Pass....Accuphase....or......


Hi Audiogoners!

I need a new power amp to my Verity Audio Parsifal Ovation (18 watts minimum recommended input power / 8 ohm).

Have a Mark Levinson No.532 that keeps broking down and it's getting too expensive to fix in Europe. 

Music: Classical/symphonic and jazz.

Room: 13 x 26

Preamp: Auralic DAC/Pre (but this can change....)

Ideas so far:

Pass Labs XA-25 (hype or really good and powerful enough?)

Accuphase A-48 (too polite?)

If you have a minute....I need ideas in that price range...+/- $$. Thanks!

 

southofdallas

Pass Lab products have the reputation for being built to be extremely reliable. This reputation is based not on verbiage from their website, but rather by very rarely having a problem in peoples system.
They are typically very conservative in rated wattage and have huge power supplies that will happily drive most anything. They have a sound type, driven by listening tests more than specs.  They are slow to break in, so any audition of a PL amp should allow more than 100 hours before forming an opinion.
Good luck in your search!

I use an Accuphase A-36 power amp and Accuphase C-2450 preamp along with Fritz Carrera speakers and an Aurender A20. The sound is sublime. I owned a Pass Labs XA25, Boulder 866, Ayer VX-5 Twenty, Luxman 509z, and a few others and all are great amplifiers. However, I cannot recommend any over the A-48 you mention. The only reason I didn't go with something bigger than the A-36 is because my speakers do not require more power to achieve the great sound those Fritz speakers are capable of producing. I also use the A-36 with Klipsch Chorus IIs. Perhaps not a popular choice for many but I love their house sound and I also use a 10wpc Luxman tube amp that has a synergy with those speakers like no others I owned or heard. The ONLY other recommendation I have is get a matching Accuphase preamp. I have tried other premps, both SS and tube but the Accuphase preamps produce the best sound for me.

@OP  - The build quality of the Michis is not in the same league as the Pass. And yes, the XA 25 is quite different sounding to the 250. The 25 doubles its power as impedance is halved so it has a lot more real world power than the nominal specification suggests. Pass Class A amps are very refined sounding so they can sound less "loud" than some other designs - that puts some people off on a quick audition. The XA 25's input gain is slightly on the low side so you need to check overall compatibility with your system. I think your Veritys are on the high side of average efficiency-wise so it will probably work. As always, the best solution is to find a good dealer who will provide an audition with your own DAC/Pre and speakers.

For what it’s worth, here is my input as a hardcore Accuphase fanboy. For amplification I have C-3900, and A-300s, driving TAD CR1TX. I’ve had other models before.

Please consider the following input based on my experience:

  • Incredibly smooth and distortion free Class A power. If you like distortion, which sounds nice for some music, you can add it with DSP pro-audio plugins. If your chain has it you can never get it out. 
  • The power ratings are always under specified. I’ve never had a lack of power even with smaller models at normal listening levels
  • Extremely well made and reliable. I’ve never had a breakdown and don’t know anyone that has. Maybe someone here has experienced a broken Accuphase but it is unicorn rare. 

I have recently discovered Audionet and I am really enjoying an AMP 1 v2 and their PRE G2. They are worth an audition.