Dynaco PAS (Tube Preamplifier)

Name: Dynaco PAS
Brand: Dynaco

Almost nothing is formally documented about a Dynaco model called simply "PAS." In practice the name refers to the PAS-3, a tube preamplifier that survives in the collector market as a recognizable and desirable piece of Dynaco's tube-era lineup. The Antique Electronic Supply photoset that documents this unit identifies it as a "PAS-3" and calls it a "nice original" example with tone controls. That suggests "PAS" is shorthand for the series, not a separate model.

What the record shows is modest but real. The PAS-3 is a tube preamplifier built around the 12AX7 vacuum tube, the same tube type used in many of the era's most respected preamps. It has two high-level inputs and one low-level phono input, a standard setup for a stereo preamp of its generation. The unit photographed by Antique Electronic Supply had been recapped. That is the expected maintenance job on any tube component this age, and it keeps these units working decades after they left the factory.

Period advertising put the PAS-3X variant alongside the FM-3 tuner and Stereo 120 amplifier as "the highest level of quality which can be attained with high fidelity components." The kit was priced at $69.95 and the assembled version at $109.95. Those figures appear in High Fidelity (March 1968, p.99) and Audio (June 1968, p.31). The ads pushed the same things Dynaco built its name on: uncompromised quality, easy kit construction, and simple maintenance.

Past those basics, the documentation thins out fast. No production years, original price for the PAS-3 specifically, dimensions, weight, or detailed electrical specifications have been preserved in the sources available. The unit's reputation rests largely on its use of the 12AX7 and its place in Dynaco's tube-era catalog, a period when the company was known for affordable, high-quality kits that hobbyists could build themselves. For a collector, the PAS-3 is a recognizable tube preamp with a straightforward parts situation, since recapping is a well-understood procedure. It is not rare or exotic.

Tube preamplifier using 12AX7 vacuum tubes
Two high-level inputs; one low-level phono input
Tone controls included
PAS-3X kit version advertised at $69.95; assembled at $109.95 (High Fidelity, March 1968, p.99)
Capacitor replacement (recapping) is a known maintenance item