I've been using the Emotiva USP-1 & XDA-1 with a McCormack DNA-1 and Hales Revelation 3 loudspeakers. Cables are Analysis Plus Oval Nine, Lat AC-2mkII, and Discovery Essence. This setup really allows this fantastic little preamp show it's stuff. The phono stage in the USP-1 is very good compared to the many outboard phono stages that I've heard. Using it allows me to take a pair of interconnects and another power supply out of the mix. I use it with a modded Systemdek IIX 900, Incognito wired RB-250, and Ortofon M20fl with really excellent results. Also, the Wadia 170i sounds amazing with this setup, very impressive sound. This is definitely a preamp that I could live with for awhile, without getting the itch to upgrade. Heck, one would have to spend alot more $$ to better it. If I had to pick out something bad about the USP-1? When controlling the volume with the remote, the volume goes up or down in rather large increments. Could be much smoother. I occasionally have to get up and adjust the volume control manually to get the sound just right. This is picky, because the price is low and the sound is big, beautiful, and extremely lifelike to my ears. To sum up, I think the USP-1 is one of the great audio bargains of my time. No, I'm not affiliated with Emotiva Audio in anyway.
