Parasound Halo Installation and Connections

C2 Back Panel (left);  C1 Back Panel (right)

The Halo C 2 and C 1 did not offer analog bypass via RCA inputs. When we made the connections via the unbalanced RCA analog inputs, the unit passed the signal through the DSP thereby converting it to digital. For most DVD and CD applications, this would not be a problem as the DACs in the Processor are likely to be a higher quality than the DACs in most players, with some exceptions. I tested this theory with our Denon DVD-2900 Universal Player simply by connecting it via its 7-channel output to the analog direct 7-channel RCA inputs of the Halos. When switching frantically between Audio Source 1 (digital input) and Multi-channel input (Analog Input), we found the sound quality of two channel CDs audibly improved when played through the digital connections which used the DACs in the Halo processors.

Both Halos offered a pair of balanced XLR analog audio inputs. Unfortunately we did not have a player with this type of balanced XLR output so we were unable to take advantage of this feature. While the Halos offered an array of RCA inputs for analog sources, they were converted into digital and passed through the digital bass management and DSP's. Not having true analog RCA inputs would likely only be a nuisance for analog purists using turntables, VCRs or tape decks as these signals will be converted to digital and not remain as true analog.

During our installation, we quickly realized that the Halos had nine Balanced XLR Outputs for connecting the four additional Aux programmable channels which was one short of the 10 total channels. When we questioned Richard Schram about this during CES 2004, he told us there simply wasn't enough room on the back panel for additional balanced outputs. Instead Parasound decided not to grow the size and weight of the processor therefore offering one Aux Channel (labeled as Pro 1), and four RCA Unbalanced Outputs for all four Aux channels (labeled as Pro 1, Pro 2, Pro 3 and Pro 4).

As for the rest of the back panel and available connections there were plenty and more than enough for the average Home Theater installation. But in an effort to keep this article concise, instead of elaborating on them in this review, we have opted to provide a download for the Halos User Manual (Click Here for C 1 User Manual) ( Click Here for C 2 User Manual ) which identifies the entire back panels.

As discussed in the previous section, both Parasound Halos offered four Aux programmable channels as part of Parasound's "7.5 Enhanced Surround." Aux channels are not necessarily unique to the Halo products as they were also found on almost every Yamaha receiver we've reviewed (as two front effects channels), the Sunfire Theater Grand III and IV (as two side channels), and several other products. But what made Parasound's approach unique was not the provision of these Aux channels, but their programmability and versatility which could be tailored to individual tastes, needs and Theater Rooms. These extra channels were outlined and described in the User Manuals as follows:

Parasound formulated several mix recommendations for these channels which can be downloaded and viewed from the following .PDF file (Click For Link). Note, these were provided just as guidelines and it's completely up to the end user as to what specialized mix is implemented when these channels are used. We will elaborate on the performance enhancement with these channels within our listening test section.