Xs 300 / Xs 150 Owner's Manual: 1 March 2012
Xs 300 / Xs 150 Owner's Manual: 1 March 2012
Xs 300 / Xs 150 Owner's Manual: 1 March 2012
Xs 300 / Xs 150
Owners Manual
March
2012 Manual
Xs Owners
Read Me First
I fully realize that many, if not all, owners will rush to hook up the
amplifier without reading this operating manual. I dont blame you
I dont read them either. However, this amplifier is different in a
number of ways, and if you only read this page you will probably
save us both some time and trouble.
Heat and Ventilation - These amplifiers consume a lot of power
(around 1000 watt for the Xs 300 & around 500 watts for the Xs
150) and most of this is converted it into heat. Pick a location where
the amplifier can get some fresh air to remove the heat. Do not
enclose the amplifier in a closed cabinet. Give it lots of space. It is
expected that you will probably place the channel chassis on top of
the power supply chassis. You dont have to, but this is how we use
them ourselves.
Power Connection The power supply and channel chassis are
connected by an umbilical cable with Neutrik Powercon connectors.
These connectors have a locking mechanism which requires a
clockwise turn after insertion. Be certain that this connector
locks properly. The little lock button will click upon locking. After
it has been turned and locked it will not rotate back unless you push
the locking button. Do not attempt to make or undo this connection
while the power supply is plugged into the AC outlet.
Input Connection and Input Impedance - The Xs amplifiers
takes either a single-ended (RCA) or balanced (XLR) input
connection. The input impedance is 100 Kohms single-ended
and 200 Kohms balanced, and the input capacitance is just a few
picofarads so anything will drive it. If you are using RCA inputs,
then you want to use the gold input jumper to short the (-) input (pin
3) of the XLR connector to ground (pin 1) as shown:
Operation - After connection you can turn the amplifier on via the
breaker and switch on the power supply front panel or by placing a
positive voltage on the remote turn on terminals on the back of the
power supply. The power supply LED will light up, the meter will
light up, and the meter will slowly move to near the center position
of the dial. The Xs 150 takes a while to fully warm up.
The button on the power supply faceplate is STANDBY, the button
on the main faceplate turn the white meter LEDs on / off. The small
blue LED in the meter remains on as long as the amp is on.
In Summary:
Place the amps
Connect power supply and main chassis
Plug in AC
Turn on breaker
Turn on amp (standby switch on power supply faceplate)
Xs Owners Manual
Comments by Pass
It seems like yesterday.... No, actually it seems like eighteen years ago
that I got a patent on the Super-Symmetric circuit. Thats actually
a pretty long commercial run for an amplifier design - how many do
you know that are still on the market after that much time?
We (Desmond, Joe, me and Wayne in alphabetical order) believe in
progress, but also appreciate where our success has really come from
- happy customers. Every innovation that we consider has to address
how it will improve the customers experience with the product.
Technical excellence is a virtue by itself, but it will be the sound that
determines the long term success of a new design after the novelty
has worn off. The audio marketplace is littered with products that
measured spectacularly well but which did not go down as classics
because they lacked the subjective qualities that kept listeners happy
beyond the initial excitement created by a technical innovation.
With this uppermost in mind we set out to create a new generation
of amplifiers that measure well enough, but only in a manner that
serves the subjective perception of listeners. Oscilloscopes and
distortion analyzers are excellent and helpful tools, but they make
lousy customers.
It has been argued that the power amplifier should maintain some
sort of sacred neutrality - Let the artist be the source of musical coloration,
not the amplifier!
As if the power amplifier is the only thing altering the music. In the
old days (late 50s, early 60s) there was some reasonable technical
excellence in recording equipment, but it was fairly simple a
couple of level controls. And the people involved were few and
usually had some taste. Nowadays, there are too many people in the
reproduction chain with too many knobs. It is no surprise that new
vinyl issues of Jazz from that era fetch high prices.
Meanwhile the customer is the guy with the most rights, being that
he is the one paying for it.
That Would Be You.
If you are concerned that your power amplifier (or anything else
for that matter) is as objectively and technically accurate as possible,
that is a perfectly legitimate criterion. You will certainly find many
products in the marketplace that excel at conventional objective
performance, and most of them are much cheaper.
Xs Owners Manual
Our real customers care most about the experience they get when
they sit down to listen to their music. We create amplifiers that we
like to listen to, on the assumption that we share similar taste.
We want our products to invite you to listen. We want you to enjoy
the experience so much that you go through your entire record
collection - again and again. This, by the way, is a very strong
indicator.
A simple survey of really successful audio amplifiers shows
that objective performance numbers by themselves are not that
important. For example, there is some level at which harmonic
distortion is subjectively intrusive we could probably stipulate that
10% distortion is too much, and would probably accept that 1%
would be audible.
Conversely, we should accept that distortion becomes inaudible
below some arbitrary level. Is it at 0.1%? 0.01%? 0.001%? We
actually dont know, because there has to be a much larger context of
performance to which a single number only alludes.
In the process of developing the Xs amplifiers, we paid a lot of
attention to the harmonic structure of the amplifiers transfer curve.
It is apparent that reducing the numerical distortion numbers is not
as important as controlling the relative amounts of the harmonics
and their polarity. Even at low distortion levels, these harmonic
relationships are important to the perception of musical quality, but
they are not reflected in ordinary specifications.
In an amplifier of this sort, the power output stage is where most
of the action is. Playing with developmental tube and SIT designs,
we concluded that it is the character of the power output stage itself
which is most influential in shaping the sound of the amplifier. To
understand what we were looking for, imagine the sound of a low
distortion direct-coupled Triode operated in single-ended Class A.
Then imagine it with lots more power and control.
The original Aleph 0 from 1991 used an output stage which
consisted of a push-pull Class A output stage operated in parallel
with a high constant current output stage. The bias currents were
high enough to operate to rated power in single-ended Class A,
giving it a second harmonic signature, and as a push-pull topology at
higher power levels.
The X.5 and XA.5 amplifiers incorporated the single-ended bias
approach in balanced output stages, but for efficiency reasons did
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Input impedance:
Gain:
26 dB
Damping Factor:
50
Bandwidth:
DC to -3 dB @ 150 Khz
Output Power
Output Current
48 amps peak
Distortion:
0.003% @ 1 watt
1.0% @ 300 watts
Noise:
Power Consumption
1000 watts
Dimensions
Weight
Boxed
Xs Owners Manual
Input impedance:
Gain:
26 dB
Damping Factor:
50
Bandwidth:
DC to -3 dB @ 150 Khz
Output Power:
Output Current:
30 amps peak
Distortion:
0.003% @ 1 watt
1.0% @ 150 watts
Noise:
Power Consumption
500 watts
Dimensions:
Weight:
Boxed:
Warranty Information
All Pass Laboratories products purchased new from an authorized
Pass Laboratories dealer in North America are covered by a
transferable, limited 3-year warranty.
This warranty includes parts and labor charges incurred at the repair
facility. Consequential damages are specifically not covered and
damage due to modification or physical abuse is also not covered.
The customer assumes responsibility for shipping and insurance to
and from the factory, or a factory specified repair facility.
Non-North American customers should consult with their original
Pass Labs dealer or distributor for warranty repair instruction prior
to contacting the factory or shipping product for repair. NonNorth American product must be returned to the country of origin
for warranty service. Foreign distributors are only required to
offer warranty service on Pass Laboratories product that they have
imported.
Conditions of warranty service and customer rights for product
purchased outside the United States may vary depending upon the
distributor and local laws. Please check with your local distributor
for specific information.
Any modifications to Pass Laboratories products that have not
received written factory approval nullify all claims and void the
warranty. Should a modified product be returned to the factory for
repair the owner will be required to pay all necessary charges for the
repair in addition to those charges required to return the product to
its original configuration.
In the case of safety issues, no product shall be returned to the
customer without those safety issues being corrected to the most
recent accepted standards.
Removal or alteration of original Pass Labs serial numbers voids the
factory warranty. Product with altered or missing serial numbers
will be suspected as counterfeit product. Pass Laboratories will not
repair or in any way indemnify any counterfeit or cloned product.
Pass Laboratories does not offer products in voltages intended for
international markets either to authorized Pass Labs dealers or to
third parties located in the United States or Canada.
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