2. amps-preamps
  3. 1284231395

Pass XA60.5's or Cary CAD 500 MB for Maggie 1.7?

I recently passed the 200 hour break-in of my new Maggie 1.7's using all sorts of different mid-fi SS amps and am now trying to decide which hi-end amps to pair with them.

My room is relatively small, 12' x 14' x 10', and I listen primarily to acoustic guitar, female vocals, jazz etc at what a friend refers to as polite listening levels, usually no more than 85db. I've read many threads here as regards the "best" amps for Maggies, and it's come down to a decision between these two.

I love the midrange purity of class "A" amps, but also crave deep (for Maggies), tight and controlled bass. Thus my choice of these 2 amps. I suppose an amp that combined the best of both would be ideal.

While my room is air-conditioned, I sometimes close the door to keep other household noises to a minimum, and wonder if either or both of these amps may put out too much heat, making the room uncomfortable. I live in Dallas where it routinely is 100+ degrees in the summer, but the air-conditioning keeps it a comfortable 75 degrees indoors.

As for sonics, I know Macdadtexas favors the Cary's, and Teajay the Pass. I'd especially be interested in the opinions of anyone who might have heard both of these amps with Maggie's. And certainly any opinions on either of these amps is welcome.

Thanks in advance for your input.
kenl
macdadtexas
1,794 posts
 
I do love my Cary's, but....I think Pass Labs makes about the best sounding amps there are period. With almost any speaker.

That said, for the 1.7's I would look at the new Sanders Sound (or an Innersound ESL 300 if you can find one). I had an Innersound ESL with my first pair of Maggies (1.6's), and then used it with a set of 3.6R's and that is one great amp.

There is a great synergy with the Sanders/Innersound amps and Maggies. I would try that before I ponied up for the Cary or Pass. But, you can't go wrong with any of those great amps.

Congrats and enjoy.
brownsfan
1,508 posts
 
Keni,
I think that is a sound approach (no pun intended). I spent a good long while deciding on the Cary's, then waited another good long while for a pair to show up on Agon. In the end, we listen to a whole system, so Cary/Maggie may be better for one source/preamp/room/listener preference situation and Pass/Maggie may be better for another. When I bought the Cary's, I expected to rotate through a few other options before I reached Valhalla. If you find a good buy on the Pass, go for it. If the Cary's come up, that's great. You can resell either without any issues if you want to continue exploring.
hasse
230 posts
 
This 1.7 review made me interested in the XA100.5 monos for my 3.6´s
honest1
586 posts
 
Hasse - thanks for the link. How do you get to read stuff? Do you have to buy the print magazine, sign up fo ronline subscription, pay to read, what? If you do sign up or somehow get to read the articles online, do you get lots of emails / spam from them and their sponsors? I guess I've become an out-of-touch old fart who doesn't understand the new way of doing stuff. Thanks again for any info.
bill_k
912 posts
 
Honest1 - just click on one of the links next to the cover image at the top of the page to download either the standard or high resolution versions. The standard version is fine to read the review, while the high res version provides much better images but in a significantly larger download.
More to discover