@twoleftears I was once intrigued about that particular amplifier. I asked Mark at Reno Hifi about it, and he indicated that the 30.8 does just about everything better than the XA25. Though admittedly, I haven't compared the two. I did own the 30.5 before the 30.8, and could compare those two if you'd like!
@jafant I was fortunate to find a copy of my B.A.T. on Audiogon. It had been recently recapped and was in great condition. I came from a tube amplifier. The B.A.T. has a slightly warm and dark sound to it, which I really like. I am always striving for simplicity in my system, and I have taken it out a few times to decide whether I could "live without" it. As soon as I remove it from the audio chain, I immediately miss it. I am definitely a proponent of having tubes SOMEWHERE in your audio chain. Love that sound!
@hk_fan Thanks for the response. This is why I posted here. To get a wide variety of opinions on the topic, even if they are conflicting. I am a bit confused though because Mark seems to think that the X250.8 is a solid upgrade from the XA30.8. Kent seems to like the X250.8 very much too (claiming to keep that one at home a majority of the time) but admits that it isn't as warm as the 30.8. I'm hoping to find some of those "happy customers" Mark was referring to; or even some unhappy ones.
@snopro the sentiment is not lost on me. I am still trying to wrap my mind around why bigger AB amps often times have better bass, even though the output may be the same as a class A amp. Even more within the Pass line. Moreover, why does 1 Class A watt from the X250.8 sound different from 1 watt from the XA30.8. No idea, but trying to learn!
Thanks all for the responses so far!
