noise. Parasound has used fully balanced circuits for both JC2 and JC1 which makes it more linear and consistent than most other circuit topologies. Also because a balanced circuit is always less prone to distortion as opposed to unbalanced circuits. It makes perfect sense to create a product which by itself does not have any distortion rather than making a product that is prone to distortion and then try to rectify it.

Both the JC1 and JC2 use a very sophisticated and sensible protection circuitry. It works in a way that, only when the system is actually heated beyond a certain temperature, does it fi re the relay circuit to protect the amplifi er and the speakers. This particular method is preferable over the fuse circuits which invariably can get over-heated and fi nally burn. Also, as they heat up, the resistance and the current fl ow in a circuit is a� ected, which eventually wears out the products in the long run.

As you must have gathered by now, using di� erent power supplies and dedicated components for every stage of amplifi cation, like in a pre-power combo, gets a cleaner and a better audio signal running through your loudspeakers — a signal which is free of any noise or colouration. So lets see if the Parasound JC1/ JC2 combo lives upto our expectations.

PERFORMANCEOnce done with all the research, we were excited to see how the technical features in the JC2 and JC1 would fare when it comes to musical performance. So, we hooked up the Morel Octave fl oorstanding speakers — known for their full bodied and well toned sound — and the Denon DVD3930 to the system and slipped in our She� eld Test CD for a a� rmatory burn in overnight as we were told that these units were already burnt in.

We started with Jimi Hendrix’s CD ‘A Band Of Gypsies’ — a recording of one of the last concerts performed by the band. We wanted to check whether the system could reproduce the ‘live’ effect, the energy and enthusiasm of the artistes being transferred to our ears as well. And indeed it could! Play anything you want on the JC2 and JC1, and you can expect spot on imaging and soundstaging. An excellent example would be Hendrix’s CD, which had us believe that the musicians were performing

only a few feet away from us, with the panning of the vocals from one end of the stage to the other, or the interplay between the guitars and the vocals — all very beautifully depicted by the system that brought forth the excellent soundstaging that we craved for. What’s more, the Parasound duo could easily tackle the busiest of recordings with ease and reproduce the most intricate details effortlessly. Another example of this was when we played Linkin Park’s ‘Minutes To Midnight’, where amidst the heavy duty vocals, drums, electric guitars and other electronic sounds, the system could easily maintain all the integrity of the mix. Even after we increased the volume to a considerably high level, the system could live up to the task of placing all the instruments right where they should be. The term ‘separation’ found its manifestation in the JCs as the physical and audible placement of all the instruments had every element of the song reproduced with precision. When it came to loudness, what we enjoyed about the JC2/JC1 partnership was their ability to give us the feeling of unconstrained dynamics. When played at low levels, the duo delivered sound that had us completely immersed and not once did we move a muscle so we wouldn’t lose that sweetspot that we were basking in.

At the same time, they were equally ready for anything loud and large. For instance, the track “Azeem-O-Shaan” from the fi lm ‘Jodha Akbar’, was an absolute delight to listen to with the prelude of French horns that slowly progress to the massive sound of drums and chorus. This time, we had the AAD Silver 7 fl oorstanding speakers from their Silver Reference Series connected to the JC2 and JC1. The pair of speakers is as strong and rigid and is prepared for any challenge fi red at them. Exploiting the true potential of this mammoth of a speaker, the JC combo exhibited

THE PARASOUND DUO COULD EASILY TACKLE THE BUSIEST OF RECORDINGS WITH EASE AND REPRODUCE THE MOST INTRICATE DETAILS EFFORTLESSLY.

Isolated Power Supply

DETAILS OF JC2

Balanced Input Ports

Independent Gain Controls

PARASOUND JC2/ JC1

NOVEMBER 2009 64

PARASOUNDMODEL >> JC2 (PRE)/JC1 (POWER)CATEGORY >> PRE-POWER AMPLIFIERPRICE >> Rs 2,17,000 / Rs 2,30,000 Each WARRANTY >> 3 YEARS

BUILD

AUDIO

AESTHETICS WHAT SAY AV?You get John Curl’s classic design, amazing build quality, subtle yet classy looks and loaded with elaborate connectivity options. Add to it an unparalled audio performance and sheer raw power and 6.5 lakhs seems like a bargain. The Parasound JC1 and JC2 easily make for one of the best pre-power combos we have auditioned till date!

OVERALL SCORE

EASE OF USE

VFM

seamless control over the array of drivers. About the musicality of the JC2 and JC1 combo, what impressed us was the response we received at the lower end of the audio spectrum. On all the tracks that we sampled, each and every bass note was crystal clear, and showed no signs of swell or bloating. There is no better pleasure than you getting to hear the groovy bass lines with such defi nition.

Apart from all this, one very important trait of the JC2 and JC1

combo was that it accentuates your listening experience with its ability to deliver a clean and pure signal. More so when we played it at loud levels, the combo could retain the sanctity of the signal in its purest form. In contrast, we have seen a lot of other systems crumble when given this monumental task, of playing at loud levels and end up adding a colour of its own — unlike John Curl’s creation. An award winning performance indeed!

CONCLUSIONFor all those who like to play their music loud, the Parasound pre-power combo will be just what the doctor ordered — a sheer powerhouse that can churn out a mind boggling 400 watts of audio power. Just make sure that you have something like the AADs or the Morel to match up to such great raw power. Together, the combo exhibits complete control over the speaker drivers giving them no leeway for disobedience.

Sumit Bhosle

65 NOVEMBER 2009