Pass Labs XP-15 arrived today

[Masterlu]

Originally Posted by jwhite613

Ivan... That's awesome. I do like reading Dan's (along with others) informative reviews. Makes buying new gear a little easier.

I agree, Dan's reviews are some of the best out there including the ones that appear in National Publications.

[Masterlu]

Which begs the question; how did the Pass Labs XP-15 get such favorable reviews?

[jdandy]

Ivan.......I appreciate the offer. Honestly, I believe for now I will stay with the C2300 MC phono stage. I am happy with its performance. I don't want to get on a phono preamp merry-go-round. Having compared the XP-15 to the C2300 phono stage I have a new found appreciation for how well the C2300 MC phono stage performs. If I decide different I will let you know.

[Masterlu]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Ivan.......I appreciate the offer. Honestly, I believe for now I will stay with the C2300 MC phono stage. I am happy with its performance. I don't want to get on a phono preamp merry-go-round. Having compared the XP-15 to the C2300 phono stage I have a new found appreciation for how well the C2300 MC phono stage performs. If I decide different I will let you know.

Dan... I understand completely.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by Masterlu

Which begs the question; how did the Pass Labs XP-15 get such favorable reviews?

Ivan.......I may be more demanding of a new component because I spent my money for it, versus a reviewer who has the piece for a few weeks that cost him nothing, writes his review and moves on to the next assignment. I am vested, the reviewer is not. My studio room, and its silence may be considerably more revealing of a component's short comings, particularly noise floor levels. My ears, though they are not golden, have had many years of training, and can zero in on noise, distortion, mistracking, compression, peaks, and many more objectionable audio issues. These ears are great tools, and have helped me arrive at the level of excellence I enjoy daily.

Ultimately, all reviews boil down to an individual's opinion, nothing more, nothing less, and that includes mine. That is why I rarely put stock in reviews. I read audio publications as a form of entertainment, not as a source of unbiased audio facts. Audio magazines serve many masters, and the subscriber is not at the top of the list, in my opinion.

[Masterlu]

I believe that is why AA is such a trusted source for info & reviews. We have no hidden agenda, no manufacturers to impress, no quotas to fill, no politics whatsoever.

We just call it like we hear it, ever so rare in todays day & time.

[rockitman]

Wow, I find this whole thing strange, like the unit as being defective. Granted, I have the XP-25 which is dead quite. The XP-15 isn't too far behind according to the specs. Where you running the highest gain setting ? In any event, sorry things didn't work out.

[Puma Cat]

Originally Posted by jdandy

[B]
Ultimately, all reviews boil down to an individual's opinion, nothing more, nothing less, and that includes mine. That is why I rarely put stock in reviews. I read audio publications as a form of entertainment, not as a source of unbiased audio facts. Audio magazines serve many masters, and the subscriber is not at the top of the list, in my opinion.

Most of the masters audio reviewers serve are their advertisers, IMHO. I have a personal theory that audio magazines are about creating a "seeking behavior" in their readers that drives constant churning of gear...which of course, supports the generation of advertising dollars for the audio mags.

Unfortunately this has little to nothing to do with the enjoyment of music.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by rockitman

Wow, I find this whole thing strange, like the unit as being defective. Granted, I have the XP-25 which is dead quite. The XP-15 isn't too far behind according to the specs. Where you running the highest gain setting ? In any event, sorry things didn't work out.

rockitman......I listen to all three gain levels as I stated earlier. The XP-15 sounded very nice after about 20 hours, but the noise floor remained above that of the C2300. I wanted it to be lower, and went back and forth checking every possible setting, connection, different interconnects, grounding, gain levels, and none of it made any difference. Don't misunderstand my comments in this post, the Pass Labs XP-15 isn't what I would term noisy, just not as quiet as my C2300 tube preamp's moving coil phono stage. One of the reasons I chose the Pass Labs XP-15 was its solid state design. Almost everyone I spoke with that uses a tube based phono preamp told me that there was some tube grid noise at higher volume settings, and that simply was a fact of life with tube based moving coil phono stages. Since my C2300's moving coil phono stage also uses two 12AX7's I am well aware of what was being said. Fortunately, a tube swap to Telefunken tubes made a world of difference in the moving coil phono stage noise floor, lowering it considerably. When compared directly with the XP-15 at any volume setting the C2300 is quieter. Whether that means the XP-15 I have is defective or not I can't say, but I doubt it because it sounded very good with a signal passing through it. Either way, I did not like the XP-15 for the reason stated, and it is being returned.

[Jerome W]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Ivan.......I may be more demanding of a new component because I spent my money for it, versus a reviewer who has the piece for a few weeks that cost him nothing, writes his review and moves on to the next assignment. I am vested, the reviewer is not. My studio room, and its silence may be considerably more revealing of a component's short comings, particularly noise floor levels. My ears, though they are not golden, have had many years of training, and can zero in on noise, distortion, mistracking, compression, peaks, and many more objectionable audio issues. These ears are great tools, and have helped me arrive at the level of excellence I enjoy daily.

Ultimately, all reviews boil down to an individual's opinion, nothing more, nothing less, and that includes mine. That is why I rarely put stock in reviews. I read audio publications as a form of entertainment, not as a source of unbiased audio facts. Audio magazines serve many masters, and the subscriber is not at the top of the list, in my opinion.

Well said Dan !