Pass XS-150's

[Frank750]

Holy cow! What a system! Those amps, with their power supplies, make my XA-100.5's look diminutive, in comparison! Big congrats!

Thanks! They throw off a little more heat than your XA100.5's too!

 

[rockitman]

First impressions:

Big and heavy, but have these amazing feet that slide with ease on the amp stand to line them up (Dual chassis perfectly)
Hot...speedo bathing suit hot
Sound....very promising. I have only 60 minutes of listening time...still under shock and awe

 

[slowGEEZR]

Thanks! They throw off a little more heat than your XA100.5's too!

Now that's one aspect I wouldn't like!

 

[slowGEEZR]

First impressions:

Big and heavy, but have these amazing feet that slide with ease on the amp stand to line them up (Dual chassis perfectly)
Hot...speedo bathing suit hot
Sound....very promising. I have only 60 minutes of listening time...still under shock and awe

Take your time Christian, then give us a sound comparison between the old Pass Labs (XA100.5's) vs. the new Pass Labs! Shock and awe - classic!

 

[rockitman]

on the heat thing...in the basement, 68 degrees before amps, 78 degrees after...should be good for winter.

 

[rockitman]

Well it will be another week or two before I can play vinyl (cast comes off), but based on the tape and digital I have heard so far, these amps are glorious in their ability to reproduce the music. They are very natural sounding....a real live listening experience full of emotion and impact. The room ambience is clear and the sound stage is deep and wide. Imaging is perfect. They handle leading egde transients with aplomb and have a beautiful, natural decay. The heat output is the only downside in a smaller room like mine.

 

[joeinid]

Thanks Christian,

Your description sounds wonderful. My XP-30 arrived last night and it's really nice. I like it.

 

[Frank750]

Well it will be another week or two before I can play vinyl (cast comes off), but based on the tape and digital I have heard so far, these amps are glorious in their ability to reproduce the music. They are very natural sounding....a real live listening experience full of emotion and impact. The room ambience is clear and the sound stage is deep and wide. Imaging is perfect. They handle leading egde transients with aplomb and have a beautiful, natural decay. The heat output is the only downside in a smaller room like mine.

Thanks Christian.

I'm still breaking in the amps, preamp, phono amp and a bunch of new Shunyata power cords. Sounds good but nothing like you're describing.........yet. Much better than 2 nights ago though.

I'd be interested to read your comparison to the XA100.5 if you have a chance.

The heat they throw is amazing! My room is 30x22 and I can feel it as soon as I come down the stairs. It will be great in the winter but it's forcing me to turn the AC down a degree or two right now.

 

[Frank750]

Thanks Christian,

Your description sounds wonderful. My XP-30 arrived last night and it's really nice. I like it.

Joe, we definitely have to hear your thoughts on the XP30 vs the 077.
I was very close to going all Burmester myself.

Thanks

 

[joeinid]

Joe, we definitely have to hear your thoughts on the XP30 vs the 077.
I was very close to going all Burmester myself.

Thanks

The 077 was/is a superb preamp. I prefer the XP-30 at this point. When everything was perfect with the 077, it could not be beat. Usually that is not the case and the XP30 is a better value, hands down. I need to play it through my TADs and will switch over tonight. So far it's breaking in nicely. I was told about 5 days for the XP30 to settle down. I would love the get the new Xs-150 amps

 

[LL21]

The 077 was/is a superb preamp. I prefer the XP-30 at this point. When everything was perfect with the 077, it could not be beat. Usually that is not the case and the XP30 is a better value, hands down. I need to play it through my TADs and will switch over tonight. So far it's breaking in nicely. I was told about 5 days for the XP30 to settle down. I would love the get the new Xs-150 amps

Congrats! Look forward to further observations! Enjoy!

 

[joeinid]

Congrats! Look forward to further observations! Enjoy!

Thanks Lloyd,

I want to give it a few days to burn in. So far, I love it. It's not a GAT (yet) but it will drive ANYTHING well!

 

[slowGEEZR]

The 077 was/is a superb preamp. I prefer the XP-30 at this point. When everything was perfect with the 077, it could not be beat. Usually that is not the case and the XP30 is a better value, hands down. I need to play it through my TADs and will switch over tonight. So far it's breaking in nicely. I was told about 5 days for the XP30 to settle down. I would love the get the new Xs-150 amps

Joe, I've never read anything but good reports on the XP-30. Congrats!

 

[joeinid]

Joe, I've never read anything but good reports on the XP-30. Congrats!

Thanks!

All I have to do now is figure out how to get the Xs-150

 

[microstrip]

Even those who do not own the Pass XS-150 should download the owner manual from the XS-150 page at the Pass site:

https://passlabs.com/products/amplifiers/xs/xs-150

or directly

https://passlabs.com/images/uploads/manual/Xs_amp_om.pdf

It includes a very interesting section "Comments by Pass" about the design of the XS series. I quote a single appetizer sentence:

"In the process of developing the Xs amplifiers, we paid a lot of attention to the harmonic structure of the amplifier’s transfer curve. It is apparent that reducing the numerical distortion numbers is not as important as controlling the relative amounts of the harmonics and their polarity. Even at low distortion levels, these harmonic relationships are important to the perception of musical quality, but they are not reflected in ordinary specifications."

 

[rockitman]

"In the process of developing the Xs amplifiers, we paid a lot of attention to the harmonic structure of the amplifier’s transfer curve. It is apparent that reducing the numerical distortion numbers is not as important as controlling the relative amounts of the harmonics and their polarity. Even at low distortion levels, these harmonic relationships are important to the perception of musical quality, but they are not reflected in ordinary specifications."

Dem's fighting words in the objectivist audio world.....

 

[MylesBAstor]

Dem's fighting words in the objectivist audio world.....

Yeah but Nelson doesn't know what he's doing

 

[joeinid]

Bump for Xs amp updates ...

 

[Cyclotronguy]

Hi guys;

Well, I've had my share of long conversations with Nelson Pass, and his co-designer Wayne and can assure you they both have an objectivist side.


But lets admit it as passionate listeners (got my asbestos underwear on)

When the stylus drops: All objective characteristics of anything in the audio chain, not just the amplifier – at that moment become subservient to the listeners subjective experience.

Cyclotronguy

 

[rockitman]

Update:

the speed of delivery (instruments and voices) is stunning. No hint of any distortion. The best way I can describe it is like each musical element having it's own power source. Nothing in the musical presentation takes away from other elements in the music presentation. The air, space, depth and apparent room ambiance of the recording is palpable.