All Rights Reserved, A Q&A with Estelon - A Decade of Loudspeaker Excellence, AGD Productions - The Audion Monoblock Amplifier, KECES S300 Power Amplifier and S3 Preamplifier, Bricasti Design MDx Board Update - Keeping Digital Customers Future Ready, The Clarus Duet - A Journey Though High-Current Line Conditioning. Parasound Halo A 21+ Stereo Amplifier Reviewed. It is enough "more" to justify the significant price increase as the original A21 cost $2499 USD and the A21+ cost $3150 USD. Nonetheless, it is still very much a Curl design, with his customary J-FET input stage, MOSFET driver stage, and beta The A 21+ utilizes JFETs for the input stage, a MOSFET driver stage, and uses 16 beta-matched bipolar transistors for its output stage. Wielding 71 pounds is certainly an achievable task however maneuvering it with attention to the heat-sinks, rear panel, front panel, and the realization that gravity is doing all it can to assure you a crushed foot becomes daunting. While six watts may not seem like much, that's enough power to drive all but the most inefficient speakers to reasonably high SPLs for the majority of music or movies you'll likely listen to. This would mean the distortion would fall in the <0.03% typical range at this volume level. Yet when it was time to forget all the mumbo-jumbo and just listen, the A21+ was several ticks closer to the M15 in overall capability than both the A21 and the MB100. It is odd how small changes can make a big difference, which will become a common theme as we wear on. I cannot go out on a limb regardless of my excitement and say the A21+ preformed as a legitimate top-tier amplifier that easily caries its price tag can, but I can say it makes the difference a game of inches. Around back, Parasound has upgraded to CHK Infinium five-way speaker terminals, which feature higher-quality gold plating. In practice, this means the amp is biased to output a little over six watts per channel of pure Class A power. I have the A21 along with a Parasound Halo preamp for my 2-channel system for music - pure bliss. For me, this glint is a far more significant representation that there was more to the re-spin than raw power. I love my A21, but looking down from the canopy of a Giant Sequoia, the A21+ offers more sonically speaking. – read the review at What Hi-Fi? Competition and ComparisonsIf you're considering the A 21+, you're more than likely looking for an amp that is also Class A/AB. In a sense, you're getting an A 21, but with more of everything. I currently run HP to Parasound A21 which power the Dalquist Ca2 modules. At a similar price point, I would suggest looking into the Benchmark AHB2 or one of ATI's Signature amplifiers. The A21 showed why mastery is important in any design work as John Curl created an affordable amplifier that was considered top-tier for over fifteen years! As the The distortion is now over 70dB below "Raspberry Beret" which frankly, is not detectable by our ears. Refinement is where the A21+ puts real distance from the A21. It is easy to understand that 0.2 is greater than 0.1, yet those numbers are so small how could they possibly be significant? These thoughts are perfectly appropriate when nothing but a plus sign has been added to the model name. With its high-quality chassis, thoughtful circuit design, and excellent sound quality, the A 21+ offers an impressive value proposition. In the End. This is not the case with Parasound. Parasound does not provide information on their use which is understandable since almost all pieces of home audio equipment run at output voltages where this matters little. It is very satisfying to forget I was listening through an absolute powerhouse and when I desired a light touch for delicate music, it was there. Alleen bij ons 5 jaar garantie! As always this is a double edged sword. While the upgrades do come with a slightly higher asking price, I found, in practice, these changes make a meaningful enough difference to justify the new cost. Due to its design, the amp is always drawing power when turned on and needs to dissipate a lot of it as heat, so I suggest you place the amp in a well-ventilated area. Parasound has chosen to take a staple core product that has remained an exceptional value for over fifteen years, the Halo A21 amplifier, and re-spin it into the Halo A21+. Its replacement, the Halo A 21+, is priced a little higher at $2,995. In other words, a tiny reduction means a lot to our ears. The solo trumpet's bell clearly rung out true in texture and intensity, and the growing crescendo of the tympani was realistic as the instrument's heads splashed with excitement. It supplies a surprising amount of understandable technical information in regard to set-up and implementation. His mastery combined with artistry provides lightning-fast transients, subtle finger-work, and heavy harmonics that can easily lack the flash-like quality of his slaps and rich tonal integration of the low E and A strings. "The Parasound Halo A 21 and A 51 are top rate amplifiers at a great The move to improve it was risky, since it is usually difficult to de-throne a king without a total re-design of the kingdom. From that point onward, the amp switches over to Class AB operation. The new design halves THD, which is now specified at 0.1 percent. Crosstalk and signal-to-noise ratio see improvements too, now rated at 70dB and 115dB, respectively. Listening at levels louder than necessary through the largest and most capable loudspeaker in the bunch, the effect was accurately captured by the A21+. Class A operation often imparts a particularly sweet, smooth, and organic sound signature, and the A 21+ definitely qualifies for these sonic traits, with treble frequencies in particular rendered smoothly and grain-free. After 15 years of devoted service, Parasound has retired its beloved Halo A 21 amplifier. I connected the Halo A 23+’s 12V trigger using the mono interconnect included with Parasound’s NewClassic 200 Pre preamplifier, also in for review, and set the A 23+ to turn itself on when the 200 Pre sent a trigger signal. ConclusionThe A 21+ builds upon its predecessor's design, offering upgrades that elevate an already stellar amplifier to a new level. Bass performance from the A 21+ is as good as I've heard from any amplifier near its price point and even competes with many amps costing far more. Parasound's products can be found in countless professional sound applications in studios such as Pixar, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Fox, and Sony Pictures... to name a few. However, if judging the A 21+ on its outward appearance alone, it would seem not much has changed. "Classical Thump" blew me away thanks to the A21+'s control and accurate timbre. The amp is still offered in both black and silver finish options, and although at first glance the chassis appears unchanged, a few upgrades have occurred there as well. With that said, I found the most impressive part about the A 21+ was how it handled the bottom end. On the A21+, the experience was simply the best I have heard it. While this may not seem like much, whether having a relaxing Jazz listening session, or living through a dynamic orchestra piece that drops to a violin solo in pianissimo, I believe this class A power is largely responsible for the extremely black background and inner resolving power of the A21+. The Halo A21+ (moving forward just the A21+) is dense. When you consider all that's included in the price, the A 21+ continues the high value proposition of its predecessor. You'll automatically be entered in the HTR Sweepstakes, and get the hottest audio deals directly in your inbox. The A 21 amplifier is loaded with usable …   Â. The former tried and true, untouchable value and staple of their product line, the A21, had set the bar for value vs. performance in both the HiFi and Professional audio worlds. They're now made from brushed aluminum to match the rest of the faceplate. The Audio Note (UK) Oto Phono SE Signature Integrated Amplifier – An Affordable Masterpiece! Build quality of the Parasound A 21+ is mighty impressive and handsome enough to fit into most décors. "Doing so has proved that extremely high performance-per-dollar is still possible today when a company leverages decades of experience, and is spearheaded by a legend." Both balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA inputs are available, with each channel still featuring its own independent gain control and RCA signal loop outputs. Anyone in the market for a stereo power amp would be well advised to consider the Parasound A 21+, especially those who believe that they must spend more." Two-channel Doing so has proved that extremely high performance-per-dollar is still possible today when a company leverages decades of experience, and is spearheaded by a legend…. It separates left to right and front to back on the soundstage, gives each instrument enough air and clarity that they each occupy their own space. After 15 years of devoted service, Parasound has retired its beloved Halo A 21 amplifier. © 2021 Positive-Feedback.com. Additionally, Parasound's A21 just won a… He tried the Classe amplifier which is a class D like the NAD and found the other 2 amps to be better match with the F228Be so I decided to go with the new Parasound Wij zijn officieel Parasound dealer. But what, exactly, do you get for that extra coin? More manufacturers should do this as it only assures the highest performance from their product. 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