Pass amp paired with audio research pre?

Ouch! 😂😉

For those of you here who claimed that ARC house sound is uninvolving I would have to disagree with that broad general statement. You should have a listen to the ARC Reference 10 linestage preamp and other Reference series power amps such as the Ref 750 SE vacuum tube monoblock amps. Perhaps the entry level and lower end ARC products might not sound as involving as their Reference series gears. I have only listened to their Reference series gears such as the Ref 10 linestage pre and couple different Reference series models of power amps such as the Ref 750 SE vacuum tube monoblock amps and the newest latest Reference series monoblock amps that were introduced recently (can’t remember model number). So I can’t say for their lower end or entry level series products.

In regards to some of the comments made here about the so-called house sound of a particular brand, I would have to disagree with that. that’s a generalization based on insufficient evidence and facts. The so called and mentioned house sounds might have been attributed by some other components in the chain eg speakers, front end source components (both digital & analog), cablings, etc, etc.
There are so many contributing factors that some people came up with their own conclusions and called it a "house sound".

@bdp24 

ARC owners can sometimes resemble owners of Linn ;-) .

In regards to your statement above, that is not true at all. Not sure what you meant by that. 
I have owned Linn products in the past and currently own ARC Reference series gears.

I anticipated that observation might ruffle a few feathers ;-) . Further evidence ;-) ;-) .

For my part, I’ve owned a VT 100 mk II, a SP 10, a LS 16, a phono 5, ...  i like my ARC stuff but must admit I find, and general consensus is, they definitely have a somewhat ‘buttoned down’ house sound. Like they’re afraid of being accused of sounding tubey or something.

 For me, I like it because it puts the music on display rather than showing off artifacts introduced by the component manufacturer.  At the same time, it certainly shows off changes in components up and down the line. 

Sometimes I wish I had more snap and thump.  Sometimes I wish they were a bit more forward. But for what I listen to, I think they do a pretty good job. 

 That does not keep me from getting that ‘itch’ to try something new every now and again.

I’d love to have the chance to own, or even have some extended listening time with, a reference 10,…but right now,  I think I’ll concentrate more on paying off the house ...