Pass labs XA60.5 anything wrong with them.

Here is my 2 cents as a happy owner of a x250.5.

Why do you see relatively more xa60.5 on the used market? I think it may actually boil down to something as much to do with economics as anything. I believe the 60.5 becomes a "stepping stone" model more than others because it is the entry path into the highly desirable monoblock models. And, at its $11k price it begins to get into the rarefied air of the 1 percenters who can more freely afford to trade up to the more expensive models such as the xa100.5. Unfortunately I cannot spend that much on an amplifier so I will just have to be satisfied with my x250.5 (which is a wonderful product in its own right, btw).

As for the common question of the "XA.5" versus "X.5" you might check out an article that Pass Labs staff themselves once pointed me to. I know nothing about the journalistic integrity of the Positive Feedback publication, but I do believe it captures the essence of the biggest differences between the class A and AB models. The article actually reviews the integrated models INT-30A and INT-150, but Kent English himself from Pass once told me that with the exception of the volume controls they are identical to the xa30.5 and x150.5 Check it out here: http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue58/pass_labs.htm

To Be honnest I found the INT models not the best what Pass Labs makes. Wenn instruments and voices become too big in proportion the distance between you and the music is getting bigger. Beause you will loose intimacy. Often at show's people use the wrong brand of cables for Pass Labs. A voice is sometimes even over 1.5 metre. Then I ask the persons who gives this demo ( in my world they are fools) how big is your head? MIT and Shunyata with Pass Labs makes voices and instruments too big in proportion. People first have to learn and understand how big voices and instruments are in proportion in real. I had these conversations a few times with the people from Pass Labs. Many are capable to f....up a show with ease. Sharp individual focus of instruments and voices are a key to the absolute sound. Because the level in invlovement and emotion is Always bigger than played too big in proportion. The same as the difference between 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional is a big difference!!

How would Neotech cables work with Pass Labs?

I don't know them. In the US there are many cables which are not even here in Europe.

I did test many brands which are not well known in the last 15 years. Most of the time they are not bad at all. But I never heard one what was exceptional good. The biggest difference between Audioquest and other brands are a few important parts. In the past I Always needed to use a few brands to get all the parts ( properties) in a set.

- deep stage
- wide stage
- sharp individual focus of instruments and voices ( many cables give an image with instruments and voices too big in proportion)
- open mid freq.
- controlled and deep low freq with all layers auditionable.
- good timing, low freq. need to be very short in attack.
- exceptional good blacks. Black is the space between the voices and instruments with there acoustic info of the room were they were recorded.
- lots of resolution and open high freq.
- no harsness in any freq.
- authorithy in the overwhole sound.

The DBS which many Audioquest cables use give a much better timing and more blacks. At this moment I did not audition any cable with this exceptional stunning blacks. Blacks give you a more 3-dimensional and tochable image. Audioquest give you all these parts what should be there in a well balanced system. Powercables of Audioquest are good but not exceptional. That is why I am not interested in them. Purist Audio makes superior powercables compared to Audioquest.