I'm definitely biased since I own the 335. But I do have a bit of listening experience with Pass gear also. My brother owns a Pass single ended amp, as did a good friend of mine (until he very recently switched to tubed BAT monos). And I've heard the X350, X600 and X1000 a few times at shows and occasionally in stores. I've also owned lots of tubed and solid state amps along the way, including Krell.
I think Nelson Pass is a gem (and a genius) but I do prefer the 335/336 and 33H to his latest X series. I won't bore you with all of the many details but here are a couple of my highlights in no particular order:
The 335 is the most spacious solid state amp I've ever auditioned or owned. It gives the best tubes a very serious run for the money. But as reviewer Myles Astor says, what impresses you most about the 335/336 is its absolute consistency. It sounds exactly the same whether you're listening to chamber music or giant orchestral pieces. It does not change its timbre with the music or volume level.
It is very, very, slightly dark in character in that the top end has slightly less air and "sparkle" than some other amps. I personally prefer this sound as I find many other "high end" amplifiers hot on top -- they have that audiphile tube glare that is initially very impressive but has you squirming and reaching for the volume control within a few minutes. With the 335, I am not aware of any loss of detail, however. I note this possible coloration just so that you're aware of it.
Some people may also find the midrange a hair recessed compared to a good tube amp. When I first set up my 335, voices seemed a tiny bit back in the mix, if you know what I mean. I found that room set up and preamp choice compensated completely for this deficiency. The addition of Argent Room Lens to my set up was especially important in my problematic room. I would also note that many tubed amps exaggerate the mids, making them overly prominent at the expense of the rest of the frequency range -- the result is a seductive sound on female voice but not much else. In any event, even those who note this characteristic, have no complaints about the detail and poignant beauty of the 335's midrange which otherwise has no equal in solid state equipment. It's really quite astonishing for transistors.
Unfortunately, to get the best out of the 335, it really should be matched with a 380S or, if you can afford it, the Reference No.32 (which is truly a special piece -- the single greatest piece of equipment in the ML line right now, IMO -- it redefines what can be accomplished by solid state preamps in terms of detail and transparency and makes the very good 380S sound broken). I've tried other units, including the CJ ART (which did some interesting things in the midrange but left the bass tubby and imprecise), but the ML preamps work best. Which only figures.
A close second to an ML preamp feeding the 335 would be no preamp! A Wadia front end directly feeding the 335 is a great combination that I've tried. But note that the Wadia feeding a Levinson preamp feeding a 335 doesn't work nearly as well as the Wadia alone. I would not recommend the Wadia if you require a preamp in your system. It's not the same machine set up that way, IMO.
Then of course, there's that phenomenal Levinson resale value. I've bought and sold just about everything. But on average, nothing sells as quickly or for as much as ML gear. Dealers I know often complain how difficult ML is to deal with and how their quality control isn't quite what it used to be (more so with Proceed than with Levinson), but as a consumer, you can see that I have absolutely no complaints.
I find that Levinson amps work best with networked cables such as MIT and Transparent. If you have a thing against cables with networks, then Kimber Select works superbly as well.
I see I've gone on too long, to say the least. Sorry. My vote is for the 335. God help your wallet if you hear this amp with a Watt/Puppy 6 or Revel Salon.
Good luck.
[This message has been edited by PF (edited July 25, 2000).]
I think Nelson Pass is a gem (and a genius) but I do prefer the 335/336 and 33H to his latest X series. I won't bore you with all of the many details but here are a couple of my highlights in no particular order:
The 335 is the most spacious solid state amp I've ever auditioned or owned. It gives the best tubes a very serious run for the money. But as reviewer Myles Astor says, what impresses you most about the 335/336 is its absolute consistency. It sounds exactly the same whether you're listening to chamber music or giant orchestral pieces. It does not change its timbre with the music or volume level.
It is very, very, slightly dark in character in that the top end has slightly less air and "sparkle" than some other amps. I personally prefer this sound as I find many other "high end" amplifiers hot on top -- they have that audiphile tube glare that is initially very impressive but has you squirming and reaching for the volume control within a few minutes. With the 335, I am not aware of any loss of detail, however. I note this possible coloration just so that you're aware of it.
Some people may also find the midrange a hair recessed compared to a good tube amp. When I first set up my 335, voices seemed a tiny bit back in the mix, if you know what I mean. I found that room set up and preamp choice compensated completely for this deficiency. The addition of Argent Room Lens to my set up was especially important in my problematic room. I would also note that many tubed amps exaggerate the mids, making them overly prominent at the expense of the rest of the frequency range -- the result is a seductive sound on female voice but not much else. In any event, even those who note this characteristic, have no complaints about the detail and poignant beauty of the 335's midrange which otherwise has no equal in solid state equipment. It's really quite astonishing for transistors.
Unfortunately, to get the best out of the 335, it really should be matched with a 380S or, if you can afford it, the Reference No.32 (which is truly a special piece -- the single greatest piece of equipment in the ML line right now, IMO -- it redefines what can be accomplished by solid state preamps in terms of detail and transparency and makes the very good 380S sound broken). I've tried other units, including the CJ ART (which did some interesting things in the midrange but left the bass tubby and imprecise), but the ML preamps work best. Which only figures.
A close second to an ML preamp feeding the 335 would be no preamp! A Wadia front end directly feeding the 335 is a great combination that I've tried. But note that the Wadia feeding a Levinson preamp feeding a 335 doesn't work nearly as well as the Wadia alone. I would not recommend the Wadia if you require a preamp in your system. It's not the same machine set up that way, IMO.
Then of course, there's that phenomenal Levinson resale value. I've bought and sold just about everything. But on average, nothing sells as quickly or for as much as ML gear. Dealers I know often complain how difficult ML is to deal with and how their quality control isn't quite what it used to be (more so with Proceed than with Levinson), but as a consumer, you can see that I have absolutely no complaints.
I find that Levinson amps work best with networked cables such as MIT and Transparent. If you have a thing against cables with networks, then Kimber Select works superbly as well.
I see I've gone on too long, to say the least. Sorry. My vote is for the 335. God help your wallet if you hear this amp with a Watt/Puppy 6 or Revel Salon.
Good luck.
[This message has been edited by PF (edited July 25, 2000).]
