McCormack vs. Pass Labs

The unmodified McCormack's are great products for the money, but out-of-box they aren't in the extreme echelon of great SS amps. The Pass is noticably better in certain areas out-of-the-box.

However, if budget is a concern, I think going the McCormack route is better because of the cost effective upgrades. For an extra $1000, you can eventually upgrade the amp to Rev A which is used as a reference for several magazine and online reviewers. Better yet, for an extra $1000, you can get most of the Gold revisions which basically brings you as good a SS amp as you can buy. (IMO, the jump from Rev A to Gold is just as rewarding as the initial jump to Rev A)

This is the path I took. It was also great to have Steve McCormack personally work on my amps and even tweak the performance to my specific needs. It's these type of experiences that make the hobby even more fun.

You're right. Pass equipment looks great under the hood and sound great too.

I think the original McCormack's were designed to fit a certain budget, so I'm not sure it's fair to indict the quality of their company just because those amps can't outperform an amp that is twice the price new. Now, if your saying you can get a USED X-150 for less than upgrading to Rev A Gold, it's something to consider. However, after upgrading, you basically have a brand NEW amp in the same chassis.

In short, you really can't go wrong with either. I just also liked being able to deal directly with Steve McCormack and have him personally work on my amps. I think he actually should be applauded for offering customers the ability to upgrade their current amps versus having to buy a whole new amp (and pay dealer markup) when they want to go to another level of performance.