The thing I like about the FET is that it is not overly tubey or warm. It has just the right amount of warmth. It is also very dynamic and musical, at least on par with the Pass. As I said before, the X1 is a little more resolving and it should be, costing $4000 more than the FET. The FET is a bargain at its price point. With that being said, I will probably try and find used preamp. Another reason I want to go with tubes in a preamp is that my DAC is getting long in the tooth and it can't take advantage of Hi-Rez music. So my next DAC will probably be SS, unless I get one of the Marantz ref SACDP's.

For now I will live with the X1. It sounds very good but its not the sound that I am looking for.

I wish I had a TT as the FET that Frank loaned me has a phono preamp.