Parasound Halo Overview and Build Quality

Perhaps the obvious difference between the C1 and the C2 could be seen by the height, which made way for the 5" flat panel screen on the C1. The screen would probably come in very handy when setting up the C 1 in with a front projector especially when the C 1 is located on the same wall as the projector screen. The on-board flat panel display mimicked the On-Screen Display and could either be operated via the remote or on the buttons located directly on the C 1's front panel. Both methods proved to be extremely useful for the times we needed (or wanted) to set up the C 1 without a monitor. For example, I used this panel display quite a bit when listening to two channel CDs where I didn't want the distraction of my large Rear Projection Monitor but still required setup and configuration tweaks to optimize the sound, or switch the DSP modes. The OSD also had a "Temp Display" that could be set to "Full" or "Simple." In "Simple" mode, the C 1 displayed only the specified function, such as the DSP type, Input Selection, Volume and other line item functions. When set to "Full" the unit displayed the entire menu from the On-Screen Display.

The Front Panels of the Halos could also be adjusted in brightness. The C2 allowed for the display to be completely turned off or adjusted to three different brightness levels. The C 1's flat panel display could also be dimmed but it was not able to be completely turned off. Even in the lowest dim setting, there was a faint glow from the panel which could be seen peripherally when viewing movies in the dark if the unit is located to the side of the screen as was the case in Reference System 2. The dim setting adjustment for the flat panel display also varied the brightness of the text making it a bit harder to read in the dimmest settings.

What Audioholics review would be complete without our peak under the hood? The digital architecture of the Halo C 2 and C 1 included four dual channel AKM's AK 4393 Digital-To-Analog Converters and one Motorola Symphony 56367 24-Bit DSP. This Motorola DSP is common in several other receivers and processors from companies such like Aragon and Anthem.

Power Supply

What seemed to be missing from our look inside was the typical larger and heavier linear power supply we've seen in many other processors. In its place was a computerized digitally switching power supply which was the fundamental reason for the Halos lighter than average 18-lb (C 2) and 22-lb (C 1) weights. When we asked Richard and Tony Pointes (Head of Technical Department) about this power supply, they pointed out the following. One advantage of this design was that the Halos were able to automatically switch to different input voltages making them ready for an international marketplace. According to Parasound the digital switching power supply also proved to be more efficient by converting the frequency to much higher rates than the standard 60-Hz. Aside from the front panel display, the power supply is another differentiation for the C1 and C2 as Parasound informed us that the C 1 included additional filtering. Some of this was likely used to operate the TFT display

The Halos included a very useful feature called "Enhanced Bass" which sends bass from channels set to "large" to the sub simultaneously. This feature was particularly useful when listening to two channel CD playback or Satellite TV, as it provided extra bass sound with the push of one button on the remote. However, when the front channel speakers were set to "small," the sub remained on at all times regardless of the menu which still allowed for "On" or "Off" to be selected. This was a bit confusing at first and it would have been a bonus feature to actually be able to control the Enhanced Bass with "small" speakers. The Enhanced Bass "On" and "Off" could also be toggled when switching to 7.1 channel inputs, but since the signal was bypassing the digital circuitry, it too was defeated though still selectable. While this wasn't the end of the world, it could be confusing to many operators thus why we noted it in our review.

For most AV Controllers "Direct Mode" usually means Analog Mode or "Pure Direct" Mode but on the Halos, it actually referred to the mode of the source. Using the Direct mode allowed the C 1 and C 2 to automatically select the appropriate digital format for a digital source signal including stereo, mono, Dolby Digital,... and DTS.

The Halos provided one set of 7.1 channel inputs for DVD-Audio and SACD. Unfortunately, there was only one set of global speaker level settings which made it challenging to switch between the two formats as the subwoofer outputs vary. So when switching, from one to the other, we had to adjust the subwoofer level volume by ear using just the On-The-Fly adjustments.

Both the Halo C 1 and C 2 came with 10 additional unbalanced analog inputs (via RCA) which could be used for CD players, turntables, VCR (for those still living in the past), and any other analog source of interest. It's important to note that these were processed in the digital domain. The Halos did provide pure analog inputs which bypassed the digital circuitry via a set of balanced XLR analog inputs and the 7.1 channel unbalanced RCA analog inputs. So in order to remain in total analog, it required using either of these connections.

I was pleased to see both the C1 and C2 offered brackets which could be easily installed on the units to make them ready to mount into a standard 19"-wide rack. This was likely provided for the custom installers and Audiophiles who don't just furnish their products, but solidly bolt them on to something robust and sturdy.

The Halos came equipped with an array of different modes which included all the basics.