Pass X1??

Dear Peterayer :-)

- The X1 is trasparent exactly like the XP20 .. non more but not less
- The low noise is so low in the X1 the lower noise you refer to the XP20 you can discover only by instruments and not by your ears
- The more (more??? No no! .. maybe something more!) detail you discover in the XP20 is referring to the super transparency of the XP20 that allow you to capture something more than the X1 .. but pay attention .. I wrote "something more" and not more..
- I agree and I already wrote the X1 is on the cool/neutral side compared to the sweeter/romantic (mids only!) XP20

The XP-20 sounds cleaner, smoother and clearer and yes, warmer on some recordings, but I think that warmth brings it closer to neutral than the cooler X-1 ... (Peterayer)

Uhmm... not cleaner .. the X1 is super clean too .. surely warmer already said.
No , I don't agree the additional warm of the XP20 bring you closer to the neutral side.
I think in the end the X1 is the perfect preamp (nowaday too!) for Tube amps more than SS amps while the new XP20 is also perfect for SS amps! thanks to these additional refined and warmer mids.
In fact I envy the XP20 of my friend Carlo because it should be the perfect "team-mate" of my loved Parasound Halo JC1's .. surely better than the also super-good X1 I own.
But definitely the forward step Pass or Coburn injected into the XP20 is just a little step and not a radical change so I warn X1 owners that want to change into XP20 to listen the XP20 before to buy thinking to a great step-change inside their hifi setup.
Maybe a disillusion is just round the corner!

Detto questo (telling this) If I should buy a SS preamp today I surely would search for a Pass Labs XP20
I 'll have the perfect team-mate for tubes or ss amps!
Who knows what 'll be my amp choice for the future?

My cent!

Good advice Pete, Mitch, and Curio.

Owned X1 driving JC1s since 2003 and recently purchased XP20 but I prefer to wait for total break-in before making misconstrued judjements.That said and taking into consideration Pass' long standing reputation as makers of great sounding equipment, with build quality and post sale service second to none, looking into a used X0.2 may be worth your while.

I had my X1 looked at by the factory and although a few caps were upgraded and the display unit changed I was told that my X1 was already extremely clean when it arrived. Apparently it is supposed to be even quiter with the new tune up so I'm sure I'll keep this X1. I was told by someone that my X1 was the best they've seen and considering who said that I would think my X1 to be a keeper for sure. I get it back tommorrow and will hook it up as soon as I get it. I will not be able to compare fairly bfore and after tune up as my system is placed very much differently than before I sent in my X1.I hope my new speaker placement works for me. It looks as though it should sound a lot better but time will tell. I now feel confident that my system is well balanced and should sound good. The only reason I parted with my x1 is because we changed all our floors in our house so since I had to pack up my system anyhow I thought it appropriate to get the inevitable tune up my X1 needed. I placed the speakers more theoretically correct since my floors are finished and I'm hoping my new setup sounds nice. In the worstcase I can replace my speakers but I'm hoping this setup works.

The X1 returned as a new preamp and it sounds good. It requires burn in of a few parts but the sound is awesome directly from the box. The speaker placement has dramatically improved the sound and my X1 sounds fine. It is hard to tell what is doing what as everything has changed but in listening to my system I was brought to tears. That doesn't happen a lot but sometimes. To have that much emotion straight from the box I have a feeling I will be blown away when the system warms up and the preamp and cd player fully burn in. It sounds awesome now with much better speaker placement and my wife has agreed to let me keeop them in their place. This is a serious thing the WAF. She could have made me push them back but I'm OK. I'll keep both the stereo and the wife. Anybody want a kid?