Parasound vs Coda

I have the same speakers with a CODA No.8, fed by a Lyngdorf MP-40.  So not the exact same pre, but maybe helpful to know.  Before the Coda, I was running a Cherry Amp that had a better midrange, tubey magic than the Coda, but it was lost when sending in for upgrades and the owner passed around the same time.  The Coda is a more 'polite' amp than the Cherry but still very full bodied.  I still miss the Cherry for the addictive midrange magic.  I have thought about tubes for these speakers, but I think I would give up certain aspects of the sound by making that move, since the Kanta's are so needy in the mid bass and bass (power wise).

@bccarpenter I was also thinking about tubes but was wondering what my #8 would sound like with a decent tube preamp like Prima Luna EVO 400, Luxman or other somewhat high-quality tube preamp. Like yyzsantabarbara  I'm using an Audio Holo Serene KTE, now.

Coda(16) and Aric Audio(Motherlode) is a match that I have settled on for the last four years now after swapping pieces in and out at a fevered pace. I (at last)have no desire to alter this pairing as it sounds sublime in my home environment. In my experience, Pass makes great sounding amps, but their preamps are anemic and lifeless(and yes, I owned both the XP-20 and XP-30 paired with the XA60.8 and XA 160.8). Each of the XA (amazing amps) sounded far better when paired with the Motherlode Preamp. Bottom line if you take anything from my post...Pass on Pass preamps!

I've definitely seen several members with experience from Pass preamps that they aren't the most exciting or lively compared to others, granted the XP12/22/32s are universally considered improvements over the prior generation.

I think I'm going to scan for the aforementioned pre options if any pop up for a good price, worst case would break even by selling if it's not a fit. Plus most are not nearly as pricey as the amp options.

OP… “granted the XP12/22/32s are universally considered improvements over the prior generation”. Yes, exactly.

I used to own one. I would describe them as a bit thin, not natural and musical. They are good technically but lack warmth and soul. Somewhere in there I think I got it.