Bryston 14B-SST or Pass Labs X 350.5

I owned a 14B SST, and presently own Pass Labs XA-60.5. Not apples to apples with a X-350.5, but I'd put my money on the Pass Labs over the 14B SST (which is an excellent amp in its own right).

Pass Labs has a naturalness to its sound that I have yet to hear matched by any other solid state amplifier. At the same time, the Pass Labs has bass control and definition equal to Bryston.

IMO.

You should also consider Ayre amps...I think its the best of them..

I had owned a Pass Labs X350.5 previously and definitely a good amp. But do yourself a favor and just buy a McIntosh MC402 power amp. Once you hear the big McIntosh MC402 you will forget about the Bryston 14B-SST & Pass Labs X350.5. The McIntosh MC402 is a great power amp and I have absolutely no regrets trading in the Pass Labs X350.5 for it.

Thanks for the comments guys. Tvad what you are saying about the bass control is very interesting to me because my concern is that the Pass would not have the woofer control that the Bryston does. In the past I have heard that the Pass' have incredible midrange but they do not have good woofer and thus bass control.

In the past I have heard that the Pass' have incredible midrange but they do not have good woofer and thus bass control.
Rydenfan (Threads | Answers)

All I can say is with my XA-.5 series amps, this is not the case. The XA-.5 and X-.5 should perform equally well in the bass department as they both double power output as speaker impedance is halved.

On the other hand, Bryston amps control bass incredible well regardless of the version.

Pick one...or one of the others mentioned.

The bottom line is you won't know how any of these amps perform in your system until you install one or two.

Buy a used version of whichever amp you select, and your risk is substantially reduced. Bryston, Pass Labs, McIntosh and Ayre all have excellent resale value on the used market.