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PASS Labs x350.5 vrs. Parasound JC1

Hello, I was wondering if anyone has had the pleasure of hearing the differences between these two amps that could offer their opinion on which one they felt was a better sounding unit?

I currently have a PASS X250 amp that I have been using for several years and really have no complaints on its performance but I am thinking of upgrading to something with more Class A output power.

I like the idea of amps that transition from Class A to Class A/B operation because they will ensure I have plenty of headroom during those aggressive listening sessions.

The current Pass X250 is driving a pair of B&W 803 Diamond series speakers. By my estimation, room size and listening habits it looks like I would need about 35-40 watts of Class A power to stay in Class A operation for most of my listening (90-105db).

The specs on the speakers call for up to 500 watts of unclipped power into 8ohms. I believe they can hit 3ohm at certain points so I want to ensure which ever amp I get can keep up with their needs.

Based on my research either of the two amps in question could fit the bill easily in terms of power with the advantage going to the PASS as far as more Class A output than the Parasound. My gut tells me to stick with PASS Labs and I can't go wrong but I have always had an interest in the big JC1 also. I like the fact that the JC1 has a seemingly endless supply of output power as the speaker load drops which the B&W's are known to do often.

Please post your experiences..Thanks
eniac26

Showing 3 responses by pryso

pryso
1,908 posts
 
After the comment on the Parasound reliability I had to respond. I've owned a pair of JC-1s for more than five years. Each one was returned for repair of a failed thermistor. Otherwise they have performed unfailingly over all those years. And as I posted separately, Parasound was outstanding in handling those repairs. My understanding is this failure was only a problem with earlier production, an upgraded part has been used for several years now.

Regarding the OP question comparing to Pass, I don't have any direct experience. But I can say I compared the JC-1s to many other competitors, both ss and tube, and found them superior in many ways. Also, I have found the high bias setting to provide the best sonics.
pryso
1,908 posts
 
Well Roscoeiii, each person may interpret any comment however they choose, but I find your "good reason to be concerned" a little bit of a stretch. Does that mean you always expect completely trouble-free operation over more than a five year period?

Here is more background on my experience:

- Upon checking I found I've owned these amps nearly 7 years,

- The same part failed in both amps, so it was one specific problem,

- The first amp failure happened within the first year, the other amp worked fine for over six years,

- Parasound stood behind their product and repaired mine in a prompt, fair and satisfactory manner, and

- While I cannot specify when Parasound realized this consistent part failure, once they did they upgraded that part (possibly all amps within the past six years?) in their new production.

As I said, this has been my only problem in nearly 7 years. Now with this upgraded part I'll guess that 80-90% of the used JC-1s and all of the new ones should be as trouble free as any mainstream product.
pryso
1,908 posts
 
Dracule, my first problem was picked up by my dealer (after one year), then returned to me repaired. Parasound has a record of that repair so I must assume they did the work. The recent failure I paid for shipping to Parasound (at 6.5 years old) and they covered the return.

I believe comparable Pass amps are of similar size/weight so not a consideration for the OP's question. However you may rule both out for this reason.
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