[Mag]

Visited Pulseworks Audio, Saskatoon for an SP2 demo. Where Dave the salesman had a 5.1 configuration, with Bryston 6B SST2 & 4B SST2 and Cambridge cd player. Brought my reference cd and sat down to listen. Unknown to me Dave had the SP2 in Dolby mode, which didn't meet my expectations in linear highs. Once the error was discovered he quickly changed to stereo 5 channel mode, and I was satisfied with the much better linear highs. The sound was halographic liquid smooth and no doubt was better than my Yamaha av/receiver, but wasn't substantial enough to be sure it was worth the cost. Anyway I bit the bullet and bought the demo unit.

At home after I had it configured to my liking, fed with my Sony NS9100ES, BDA-1 combo. It was a totally different beast  , listening in stereo 5 channel mode with no DSP from the SP2. At first I used a 5.1 set up which was good and probably sufficient for most audio rooms. However I've grown acustom to my 10 speaker sub arrangement and quickly realized I needed to add them back in the mix to be totally satisfied.

One annoying grip is the display in stereo 5 channel with many of my recordings constantly indicates clipping. Which I gather is because of the BDA-1 feed which I just ignore as none of the amps indicate clipping.

For those who don't know the SP2 in 2 channel mode is equivalent to the B26 pre with a slight loss in noise floor in surround mode.

In summary, the SP2 with its superior surround sound analog section, paired with the BDA-1 input, places the sound output in a higher league. Needless to say, my Yamaha av/receiver is in the dumpster. 

[James Tanner]

Hi Mag

Thanks for the feedback. The clipping is a THX requirement  that indicates anything over 2 volts at the input - please ignor as it does no harm with the signal handling capability of the SP-2.

ENJOY

James

[Mag]

Equipment:

Source: Sony NS9100ES with video display off.
Dac: BDA-1 upscaled on.
Fronts: Paradigm Studio 100 v2 & Paradigm Studio 20 v3, set to Large xo 80hz Amp 3B SST2.
R&L Surround: Monitor 9 v2 & B&W DM601S3, set to Large xo 80hz. Amps 3B ST & 2B-LP
Center: Paradigm cc590 v5 xo 200hz set to Large, amp 3B SST
Back Center: Paradigm cc470 v3 xo 200hz set to Large, amp 3B SST
Sub: Velodyne CHT-10 xo 80hz
Power Conditioners: Monster AVS2000 & Art SP 4x4

Listening mode: 5 channel stereo surround sound, analog, DSP bypass
Extra Bass Boost: Off

[lossless]

Hi Mag

Thanks for the feedback. The clipping is a THX requirement  that indicates anything over 2 volts at the input - please ignor as it does no harm with the signal handling capability of the SP-2.

ENJOY

James

I want to be perfectly clear on this statement you made James.  So you say that even though the signal is technically clipping at anything over 2 volts at the input as per "THX requirement", it has NO EFFECT on the signal that is being output from the SP1.7/2?  ie; the output signal is not clipped, distorted, or altered in anyway, even though the input says it is clipping?  I run my SP1.7 in 5.1 bypass from a Pioneer blu-ray player and I do hear the occasional distortion but I just assumed it was the source material...

[James Tanner]

I want to be perfectly clear on this statement you made James.  So you say that even though the signal is technically clipping at anything over 2 volts at the input as per "THX requirement", it has NO EFFECT on the signal that is being output from the SP1.7/2?  ie; the output signal is not clipped, distorted, or altered in anyway, even though the input says it is clipping?  I run my SP1.7 in 5.1 bypass from a Pioneer blu-ray player and I do hear the occasional distortion but I just assumed it was the source material...

Definitely the source material not the SP-2.

James

[Phil A]

I had the problem a few times on my SP1.7 with an SACD recorded at low levels and turning up the volume induced the problem.  There are posts about the THX requirements on other Bryston threads.

[Phil A]

Here's one of the earlier threads - there are older ones relating the to the SP1.7 as well: http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=89024.0

[Levi]

BP26 really?  Hmmm...how about a BP25? 

...
For those who don't know the SP2 in 2 channel mode is equivalent to the B26 pre with a slight loss in noise floor in surround mode.
...

[SoundGame]

BP26 really?  Hmmm...how about a BP25? 

I would take an educated guess to say that the pre-amp section in the SP2 would be closer in design / layout / parts to the one in the BP16 / B100-SST.  The BP26 is the evolutionary step of the BP25 and has a motorized volume control - different from the BP16/B100.  The BP6 would be like the B60R-SST.  Though, as stated in previous threads - all Bryston preamps in real-world performance are virtually the same.  The minor differences in distortion / noise floor are minute and would likely only be discernable in an A/B comparison using very accurate and revealing (expensive) gear. 

[Levi]

So what is really inside the SP2.0...BP26 or BP25?

I would take an educated guess to say that the pre-amp section in the SP2 would be closer in design / layout / parts to the one in the BP16 / B100-SST.  The BP26 is the evolutionary step of the BP25 and has a motorized volume control - different from the BP16/B100.  The BP6 would be like the B60R-SST.  Though, as stated in previous threads - all Bryston preamps in real-world performance are virtually the same.  The minor differences in distortion / noise floor are minute and would likely only be discernable in an A/B comparison using very accurate and revealing (expensive) gear. 

[Phil A]

So what is really inside the SP2.0...BP26 or BP25?

According to posts I've seen from James, it is the equivalent of the BP-25.  I did have the opportunity to compare an SP1, an SP1.7 (which I owned at one point) to a BP-25 and they sounded identical to me.  When I compared the SP2 (which is supposed to have the same analog section as the SP1.7) to a BP-26, I found the BP-26 smoother and a bit more refined.  Not what I would term a night and day difference but something that was noticed.  The BP-26 was hooked up its power supply which I'm sure helped too.

[James Tanner]

All the gain stages are the same in all the preamps (discrete Class A proprietary operational amplifiers) and the newer versions are evolutionary changes over the older versions. So an SP-2 would be more like a BP-25 given its birth date.

james

[SoundGame]

All the gain stages are the same in all the preamps (discrete Class A proprietary operational amplifiers) and the newer versions are evolutionary changes over the older versions. So an SP-2 would be more like a BP-25 given its birth date.

james

Good to note the date of introduction, that's a key point to keep in mind - thanks James.

[Levi]

Thanks for clarifying James.

The SP1.7 to SP2 upgrade memo did not mention about touching the analog sound.

All the gain stages are the same in all the preamps (discrete Class A proprietary operational amplifiers) and the newer versions are evolutionary changes over the older versions. So an SP-2 would be more like a BP-25 given its birth date.

james

[Mag]

Put the SP2 through the paces for movies last night. Watched two movies, In Search of Bobby Fischer and Die Hard with a Vengeance dts version.

Using the THXStereo cinema mode it was just like the movie theater. You know at the start of the movie you get this THX surround test and let me tell you that was impressive!