if you want to move your two channel system forward, you'll need a top 2 channel pre, preferably tube driven. It would be a big improvement. The amp change isn't going to do that much.     
jdub39
496 posts
 
I use an 8805 as a preamp for 2/ch and the Anthem would indeed be the next Pre/pre on my radar but no DSD again makes it a no go. When upgrading from the A21 to the Jc5 one of things was to uptick the source since budget was chewed up, I added a Gustard A18 dac to get the latest AKM 4499 chip and I'm more than happy with the upgrades of 2020. The JC2 bypass will be my next purchase God willing.
tistru OP
23 posts
 
" ...two channel purists don't spend money on channels we don't need..."

I never said I was or wanted to be a 2ch purist. In fact, in my original post, I said my system is used for 70% games/movies and ~30% music. I like to sit and listen to some tracks and get absorbed in some music from time to time but music is definitely not where most of the time goes for my system. 
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