New Coincident Frankenstein 300B Stereo Version

@tswisla

Well said.

To my ears, the Frankensteins are sublime and as much as I love the XA, I could never give up my Frankensteins for it and I can’t justify having both.

Exactly why I chose the word sublime to describe the overall effect and presentation of the Frankenstein SET amplifier. The Pass XA 30.8 is universally praised as an excellent amplifier and I have zero reason to question that.

No doubt the XA 30.8 offers more power just as my previously mentioned prior 100 watt tube amplifier. So if one feels they need the additional power for their speakers then go that route. I do not miss nor do I need the added power. The Frankenstein is utterly natural sounding. It made the very good 100 watt tube amp by comparison sound more "electronic" in nature.

There is just more musical connection, heart, soul and humanity via the presentation of the Frankenstein reproducing recorded music. It makes other otherwise terrific amplifiers sound relatively speaking artificial. The critical midrange is simply wonderful yet the upper and lower frequencies are also presented in excellent fashion.

No amplifier will ever be perfect and one has to choose their compromises. If your listening habits can be easily satisfied with lower power then the Frankenstein is very difficult to surpass in terms of an exceptionally natural and utterly transparent amplifying source.

Charles

@tswisla 

What speakers are you using and room size?

I have a finished space in my basement  that's roughly  14 x 27 with an  8 foot  ceiling. No problems at all.

Charles

@charles1dad your description is spot on.  That is precisely the way I feel about the Frankensteins. My system is in a ground floor room with 10' ceilings.  The room is approximately 16' x 10'.  I use Zu Soul Supremes and I doubt that I am even using 1W.

I use Zu Soul Supremes and I doubt that I am even using 1W.

YEP! And very often well under 1 watt of power. My typical listening levels are C-weighted SPL of 65-75 db with occasional peaks to mid 80s. In reality (Seated 10 feet from my 94 db sensitivity speakers) using small fractions of a single watt. Even with the rare listening at higher levels (Peaks 90-94 db) no sense of strain. However I want to preserve my hearing as best I can.🙂

Charles

@charles1dad  Preservation of my hearing was a significant motivating factor for choosing the Frankensteins.  I can listen at much lower levels and hear much, much more detail.