outlaw 950

[ohskigod]

happenned to notice the outlaw 950 pre/pro went on sale for 699.00. i've been rolling with the Klipsch dd 5.1 as my pre/pro (the subject of much debate in the past, do a search if you dont remember). for that price, and the many good reviews i have heard, i had to pick it up. i am hoping it will be an upgrade in sound quality over the Klipsch. I'll give a report when i recieve the Outlaw and have sufficient time to play with it.

any opinions as to whether i made a mistake or not?

[Codey]

I recently got one that replaced my Yamaha RXV-650 and am thoroughly impressed. I'm not familiar with your receiver, but if it's along the same lines as my old Yamaha I think you'll be very pleased. I won't ever go back.

[dorokusai]

Just based on what I have heard about Outlaw, you made a great decision.

[Early B.]

Congrats. Looking forward to your review.

[McLoki]

I have been looking at the same preamp (still quite a ways from needing it though) anyway - I look forward to your review...l

Michael

[Frank Z]

Ditto.
Details, lots of details!

[Meeks32]

Not to thread hijack here, but I dont want to start a new post just for this measley question. But say you have a new lower end receiver with all the normal features that you are using as a processor with a nice seperate amp. Now would upgrading to a dedicated processor give you a big gain or just a slight increase in sq?

[Codey]

Not to thread hijack here, but I dont want to start a new post just for this measley question. But say you have a new lower end receiver with all the normal features that you are using as a processor with a nice seperate amp. Now would upgrading to a dedicated processor give you a big gain or just a slight increase in sq?

That's exactly what I just did and it was a BIG gain.

[ohskigod]

it's orderred, and i paid for the overnight shipping, so i hope i get it soon. i'll give a status report ASAP. thanx for the feedback guys.

[AsSiMiLaTeD]

that Klipsch is a fine processor, but I think you'll notice an immediate improvement with the OUtlaw...

I had the Kiipsch unit for a while, but do prefer my 3801 over the Klipsch...

[danger boy]

yeah. i'm interested in knowing what you find out about the Outlaw too.

[ohskigod]

i hooked it up today. first i'll state the obvious. this thing is much more versatile than the klipsch (more inputs, outputs, etc. also, the annoying popping noise when a DVD movie starts is gone.
there is a vast improvement in remotes, obviously no contest. the above were all well stated weaknesses with the little Klipsch unit.

very initial impression is that there is an increase in sound quality, not a huge jump, but an improvement none the less, however, i find calibrating this thing is much more of a challenge that it was with the Klipsch.

getting everything seamless by ear is very hard. i think i'm going to have to break down and buy that radio shack SPL meter for a proper calibration. I still have much more playing to do, and i rememberred that i shouldnt get too nuts in tweaking it at the moment, because i have that rotel amp i bought from Criverajr that i have to incorporate as well.

any comments as to the reason for the increase in difficulty calibrating this thing? is it because of the better sound quality, hence makes imperfections more apparent?

[marcpam]

what are your issues, as far as calibration. Maybe I can be of assistance.

[ohskigod]

the transition from the speakers to the sub seems a bit off, but i ight try to reposition the sub. havent played with it too much, so its hard to say what exactly is wrong. as i keep playing with it, i'll either get it to sound how i want, or have a better idea what the issue is. currently have the mains crossed at 60 hz, the center at 80 HZ and the surrounds at 80Hz

[ohskigod]

i finally put everything together the way i want it now, including incorporating the amp i got from Criverajr. I now have the outlaw as the pre/pro, 2 Rotel RB960BX's bridged driving the mains, and the Rotel RB 976 (2x150 for the surrounds, 2x60 driving both center channels). after reconfiguring the amplification, the problems with calibration dissapeared. apparently the amp configuration i had for the klipsch was just not flying with the Outlaw. I guess the "why" isnt important, because i am now quite happy with the performance overall. I'll still play with some settings and maybe spring for the SPL meter to tighten things up, but i'm in no rush.

the sound quality diference between the outlaw and klipsch is more apparent now. this could also be becasue i am using all rotel amplification now too (the onkyo m-501 that was driving the centers is now gone). There are noted improvements in soundstage and presentation for both DVD audio music and movies. I have not evaluated the 2 channel performance of the theater yet (not important, since i have a seperate 2 channel system in the basement.

You might remember my review of the klipsch unit that it's biggest weakness was performance in 2 channel, it wasnt bad, but it wasnt great either. It was the big motivational force to put together a 2 channel system seperate from the theater.

as i keep playing with it, i'll keep you guys posted, but in closing, i am a very happy camper!

[Shell]

The reason for the 950 price drop was because they will be coming out with a new pro in about a year. I really like my 950. However you will hear clipping of the beginning of songs on some cds if using a digital connection. Other then that it is a great pre from a great company.

[ohskigod]

i've notced that, particularly if the unit switches between format (i.e. one dvd on DTS, then switching to a dolby digital or stereo format with digital connection) but with all the other pluses and strengths of the unit, i'll live, and very happily :D
did some more listening with DVD audio and was even more impressed. i dont know if burn in of a pre/pro is a factor, but it seems to sound a little better every day.

[Shell]

One other thing I noticed is that warm up of the unit makes a huge difference. I am not sure if it is the amp, pre/pro or both components, that needs to warm up, but it sounds much better after about 30 minutes of use.

As far as break in goes, I can't answer that because I got mine used from a fellow polkie. By the way B-stock 950's are $649 now.

[Early B.]

Now that it's likely the 950's will soon flood the used market, is it worth the effort to go from a nice receiver to the 950?

In my case I have a very simple HT setup -- a 36" TV, DVD player, and some amps. I'm not really interested in all the bells and whistles, just better SQ. PQ is of less concern for me. So the question is how much of an improvement can I expect from upgrading from my HK 525 (currently used as a pre) to the 950?

[ohskigod]

i couldnt say definitivly, since i never heard the 525. But from what i heard, and my experiences with the 950 myself, you are going to get a least a slight to moderate sound quality increase. With a simple set up, i would wait and see what the used prices are, but if you can get one for sub 500.00, you might want to snag it quick.

I'll be holding onto mine, i never was a "get the cutting edge technology when it comes out" kind of guy. I'll wait until others own the 990 for a while and i can get a picture of the true performance of the unit. In the meantime, me and my 950 will be getting along just fine.

[wingnut4772]

I had the 950 in my system . It sounded good but I ended up going with a Sherwood P-965 which sounds incredible. (And also lists at $1500- street $1050.)

I had some problems with popping noises with the 950 in my set up which just could not be remedied even with a new one. But otherwise I thought it sounded pretty good. Much better than the Onkyo 701 it replaced.

I am in love with my Sherwood though and I plan to keep it for many years to come.

[dorokusai]

I finally heard an Outlaw combo...950/770/Outlaw Sub(2)/Polk RTi8/FXi5/CSi5 and it was very nice. It is a very squared away HT.

The Outlaw performance was solid and even across the board....soundwise it was ok....very neutral. While it may not be something I'll pick up, it was my immediate suggestion to the friend that bought the setup for his new HT. It is certainly one of the best values in HT audio.

[cfrizz]

Mark, what would you change in the Outlaw set up? What peice of equipment to you, was the weak link? And what would you replace it with?

[dorokusai]

Cathy - The source, as it's simply generic. I would replace it with a Denon, as they really have the lockdown on the universal category IMO....and I think that the variety to the common user and audiophile is invaluable when it comes to a source. Especially in the days of format wars.

That being said, when my Sony gets back from the shop, I'll be SACD only again, but I'm not real stressed about it.....I may move up to the Marantz in the 2CH. I have begun picking up some DVD-A titles and have been real happy.

Speaking of which, I recently checked out a Marantz 9600, in house, but the video performance was not as defined as the Denon. It had some hangups and pixel issues that have been covered by Benchmark.

Audio wise it was better, but the piece was for my HT, and video is the primary objective for that arena....so it went back.