Hi, my personal opinion is that Luxman, had the most natural sound, 0% fatigue, the best bass and with more weight and definition, my choice would be Luxman.
Classic PassLabs house sound. Transparency top to bottom. Power and control. Lux is sweeter prob rolled off. Gryphon seems in between in character. This is only based on minirig single Bluetooth speaker. I’m charging my Sony WH1000XM3. And will confirm preference. This is a heaven sent comparison Jay. Vivaldi and upscalar. Lux and Gryphon and Pass-labs. The INT250 was on my list to drive my PMC MB2SE. Vivaldi or Rossini are in my list to hear. So this is an awesome pairing thanks 👍👍
My preference is Pass, Gryphon, Lux. Gryphon has the most bass and just a bit leaner in the midrange. The Lux sounds too polite. But maybe it is the best in long listening sessions. The Pass sounds very sweet yet dynamic. Granted the differences are small. All are awesome I am sure.
Both amps sounds sweet. The luxman sounds smoother, and by what I mean by that is, its adding color to the high notes more than the Pass. The Pass seems to be more honest in its reproduction of the information it is being fed. Sometimes you want hear that when a cymbal is struck or when they crash, it can be very surprising and unpleasant. And sometimes for me, that’s what I want to experience. It’s not always about a cognac and cigar moment ala smooth top end like the lux, to my ears anyway. :)
Gryphon, Pass, Lux. I appreciate the Lux's sweetness/smoothness but it could be too much over time. Pass INT 250 value leader and close to my top choice Gryphon.
Your description of the Cardas Clear, being too dynamic, and the sound jumping out, is exactly why I enjoy my Klipsch Lascalas, and I feel, this is a characteristic, of live, un-amplified music. I am wondering, if you are hearing compression from the Wilsons, which honestly, I hear, with every dynamic speaker, cost being no object. I know, most audiophiles, listen for sound staging and imaging, before other characteristics, but detail, coherence, tone structure, pace, rhythm, and dynamics, are what my ears listen for, before other qualities.
I prefer the Int250 but the Luxman combo is also fantastic. Listen to both via youtube is always a tricky way of telling which one better. I would live happy with any of this options but for what i can ear in this A or B, i prefer the sound of The Pass Labs Integrated. the Gryphon sounds great also but my experiences with Gryphon amps are not that great, not for my taste. I would love to see a Comparison between these and the new 5000 series from Yamaha.
i know im asking randomly but does anybody know of a method to get back into an Instagram account?? I somehow forgot my account password. I would love any tricks you can give me!
@Tristen Brooks thanks so much for your reply. I got to the site thru google and im waiting for the hacking stuff now. I see it takes a while so I will reply here later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
As a lux owner , just listening from U tube video i would pick Gry , Pass , Lux in this order , I also know that in my system I sold PassLab XA 160.8 monos and preferred Lux 900u sound . I did love the sound of pass but lux was more sophisticated at the end, no wonder they call this amp one of the best integrated, maybe I’ll try pass again at some point, thank you for the video ,,, and yes that Dcs is as best as one can get when in comes to digital sources , I think it has really good preamp section and going amp direct is super clean and enjoyable
Well, i know one thing for shure.No matter how much it costs, or how many watts it is, the majic thing that makes you like it or not, is the kind/setting/tuned of the preamplifier. Even in an inregrated, which is inside.So, in an almost equal strenght of amps,it is all a matter of taste.Finally there is not good or bad.Think this: you have a very good steak and you go eat it in five different restaurants, good ones too...You will end up with five different tastes. Which one you like ?
Luxman remind me Accuphase amplifier smooth, sweet, gentle, fullness sound. Pass Labs INT-250 did a great 👍 job considering for one chassis and for the price range of $12k can't beat that👍😉 any way the Gryphon amp is a different story this little monster amp retail about 🤑$43k🤑 plus the most important thing is the Gryphon Colosseum amp is waaay better match with the Wilson Audio speakers 👍👍😉
Pass is right now the image is glossy, may be from the cables. The Gryphon sounded dynamic and deep. Luxman, more focused and real., felt like I was there.
The transparency openness and realness of the Lux combo is amazingly beautiful. The voice so emotionally & close by, one can almost touch her. That’s it, I’m selling my INT-250 and make the quantum leep into the M/C-900 combo. What cable do you use between the C+M?
great sounding system...in order of preference 1. Gryphon 2. Pass Labs 3. Luxman. Gryphon has a more airy presentation. Instruments on the Luxman is kinda laid back and soft. Thks for the demo comparisons
Thank you Jay for another excellent and very informative video! Gryphon is the most natural and 3D sounding. Pass is a bit forward and Luxman is too soft. Maybe Odin and Pass is not a good match...
Buying decisions...useful inputs. PassLabs direct from Vivaldi is crystal clear clean and powerful. Nice tones. Immediately Luxman pair has more air, sweeter more open. More uplift. Preference is hard to pick. Probably Luxman. Now Gryphon.... much better openness in vocals better balanced tough match. All three acceptable. Bass not as tonally differentiated by Gryphon. More muffled. Going to play again. Vocals on Lux has more echo 3D dimensions. Def differences to Pass. Now let me research pricing but my recollection is PassLabs is 1/2 price of Luxman pair...
Ok Sony presentation. Luxman...Nice transparency but lighter weight. Softer presentation. Easier to listen too. Good bass. Gryphon is much fuller presentation. Clarity and deeper; wide range great upper treble on a solid mid and bass construct. Good mid to lower not articulation. More forward across the range. Not as sharp as the PassLabs but equally clear. Maybe not the forward air.
Off topic. With the Shuyata power condioner the soundstage collapses. With the AQ conditioner the sound becomes shouty. I have my doubts about conditioners.
The Pass Labs sounds more expansive, while the Luxman pair more intimate. The Gryphon is closer to the Luxman, but with more detail. Btw, what song is that? I'd love to hear that in my system, or any decent system.
very interesting comparison ! Agree on int vs separates , I control an older Pass design 200/side with a tube front vs a vintage Luxman int and while the separates set up has more power and slam , the integrated for sure delivers a better sound stage and imaging. With an integrated like you say less connections/cabling but also a front designed specifically for the power end. cheers ..
I would love to hear you compare the best integrated amps, dacs and cables that you have owned. Maybe some top fives? Vivaldi before the upscaler and after? The Vivaldi vs Dave? A live stream Q&A? The sound demo's are cool but not very useful...
AMAZING SOUND. BUT IN TERMS OF VALUE AND PERFORMANCE PASS LABS INT - 250 FOR ME!!! IT BEATS GRYPHON & LUXMAN TOGETHER!!! PASS WITH WILSON AMAZING SYNERGY. THANKS FOR THIS COOL VIDEO. T.C & BYE👍🙂
Pas Lab ! Plus de matière (Plus naturel ?). Mais plus d'air et d'ouverture sur le Luxman et une définition un peu plus...? Bien pour les deux mais dépend de la sensibilité et l'oreille de chacun. Pass Lab en classe A is the best sur les timbres !
