Best Integrated, period.

The Absolute Sound review of the Pass INT-150 is in the September issue.

They said the front on view is "As imposing as a Peterbilt"

Neil Gader said "it's sweet and romantic, neutral and warm". Robert Harley in a side bar to the main review, "There must be a strong family resemblance between the INT-150 and the XA-100.5.

Neil went on to say "It's a musical force of nature."

You have to take reviews with a grain of salt, but as a former Pass Alep 1.2, 3, J, and XA-30.5 owner, I can tell you that Pass SS is very special and the only SS (well, maybe Ayre)that appeals to me, though I still prefer tubes.

The Pass sounds wonderful.

I'm still thinking though that the Rowland 500w/ch Class D is probably the best high end match for my big power sucking Ohms.

I almost went straight to Class D power amplification during my last upgrade, but decided to go with the Musical Fidelity A3CR which I picked up for a pittance in the interim in that I thought it would work well (it does) and give Class D some additional time to mature.

The A3CR is doing very nicely, but when the time comes to replace the Carver pre-amp, one of these beefier integrateds with a good integrated phono section may well be the way I go .

there is no bebest integrated. howver, i would nuy the original jadis orchestra 60 watt at a fair price. it is my favorite integrated amp.

my favorite amp, which i would buy in a minute at a fair price, although not the subject of this thread is the conrad johnson mv 125. it is my favorite amp of all time.

it is a joy to design a stereo system around that amp.

Pubu157.

That sort of thinking is exactly why Intergrated amps made by most companies cannot make it to the big league..

To me,I have no problems with Pass Labs,I have many friends who like their warmth sound,but my issue is with their design approach with intergrated amp.

No, it is not as easy as you think it is,in fact IMHO,you need a specific technical skills to be able to executes the Intergrated cuircuit.

This is what I suggest you guys do;Go out and listen to these following Intergrateds this weekend[NEODIO 150,ASR Emitter,Lavardin IT/IS Referance,Kondo Ongaku,Karan]and compare them to ANY seperates at ANY price in almost ANY systems....I have,but I want you guys to find it out for yourselves..

CHEERS!!!!!

Another contender might be the LSA series hybrids. All have the same structure and put out 150watts. The Signature and statement have slightly different circuits and improved components. I have heard the basic reference version when it was DK designs, the other 2 are supposed to be a big step up. The basic one was very good indeed. Strong support from Bound for Sound and Stereo Mojo too.