Wyred 4 Sound STP Special Edition Vs. Pass X-1

I missed the bloom with my C220 but I can hear so much more of the music with the X1. Don't get me wrong, I love tubes, I just always got too much noise with them in the preamp. I could never find tubes quiet enough with no glare. I do love the sound they make though, I have that in the amp which is nice

Owned the X-1 in 2005. Had it for four months. Sold it. In terms of speed. Too slow. Compared it to my Parasound PLD-2000, the best Pre-Amp ever made for Parasound by Curl. Gold boards and Black Gate Caps. Fast as hell and more dynamic than the X-1 but on the cold side. Also sold it. The Wyred 4 Sound STP-SE is constantly compared to $ 10K
Pre-Amps. Several of my friends own the STP-SE, and it is about the best SS design ever under $ 10K in twenty years and as dead quiet as the Levinson 32. Based on my friends
use of the STP-SE and their experience with the X-1, the STP-SE has greater echo decay and 3-D imaging and bass performance superior to the X-1. I'll be purchasing the STP-SE with the Wyred 4 Sound SX-1000 monos and hooking up
to my Acoustic Zen Crescendos. During the past three years,the Wyred 4 Sound products have generated more positive buzz in threads, blogs and forums than any other solid state devices I have come across in my 35 years as a
Audiophile. The STP-SE with its massive power supply and price at $ 2K, is a steal. For whats under the hood and its performance level, it has no match in its price range,
even if it sold for double the price, its that damn good.

My next choice for a preamp would be the First Sound which is a tube preamp totally built by the hand of the owner. From what I have heard, no preamp can touch that one below 10 grand. For now, the X-1 will do just fine. It is not slow to my ears.

I have been well aware of First Sound for years since their
facility is 11 miles from my home. Hell, if I were to pluck down $ 10K for a Preamp, I'd rather buy a used 106 lb. Levinson 32, which is the best damn Pre-Amp ever made, regardless of tube or solid state. Levinson has informed me
on Sept. 7th that an upgrade version of the two piece 32 is
coming back out within the next 24 months. Don't get me wrong, the Pass X-1 is a great Pre-Amp, and having owned Pre-amps over 25 years from Counterpoint, Coda, BAT, and crappy Carver, the X-1 has a very smooth relaxed character
that has been Pass's signature since his days at Threshold,
to imitate the smooth midrange of tubes. Different Pre-Amps
do have different speed rates, and there are Pre-Amps that are faster than the X-1, such as the Wyred 4 Sound STP-SE.
I need to correct myself, the Parasound PLD-2000 is the second best Pre-Amp from Curl, the JC-2 being the first. Also in this thread is mentioned that Wyred 4 Sound never won Awards. Completely false. They took Editor's choice for
best amps from Absolute Sound in 2009 and 2010. And the STP-SE took the Blue Moon award from 6Moons in 2009.

I have heard that the Levinson no. 32s is a great preamp, also very expensive even when one can find one. I am not in that league financially. I have not heard the Wyred for Sound but I am sure it is fantastic if it is better than the X1. I agree with your finding the X1's sound smooth.

I have also heard that the First Sound is better than the 32s. I have not seen the 32s under $10,000.00. I usually see it for more than that. That is a lot to pay for very old used preamp. Even if they do release it again, I doubt it will be exactly like the original. I would imagine it would be pretty expensive as well.

I agree that the older S series Levinson pres are great, if you can find them anywhere. I could probably wait a year for a used 26s.