Dynaco PAS 2 value and difference to PAS 3?

You shouldn't pay more than $200 for a Pas 2 or Pas 3 preamp in excellent condition. The Pas 3x is a little different. When the tone controls are in the center position the tone control circuit is defeated. These are entry level tube preamps at their best and sound their best with the Dynaco tubes which were actually relabeled Telefunkens. The sound is soft and lacking in dynamics compared to modern tube preamps. Many people have modified these preamps in the past usually by beefing up the power supply to improve dynamics and bass. The Dynaco was a very cheaply built product designed for a price point. For a little more money you can get a real preamp like Cary, CJ, Audible Illusions, VTL, Counterpoint or Music Reference. Stay away from the early Audio Research preamps. They usually have problems and it costs a fortune to have them repaired. I speak from experience. Good luck and happy listening.

To answer your question, the PAS2 and PAS3 are exactly the same preamp with different face plates and knobs. The 3X has different tone controls, which, if you are actually going to listen to the thing, rather than being a collector, is probably moot, as you would want to bypass them anyway. There was a running change where the output coupling cap in the line stage was increased in value. Again moot, as you would want to increase the value and use a modern film or oil cap. This is a great piece, if you want to learn to work on electronics and hack on gear. There are many inexpensive mods on the internet as well as completely re engineered circit boards by AVA and Curcio. Figure on $150.00-200.00 for the preamp and $100.00 to $500.00 for full mods.

Thanks guys!

You have been very helpful.