Experience with the Pass Labs XP-15 phono stage?

Dave,
Unfortunately my budget won't allow for that...and if I have the $$ I would have to consider the ARC Ref Phono 2 SE!

Thanks, Bifwynne, you've helped me in the past with some good advice. I don't have the budget to jump up to the ARC Ref 2, as much as I'd like. I've got a line on a Dynavector XX2, always loved Dynavectors, but the gain on the PH7 is not sufficient to handle that cartridge.

Hi Palewin,

Main reason is $$, with the Pass XP-15, Im looking at a phono stage roughly equivalent in value to my PH7, so my overall investment stays the same. A quality SUT + another set of interconnects is not going to be cheap...plus they can add another level of coloration to the sound.
Thanks!

Awesome, Swanny, I'm ordering one from Mark and will let you know what I think!

I've been pretty much an ARC guy for some time. My current preamp is a Reference 5, and my power amp is a Reference 150. Turntable is a VPI Scoutmaster with a Classic 3 arm w/ the Classic platter etc.

I've decided to spend my upgrade budget this year on bringing my Ref 5 up to SE level...been on the upgrade waiting list for nearly a year. Time to try calling Kalvin at ARC again... Going to the Ref 5 made the biggest difference in my system by a big measure. It is a phenomenal preamp.

Swanny,

I've had the XP-15 in my system for 3 days, so it is still breaking in. I can tell there is an absence of grain, and the sound is very clean. However, at this point it does not have the excitement and 'air' around percussive elements like triangles and cymbals, and the beautiful midrange which the PH7 has in spades.

Did you notice this with your XP-15, and did it develop with further break-in?

Thanks
Tim

OK, I got the XP-15 in, and let it break in for a week. Initially, it seemed very detailed but also very bright and a bit hard in the treble. As it broke in, it did mellow a bit.

Relative to my PH7, it had well articulated bass...individual notes were clearly defined. And it was really quiet...the music seemed to emerge from a totally back background. And it is beautifully built, the casework is excellent. And the user has compete control over not only resistive loading, but also capacitance and gain. It would seem to let you shape the sound of any cartridge to your system.

But as my wife quickly pointed out, it seemed to really emphasize the treble over the midrange. The PH7 was simply more musical, beautiful in tone, and really fun to listen to. With the XP-15, the mind seemed to drift off, listening to an individual instrument, while with the PH7, you just soak up the really huge soundstage and absorb all of the music.

Having my wife come in, I set up the XP-15, and let her listen to a couple of records. Swapping in the PH7, it only took her 1 minute while repeating the 1st record to say 'you can stop now'.

Unfortunately, the XP-15 is not the solution to my little problem. So it went back in the box and was shipped out. A really interesting experiment!!

Soundsmith/VPI Zephyr. I spent quite a bit of time playing around with the capacitance loading. The Zephyr doesn't like loading below 47k, so that's where I left it.

Dave,
I think in the right system the XP-15 could be the ticket...it was interesting to see just how different these two phono stages sounded. My wife had no trouble instantly picking off the differences, and she's never picked up a Stereophile in her life!

Maybe it's not unexpected that an ARC phono stage would naturally be the synergistic match to a Ref 5 and a Ref 150. The XP-15 certainly gives the user a lot more options with all the cartridges out there, and I think it is a good value. I just couldn't give up the PH7.

Thanks for your comments, Darkj...I agree system matching is always going to be a significant issue. My preamp is a Ref 5, just upgraded to the 5SE. Impatiently waiting for it to break in.