PASS LABS X250.5 STEREO POWERAMP
I think it's fair to say that people either love the Pass' looks, or hate it. One thing is for sure: it is a HUGE amp. I had heard it before in mono-version in a 5 channel setup with B&W N801's and that sounded very impressive but I never had heard it in the comfort of my own home. Until now that is.
Compared to Jeff Rowland model 6 mono poweramps
This amp has got only one eye - but what a beautiful eye it is:-)
The blue light is not too bright but smoothly glows in the dark. It is one big amp though. Be sure to have a strong back if you plan on moving it!
The pass was listened to over a period of a few days and as it was pre-owned by a friend of mine it was already well-played in. It had to perform in the company of Jeff Rowland preamplification, Mark Levinson digital, all Transparent Ultra and Reference cabling and Magnepan MG3.6R magnetostats.
A relaxed listen
I didn't enter audiophile-measuring-device-mode this time. That was on purpose because I wanted to see if I would miss my beloved Rowland model 6 mono's over a longer period without trying to pick differences right away. Normally I swap over components relatively quickly but this time I chose a more relaxed approach. To be hones it probably had a lot to do with me being lazy and having done too many reviews over a short period. But being lazy can be very relaxing:-)
I have to say that at first I didn't miss a thing. It was all there: soundstage width, scale, focus, dynamics and detailing all were more than adequate and never gave rise to suspicion. And the Pass was very natural sounding, with great bass and it was even well-paced, unlike its sibling preamp. There was never a sense of aggression nor was there a lack of enthusiasm. It was just great sound.
Sure, I could detect small differences with my Rowlands like a tiny amount missing air in the highest highs, or the famous subtle Rowland layering. But in practice, I could really live with the Pass. It also had plenty of power and after a couple of days I started to think that perhaps the Pass' bass could even be better than the Rowlands'. Mind you, I still hadn't swapped back to my own amps. I started to fear the moment the Rowlands would be back online, although by now I had entered the audiophile-critic-mode unwillingly. Could the Pass be ever so slightly aggressive in the mids and lower highs?
First impressions were excellent. I didn't miss a thing.
Now I was getting curious. Back went the Rowlands. Immediately there was this recognisable utter smoothness and lack of grain. Now I knew for sure that the Pass was slightly aggressive and lacking the renowed Rowland fluidity that has even made one Tube-amp owner doubt the smoothness of his amps' highs. Not to stick feathers up my own Rowland's amps but they are just so very velvety in the highs, yet never snow or dull that it's hard for other amps to match these criteria. But there are more audiophile aspects to perform and it was also immediately clear that the Pass had better bass than the Rowlands. Not only was it more visceral and powerful, it was also still agile and fast. It reminded me of the Bryston 7BST bass: full and deep yet never slow.
Now I wanted to be absolutely sure and swapped the amps over once more. Okay, now I was sure. Pass was better in the bass department while the Rowlands were better in the (fluidity and airiness) of the highs. But there were more things I noticed. The pass was more enthusiastic, somewhat more filled-out in the mids, having more meat on the bones so to say that the Rowlands who tend to be ever so slightly lean in the upper bass and lower mids. But I couldn't make up my mind whether I liked the ever-cheerful forwardness and slighlty more aggressive music making of the Pass more than the relaxed, ever fluid sound of the Rowlands. I need to remind you: both amps are never slow or undynamic. It's just that the Rowlands don't shout and the Pass can.
Switches at the rear of the Rowlands
Then there are the little switches at the rear of the Rowlands that few people know about. If you've ever heard a Rowland amp and found it too laidback and undynamic, chances are that bot switches were in the low position. There is a switch for gain (low and high) and input impedance (low and high). For my tastes, and with the direct sounding Logans and Magnepans, I greatly prefer both switches in the low position. Put only one of them in the high position and the model 6's start to fly! They become so very fast that even the fast and dynamic sounding Pass sounds less dynamic. But the sound loses most of the relaxed velvety lushness that I so prefer so that I run back to the switches to flip them back to the low position.
Conclusion
So, the Rowlands can be as dynamic and even faster than the Pass, but in doing so they lose some of their trademark lushness. If you want big, bold sound that bursts with vitality and that you can really rock to, don't try to do that with the Rowlands but go for the Pass instead. It too is an incredibly musical amp and it can really rock. It is a tiny bit edgy and can get shouty but for some tastes and some music, that's could be just the ticket. This is one of the few amps that I could just live with if I didn't have the Rowlands. But in the end I was glad to have my sixes back on duty.
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