C-2 vs C-1

Other than SH and the form factor, are there any noteworthy differences between the C-1 and C-2? I ask because that really pretty one that came up on ebay (dibs?) has got me thinking about getting it so long as it doesn't go stupid (fuck... do I already have OCCD? ). I need 2 preamps for my getup anyhow, and I'm looking forward to getting my C-1 and trying out but have taken note of people's mention of hiss, which would be big a non-starter for me so my hopes are not terribly high for the moment. To me hiss is not an acceptable byproduct for a novel feature, and all things being equal the C-2 would better match my 17" earless, non-carverized components.

-Paul

Then get the C-2. It's a good pre.

I've had two C-1's and neither had any hiss at all. Dead silent.

I've had two C-1's and neither had any hiss at all. Dead silent.

I only had 1 C-1 but it too was silent.

An excellent pre.

The C-2 is a good preamp. It requires quite a bit of disassembly to work on (the bottom is not removable — it's a pan). It uses NE5532 op-amps, which are quite nice. However, its phono section is not nearly as good as the C-1 if you use moving coil. Because the NE5532s have standard pinouts, your options of modifying it are enhanced. I just refurbished/modified one for a friend and replaced the NE5532 line amp with the ultra quiet OPA2228. I also made a similar change to the Moving Magnet phono stage by replacing the NE5532 with an OPA2134. Dead quiet.

Thanks all, for the replies. Things being how they are, and the auction being a 9 dayer likely it will go stupid and this is all just academic (my fancy way of saying I'm poor). My C-1 is-a-comin though, so first things first I'm going to give it some real listening time. As far as hiss concerns, it's not the preamp's normal functions I was wondering about, just the Sonic Holography circuit that I gather *may or may not* have a hissy when I feed it some voltage.

Good info on tech diffs, mods, and accessibility issues; always a crowd pleaser you are Bill, and good to see fresh posts from you! I don't have a turntable or vinyl (crowd ghaps), so phono limitations of the C-2 will be of limited irritation. For now...


-Paul

so phono limitations of the C-2 will be of limited irritation. For now...

thats what you think now.....

Remember .... In reality, it only matters what it sounds like to YOU!!!

Just a point of clarification the C2 does not have Sonic Halography.

This is true, just like the C-19.

I hope when I commented on the Sonic Holography creating hiss, I didn't mislead you sisu1a.
Both the C-1's, CT-7 and CT-6 I have right now are all dead quiet without the SH engaged. I don't really care for it anyways. To much of a pita to set the speakers up. It really helps to bring some music to life, but I can live without it. Have you considered a C-4000 or C-4000t ? They are the best Carver ever produced IMHO.

Just a point of clarification the C2 does not have Sonic Halography.

C2 is also Explosive!!!

Not mislead (I don't think ), I followed what you said, but perhaps my post was misleading... I knew the C-2 has no SH, and that the C-1 (and any other Carver pre's) are really quiet when running w/out SH engaged. I was trying to determine whether everything else on the C-2 is equal to the C-1, as a contingency plan for aesthetic reasons since it would fit in much nicer with the rest of my existing gear, in case SH isn't my bag.

Gleaned so far: C-2 has Inferior phono stage, tougher chassis to get in and out of, but has better opamps.

Your post was actually not the first time I have run across someone mentioning hissing and Sonic Holography in the same sentence, which will indeed drive me nuts if I can hear it, so it was already something I was thinking about; seeing that sexy C-2 just shifted me into a more active thinking mode about it. Hadn't considered the C-4000, other than as a possible upgrade down the road once I've plateau'd on the gear I got.

C2 is also Explosive!!!

Wait, I thought that was C4?!

-Paul

I have a C-2 and I’ve been very pleased with it I haven’t noticed any noise from it what’s so ever the phono section never made me feel like I was missing anything or hearing anything extra (I’ve listened to a lot of records but I mainly listen to CD’s) the only issue was the volume knob developed a bad scratch/static sound when adjusting it which I have been told is due to the rheostat being dirty which I will have addressed when I have it serviced here in the near future. The size is great but leads to several design issues such as the connectors on the back are very close together if you like to do a lot of switching of equipment this could be a little irritating the other half of this is that it didn’t seem like there were enough connections but I’ve never seen a preamp that I thought had enough and the last issue is with how hard the lettering on the front(face) of the unit is to read but I think this issue is consistent with all the carver equipment with this type of finish.