[twitch54]

Please let us know what Pass Lab Class A amps fried on you. This is a company with decades of longstanding customer service and support. Their reliability in the long term can’t be questioned. I don’t own Pass amps or Cherry amps. I’m still wondering why the topic was presented to begin with except for self promotion. I would certainly hope the op would please chime in as to his intentions. Nuff said.

Agreed, I've owned Nelson Pass amplification since the Threshold days of the eighties, if 'Mr Cherry' has a career as long and and successful .........

[RonN5]

I've never heard Pass products in someone's home.  They did exhibit in four different rooms at the Florida audio show this year...and all rooms sounded very good...no surprise...Pass doesn't really build "clunkers".

But that is not really the point....read the review of the 200.8 in Stereophile....the great things they say about the sound of the Pass are the same things Cherry owners say about their amps...with one exception....we never say this..."It's a big beast, heavy and expensive and room-heating, and it's not the last word in bass slam, bass speed, and other things".  Cherries have great bass and, we don't have to fork out $42,000.

There is no debate that Pass makes great sounding amps....and so does Cherry.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/pass-laboratories-xa2008-monoblock-power-amplifier

[I.Greyhound Fan]

What's the point trying to compare the 2 amps as it is like comparing apples to oranges.  Pass has a house sound that is not for everyone.  It is organic, rounded, dynamic with excellent bass slam but it is not the fastest bass which I prefer. (The bass and bass slam from my Pass X250 will put most amps to shame but if you like very tight and fast bass forget about it.  My BAT preamp plays some role as well as it is known for its bass slam and dynamics) It sounds more natural to me than amps with extremely high dampening factors but that is a personal choice.  Pass amps have synergy with Pass preamps.  I am sure that the Digital amps sound best with its gear as well.  Pass amps come in all sizes and power levels and they do sound different amongst themselves.  Same goes for Pass preamps.

I do get the point about price. The Cherry Kings are cheaper than just about all of the Pass amps and offer great performance, that was the point of the original post.  You can't argue about that.

I would love to hear a Cherry amp as some day I am going to downsize from my 100 pound beast of an amp, 50 pound preamp and 28 pound DAC.

[AmpDesigner333]

Please note the comparison is NOT with our top-of-the-line amplifier, which is the MEGAschino.  Here, it's compared to Pass by Steven Stone, a pretty well known reviewer (Stereophile, Absolute Sound, etc.):
https://hometheaterreview.com/digital-amplifier-company-megaschino-power-amplifier-reviewed/

A photo of the Cherry MEGA MK2 "guts", more along the lines of a Pass amp:


This is what the Desktop Maraschinos look like (granite base option):


As you can see, the Desktop Maraschino certainly looks different than the average amplifier.  It's like a "concept car" more than a "mass market car".

[AmpDesigner333]

Better Desktop Maraschino photos (comes in black, red, silver, or even gold*)....





 
*only the Golden Cherry Desktop Maraschino comes in gold and has triple rail capacitance, a tweaked modulator, no-sleep mod, and the same dual 60V 1000W power supplies as the KING Desktop Maraschino.

[AmpDesigner333]

Recent video review of the KING Desktop Maraschino:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4TpFf54ZzY

[AmpDesigner333]

To Amp Designer: I think that is worthy information.

Thank you (:

[AmpDesigner333]

I agree with the statement "Cherry wins" ...

Thank you for your kind words 

[AmpDesigner333]

Agreed, I've owned Nelson Pass amplification since the Threshold days of the eighties, if 'Mr Cherry' has a career as long and and successful .........

Hello.  I’m “Mr Cherry”.  I have a long history (3 decades), including production circuit designs in industrial, medical, military, and consumer markets. I’ve been designing amplifiers since the 1980s. Here’s an interview from a few years ago, by the late Jeremy Kipnis, in case you’re interested:
https://positive-feedback.com/interviews/tommy-obrien-digital-amplifier-co/

Here’s a more recent interview:
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/manufacture/0520/10_Questions_Tommy_OBrien_Digital_Amplifier_Company.htm

As you can tell, I’m more of an engineer than “company executive”.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

I read that review comparing the Cherry amp to the Pass.  It is a nice review.  That X150.8 is the lowest on the totem pole for the X series stereo amps but it is still an excellent amp.  Nice to see that the Cherry held its own.

[Affordable$$Audio]

I've had the pleasure of spending many hours with both Pass Lab amps and Cherry Maraschino mono blocks, though never in any sort of direct comparison. I consider Nelson Pass to be THE guru of solid state amplification, and Tommy O'Brian THE guru of class D amplification. I will say that in my own system I never heard the level of absolute blackness as I did with the Maraschino's. It's scary silent. Having helped lift one of Nelson Pass' monster amps is something one does carefully as they are behemoths. While the Maraschino was akin to picking up a heavy jar of spaghetti sauce.

I recognize that many class D designs were woefully lacking in the past. The problem currently are that many quick-to-profit "manufacturers" just buy chips off the shelf and slap an amp together. The over arching result is crap that only hinders the audio community from recognizing the work that Tommy O"Brian and other true designers create.

If you have the opportunity take a listen to a Cherry amp and decide for yourself!
https://www.audiopursuit.com/2019/03/cherry-amplifier-maraschino-desktop.html

[audio2addict]

I maybe the one that motivated Tommy to write that first post in the thread but not necessarily the conclusion.  I currently use Class A monoblocs on my Legacy Aeris and asked how some of the higher end amps competed with the DTM.  I decided to find out myself and ordered the King with the Golden Cherry modifications and the 3X capacitance upgrade.  I will find out myself.

[RonN5]

@A2A

How did you decide between the Golden DTM and the Megashino MK2?

[audio2addict]

Basically the starting point was the footprint for fitting into my existing system configuration.  I have a 13 inch wide amp stand on each side my rack.  My current amps fit perfectly.  I did not want to change that.  That eliminated the full-size units.  I read as much as I could find and in one reference, Tommy commented the Golden Cherries were basically at the top of the chain.

[RonN5]

I don’t think you will be disappointed... the big revelation for me when I switched to a Cherry was the transparency and the sense of aliveness...I’ve heard the Legacies a couple times... very alive, dynamic and musical.... should be a fantastic match.

It will be interesting to see how the Cherries sound with the AMTs on the Legacies... and I’m sure the Spatial Audio fans will be curious as well.  The mating with the RAAL tweeter on my Salks has been really really good...beautiful, spatial mids and high end...zero sibilance.

Looking forward to your review.

[BruceSB]

Go for it Cherry!
Why shouldn't you compare your amps to Pass (or anyone else for that matter!)?
Happens all the time with speakers!
Why not with amps?
Why shouldn't the Cherry owner speak about his impressions?
I am sure that he wants to compare his products with high profile compeditors.
Isn't that what everyone does?
Don't knock him - I bet he his feeling pretty proud!
I bet he is feeling great!
Go for it Cherry!
What I find really interesting is that this is not even Cherry's top of the line product!!!!
Keep up the good work Cherry.
Keep being proud of your amps!
Keep up the comparisons!
Bruce