Is the Aiyima A07 the best 'cheap class-D amp'?

[jdg78]

Plugged in with AC power on all the time.
Use the switch on the front of the amplifier to turn it "on" and "off".



Not the best plan.

When you turn off the AC power to the "brick", the DC rail in the brick and in the amplifier will drain to 0 volts in about a minute.
Then when you turn the AC back on there is a huge inrush of current trying first to get the power supply started up, then to charge that DC rail in both the brick and the amplifier back up to 32 volts (or whatever other voltage you are using). Given that the brick probably has about 470uf caps and the amplifier has 2200uf that current surge can hit 10 amps for about a quarter second then tapering off until those big capacitors are charged. This puts a very heavy load on the power supply during that start up phase and eventually it will kill it.

The front panel switch on the amplifier is arranged to avoid that. When you turn the amplifier "off" all you are really doing is shutting down the TPA3255 chip. Those big caps are still connected to a live power supply so they are constantly charged and ready to go. No more big rushes of current to start them up. Your power supply will last years longer.

All the hints for this are there ... no power switch on the supply, standby switch on the amp, pilot led on the supply... etc. It is clear it is intended to be plugged in, connected to the amplifier and left on all the time.

When "off" the amplifier draws about 20ma of current ... less than an LED night light, so it's not like you're saving any real power.

Good to know - thanks for the info!

 

[Deleted member 46664]

Good to know - thanks for the info!

You're welcome ... happy listening.

 

[Repdetect]

FWIW- I decided to sell my 2 emotiva behemoths-(both XPA- Gen 1) (3 ch/200w-57lbs. and 5ch/200w-70lbs. amps) , as we are selling our house and downsizing.

I was happy with eh emotivas, they have been serving me for 10+ years, without incident.

I decide to try the aiyima A07 as it looked ideal for moving to a smaller abode.

I bought 1 to test on my main speakers, Gallo Classico cl-4's (4ohm, 92db).

They sounded quieter, better imaging and punchier bass. What a surprise, differences weren't subtle.

Bought 2 more to drive a classico 10" sub (dead plate amp, hooked up 1ch of an a07), my 2 rear speakers (classico cl-2's-90db-4 ohm) and the classico center channel ( 4ohm-92db)

No sense of less power and the system with 2-ch cd's and multi-channel sacd's sounds phenomenal.

Very happy camper. Highly recommended. (and my room is cooler too as a bonus)

 

[Timstunes]

Plugged in with AC power on all the time.
Use the switch on the front of the amplifier to turn it "on" and "off".



Not the best plan.

When you turn off the AC power to the "brick", the DC rail in the brick and in the amplifier will drain to 0 volts in about a minute.
Then when you turn the AC back on there is a huge inrush of current trying first to get the power supply started up, then to charge that DC rail in both the brick and the amplifier back up to 32 volts (or whatever other voltage you are using). Given that the brick probably has about 470uf caps and the amplifier has 2200uf that current surge can hit 10 amps for about a quarter second then tapering off until those big capacitors are charged. This puts a very heavy load on the power supply during that start up phase and eventually it will kill it.

The front panel switch on the amplifier is arranged to avoid that. When you turn the amplifier "off" all you are really doing is shutting down the TPA3255 chip. Those big caps are still connected to a live power supply so they are constantly charged and ready to go. No more big rushes of current to start them up. Your power supply will last years longer.

All the hints for this are there ... no power switch on the supply, standby switch on the amp, pilot led on the supply... etc. It is clear it is intended to be plugged in, connected to the amplifier and left on all the time.

When "off" the amplifier draws about 20ma of current ... less than an LED night light, so it's not like you're saving any real power.

Thanks! Useful information for me as well!

 

[Timstunes]

The A07 is a well built but basic integrated amp with 50-60w of good clean power. For $80 bucks. To me, the best value in audio. I’ve never met someone who actually owns one who was disappointed or regretted buying it. The A30 is a equally quality product powering about 35-40w, but with a slew of features/input options for $185. And looks great. It all depends on what you want.
You could probably get the A30 and be done and quite happy. At least until you get upgrade-itis On the other hand , you can easily add a preamp/dac to the A07 and upgrade as you go. Good luck!

 

[NewbieAudiophileExpert]

The A07 is a well built but basic integrated amp with 50-60w of good clean power. For $80 bucks. To me, the best value in audio. I’ve never met someone who actually owns one who was disappointed or regretted buying it. The A30 is a equally quality product powering about 35-40w, but with a slew of features/input options for $185. And looks great. It all depends on what you want.
You could probably get the A30 and be done and quite happy. At least until you get upgrade-itis On the other hand , you can easily add a preamp/dac to the A07 and upgrade as you go. Good luck!

Based on my understanding the A07 is a powerhouse in terms of audio quality and wattage - so it would be especially useful in the case that a person wishes to power some less-efficient speakers and go LOUD.

The a30 is a little powerhouse - it's not just a good quality amplifier, it's also a USB and SPDIF DAC (HUGE VALUE) and headphone amplifier - AND it has bluetooth and DSP functionality.

It's incredible value for money in my eyes.

 

[LtMandella]

FWIW- I decided to sell my 2 emotiva behemoths-(both XPA- Gen 1) (3 ch/200w-57lbs. and 5ch/200w-70lbs. amps) , as we are selling our house and downsizing.

I was happy with eh emotivas, they have been serving me for 10+ years, without incident.

I decide to try the aiyima A07 as it looked ideal for moving to a smaller abode.

I bought 1 to test on my main speakers, Gallo Classico cl-4's (4ohm, 92db).

They sounded quieter, better imaging and punchier bass. What a surprise, differences weren't subtle.

Bought 2 more to drive a classico 10" sub (dead plate amp, hooked up 1ch of an a07), my 2 rear speakers (classico cl-2's-90db-4 ohm) and the classico center channel ( 4ohm-92db)

No sense of less power and the system with 2-ch cd's and multi-channel sacd's sounds phenomenal.

Very happy camper. Highly recommended. (and my room is cooler too as a bonus)

I think that is more a reflection on the poor qualities of Emotiva amps. I purchased an Emotiva preamp and ended up giving it away. It sounded so bad (like the cheapest 80's lofi) I could not even in good conscience sell it...

 

[Repdetect]

I think that is more a reflection on the poor qualities of Emotiva amps. I purchased an Emotiva preamp and ended up giving it away. It sounded so bad (like the cheapest 80's lofi) I could not even in good conscience sell it...

Sorry, I can't agree as I had 2 emotiva amps for 10+ years. They have made poor quality stuff, just not anything that I bought.