Is the sound really cheesy?

[bevital]

I've read a lot of posts about high levels of noise and hiss. Can anyone tell me if the results are different with a higher quality headphone, or does the noise get worse? I'm really attracted to the Procyon because of the digital audio and already have good headphones so if its the headphones that are cheesy thats fine with me. But if its the sound from the Procyon that's a whole different story.
One of the problems with these forums is the complaints really stand out.

I guess I'm looking for the posts where people say the sound is absolutely amazing.

[CraigT]

Discussing the audio quality of an AVS device isn't quite like discussing the audio quality of an MP3 player.

1. The synthesised entrainment content doesn't always sound 'nice' and invariably contains artifacts that some will find intriguing. others not so much. The Procyon correctly generates a wide range of waveforms that have been demonstrated to bring about brainwave entrainment.

2. The Procyon is also an AudioStrobe decoder which means that it handles the 19.2kHz AS signal in a very specific way which can lead to the inclusion of a high pitched tone in the audio. That's a common side effect of AudioStrobe.

3. The codec used for analog pass through is of a similar standard to that used in a typical MP3 player, so the basic audio quality of the Procyon is exactly the same as a typical MP3 player.

4. The LED glasses do create switching noise that is generally very well suppressed by the Procyon, but low batteries, or poor grounding of USB/soundcard connections can create a number of noise issues.

5. Earphones/headphones seem to be a very personal choice - the basic headphones supplied work just fine, others speak highly of various makes, models and price points. YMMV.

The Procyon does what it does very, very well. I thoroughly enjoy mine, standalone, in conjunction with Neuroprogrammer/Mind Workstation and overlaying some of my favourite music. For both therapeutic and recreational purposes AVS/BWE is one of my most favourite things

Cheers,
Craig

[bevital]

Thanks for giving me a better understanding. Looks like I'll be giving myself a belated Christmas present.

[TomC]

bevital,

I found that adding an in-line volume control unit between the Procyon and headphones, turning up the Procyon volume to high, and using the in-line volume control to control volume (all as suggested by Andy) worked very well and got rid of any hissing background noise. The Procyon in-built sessions are fantastic and I think that they are an improvement over the current Proteus sessions. The current Proteus in-built sessions are very good too imop. However, I do find that the Procyon sessions are a bit more vivid, colour/pattern-wise.

Right now I only use my Procyon (had it for +2 months now) as a standalone session unit. I use my Proteus (had it for +6 years now) for Audiostrobe disks and together with Neuroprogrammer 2-pro (NP2-pro version). With my Proteus and 2.7 o/s I have never got any hissing/clicking noise with any headphones.

I'd say I use the Proteus about 90% of the time (Procyon ~10%). Personally, I just find the Proteus easier to use. This may be a bit to do with the fact that I've had it a lot longer.

I also have a Thoughtstream unit and have tried using it together with the Proteus. These units work fine together (the Thoughtstream will not work with the Procyon by the way) but I cannot honestly say that I've found any real positive benefit to use both units together. I do use the Thoughtstream unit once in a while with Mental Games in the hope that this may improve my golf game (hasn't so far!). There is an upgrade to NP2-Pro, Mind Workstation that interfaces with Thoughtstream and I might they this a bit later.

I still consider the Procyon a good investment since I'm hopeful that new/future operating systems will improve it and evenually someone will come out with updated Audiostrobe CD's to take advantage of it's 3-4 light colour abilities. It also has more biofeedback potential as well, but will need an interface to be fully developed, hopefully sometime soon.

Just my opinion but if you do not currently have either unit I would consider purchasing a Proteus unit together with NP2-pro software. Also, I'd 'think' about getting a set of white proteus glasses (maybe also a set of red/blue ones as well), but only after you try the stock red/green's since they are already very good anyway;

http://shopping.netsuite.com/s.nl/c....&category=2012

I prefer the white glasses when using it with NP2-pro, but this may just be me.

If you shop around you can get the Proteus ($159), white glasses ($50), and NP2-pro ($60) for about the same price as a Procyon unit ($269). Personally I think that the Proteus combo is better value. However, if you go with the Procyon, you can still add NP2 later and use these together fine.

Please do not take this as a negative view of the Procyon, just my current thoughts on both units and somethig for you to consider.

Cheers,
TomC

[bevital]

After your original reply I immediately ordered a Procyon. I had basically had already made up my mind but was a bit hesitant because of some of the sound issues I had read about in this forum. Years ago I had a Zygon Mind Machine and really enjoyed using it. I happened to see its predecessor on Ebay and bought it for about $60. I had been so impressed with how I have been feeling after my sessions I began researching to see how the technology had advanced. I had seen the Proteus but when I read about the Procyon, the 16 million colors, digital sound, and usb interface I was sold. I currently use a Neurophone along with Alphasonic cds. My hope is to incorporate the Neuro Programmer, Neurophone and the Procyon for reasons I'm not quite sure of (LOL). After I've tried the Procyon for a while, I may go back and get a Proteus as well so I can compare results.

[TomC]

bevital,

I'm sure you will like your new Procyon and it should do what you want. I doubt that you will need to also buy a Proteus unit. I'm sure that, over time, I will use my Procyon more and Proteus less.

Good luck and let us know how you make out.

Best cheers,
TomC

[synaesthesia]

I don't know , I've had a Proteus for 4 years and a Procyon for 2 years and similar to Tom C I use my Proteus and Procyon in the ratio about 4 : 1 for many reasons I've set out in my earlier posts.

[bevital]

My first day with the Procyan and I've been putting it thru the ringers so I could give my own unbiased assessment of the sound.

Now this might not be fair because I'm not using the supplied headphones. I have a really nice pair of Audio Technica earbuds that would definitely pick up on any weaknesses.

First test is just with the system itself, earbuds and glasses, using three never used everready alkaline energizer batteries. And the sound is brilliant, no distinguishable distortion what so ever.

Next again with batteries, but add an external source, my computer by way of a Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi sound card through the sound console. Again the sound is brilliant, no distinguishable distortion what so ever.

Next one was a bit scarry, from an external home audio system. Again no problems.

Connected the USB cable to my computer (still with external device connected) and the a very noticeable hum appeared. However, when I disconnect the external device, back to where it was before.

Reconnect audio to my computer, there is a slight hum as well, but not nearly as bad.

My conclusions are that if the hum bothers me I'll just go off of battery power. But as of now, the sessions have been other worldly like, with no detractions.