balanced outputs, overall design, lack of chinky sound effects,ease of operation, and mostly THE SOUND !!!

only 1 sub out, no rear/side balanced outputs(front¢er only)not a big deal though

The Proceed AVP is without a doubt, the best home theater / music pre-amp processor I have ever tried. I have been a Lexicon fan for years, but after many trials& having sold my DC-2 and ordered a new MC-1 ( a loaner MC-1 was given to me to try ) I plugged in the AVP, and it was literally like someone took blankets off of my speakers! Everything was so much more detailed, transparent, vivid and dynamic. I feel an improvement in THX as well, I don't agree that the MC-1 sounds better. The avp has broadcast quality video switching as well, and no b.s. sound effects ( no thank you) I promptly canceled my MC-1 order and got the AVP. Perfect match w/ my two Sunfire Signature amps, Martin Logan Re-Quests ( front) Logos ( center ) Scripts (rear) , M&K tri-pole (sides) and twin Velodynes (subs). Also, get the Monster HTS-5000 power center..it quiets the power source tremendously.

Similar Products Used:

lexicon dc-2 and mc-1

I bought the Proceed AVP and Proceed AMP5 4 weeks ago after extensive auditioning of the Meridian, Lexicon, and Proceed gear. I moved from 15 year old audiophile preamp to a Sony DD receiver hooked to an Acoustat amp. While I really enjoyed DD movies, I hated the Sony on music. I planned to upgrade to improve 2-channel sound.
I bought the Proceed for the following reasons:
1) Great feedback from reviewers on the WEB
2) Super build quality and I like the way it looks and feels
3) Madrigal has been incredibly responsive to all inquiries. (Meridian took two weeks to respond to my first request.)
4) I wanted to buy an amp and processor that looked similar and would talk to each other.
5) The Proceed had the ability to configure and remember settings for each input.
6) It sounded great, but to me so did the Lexicon, Theta, and Meridian

I didn't really expect all that much improvement in the sound of movies, but I am completely blown away. Everything sounds so much clearer. I went from a 10 year old first generation CD player on my old preamp to a Sony 300 DVD player feeding digitally into the Sony 80ES receiver. I thought I might get a little better sound going from 10 year old DACs in a cheap Carver CD player to the latest technology in the Sony, but I didn't hear any difference in two channel audio. AC-3 movies sounded cool due to the discrete rear channel content, but Pro Logic was very disappointing. I ended up setting the gain for the rears 3-5db above reference level all the time to maximize the effect.

With the Proceed I can't believe how much better everything sounds. From the THX into clip, which is now crystal clear and crisp, to every one of my favorite CDs. The surround effect before was obviously coming from distinct speakers. Now I have the rears set to the reference level and there is a much more seemless sound field. I never used a single surround effect for music with the Sony, but I really like the 2 channel suround effect on the AVP.

Audio System:
Proceed AVP
Proceed AMP5
Dynaudio Contour 3.3 R&L
Dynaudio Contour Center
KEF rear
Sony DVP-S300 DVD and CD (digital out)

Solid performance, reliability and style. Great product & company. Design, input flexibility, smart computerlike features, and amazing audio listening capability.

Software glitch (DTS see review), Analog bypass only with SUB turned off (see review)

Not giving this product a 5 "*" rating was difficult. I love my AVP. I have owned one now for over a year. I "invested" in this unit because I like music as much as movies. I also was impressed with Proceed's service. Their staff was very friendly and curtious even in face of competition when I was looking at other brands and writing them emails about competing features vs their own.I looked at Lexicon DC-2, Krell Home Theatre Standard, Harmon Kardon Signature Series, Bryston SP-1, and other brands like Classe and Yamaha.

There is something to be said about the ease of use of this machine, which is something I have never found easy to say like others, eg Yamaha, who always seem to have too many buttons. I think comparing the controllers to the AVP 8 or 9 button controller gives you an example of how effective and simple Madrigal is trying to be with their AVP. But, don't think the controller is what they expect you to use though. I imagine much more intelligent remotes were intended to drive this system, like the Phillips Pronto. The learning features of the remote are endless. That is one great feature, but I just can't seem to justify the time between all the music, DVD, CD collecting, listening and tuning. Maybe one day.(actually, have you been to the site for Pronto on www.remotecentral.com? I think you need a year to enter all that data?)

Performance: Smooth, fast, engaging and so easy. The setup was a joke and the AVP really does strike you as a computer. The movement of the volume button will give your twigs and berries a "hello how's your father" on a daily basis... And, you just can't get enough of looking at the unit, freaking out over all the great inputs and the well written manual that actual has some humour...read carefully(ie page 28 "FBI". (By the way, the manual is available in full form at www.madrigal.com) That is another great thing about this company. They not only have a website but a "web centre". It is so useful. BUT YOU NEED TO USE IT TOO...see DTS blues below to explain further.

The AVP DAC is impressive. My music sounded so good when I set up my unit the first time. Now I am spoiled as I just dont realize on a daily basis how good it really is. The bass really was an improvement as was the timbre and neutral sound in the top and high end.

For movies you are really talking Nirvana here. Many of use new to Home Theatre must realize one thing. This machine does more in one box than someone five years ago could have ever have imagined and it does that with solid performance, reliability and style...so much style it is sick. Not too many girls comment on stereo equipment, if you disagree, please give introduce me...:-)...I get compliments on this piece. Even when sitting next to really hot Ligne Roset furnture or a B&O CD player.

If you want to buy a really kick as systems and build your way up slowly (as most of us just can't dump all our retirement money on the hobby, but oh, way a day that would be huh?) the AVP is a really wise first move. Speakers: depending on your music tastes, size of room, moving in the future, new Audio formats, really may be able to wait. Even good subs really don't suck that bad from the best. All this to say that you could start with one really sick piece of gear and just add to the system as you go along. With some product time may be on your side, like DVD players a year ago versus today.

My formula is a good controller, a good transport (ie Sony 7700 DVD, Pioneer DV05, DV09, Toshiba, Marantz) and an affordable AMP. As the computer professionals say...garbage in garbage out. If your DVD or CD player isn't doing its job, the AVP can only do so much to make it better. I also believe that investing in good interconnects and using a COAXIAL Digital cable is the way to go.

If you are really into style, you may want to check out Solid Steel. Their equipment stands have a grey/silver line that match the AVP so nicely. It was a match made in heaven...(yes Madrigal, that was a hint...by this company, you have everything else under the roof!)

Powering my system was a difficult choice as I really wanted a set of HPA2/HPA3s, but couldn't afford it. I think if you dream of owning a piece of top engineered equipment like the Proceed AVP, don't rule yourself out too soon. Many people choose affordable five channel amps to drive their systems. Great deals can be found from Rotel and NAD. More powerful reference systems are also available from the likes of Bryston and Parasound or Classe.

I have a Bryston 9B ST and it loves working with the AVP. I have it connected to the triggers of the AVP and it shuts down when the AVP gives it the command.

You are probably trying to figure out why I had those reservations about giving this product a 5 "*" rating. .."

Okay. There a a few small things that I feel justified in mentioning.

1. Analog bypass (no D/A conversion)

This does work and really does give the AVP the thumbs up from those who really like two channel audio. But, the only way that the AVP knows you don't want it not to use its expensive DAC is buy choosing NO Surround, and turning off the Sub. AHHH! No deep bass? "The Horror, The Horror..." I am bass lover and really don't have the slamming front L/R speakers I would like yet but I don't think I am alone in saying that people do appreciate the SUB mixed in with their L/R stereo listeing. You can only play Matrix(Lobby spree), Outbreak (Bomb, Helicopter chase) so many times to justify why you have an extra black thing in your living room.

2. DTS does not play well with this machine if you are a "controller fidder" like my girlfriend calls me. I mean if you FF or RW the DVD, or stop to mess with the settings, the DTS signal is lost. According to Madrigal this is because if a signal is not detected the default setting is Dolby Digital. As you know most DVDs require you to choose one format at the beginning of the movie. Therefore if you don't get a DTS signal read, because when you broke the signal the AVP switched its ear to Dolby Digital you will return to a silent movie experience. Yeah, that sucks doesn't. ??????
(if you have an AVP and also experiences this, please contact madgrigal at their website, its the only way they will realize how idiotic this programming was and do something about it. FYI. I have a Sony 7700 DVD player. There could be something of a bad combination, but I suspect all players stop their signal when you FF or RW.)

3. DTS ES and Dolby Digial Surround EX

These features will not be a software upgrade to the AVP, contrary to all the "future proof" assurance you hear". There will be board upgrades for these new formats. If this is something you really are keen on, you should be looking at a Lexicon instead.

4. Software updates should be more readily avaiable and be able to be installed by the owner themselves. This is possible, but not with a big headache. The interface software is written in DOS (ya, that was what we used before Windows or Mac OS).

5. Component video switching should have been included...even just one or two, as should XLR/Balanced inputs on all channels.

6. One last thing...if our hobby could only be recognized as assets, wouldn't we have so much more credit and available opportunity to buy more!!! Perhaps we can convince Madgrial to go public and the price will include 100 shares. :-)

Conclusion

I love my AVP. I suspect it will be with me for a long time. It works all day and all night without complaining and I can't believe have good it looks in my setup. It makes my other components shrivel up in disgust.

Goodluck, and feel free to contact me with any questions. caryw@sympatico.ca

Similar Products Used:

Lexicon DC-2, Krell Home Theatre Standard, Bryston SP-1 Classe, Parasound, Harmon Kardon Signature

My System:Proceed AVP
Proceed HPA2
Proceed HPA3
Proceed CDP
B&W Nautilus 803
B&W Nautilus HTM2
B&W DS6
2 B&W ASW 3000
Panasonic A310 DVD Player

This processor is quite simply as smooth as my hairless ass. Now if I can just get a copy of Lolita '97 on DVD, I'll be in business.

Go see Todd at Soundsations A/V in Louisville, KY. I went to a country club college with this guy, and have kept in touch with him through the years. I buy EVERYTHING through him. He knows his shit. See his site @ www.homeaudio.com, and tell him Pappagiorgio sent you.

My AVP was installed yesterday. For a description/pictures of the rest of my home theater go to: http://www.avscience.com/rick.htmAlthough it has not been used for the recommended 300 hours, I am VERY impressed with this piece of gear. It's sound stage in all modes is awesome, and is easy enough to use my wife can operate it. It's like the walls behind the speakers disappeared. The build quality is exceptional, and although it was professionally installed, it seemed easy enough and intuitive enough most people could do it themselves. Now if only 300 hours would go by !!

SystemProceed AVP
Aragon 8008BB
Aragon 8008x3
Sony 7000
Aerial 10T
Aerial CC3
Aerial 7
Transparant wire

The AVP is outstanding. Easy to setup, easy to use, and easy to upgrade via software download. The only concerns I have is the unit does not have HDCD capability and the ability to set the crossover for the subwoofer.

If a choice of 4.5 stars was a available that's what I'd give it.
Reference System:

Krell KAV-500 Amp (L,R)

Kenwood 6x100 THX Amp (C,LS,RS)

B&W 803's, HTM, SCM-8

Pioneer DVL-700 DVD/LD player

Rotel Tuner

Yamaha HiFi VCR.

39 year old ears.

Mostly various monster cable with Radio Shack connectors.

All in home.

DTS *****

AC-3 **** (not tested very heavily)

DPL ????

DPL (stereo rear) N/A

7.1 Processing Not available yet

RF-Demodulator Not tested (reasonably priced, see below)

Music (Bypass) **** (I had expected *****)

Music (Surround) ***

Usability **** (did not like how it traversed menus)

Build is ****

Bass is ***** (even with limited bass management)

Documentation **** (not heavily used)

Recording Analog Not Tested

Recording Digital Not Tested

The information here is based on 4 days of ownership and was prematurely terminated due to the power supply bug I ran into
which has been rectified (see below).

DTS sounded outstanding and subjectively better than DC-1, increased sense of space around you on the Casper DTS LD. Note
that I did not calibrate each system with Video Essentials DVD which I should of for a fair comparison. But out of the box
(built in calibration with Radio Shack SPL meter) DTS on the AVP just really stuck a nerve the DC-1 never seemed to ever
hit.

Straight 2 Channel sounded very clean. However, I hooked up the analog outputs of my Pioneer DVL-700 to the "True" analog
inputs of the AVP. To my ears the DACs in the Pioneer sounded identical. That does not mean the AVP sounded bad I just
expected something magically above what the DVL-700 built in DACs could provide since this is what Proceed advertises so
much on the AVP. Note that the DVL-700 transport could be a limiting factor here (but I'm not a believer of $5000.00
transports either, at least not yet).

Configuration of each device is very clever, each device can have several digital sources and you prioritized those sources
for that device. No need for an "AC3-RF" switching type demodulator for example. Every device does "auto switching" up to 3
devices.

The simple (almost too small) remote was nice and you could map a list of different functions (one at a time) to the
"special" button. For example THX and No THX. It was great if you wanted one button to compare something.

Since the small remote is limited in IR codes, they added an interesting feature to the preamp. The Preamp can teach a
learning remote a wide range of commands that the supplied remote cannot do. You never have to worry about loosing or
breaking your remote, the preamp can teach a new one.

Browsing the menus with the remote was slightly less intuitive than the DC-1. Seems like one more button was used in the
process than was needed and I constantly picked the wrong one. This was probably, in part, a matter of deprogramming myself
from the Lexicon DC-1 method.

The "main" power switch is on the front. This is nice for a true power shutdown during electrical storms or long weekends
your away. I wish they all did this.

The preamp’s display was great and you could choose THX Ref (-60db -> +20dB) or DB level (1 to 90dB) or something like
that.

Build was a certainly a step up from the DC-1 but the connectors on the AVP seemed about the same quality as the DC-1
(XLR’s excluded).

The one Music surround it had sounded nice but not to the level of any of the DC-1 formats.

You could hear real relays clicking as you changed sources or switched to "direct" mode.

Proceed claims, it can process data on it's digital inputs as fast as a DVD can provide it and will support DVD Audio when
it’s available.

The Tuner hooked through the Analog inputs in "direct" mode sounded fabulous. ADC's sure do degrade sound on any of these
preamps.

However a problem arose, after listening for a while I did a main power shut-off and just a minute later back on again. A
high pitch squeal emitted from every speaker (even with the unit in standby). I could not get rid of it. Turns out if you
turn the unit on stone cold it will never do this. But if you turn in on while warmed up your stuck until it gets cold
again. Turns out there is an ECO (a resistor change in the power supply) in place to fix this problem and all new units
should not see this problem (I don’t know serial numbers) and existing ones will be repaired.

The optional built in RF-Demodulator has a programmable input sensitivity having this internal card still uses up a digital
input I believe.

You could make limited adjustments to the "current" effect and not worry about them being permanent. Where as on the DC-1
every thing you did would "stick" forever and on the 561 you could adjust about anything and get back to where you left off
easily.

Input gain for analog inputs converted to digital seemed to be a large priority for Proceed (even though it has true analog
paths). When an input clips it will optionally display a message on the screen. To correct it you push a single button on
the front of the unit (this may be an optional IR command as well) and the volume control now becomes the input sensitivity
and the current input gain is displayed. Make your adjustment and push the "input gain" button again. If you Hold the
button in, it makes it a permanent change for that device.

One thing I noticed on the AVP is that when enabling THX equalization is had a much larger effect than I have heard on most
processors. Is the AVP one of the few doing it right or one of the few doing it wrong? But it was quite different from the
behavior of the other processors.

No external calibration menu.

The unit is capable of 7.1 (added rear channels for increased depth) channels or 5.3 (multiple subs) but is not software
enabled yet.

I don't know how recording is handling through the AVP but it does offer a digital output. Something the DC-1 lacked.

$500.00 extra to get S-Video switching which seems excessive to me (it’s usually priced with and is called the AVP(S)).

$300.00 to add an internal RF Demodulator board. Note the Yamaha one will work seamlessly on the AVP because of it’s
priority method.

I heard somewhere that HDCD decoding is planned.

Proceed has a track record of keeping their products current for a long period of time (e.g. PAV).

List $5000.00 (Base)

List $5000.00 (With S-Video)

List $5300.00 (With S-Video + Built in RF-Demodulator)

Street 10-20% off depending on dealer

I auditioned a lot of competing products, was worried about the uncertainty of changing video standards -- now I'm totally relaxed and secure and loving the music. This is a great sounding and highly evolved product. For all it does, it is incredibly easy to set up and use. Sound for stereo music is comparable, although somewhat different in quality from the high quality Melos preamp the AVP replaced. DD, DTS and DPL sound very good. The internal DAC's are very good too -- I use them from a CD/DVD transport. I'm realizing that with all the complexity required by a preamp/processor, it's going to be the manufacturers who've been at it for some years that can turn out an ergomonically refined product. Also, importantly, it is software upgradeable via computer. This is not an idle promise as I suspect the case will be with some preamp/processors -- Proceed has been doing this for years with both their PAV and now this unit.

Flexibility, Simple Remote, Aesthetics, Sound Quality

No support for HDCD or Dolby EX YET!

This is a great reference piece with strengths in the sound quality end, with very good theatre capabilities. The remote is very easy to use and navigate the onscreen menu with. 2 Channel analog preamp section is supposedly based on the Mark Levinson No.36/36s(please tell me if I'm wrong-just going by what a salesman said.) The industrial looks definitely won me over. Compared to the Classe' Preamp/processor, the sound was somewhat smoother with better staging. The price, well not cheap here in Canada, but nevertheless, you get what you pay for.

Similar Products Used:

Classe SSP-25

OK, I hooked up the proceed, a couple of initial comments. Bottom line is that I am satisfied so far, not bowled over (yet).

Built quality: Really good. Feels solid, about 25 pounds or so. Heavier case. Looks were not an afterthought. The great news is that it HAS a volume knob. However the knob is tiny and light to the touch (not a heavy milled chunk) and is NOT lighted (too bad). Manual is substantial. Connectors in back are secured to the back plate with extra screws, so they were really solid. There are a ridiculously excessive number of inputs, 7 digital and 7 analog for audio, and about 7 for video. However only one of the digital inputs is for toslink (I ordered a toslink to coax convertor to solve this). There are 2 12 volt triggers. On screen display. So far I am happy.

The remote is a bit funky, 9 buttons, but soon I will have the Pronto programmed. Set up is not intuitive for me, had to use the manual. I had 2 problems with my learning curve. One is that the remote has separate buttons to select the video input and the audio input. So I got frustrated when I changed the audio, and the picture did not change. Again, this problem will go away with Pronto. My second one was that I did not realize that I was in "late night mode" (no way to tell unless you go to that menu screen) so of course it sounded pretty bad at first. I recommend disabling the button on the remote, if you inadvertently hit it you have no way of knowing it is enabled. I hit it several times. The volume control is excellent, normal volume is about 50 or 55, so there are a lot of steps to fine tune the volume. Krell normal volume was about 20 or 24, so each step was a larger jump. No pops or delays (yet, still have not tried 5.1). I like that I can change the names of the input devices.

The sound: I am using balanced cables to the Krell FPB and Martin Logan requests. Sub is disabled. It sounds fine (once you realize you were in compressed mode, ouch)! I would describe the sound as very laid back. Since I am not used to it, it seems that the highs are rolled off. It does not seem to have the crispness of other processors for the highs. Bass is full, and midrange is rich. I only listened for about 1/2 hour, so this is just an initial impression. I can get by until I find the stereo preamp to try out. I have not tried the 5.1 yet.

Later I will give a fuller description of this preamp/processor. It is well made and is attractive. Stereo sound is good, but since it is different in that the highs seem rolled off I cannot say if I like it yet or not, need to spend more time with it. Set up is not particularly easy, but once its done its done.

Samir

Similar Products Used:

Sony TAE 9000 ES, Theta Casablanca, Krell HTS