Experience with the Pass Labs XP-15 phono stage?

This will be my first external Phono stage so I don't know what to expect. 
The stage in my Mcintosh can't be that bad but the flexibility with an external
will be nice. Want to switch to a low output Grado with .5-1.0 mv.  
This Pass XP15 should be the ticket. 👍

Expect a really quiet background and lots of dynamics and detail. It’s a really nice unit. I can’t say how it compares to the McIntosh, but in general a purpose built stand alone phono stage, especially of this quality is going to exceed one included in another device.

Reach out to Pass. If you can get the serial number, they can probably tell you if it is one of the older units with the different gain settings (if that’s a thing) and answer any other questions you have. I had some questions about mine which I purchased second hand and they were very helpful.

Hey Greg
You're right, I took a chance and called today and someone picked up. 
They were getting ready to start up tomorrow after the shut down. 
Super helpful, buying U.S. is clearly the only way to go. 
He confirmed the Gain settings as follows :
Fixed MM @ 46db
MC is 56,66,76. Balanced 
MC is 50,60,76. Unbalanced 
He said the marriage of Pass Labs and any Grado cartridge is fantastic. 
Looks like I can't go wrong. Some I heard prefer the 15 over the newer 17. 
Warmer sounding etc. Either way this 15 is a $1,000 cheaper then any used
XP17 I can find so it's a no brainer. Rather throw that extra cash into a 
better cartridge. Thanks Greg. 😎

Good to hear! 

I've had the Pass Labs XP-15 for a couple days now, all I can say is Wow ! 
If had known the difference a Phono Preamp could make I would have 
bought one sooner.
Even with a modestly priced Grado the extra detail and sound stage is remarkable.
Also just to add to the above post,
MM Gains are fixed @ 40 Unbalanced .....46 Balanced.

I had read in a forum some where that you should stay within 3db of what's required for your cartridge ie. my Grado has 4.8 mv. output so 46.4 db is ideal. 
I was obsessed trying to find the preamp that would fall within those numbers. 
In reality being within 3db is not that nessary. My ideal is 46.4 and I'm set @ 40db
Sure I have to turn up the volume a bit, from 10 o'clock to 11:00 but not a big deal. I tried the other side of the 46.4 required and went to 50db but felt better being under. That said I feel if you are within maybe 8db's you should be fine. 
The key I think is figuring out exactly how many db's your cartridge requires. 
With so many tables and equations or formulas I found I was off by 4-5 db's in
some cases. So get that part right and stay within 8db's and you should be good. 
So in short don't obsess over the numbers and not buy the unit you really want. 
I almost pasted on my XP-15 because of it and sure glad I didn't.
This puppy is built like a tank and is never leaving my system. 😎