moving on from Emotiva UMC-200 pre/processor

Hazyj,

I'm kind of late to this thread and don't want to dissuade you from getting a good 2-ch preamp. However, I have a suggestion that worked for me and may work for you.

I'd urge you to consider purchasing an Oppo-105 Bluray player for about $1,100. I bought one of these and I've been thrilled with its performance. Here are some advantages of the Oppo in your situation:

1. It has a built-in 7.1 surround processor that is very good and would lessen your need for your UMC-200.

2. It can double as a surprisingly good 2-ch music preamp. I actually no longer use my VTL 2.5 preamp for 2-ch music or my older Parasound surround processor for ht since installing the Oppo.

3. It can also be utilized as a very good stand alone dac if you ever decide to incorporate hi-rez computer audio into your system.

4. You also gain a highly reviewed and respected source for a wide variety of optical discs for both music and ht (cd, sacd, dvd, cd-rom and bluray).

Just something a bit different to consider,
Tim

I concur with Tim's recommendation of the Oppo BDP-105 as an acting digital processor, but it will not accept analog source. I select among three analog sources, so I use a JC-2 preamp for stereo, take surround from the Oppo directly the amps, and SW directly to a bass manager. When used with the Oppo for surround or HT, the JC-2 is set to unity gain. If you have only digital sources, the Oppo is likely to suffice.

I too have the OPPOS but recommend a preamp or processor if theater is your thing, They are more versitle

Thanks all. I'm not going the theater route, though I'm sure I'll have fun with that at some point. At this point separates make the most sense for me as I'm trying to keep it all really flexible - I've got a DAC and a passive 2-ch pre on the way. That's the plan ... for now:-)

I oppted for the Emotiva over the Oppo 105 as the analogue dacs sounded rather thin in the midrange/bass due to the high resolution and extension it has.The Emotiva beat it in 2/5 channel analogue hands down. Great eq-ing in the emotiva. Also, if you have different speaker ranges or sizes the oppo can only crossover everything at the same value - no independent crossovers. I found with the oppo for 2 channel with a subwoofer the front speakers need to be on small for the sub to run hence if you have full range floorstanding horns like me you can't run them large( full range) and utilize the sub for the lower ranges below 35hz. In home theatre 5.1 the sub will work either way. I sold my 105 and purchased the 103 for just the video processing which is identical to the 105 and saved $650 dollars. I am awaiting the Emotiva XMC-1 to try and see how it measures up compared to the UMC-200.