Parasound A21 vs Bryston 4bsst 2

Zd542,

Sure Ayre, Theta, BAT and Pass are considered to be great;however they are significantly more than the Parasound A21. Name a great amp that can be had for the same price of the A21.

"Name a great amp that can be had for the same price of the A21."

You can probably find a Pass Aleph, older BAT SS and maybe an Ayre V-3 in your price range.

Zd542,
I think you need to compare the A21 with Pass Aleph while driving the Aerial 7T. The Pass would probably do great with high sensitivity speakers, but might not sound good with the Aerials. Ricred1's room is also not a small one, so the Pass would not help there either.
One thing is - the A21 does not loose it's value as much. So Ricred1 could always sell the amp if he wants to upgrade. For now I think he has made the right choice. My only suggestion, based on personal experience would be, to go with a preamp that has XLR outs. It may have been my TVC, but my A21 is in a different league when used with the TVC connected through XLR Vs the RCA.

I'd recommend against a preamp with an integrated DAC. While I understand the convenience factor, digital technology is advancing at a blinding rate. It's the one area of my system that I expect to be obsolete quicker than any other. Being tied to an outdated DAC because it resides in my preamp is not something I'm interested in. Yes, you can always add a outboard DAC down the road, but then you spent money on a feature you are no longer using.

Just food for thought... Good choice on the Parasound over the Bryston.

Congrats on the Parasound - they make great sounding gear. I love Bryston, but for the money (unless you really want that warranty) they're going to sound exactly the same. Level match them within half a dB and they'll be indistinguishable.

I also agree about having a separate DAC from the Pre - much better options with separates...