Pass XP-30: Any DAC recommendations?

elshout

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Any thoughts out there on which DACs might have great synergy with a Pass XP-30 preamp? What are others here using?
 
This may be a reach as I'm on a smaller scale than you, I like my Levinson with Pass, I still have Pass pre but switched from Pass amp. Brian of Bricasti used to be with Levinson and I like his DAC quite a bit. The way the Bricasti was set up the times I heard it, I found it to be quick and nimble with a smooth presentation, not warm, just a nice musical presentation. I suspect it would have nice synergy for you.

To my ears I found the Direct Stream to lean some more analytical than Bricasti and Lampi fuller than both, warm but not overly so.

I think Lampi would have synergy bringing a fuller presentation. It depends on which way you want the system to lean. In my system I found staying with balanced circuits to sound better. That's not always been my experience, but it was when mixing the Pass & Levinson.

There's a good Pass following here, I'm sure you'll get some good feedback.

Welcome to the Shark.
 
The DAC in my Lumin works great with my XP-22. However, I suspect any decent DAC, along with good cables, will work well with your Pass.
 
I used the Esoteric K-01 Player/DAC with the Pass XP-30 preamp when I owned it and it was a terrific combination.

Ken
 
Budget around $2000. XLR outputs. Really would like HDMI inputs but I know that option os pretty limited. And yes, DSD.
 
Yiggy sounds like your best bet. I had this Marantz NA-11s1 and loved its tone, texture and dynamics. It has a beautiful rich mid range. However it was not a good match with my BAT preamp as the bass was too much. It had the best sounding piano and female vocals that I have heard in a DAC. It is also built like a tank.

https://www.musicdirect.com/network-player/marantz-na-11s1-dsd-dacnetwork-audio-player

The biggest problem with Schiit is the lack of DSD support. If they had it, I would’ve bought one. I have a couple hundred DSD albums. So lack of DSD support put it quickly in the “no” column


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"The biggest problem with Schiit is the lack of DSD support." I agree, I think if they had it, I would be getting one.
 
The biggest problem with Schiit is the lack of DSD support. If they had it, I would’ve bought one. I have a couple hundred DSD albums. So lack of DSD support put it quickly in the “no” column


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Yep, forgot that it does not do DSD. You are welcome to stop by my house in Woodbury to hear my Luxman with my Pass X250. They occasionally come up for sale used. It is still a stereophile A+ DAC. Another DAC to give a listen to is this AVA Hi Fi DAC. I had it in my system and did a review on it for Frank Van Alstine. It sounded better than my Luxman DA-06 in some respects. Frank has a 30 day money back guaranty. You can give it a listen at Frank's house in Woodbury. He lives about 3 minutes from me. Tell him Larry referred you. It punches above its price point for sure since my Luxman use to list at $6K.

https://avahifi.com/collections/d-to-a-converters
 
Thanks Mechnutt,

The Luxman definitely looks like a nice option.
 
I use the xp20.
for me go with a Lumin or similar (all in one) and a cd player unit added...
if you will a"extern" Dac Métronome C8 PLUS or Emmlabs.
Rockna and Bricasti are too very interessing.
 
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