Who has Pass point 8 amps? I'm thinking about XA60.8's for my Strads ...

joeinid

joeinid

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Thoughts? My XA60.5's were amazing and sold them to get the XA60.8 but took a detour on the VAC. I miss the XA60.5's and need to hear the new amps.
 
I have only heard the XA60.8 monos driving a pair of Dynaudio C4 Platinums and that was a great match. I am very curious how you would describe the sonic difference between the Bryston 28´s and the Pass 60.5´s?
 
You couldn't pry my XA160.8s out of my hands. They're amazing and they seem to keep getting better every day! And of course Strads love Pass Labs Class A power, so what are you waiting for?
 
Sceptic said:
I have only heard the XA60.8 monos driving a pair of Dynaudio C4 Platinums and that was a great match. I am very curious how you would describe the sonic difference between the Bryston 28´s and the Pass 60.5´s?
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Welcome to the forum Sceptic.

The 28's and the 60.5's are very different. The 28's are more neutral but NOT sterile at all, produce tight wonderful bass, are very smooth on top with a hint of sweetness and have a big and wide soundstage. The 60.5's are warmer, have softer rounder bass, a little sweeter mids and treble and bass nowhere near as good as the 28's. As much as I loved the 60.5's, I absolutely love the 28's even more. Just amazing performers. So if you ask why am I even considering any more amps? Basically I am obsessed. My 28's are NOT going anywhere, they are that good and don't run like little furnaces.
 
The Sandman said:
You couldn't pry my XA160.8s out of my hands. They're amazing and they seem to keep getting better every day! And of course Strads love Pass Labs Class A power, so what are you waiting for?
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I am just a little concerned about the heat. From now until spring next year it's not a problem. The new .8 gear runs almost twice as hot as the .5 amps.
 
FWIW, I think the XA Point 8 series amps will address most if not all of your issues with the XA60.5s. But I'd definitely go bigger than XA60.8s for the Strads - for the same reason you didn't go smaller than the 28BSST² - size matters!
 
The Sandman said:
FWIW, I think the XA Point 8 series amps will address most if not all of your issues with the XA60.5s. But I'd definitely go bigger than XA60.8s for the Strads - for the same reason you didn't go smaller than the 28BSST² - size matters!
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When you are right, you are right. Mike likes the XA160.8's too. Hmmm.

The Sandman said:
It's not that much hotter. I use them year round in Florida, just like I did my XA160.5s!
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For me, in the summer, it could be a bit much but I could deal with it. Even if I park them for a few months, no big deal.
 
joeinid said:
When you are right, you are right. Mike likes the XA160.8's too. Hmmm.
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The XA160.8s are long term keeper amps - the Point 9s won't be out for a long, long time and when they are just trade up - they hold their value beautifully! They sound great and never seem to run out of power.

And to my ear, the XA160.8s sound very close to the XS amps *if* you're obsessive about getting the power infrastructure right - more power than the XS 150 actually though a lot less filtration in the power supply. For that matter, ditto the XP 30 and XS Pre - proper power and pair of upgraded umbilicals and the difference decreases dramatically. Definitely no accident that the XS Pre lost those PC grade umbilicals the stock XP 30 is saddled with. ;)
 
Mike said:
I've always been a fan of the XA.5 series. It sounded the most classic tube like of any SS to me.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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I totally agree, Mike. My XA-100.8 were more transparent to the source and clear sounding than my XA-100.5 but once fully warmed up (4-5 hours), my XA-100.5 sounded absolutely dreamy with a beautiful tube-like delivery. Two very different sonic signatures in my opinion.

Ken
 
Alpinist said:
I totally agree, Mike. My XA-100.8 were more transparent to the source and clear sounding than my XA-100.5 but once fully warmed up (4-5 hours), my XA-100.5 sounded absolutely dreamy with a beautiful tube-like delivery. Two very different sonic signatures in my opinion.

Ken
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Ken If you have to choose one ?

What do use on your D3 ?
 
joeinid said:
Welcome to the forum Sceptic.

The 28's and the 60.5's are very different. The 28's are more neutral but NOT sterile at all, produce tight wonderful bass, are very smooth on top with a hint of sweetness and have a big and wide soundstage. The 60.5's are warmer, have softer rounder bass, a little sweeter mids and treble and bass nowhere near as good as the 28's. As much as I loved the 60.5's, I absolutely love the 28's even more. Just amazing performers. So if you ask why am I even considering any more amps? Basically I am obsessed. My 28's are NOT going anywhere, they are that good and don't run like little furnaces.
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Hi Joe,
Not knowing how the 28's sound (although I had their 4BSST2 many years ago) and based on your descriptions of it, I can't help but wonder if you'd find more similarities than differences between 60.8's and 28's. I had 30.5 for a few years and now with 30.8 for a year, what you said above (60.5's vs. 28's) is exactly how I'd describe 30.5 vs. 30.8. Although I absolutely love the sweet 30.5, once I heard 30.8 it's hard to go back. But it can't be said the same for the reverse.
 
kzhtoo said:
Hi Joe,
Not knowing how the 28's sound (although I had their 4BSST2 many years ago) and based on your descriptions of it, I can't help but wonder if you'd find more similarities than differences between 60.8's and 28's. I had 30.5 for a few years and now with 30.8 for a year, what you said above (60.5's vs. 28's) is exactly how I'd describe 30.5 vs. 30.8. Although I absolutely love the sweet 30.5, once I heard 30.8 it's hard to go back. But it can't be said the same for the reverse.
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Interesting, it makes perfect sense. Maybe a Pass with more power like the XA160.8 might be the logical choice.
 
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