Pass Labs amp on the way

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Pythonman, Sep 2, 2019.

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  1. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Of course it will affect the electric bill. It's the equivalent of running five (5) 60-watt lightbulbs at once. You can simply connect it to one of these $25 meters to get a projection of annual energy bill costs associated with the piece of equipment.

    [​IMG]
     
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  2. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    And by the way, my XA30.8 is set to arrive Thursday so the OP has me extra stoked to receive it now that I'm seeing his photos! I will post a review under separate thread and I can even connect it to this meter if anyone is curious on annual energy costs. But all you really need to do is calculate how many hours you run it a month and multiply by the cost per kW hour your utility charges you. Mine is under 10 cents per kW/hr. So let's say you let this amp run at 350 kW for 20 hrs per week. At my rate that is $2.80 per month to run the amp. I'm not sure why people freak out about these charges. If you want a "green" amp you should buy Class D.
     
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  3. Pythonman

    Pythonman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Florida
    Heck my A21 is detrimental to my electric bill according to my wife who pays the bill lol. She said “something” is causing our bill to go up year round as if we were running the pool pump all year. She says it’s that stereo thing I bet!

    I’m only going to run the Pass 24/7 for awhile as all the kinks and wrinkles sort themselves out. Afterwards I will take Reno salesman Marks advice and turn on an hour before serious listening and power down when I’m done listening for that day.
     
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  4. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Yeah, Mark at Reno recommended to me that I leave it on 24/7 just for the first 5 days. My amp is essentially new, having only been in the store as a demo for a month and never sent to out to anyone for home trial.
     
  5. mds

    mds Forum Resident

    Location:
    PA
    I have so many pieces of electronics running around the clock or for many hours each day it isn't much concern to me. A few people however have made a big deal about Class A amplifiers and the electric bill, so I was curious if this was myth or really an area of concern. I run tube mono-blocks each having four power tubes and I have never been concerned about heat and have never really felt their effect on room comfort, at all, even in the summer months. Certainly central air helps.
     
  6. TommyTunes

    TommyTunes Senior Member

    I have switched to all Pass gear over the last couple of years. Previously I was a tube guy owning many different ARC and CJ units over the last 30 years but between the escalating price of replacement tubes and declining quality decided to go SS.
    Pass was the choice based on sound and reliability.
    I’m currently using an X250.5 in my upstairs and XA100.8’s downstairs. As great as their power amps are I’m even more impressed by their preamps and phono stages. Currently using a XP-22 and XP-27. Will be ordering the XP-32 once it becomes available.
     
  7. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Interesting...I wonder if I'm heading your direction as well - from tubes to SS via Pass Labs. I can't imagine separating myself from the tube preamp however...were you using ARC and CJ preamps as well back in your "tube" days? I have a VAC Renaissance MKV that I can't imagine parting with and I keep fantasizing about how well it will pair with the XA30.8 which will arrive Thursday. The XA30.8's input impedance at 100Kohms (XLR) is such a sweet match for a tube preamp. The VAC's output impedance is <150 ohms. Plus I'm getting to retain my fully differentially balanced circuits throughout the pre and the amp. I'm feeling the potential for big-time synergy...
     
    AmericanHIFI likes this.
  8. jonwoody

    jonwoody Tragically Unhip

    Location:
    Washington DC
    Congratulations on your new amp, it's a beauty! And nothing more fun than a new piece of gear have lots of fun listening. I've enjoyed Pass at Cap Audiofest with Zu always great sound.
     
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  9. jfeldt

    jfeldt Forum Resident

    Location:
    SF, CA, USA
    Congrats people on your new amps! I used to leave my Pass Aleph 30 on all the time, but I now turn it off when I won’t listen to it for a while since even though it only idles at about 200W, I was already into another tier of $/kWh, so like $.24/kWh
     
    Pythonman likes this.
  10. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    It's interesting how the local electric company charges vary quite a bit across the country (US). My Kill a Watt meter came preset to $0.25/kWh but here in the Midwest my local provider only charges about $0.095/kWh. It must be all that cheap dirty coal we burn in my state to produce electricity. Sigh.
     
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  11. TommyTunes

    TommyTunes Senior Member

    Yes, up to now I always had either ARC or CJ preamps. Still using a Ref 6 in my downstairs system until the XP-32 is available. My friend who went from a Ref 6 to a Xp-22 agrees that it was an increase in clarity and definition.
     
  12. Pythonman

    Pythonman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Florida
    The X250 is putting on quite a show sound wise. The nice thing about replacing one component in a well known system is it makes spotting differences very easy. But not always easy to quantify or describe meaningfully.
    The Parasound amps strengths are excellent separation, great imaging, lack of distortion, quietness and ability to resolve minute details. It is also very balanced top to bottom and perhaps a bit overdamped in the low end a smidge, for my speakers.

    The still breaking Pass x250 does have an altogether different presentation. What strikes me first is the solid and extended bass response. It’s got great control over the woofers without putting them in a headlock. This is tuneful bass that can come out thundering when appropriate and is tight and defined without boominess.
    The other thing is while the A21 operates from a nice base of extreme quiet, the Pass, just as quiet has blacker backgrounds that are highlighted by a sparkling midrange presence. There’s a great sense of drive and momentum in the Pass sound as well.

    The A21 may have a slight edge at this point in longer and fuller sustains that bloom as they dissipate. The highs of the A21 are more forward than the Pass while maintaining a velvety smoothness. The Pass as it’s breaking in is really trying to catch up in these areas. At one point the Pass amps highs and upper mids had a touch of grain that has all but cleared up.

    So far both amps are winners in book and they compliment one another with slightly different sets of strengths.
     
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  13. Pythonman

    Pythonman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Florida
    Gut shots I took today.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    This version of the X250 has 20 output devices per side according to a nice gentleman named Desmond at Pass Labs I spoke to today. Some are mounted from the other side of the chassis of the ones seen. Otherwise specs are still similar to the earlier X250.
     
  14. timind

    timind phorum rezident

    What a beast!!!

    I love inside pics.
     
  15. mds

    mds Forum Resident

    Location:
    PA
    Audio Porn to the highest level :edthumbs:
     
  16. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    My XA30.8 arrived this afternoon and it's been running ever since. Even cold out of the box with no break-in the sonics are stunning. The synergy with my VAC line stage and Spendor D7's is even better than I had hoped for. The gain and impedance match is perfect. Compared to my Cary CAD 120-S MKII I'm getting much better bass, mid-bass, detail, imaging, depth and width of soundstage, blacker background and all-around much improved dynamic range. Plus it punches harder and louder while still operating in Class A. And the good news is that the sound is only going to get better with run-in. My Symposium Ultra platform looks a bit small for the XA30.8 but actually the four amp feet easily fit within the footprint of the platform, and I sort of like that the cooling fins hang over, getting a little extra airflow from below. So far it's running much cooler than my Cary. I feel like I'm not missing the tubes whatsoever in the amp. The tubes from the VAC and my Herron phono stage really combine well with this great piece of Class A gear.

    [​IMG]
     
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  17. Gibsonian

    Gibsonian Forum Resident

    Location:
    Iowa, USA
    Beautiful amps.

    Not wise to pass on Pass......
     
  18. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    You do know that Desmond Harrington is the Pass Labs CEO, right? That's awesome that he gets engaged with the customers like that.
     
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  19. Pythonman

    Pythonman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Florida
    I didn’t know that when I spoke to him but I found him on YouTube. I only had a few short questions and he was helpful. Nice man.
     
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  20. samurai

    samurai Step right up! See the glory, of the royal scam.

    Location:
    MINNESOTA
    How much does that beast weigh?
     
  21. Pythonman

    Pythonman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Florida
    Not exactly sure because of different specs online but between 100-110 lbs. Double boxed shipping carton was good for another 15 lbs.
     
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  22. Pythonman

    Pythonman Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Florida
    That is a choice setup and your amp is an amazing piece. I’d love to hear any .8 Class A amp. Glad to hear it already sounds fabulous!
     
    Ontheone likes this.
  23. TommyTunes

    TommyTunes Senior Member

    When I first got my XP-22 I sent him an email saying that I thought it was cheap based on it’s sound quality. He responded that at it’s price he wouldn’t call it exactly cheap.
    The fact is Pass Labs gear is underpriced compared to the rest of the market for gear of similar quality and performance.
    I have a close group of friends that are all diehard audiophiles although we have extremely different musical tastes. All have systems costing a hundred thousand or more. Previously they were all tube guys until they heard the Pass gear. They have all switched to Pass Electronics.
    It gives you all the attributes tubes are known for along with the speed and clarity that solid state does best.
     
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  24. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Thanks. It really is quite amazing...moving to a much higher tier of overall sonic experience. If someone had blind tested me by just switching out my old amp with the XA30.8 my guess would have been that someone replaced the speakers with a pair constructed of larger drivers and greater sensitivity. It really goes to show that when you listen to a complete system it's very hard to know exactly what you're hearing (i.e. the amp, the speakers, the source) and which is having the biggest impact. Clearly by swapping just one piece of a gear in an existing system you can tell. As we all know, everything matters. I had no idea my D7's could sound this good.
     
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  25. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    I'm starting to completely relate to this!
     
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