Anyone ever heard the Pass Labs X0.2 preamp?

Thanks for the thorough review Stan. I'm getting excited.

I'll be making my purchases after the first of the year. I'm doing some extensive remodeling in my listening/theater room. I'll bring in my new purchases when I'm done with that.

Hi Mitch4t, Well, the Pass Labs X 0.2 preamp arrived today. I only have a few hours on it. It should get better as it acclimates into the system over the next few days, I guess. However, it already sounds better than anything else that I've had in my system-- Bat vk5i with nos tubes, Conrad Johnson 16ls2. It is essentially a neutral preamp, or just slightly on the warm side of neutral. It completely controls my amp (Jeff Rowland 302), which the other preamps couldn't do. Dynamic swings are way better--the way that you would actually hear live. It has an expansive soundstage-deep and wide, especially wide--going beyond my speakers. On live recordings, you can hear deep into the backround noises of the audience, and the scuffs and scrapes of the artist's stool or microphone. It also has a fuller, room filling sound. It seems to give the speakers a bigger footprint. I'm using an unbalanced interconnect from cd to pre and a balanced interconnect from pre to amp. I've been told that it sounds best fully balanced, so I'm looking for one more balanced interconnect to replace my rca interconnect. I've got to say that live performances sound real for the first time--Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's "Four way Street" and Blind Faith's recording entitled "Blind Faith" are what I've listened to so far since the X 0.2 arrived. Tonal color of most instruments--acoustic guitar, electric guitar, drums--is also better than I've heard on my system. There are no drawbacks that I can see yet, although it is tall at ten and one half inches. I've got all three sections stacked right now, with the bottom section on a set of Rollerblocks. Best wishes. Stan

Thanks Stan, I look forward to hearing from you after your X0.2 arrives.

mitch

Thanks for the info Jeff,

I'm not dissatisfied with my ARC Ref2 mk2....I just want to hear what a high end SS preamp sounds like and see if like like it better.

I'm going to purchase a pair of Pass X-600 monos.

Hi Mitch4t, I just bought a 2 year old X.02 preamp. It's in transit and arrives on Tuesday. I'm matching it with a Jeff Rowland 302 amp. I was recently talking to Egglestonworks and they recommended it to go with my Egglestonworks Andra 2 speakers. It's the preamp that they will be using at CES this year to go with a pair of their Egglestonworks Andra 2's. It's sapposed to be an essentially neutral preamp with an excellent soundstage. I'm told that it sounds best in a balanced interconnect system, although it does have both balanced and single ended connections. I'll let you know how it sounds when I drop it ito my system. Stan

I have not heard the X.02, but I own an X.0. It is a wonderful preamp and I can tell you tast I also own an ARC Ref 2 mark 1 and I prefer the Pass Labs pre for female vocals and accoustic guitar. The bass is deep and detailed. It is quite tubelike in its comparison to ARC, but does not have the decay that some tube amps have that enhances violin concerto type music. Coupled with the X350.5, you get much of what you get from a tube design plus no hiss and no tubes to replace.
Jeff