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Sophia II's and Pass Labs etc

HI!

I will buy a new amp set up for my Wilson Audio Sophia II's after the summer. I currently use a Burmester 051 integrated amp and a Burmester 061 cd player + a TW Acustic Raven w/Graham Phantom II arm will be ordered soon

I like the Burmester 011 preamp and Burmester 911 mk3 amp very much, although I have not tested the amp set on my speakers. The price for the set in Norway is NOK 276,000,-

The other options I am looking at are:

- Pass Labs XP20 and XA 100,5 / XA 160.5 mono amps, approx. NOK 210,000 / NOK 255,000

- Audio Research REF 3 preamp and REF 110 amp, approx. NOK 220,000,-

- Simaudio Moon P8 and Simaudio Moon W8, approx. NOK 245,000,-.

- Spectral DMC-30SS and Spectral DMA 360, approx. NOK 230,000,-.

And then you have Conrad Johnson, Mark Levinson, Luxman, Accuphase, MBL, etc etc.

Do you have any preferences of the amps mentioned. Do you know if Pass Labs XA 100.5 will be strong enough for the Sophia 2's?

I listen foremost to pop/rock/hip hop/electro/jazz/metal/etc, since I am a talent buyer within the festival circuit in Norway.

Thanks for your help.

Cheeers, ToffenG, Norway
toffeng
mozvz
17 posts
 
There is a review of the Pass XA 30.5 in the latest issue of Stereophile, May edition. Brian Damkroger was the writer and he used Wilson Sophia 2's. The article may provide some insight on the Pass Amps and the synergy with your speakers. Also, the XP-20 with the XA 30.5 is a great match in my particular system with Dynaudio. The XP-20 replaces a Conrad Johnson Act 2, Version 1.

Another review is available for the XP-20 and the XA 160.5 in the latest issue of the Sensible Sound if you are a magazine type of person who reads them. Much luck in your search!
madfloyd
411 posts
 
I have Sophia 2’s and Pass XA 100.5’s. They are a great match. I was worried that I wouldn’t have enough power and was thinking of the XA 160.5’s but my dealer talked me out of it. He was right to do so. The XA 100.5’s have 200 watts of power at 4ohms – and that’s just in Class A. The amps have a lot more power in A/B. That being said, it took playing rock at close to 100db before the meters on the front of the amps looked liked they were thinking of going over to the dark side. 

I replaced Theta Citadel 1.5’s which were also very good, but Class A power just sounds sweet and effortless.
peterayer
1,382 posts
 
Madfloyd,
How about posting some pictures of that awsome system of yours? I agree about the power of the XA100.5. I have Eggleston - 87dB, 4ohm min. - and they easily drive the speaker. The meters have never moved. They control my speakers much better than my old XA160s did. They double down in power as impedence is halved and they have more current. Plenty powerful with the sweet sound of Class A.
audiofeil
4,011 posts
 
>>04-23-09: Madfloyd
The amps have a lot more power in A/B.<<

Well that's strictly conjecture as Pass does not publish any specs for Class AB operation. However, the amps will work into AB until power supply runs out of gas or the thermal circuit trips.

Regarding the meter staffs, they are not indicators of power output. They measure bias and will not move until the amplifier leaves Class A.

Dealer disclaimer.
zybar's avatar
zybar
104 posts
 
Assuming the XA 100.5's behave in the same manner as the recently reviewed and measured XA 30.5's, I think it is fair to say that the amps have a lot more power in A/B.

In the Stereophile measurements section, it achieved its power rating of 30 watts in Class A with distortion at .015% and didn't clip (defined as reaching 1% distortion) until 130 watts!

As Madfloyd has already stated, you have to play music at same ear damaging levels to get the amps out of pure Class A mode, so people should just enjoy the Pass magic.

Slightly off topic...

Audiofeil, since you are both a Pass and Atma-Sphere dealer, any comments on how the XA-100.5's would compare to the Atma-Sphere MA-1's on appropriate speakers?

At some point Madfloyd will hopefully be bringing his XA-100.5's over to my place so we can compare them directly to my MA-1's on Vandersteen 5A's. Both are great amps and neither is really "better" than the other, but I am sure one will be preferred over the other depending on system setup and individual preferences.

George
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