parasound 3500 verses parasond jc1

A stock 3500 is not in the same league as broken-in stock JC-1's. However, with mods the 3500 is very close to modded JC-1's. Bass control is slightly better with the JC-1's. They are both my personal favorites. The 3500 is actually a very good design and outperforms most amps on the market with mods. For the money, it is hard to beat. See this review:
http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/amp/messages/61129.html

Steve N.
Empirical Audio
Manufacturer

"You are never going to get the 3500 as smooth as the JC-1s due to the devices as well as the layout."

Bob - I have to repectfully disagree. These things can all be fixed with the right mods. The 3500 and JC-1's end-up very close IMO. The 3500 has replaced rectifiers in it, although this seems to mostly improve the bass tightness.

Bob - I get what you mean now.

My customers and I both find the "brightness" of the 3500 to be exceptional clarity once it is modded. I had to go back to the JC-1's after CES and improve the HF extension and dynamics to match that of the 3500. I actually used the modded 3500 most of the time at CES/THE Show as opposed to the JC-1's because of this pristine, clear high-end. It's hard to believe that this is distortion....

Bob - thanks much for the tips. I will definitely try the Harris part on the next one that I mod.

BTW - I decided to replace all of the bias pots with sealed Bournes units in the 3500 and eventually, the JC-1's to avoid creeping bias and future warranty problems. Also made some other changes to minimize warranty issues. I appreciate your "war-stories" on this.