ARC Ref 2 MK 2 Pre w/ Pass X-600 monos?

HI -

3 points here:

1 - I avoided buying a Calypso because it is recommended in the OWNER'S MANUAL against pairing it to an amp with any less then 50,000ohm impedance. Since the Pass X-series amps have 22kohm impedance - less than half the recommended rating - I felt it was an inappropriate match. You might want to call the Aesthetix distributor to see if this recommendation should be taken literally or not and if it could be the cause of your premature tube failures and weak bass.

2 - I have Talon Raven C's, and have used them with both Pass X-series and Sim Audio amps. My experience echoes yours with the 'lightweight' bass response when using Talons with PASS amps - but NOT with the Sim. I even qualified my issue with Mike Farnsworth at Talon, who indicated that - for solid-state amps - his speakers seem to match much better with a Sim then a Pass. That was absolutely true in my case. It seems consistent that most people characterize the bass of X-series amps as 'tight, controlled, dynamic and fast'. The Talons ALSO seem to have the same characteristics - so this marriage of amp/speaker may simply be too much of a good thing.

In contrast, my current Sim Audio Titan provides the deeper, fuller and more sustained bass and warmer mid-bass that the Talons seem to need to fill in the notes fully. But please do NOT assume that means it is slow, flacid or dull.

3 - I have had GREAT synergy with this setup, which now features the terrific VAC Renaissance preamp. This pre was a dramatic upgrade for my system. After going through 3 other pre's and researching the ARC LS25Mk2 & ARC Ref2, BAT VK-31SE & VK-51SE, Calypso, Supratek and 1st Sound, etc, I went forward with the VAC, and could not be more pleased. My reservation about both ARC and BAT models involved the use of the 6H30 tubes, which do NOT allow the preamp to present a 'tubey' sound. Well, if I wanted a solid-state sound, I would buy an SS preamp and not bother with a tubed unit that sounds SS.

I have been so encouraged by my results with the VAC preamp, that I now have a pair of VAC Standard 220 monoblocs on their way to me right now. These will be my first tube amps, which is definitely a gamble because I bought them without auditioning. So, I am anxious to compare/contrast them with the Sim. Talons are supposedly MAGICAL when mated with some of the great tube amps - Rogue, Joule Electra, VAC, etc.

- We'll see -

disclaimer - Your Opinion and Hearing May Vary -

Msaines -

I listen primarily to 'fusion jazz' as well, or whatever is left of it these days (damn-hard to come by lately...).

Anyway, as for your Pass having a 'problem with bass', I wouldn't blame it on the amp specifically. Rather, it is more a situation of synergy, and the BIGGEST match that you must overcome in ANY system is between the Amp and Speakers. Though impedance matching, gain matching and sonic signatures are certainly important between Pre and Amp, the Amp-Speaker match is even more important. Unfortunately, it is also very hard to predict how things will mate up here because it has little to do with tangible numbers. In fact, there are MANY speakers that work terrifically with Pass amps, just not the Talons.

Believe me, the last thing I wanted to hear Mike tell me was that my prized, newly-acquired Pass amps were not typically the best match with Talons. But after getting the Sim Titan and comparing directly, I can only say that he was completely right. Keep in mind that I haven't heard the X-600's specifically, but I did own the X-250 and X-3, which should have a very similar house sound.

Finally, if you plan to stick with the Pass amps, the best synergy will probably be with a Pass preamp. It won't change the basic sonic nature of the amp, but an X1 would be terrific with it, if you can deal with sacrificing that tube midrange magic.

YMMV....