Should I Sell My ARC REF 6 and Get A Pass Labs XP-32

As @lalitk suggested, the only way to know for sure is to buy the Pass and compare with Ref 6 in your system. I’ve gone almost all-VAC here (across 2 systems), and STILL have trouble letting go of my Ref 6. I’ll post it for sale, then almost immediately regret that and take it down lol. It also feels like the current market is somewhat soft on Ref 6 - the 6SE goes for a lot more, and 5SE goes for not much less, which makes NO sense. A 6 is far closer to 6SE than 5SE, and it’s still upgradeable by ARC!

Agree, the Renaissance V simply wasn’t enough to compete. Even versus Master (at 2x cost), the Ref 6 gets some licks in - its rendition of bass frequencies is just perfect. The VAC preamps have more midrange clarity and "sparkle" (for lack of a better term), but versus a solid-state preamp, Ref 6 should find advantage in its (slight) fullness and sweetness there.

I still have no great anxiety about tube supply...and I'm in my 40s, and my main amps use 16x of KT88 plus 8x of 6SN7. Anyways, don’t sell the Ref 6 first!

Is moving from the ARC Ref 6 pre to the Pass Labs pre is a lateral move?  Like choosing between chocolate or strawberry at Baskin and Robins.  If so, it's a lot of trouble and money for a lateral move.  Yes, the two have differences but does one really outshine the other?  Think about moving up to a Gelato- or in Audio terms the next level up in preamps if wanting to make a change.

Or does the XP-32 already correlate to an ARC Ref 10 in sound quality? 

My Pass XP22 was my first foray into a dedicated pre-amp, and a big reason I chose it was for it's neutrality based on all my research. Everything is subjective, of course, to some neutrality is boring or lacks excitement. To me, as I was getting into my journey I appreciated the detail, transparency, and neutrality as it allowed me to hear all the changes to the system I was making. And at this level, it really comes down to personal preference as nothing listed above is 'bad'.

I do want to try a tube preamp given how many positive comments there are just to see the difference, but for now, the XP22 is not going anywhere.

See the XP-32 on Audiogon for $10,500. Good luck!