has anyone compared a Parasound Halo with a Hegel H90? Which did you prefer and why?

hegel amps are truly outstanding

the onboard dacs are very good but short of the standard set by the sq of the amp section

h90 is last gen dac implementation, same gen as the discontinued rost

current gen dac is h120/h190 -- lower end of the line, but noticeably improved over the h90/rost dac section

you will do better with chord 2qute or even mojo into the analog inputs of the hegel than using the h90 onboard dac, sound will be cleaner more lively

neither with your speakers. you need something more open and transparent to get the S400s out from under the blanket.
check out the Marantz PM KI

Thanks jjss49 I did not know the 90 was older like the Rost. I was thinking about selling my Node 2i, Ares DAC and Halo amp to (hopefully) be replaced by one of the Hegel amps but it may be a step down with any of their affordable stuff.

Thanks avanti1960 the Marantz is now on my radar.

Hi Phil. I also owned the parasound halo and now the Hegel H190. I paired it with a dynaudio excite 14. To me the highs is clearer and better with the parasound, music is more energetic, compared to Hegel more laid back, quiet, and well controlled especially with mid and mid low. Actually planning to upgrade to the S400 too. What’s your thought on these speakers with the parasound? 

the Parasound and S400 combo has a huge soundstage and very good macro dynamics. I am using a Node 2i for a source which is limiting the overall sound imo. Inner detail is a bit limited and the overall sound is a bit ripe in the bass with smooth mids and a bit rolled off in the highs. Sometimes it sounds incredible, depending on the recording, so I think with a better source it could be very good indeed. One thing I want to stress is the Parasound needs a good PC which improved the inner detail and opened the sound up quite a bit.

I was considering a Hegal because I wanted better control in the bass but your description has given me pause. I think I will upgrade the source if I do anything in the future.

I briefly owned a Hegel H90 and ended up returning it. The DAC is outdated (AKM AK4396 chip) and I wasn't happy with the overall sound. FWIW, the H90 has been discontinued and will be replaced by the forthcoming H95.