Pathos Inpol2

[WishTree]

At the risk of 'mistaken for bragging', I would like to write a few lines about Pathos Inpol2.

I have got this amp used at a very good bargain price. it is the heaviest amp I ever owned (I guess it tips the scale at 34KG) and is built crafted beautifully.

The real highlight is of course the sound. It is not easy to describe the experience of this sound. It is warm, fast and very musical. The two imporant observations I had are 1) when there is a pause or stop in the music (as intended by the recordist) you can hear a clear demarked stop / blackness and 2) the vocals - when the singer is modulating his voice while singing, it feels like as if you are surfing the twists and turns in the voice. This is the best I can describe the vocals and there is no real substitution to listening to this amp. Also the depth of the instruments and timing is so awesome!

Please try to listen this amp when you get a chance. This is what I think all HiFi should sound like!!

Unfortunately, the amp is working only in left channel and all this is from one channel hearing. It is getting picked up next week to be corrected by Pathos service people and this wait to get the amp back is going to be very painful

PS: The shop from which I bought the amp is taking care of all the expenses of shipping and servicing. They even gave me a substitute amp which is so awesome as this is the first time I bought anything from this dealer / shop. We are so impressed by the service levels that I just placed an order of Zeppelin Air for my GF

 

[Anonymous]

Sounds wonderful! Who have you bought from what is there name and where are they. Enjoy your music.
Nick

 

[WishTree]

Hi - This is in Germany from the German Pathos dealer. The service levels they offer is more than fantastic!

 

[Anonymous]

WishTree I look forward to a full review once it is back. I also love the sound of my system!
Nck

 

[WishTree]

Sure Nick. I am also moving into a larger place this month. So clubbed together the Pathos sound would be a delight. I will write are review once I get it back!

 

[WishTree]

I have got the Amp back from Pathos (through my dealer) and it is fully cleaned & serviced. Amazing work both by the dealer and the Pathos service team!

I have already posted the pictures (You can click on My System in my signature and there are enough pics once you scroll down)

The sound from the amplifier is nothing less that magical. The music is very very live and the vocals are teh best part of the amplifier. Also, the way the music stops and starts (I think it is called black level or something) is so amazing. It feels as if the time has really slowed down. The pace or speed is extremely engaging. Overall I love the sound.

However the low frequency / bass is not as much in quantity as the rest of the frquency spectrum. It could be due to my Proac Standmount speakers. I have hooked up my PV1 (using the main lines link which B&W has sent me free of cost - almost 10mts long, as I have lost the original - great service from B&W too!) with Pathos and the PV1 never sounded better! The bass is very very tight. We have hooked up PV1 on various systems before including the Rotel RSP1069 but this is the first time PV1 sounded this good. Overall, I am very happy with the sound and I think, I am done for now.... except... the DAC 😉

PS: I am trying to swap the Inpol2 with my TT from physical positioning perspective, as it seems to be sinful to tuck away the beauty of the amp in a rack but I feel equally guilty to put the Roksan Radius in the rack. I will post pics with both the positions and may be the forum can post some advice! Also, I think the Inpol2, due to Class A in nautre, is cooking inside the confined space of the rack.

 

[CnoEvil]

I'm delighted that you are enjoying your new toy.....well presented class A is very hard to come back from.....somehow it just sounds right. 8)

The possible lack of bass is probably due to three factors :

-The inpol 2 is not one of the "bassiest" amps out there.
-Properly controlled tight bass of a high quality, can appear less.
-Standmount speakers.(Though floorstanders might be too much in the corners).

 

[WishTree]

CnoEvil - You are so right. I never looked at Inpol2 as Class A amp (though it is - Just that I never paid that attention to that sepc) but may be tha is the reason.. Ofcourse, you also get a room heater as a freebie 😉 The heat it is generating is quite new to me.. I touch the the heatsinks and they are always more than wam but I read some time back that this is the character of Class A and nothing to be alarmed about.

Regarding the bass - I guess it is the control of the bass but I still would rate it less proportionatly to the rest of the frequency spectrum.. and the PV1 is doing awesome job.. It is such a delight to hear such tight bass from subwoofer but the vocals and high end coming so smooth at the sam time!

 

[CnoEvil]

CnoEvil - You are so right. I never looked at Inpol2 as Class A amp (though it is - Just that I never paid that attention to that sepc) but may be tha is the reason.. Ofcourse, you also get a room heater as a freebie 😉 The heat it is generating is quite new to me.. I touch the the heatsinks and they are always more than wam but I read some time back that this is the character of Class A and nothing to be alarmed about.

Regarding the bass - I guess it is the control of the bass but I still would rate it less proportionatly to the rest of the frequency spectrum.. and the PV1 is doing awesome job.. It is such a delight to hear such tight bass from subwoofer but the vocals and high end coming so smooth at the sam time!

It is undoubtedly the reason... well designed Class A nearly always sounds good due to the absence of crossover distortion and the lightening transient speed.

The downside is, by its nature, always sucking max watts from the mains and gives out half of its power as heat....but the reward......no need to explain further. 🙂

 

[audioaffair]

Thanks for the write up - always welcome. Enjoy the new amp in good health

 

[oldric_naubhoff]

I never looked at Inpol2 as Class A amp (though it is - Just that I never paid that attention to that sepc) but may be tha is the reason.. Ofcourse, you also get a room heater as a freebie 😉 The heat it is generating is quite new to me.. I touch the the heatsinks and they are always more than wam but I read some time back that this is the character of Class A and nothing to be alarmed about.

jeez man... you are so lucky!! you bought one of the best amps out there not even knowing what you were buying 🙂 Pathos Inpol2 is not just "another" class A amp. its Inpol circuitry is patented and it's a special kind of class A amp in that regard it uses 0 (zero) global negative feedback. it's not easy to build such an amp because feedback is needed to make the amp more stable. feedback is great for benchmarking because when you increase it you get flatter freq response higher S/N ratio and lower THD. but Pathos make amps without use of feedback and they measure well too. the upside of that is more natural sound (i see you enjoy that already 🙂). let me ask you a question; do you experience any siblance or overbrightness with your system. I bet you don't and that's what Inpol (no feedback) is all about.

Regarding the bass - I guess it is the control of the bass but I still would rate it less proportionatly to the rest of the frequency spectrum..

as CnoEvil wrote; "less" bass is a quality of better control. play some orchestral music and compare how real music sounds like and how it sounds with your amp. I guess that if you had speakers with deeper bass extension you'd know what I'm writing about. 🙂. besides I experienced similar "problem" with my system too. now I really appreciate spead and accuracy of bass and it is now only when it is supposed to be and in quantity as intended by the composer. for me personally before everything sounded just bloated, with no true low freq extension in comparison.

I must confess that Inpol2 is my dream amp. maybe one day I could afford to buy one too 🙂. for the time being I enjoy Classic One mkIII (from Pathos of course).

as for DAC. I have a Pathos Digit CDP. I never really thought there are so many layers in the soundstage before. and separation of instruments and detail retrieval is just amazing. I think it's due to high quality analog output stage driven by tubes rather than opamps. unfortunately Pathos don't make stand alone DACs or streamers yet but maybe it's worth the wait...

wishing you many hours of happy listening 🙂

 

[WishTree]

Thank you so much! Not so long back, I saw a system (though Home theatre) with Rosewood CM series and Marantz AV 8003 + MM 8003. I thought that it was my dream system and when you mentioned you would like to have it some day, it was kind of reminding me that times! I thank you for your compliments. Just to keep your dream more reachable, I only paid, just as much as a brand new Classic One MK III would have costed! I guess, now it is not so far. I love the used HiFi Market and it makes many of my wishes come true 🙂

jeez man... you are so lucky!! you bought one of the best amps out there not even knowing what you were buying 🙂

It is not entirely true. I knew that it is Class A but did not really bother so much if it is Class A or AB or D as long as it convinces me on sound.. An year or so back, I kind of gave up on technology and started trusting my eyes and ears (a visual beauty is a must for me) which is kind of working out for me. Now we are talking about class A and no feedback, it is all starting to make sense. I guess it is easier to explain why a system sounds great with the help of technology but it is very tough to understand why some times a great technology does not sound to lure 🙂 (I am talking about my not so getting impressed about Musical Fidelity M6i).

But as they say, we need to find our own path.. err.. system!

 

[CnoEvil]

I am talking about my not so getting impressed about Musical Fidelity M6i.

But as they say, we need to find our own path.. err.. system!

Although, the MF AMS35i full class A is a "must listen", if you're at that sort of money (new).

IMO These two amps, along with the Sugden Masterclass(pre/power) are the ones to beat at this budget, for class A advocates.

 

[Anonymous]

Wishtree I think your bass reminds me of mine. The Adms are said to be bass light but they are not so much as you think they are fast and articulate, but when you play them you can feel it in your chest when the volume is up, but adding there sub and you do get a WoW moment. I really hope you enjoy your system.
Nick

 

[oldric_naubhoff]

I only paid, just as much as a brand new Classic One MK III would have costed!

very lucky indeed...

started trusting my eyes and ears (a visual beauty is a must for me)

I agree. IMO Pathos is making some of the most beautiful hi-fi gear available. say NO to plain black/ silver boxes!! 😉

 

[WishTree]

Although, the MF AMS35i full class A is a "must listen"

I have not heard this but I have heard the Titan series of Musical Fidelity. Some how, I always felt that MF is very keen on accuracy being a true audiophile / analytical types and there is some how emotion was missing.. May be I was not ready for MF then or the AMS35i must be some thing special. I will try to hear it in future, if possible, just for reference 🙂

Thanks again!

 

[CnoEvil]

Although, the MF AMS35i full class A is a "must listen"

I have not heard this but I have heard the Titan series of Musical Fidelity. Some how, I always felt that MF is very keen on accuracy being a true audiophile / analytical types and there is some how emotion was missing.. May be I was not ready for MF then or the AMS35i must be some thing special. I will try to hear it in future, if possible, just for reference 🙂

Thanks again!

The AMS series are the ones to hear, and if you follow the link on the MF website, there is a good review of the ams 35i. It was integrated amp of the year from an alternative publication.

 

[WishTree]

Thanks Nick!

Oldric_naubhoff - I agree with you fully. Pathos is so awesome.. They do not have even one single product which can be called average to look at.. There is some passion in the design that you can feel across the entire product range.. They have a new amp with built-in DAC which should be an absolute delight.. I hope that one day they make a stand alone DAC for people like us! Not to completely dismiss.. the people who buy plain boxes want such boxes for ease of stacking, may be.. But for us, I guess, if we buy a thing of beauty we would never want to stack them up 😉

 

[chris hollands]

I had a Logos for a few years that i used with a Gyro and Wilson Benesch speakers , sounded awesome, and looked even better.

Agree that you cannot have Pathos gear at the bottom of the rack!!

Enjoy your system.

 

[WishTree]

Agree that you cannot have Pathos gear at the bottom of the rack!!

Enjoy your system.

Thanks Chris.. It looks more or less unanimous.. All the suggestions are to keep it on top and yes.. I too love it that way.. Roksan Radius is feeling a little side lined here 😉

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Wish Tree,

Congratulations, you have great system ! I have some questions regarding the details of the amp Pathos inpol2, since I dont see a picture of the backside.

- The pre-out for sub is a mono RCA or stereo RCA ?

- The power released for 4 ohm speakers is how much ? I have Cremona M pair, it is 4 Ohm 88 DB and I am not sure if this amp can handle it well.

- Is this amp equipped with a wooden remote control ?

Many thanks for your help in advance. I wish you many hours of listening !

Best

TTD