Pass Int-150 or Int-30A for PMC Speakers?

Chuck, just to make sure...your speakers are 1007 Be, correct? I had 1008 Be and felt the bass was a little lacking in my 18x25 room. So I moved up to 1028 Be and still find XA30.5 drives these 3-way floorstanders without a sweat (meter stays on the left side even at very loud level).
One other thing to note is when I had 1008s, at one point I did A/B XA30.5 with Bryston 4BSST2 (300wpc) and didn't feel Pass gave up anything to Bryston in any way. Bryston may drive a lot more difficult load better, but for speakers like 1008s, my experience is Pass is in another league.

Hey Chuck, sorry to hear the amp went back. I think you will enjoy the analogue playing with the XA amps. The sound staging is much more 3D and the bass sounds natural and real. Please do let me know what you end up with.

Hey Kz, I am trying to work out a deal with my Electrocompaniet dealer. Not sure what I will end up yet... I am also eyeing on the Lyngdorf TDAI2200 that's up for sale on Audiogon...

Yes they are the 1007 Be's. One of the issues with the INT-30 is that it doesn't have a meter so I really could not tell what was going. With some recordings Telarc Tchaikovsky 1812 overture, the digital canons for example, I thought the amp ran out of room. This seemed to occur on other recordings with a lot or percussion type passages. But it is hard tell for sure if it was the amp or the recording as recordings can vary greatly. I do know I ran the amp into the high end of the volume control. It maxes out at 63 and I ran it into the high 40's low 50's. This concerned me as I have never run a volume control this near it's max value.

But in general the amp was very good bettering the Cary in every way imaginable. This is why I think a jump up the Pass line perhaps the XA60's with a XP-10 or 20 would work very well and take away any issue with regards to power.

Chuck

Fiddlerontheroof I agree I need to stay with the XA series of amps as they are wonderful in their presentation. And I am sure mated with a XP 10 or 20 pre they would make a wonderful combination. And who knows I may end up with a pair of 1038 Be's.

Love your moniker by the way.

Chuck

Hey Chuck,

The XP10 and XA60.5 should be plenty for you. Frankly, I am shocked the Int-30A wasn't enough for your Focals. I know that Telarc recording well. That recording has been the extreme testing for audiophiles for the last 20 years!

If you are sure to end up with 1038 in the near future, you may want to wait to upgrade your electronics. You may need XP20 and XA160.5 or even XA200.5. Start saving!

Other than the strong percussive moments, did you have other problems with the Int-30A? I don't ever listen to big stuff... The biggest pieces I listen to are Beethoven's 5th and 9th. Maybe some Brahms... They are loud, intense, but not aggressive. Do you think the Int-30A will hold up?