A combo DAC/PRE/POWER AMP with high performance and low cost sounds great.
BALANCED inputs and (possibly?) outputs is a good way to go.
Perhaps if there are balanced pre outputs that are controlled by the volume, having a way to choose between PRE outputs/POWER outputs/or BOTH would be helpful. A front switch for this makes sense.
Also, a sister piece, but without the POWER AMP and with BALANCED OUTPUTS would be nice. You can then have a range of POWER AMPS to match, since power requirements vary so greatly.
If it were to include DSP, it would most certainly have my attention. There aren't many DSP's that are super affordable. Again, keep it simple, as it's main purpose would be to tame broad deficiencies in a room, not hyper-tweaking. Make the user interface as simple as possible.
Keep the front plate clean. Very clean. Really really clean. And make it aesthetically pleasing. The newer Fosi pieces are in a good direction.
In music, only the notes that need to be there should be there. This applies to good aesthetic design as well.
If there are tone controls, make the center setting physically obvious and entirely flat. If this is the case, tone "purists' would have little need to complain. (Can tone controls be done in the digital domain, and if so, does that eliminate the possibility of tone pots becoming scratchy? Could you determine the frequency of adjustment if done digitally? This may be more detail than this all-in-one should shoot for.)
Use the digital domain for volume control, as opposed to a pot, for channel matching and parts longevity (If this makes sense. I'm no engineer)
It would be helpful for some to be able to choose max power output with a switch (low/med/high power) on the BACK of the product, or even digitally, as it is a set once and then ignore type of thing. This is nice to avoid speaker blowing capacities of power. This piece should be designed so my wife and kid can use it intuitively, so that safe guard is helpful.
12V trigger? Yes.
SUBWOOFER out isn't for essential for me personally, but the need exists. An adjustable high pass for mains (digital or analogue) would be helpful, unless the DSP could direct the high or low passed signals to the corresponding outputs, which might be the simplest option for the user.
Despite being an all-in-one, please keep it simple.
Especially keep the face plate as simple as possible.
For the life of me, I have no idea why the stereo/mono switch on the ZA3 was on the front. Makes no sense, and introduces danger for no reason, and is used only when initially setting the system up.
Switching sources is common, so please have a dedicated way to do so. Pushing in a volume button to switch sources is annoying. A simple dedicated push button that scrolls through inputs with corresponding LED's showing selection is good enough and a fair compromise, although a dedicated button for each source is nice, this may make the front too busy and add to costs unnecessarily.
HEADPHONES? Doesn't apply to me, but if included they should be of high enough quality to eliminate the desire for a higher calibre option for the majority of users.
CD transport? NO. A sister transport that matches is a better idea, to me. When a CD transport dies in an all-in-one, well thats a flustercluck I'd rather eliminate from the get-go. In a similar vein, don't include cassette or 8-track players.
STREAMING? Of course.
USB for storage device? YES! But I'm not sure how this would be implemented, and would likely be a future product, keep it simple, I said, right?. But to be able to directly attach a dedicated HDD/SDD with all of my music files would be stupendous.
HDMI ARC? Absolutely.
BLUETOOTH? Obviously.
I will generously volunteer my time if you'd like to send me a prototype for feedback.
I'm nice that way.
