Any thoughts on Pass X150.8 ?

I have owned a XP12 and now a XP 22 pre-amp.  

I've owned many pre-amps over the years.  I have to say the Xp12 was in the very good category.  It's quiet, neutral etc.  But, I think there are others in that price range that aren't better or worse, but different and I won't go as far to say the XP 12 is special.  It's very good.

The XP22, for the money is excellent.  I consider it to be in that "special" category for it's price range.  I also consider the 250.8 to be "special".  

Depending on the speakers I was driving...

I would do a XP22 and 150.8 over a XP12 and 250.8.  Unless I absolutely needed the extra power of the 250.8.

But the XP22 and 250.8... Man I love this combo.  I do know that many at Pass consider the 250.8 to be a sweetspot also.

Ya I'd love the 250.8, there was a pretty solid used deal near me but it sold. I think I may buy a used 150.8 instead. Much more affordable and for me room and speakers probably more than enough power.

smodtactical

Sorry for the late reply, I just now saw your question. 

All I’m saying is that if left on 24/7 the xa30.8 will always sound it’s best. I have a friend who has a pair of xa160.8’s and he also turns them off when not using them. In my opinion, he has never heard just how good those amps can sound.  He started talking about the power they draw from the wall and his electrical bill going up and blah, blah, blah. I agree with him, it’s very wasteful to leave them on 24/7. Who buys a $30.000.00 amp and worries about your electric bill? It’s like buying a Ferrari and pulling up to the gas pump and choosing 87 octane gas because it’s cheaper, really! I, personally, am going to put in the 93 octane gas. I’m the type of audiophile that likes to get the best sound quality out of any of my equipment. Every time I unplugged my xa30.8 from the wall (to change something in the system) I noticed that when I plugged it back into the wall, it took at least 3 full days for it to sound as good as it did before I unplugged it from the wall. Every time. It’s not a day or night difference but I heard it every time. I started noticing subtle differences in the timing. Call it pace, rythem & timing, call it forward momentum, or whatever, the improvements were mainly temporal. When left on for at least 3 full days everything just fell into place and sounded “right”. 

If if you open up a Pass Labs amp, they are mainly all power supply. It takes a long time for that huge toroidal transformer and all those caps to fully saturate and for the circuit to stabilize. Trust you ears!

Scot

I would agree with DEP. The Pass Lab preamplifiers are great. Just a couple of months ago I upgraded to an XP-32 from an XP-22, and its the best preamplifier I have ever had to this point in my audiophile journey.

Great tonality, resolution, dimensionality, and speed without the tube hassle.  

Using it in conjunction with a 350.8, and am very happy. 

In terms of the 150.8, Steven Stone has one in his stable of reference amplifiers for reviews. The fact that he has kept it for a few years should say that, at the very least, the amplifier isn't horrible. 

In terms of reliability, customer service, and (because the audiophile itch gets to us all) good resale value, I don't think you could go wrong with the 150.8. 

@kingdeezie How you like the 350.8 ? What other amps have you compared it to?