i read in a lot of forums .. and well this emotiva UL series is getting squaked abotu quite some bit .. and some are trying to compare the pre pro to the 990 .. which i believe to be inacurate .. maybe comparible to the 950 but not the 990 .. the 990 would be more comparable to their higher end model costing 2400 $ ... i am not trying to bash this emotiva because of course i have not personally heard one .. but they have supposedly had beta testers out since jan and i cant find review 1 on it .. also outlaw has proven themselves very strongly emotiva .. well they are affiliated with onix kenwood etc but ??? anyhow .. just looking for input ....

Emotiva is a very new product line for AV123. It is similar to their Onix and Perpetual Technologies lines - all three lines are manufactured for them (or in some cases by them using factories in China and Russia that they have at least a part ownership in). AV123 also sells some products such as Kenwood and Gefen that they are simply retailers for. The UL set (the $700 LMC-1 processor and its associated $600 LPA-1 amp) was originally due in March, with beta testing presumably kicking in back in January, but they've hit a number of delays (reminscent of the 950, actually) and last I heard are just now getting ready to do some public beta testing. That's why you haven't been able to find any reports. AV123's president sent a production sample to Dallas last week for a demonstration at a get-together in that area, which is the first public appearance for the unit.

I think it's too early to try to compare the Emo UL to the 990, largely because the specs on the UL are so incomplete. If you look at my pre/pro chart, Emotiva's "big dog" DMC-1 is actually a better feature-for-feature comparison to the 990 (in spite of the significant difference in cost) - in fact, the 990 has a few features more than the DMC-1 (more flexible bass management, DVI switching, headphone jack with Dolby Headphone processing, USB port), although it does lack the DMC-1's firewire input. Of course, the DMC-1's firewire input is not currently enabled to do anything, but presumably this could be changed at some point with a software update. Both the 990 and DMC-1 are based on existing designs: the Sherwood P-965 for the 990, and the Sunfire Theater Grand for the DMC-1. The UL set's processor has been getting compared to the 990 a lot in some forums, but as far as features go it's a somewhat uneven comparison. The UL will reportedly have very minimal bass management (no specifics on what it will have, but most likely it will be either a fixed 80Hz crossover or perhaps a single adjustable crossover similar to what the Model 1050 had) and no RS-232 port (as far as I've been able to ascertain). It sounds like it will have crossconversion from s-video and composite to component, but it will not have any digital video switching (they are offering Gefen's newest HDMI switchbox for an extra $100 in response to the 990's DVI switching). It will have Pro Logic IIx, but doesn't appear to have a headphone jack or Dolby Headphone. At one point in the UL's development, AV123 posted that the LMC-1 would sport Cirrus's "latest and best" chip, which would have suggested either the 49400 (the chip in the 990) or perhaps the 49500, either of which would allow for AV sync control similar to the 990's, but they have not confirmed this and there is some indication that they may be using a 49300 chip, which doesn't support AV sync. Basically, specs on the LMC-1 are still very scarce - not just nitty-gritty numbers, but features themselves. I think the idea of having a modern surround processor available for the price point of $700 or so is a great thing for consumers, and the LMC-1 has the potential to do very well on the market, but it's just to early to tell. Based on everything that AV123 has said online, much of the focus has been on optimizing the LMC-1's sound quality, which on a ground-up design like the LMC-1 or Model 950 can be very challenging, so presumably the LMC-1 will offer great sound in exchange for any features that might be getting left off. Will it sound better than the 990? We won't know that until several people get to try both in their own homes, which may be as soon as June (beta testing) or as late as the fall (figuring time for beta testing to wrap up, a first production run to roll off the line and make the trip from China, and the first reservations to be filled). In the meanwhile, I'm hoping at least one person will be able to compare the 990 to the DMC-1.

Well said Gonk, well said. That was quite a mouthful but extremely accurate. FYI, our own Jeffery Mercado is planning on doing a comparison hopefully this week or the next between the UL and 990, but the UL will be a beta unit that Mark Schifter has sent him to compare. Also, last word from AV123 is they are planning on mid june delivery, but that seems awfully soon to me. Like everything in this industry I take release dates with a big heaping grain of salt.

I've also read the mid-June delivery date a few times, but as a couple AV123 forum members pointed out, it wasn't clear if that was a date for shipments leaving the factory (which seems a bit tight with the beta testing just getting rolling but still doable if the beta test doesn't turn up any show-stopping bugs) or for shipments reaching people's hands (which seems almost impossibly soon to me).

jed i was actually waitingfor your input ... i ve seen u in other forums .. av123// now i read in one thread they were using a new motorola chip ..?? but nobody really knows .. it seems also that a lot of newcastle 9080 pre pro s are on ebay all the sudden .. maybe 990 buyers .. i see ATI is coming out with a ATP 6500 that is closer to the price range of the 990 prob 1500 +or - they say 1799 i believe on their site but usually a bit less.. 7 year warr. !! ati makes great amps but there prepros have always been way out of my $ range .. i think outlaw has brought to the electronics corps of america that reciever s arent all we want .. it seemed a gap in the last 5 years in real prepro production at the afordable level 500 to 1700 or so..some high high end folks were still at it but .. i wish emotiva luck we need more choices in prepros ..

Maybe Gonk has it right. If Jeff Mercado is listening out there, maybe you can get Mark to lend you a "Big Dog", as the real test is probably how well the 990 and the DMC-1 do in a head-to-head BLIND test. Based on features, the DMC-1 would have to sound a great deal better than the 990 to justify almost 3x the price. Other than the 1394 option, they actually seem to be reasonably well matched in features, but for almost $2K more, the DMC-1 ought to sound better, otherwise what's the value?

Travk13, I agree about the competition. Its great for us. The ATI looks interesting. I know AV123 is building an EMO Light but won't be due out till probably next summer at the earliest. I happen to be a loyal Outlaw and a loyal AV123er. Although I sincerely want both companies to succeed, I am not actively looking to hurt or help sales for either, I just want the best pre/pro for me. There are a lot of things I really like about the 990 and there are others I don't. Sonically it is good, better than I expected actually, but until I hear the UL I have nothing to really compare it to. Right now I would be more than satisfied with the 990 as a HT processor if it wasn't for the size. I almost passed on buying it because of that, but I am glad I changed my mind. In reality, I am so pleased with the 990 I could just pass on trying out the UL's and be happy, but since I have such a great respect for the Outlaws, particularly Scott Jackson, and the AV123 guys I want to be fair to both. May the best pre/pro (for me) win.

I learned about this preamp from the posts above, and went to their site, it sure is a sexy piece of equipment

It may be, but they are still very tight about releasing specs. As noted by Gonk, it omits some key features such as lip sync delay, 4-way bass management, USB input, DVI switching, it has fewer digital audio inputs, and most importantly, it does not appear as far as we know to have any provision for software upgrades. That, combined with what appears to be the use of an older (49326) processor, as opposed to the much more powerful 49400 in the 990 make it somewhat less than a full boat, particularly if they make you pay extra for bass management, which has already been stated and you have to pay $99 more to get an outboard digital video switch.

I say the better comparison is to put the 990 up against their "Big Dog" DMC-1. The 990 will most likely smoke it!

Is it well known that 49236 is less powerful I know it has less capabilities but is the processing not as good? in a sound comparison, would the difference be significant?