3e audio A7/A7 Mono Amplifier Review

[RandomEar]

Hello,

I am new to the forum and relatively new to the matters of HiFi audio.
I have acquired a pair of used Nubert NuVero 14 and find myself in need of an amp. The irony is that I do not listen at high volumes (need to keep my tinnitus in check - so why did I get these humongous speakers? I don't have an answer) and especially for long durations of time.

Welcome to ASR! There's a couple of threads about different tinnitus treatments on the forum, in case you might be interested in those.

My question is: would the E3 Audio A7 stereo provide as good of a listening experience at low levels of volume as a A/B class amp?

Yes. Likely a tiny bit better actually: Because the noise levels on the A7 are so low, you won't have audible tweeter hiss past a couple of cm away from the speaker. The same can't be said for many class AB amps, especially older designs.

Other than that, there won't be remarkable differences. Those speakers are huge and can take a lot of power, but their efficiency is decent and they don't dip below 3.4 Ω. So they are not challenging to drive at "not a house party"-levels.

 

[Link01]

Thank you Ruediger for the tip on checking the bi-amp bridge wires. I will do that!
I've called Nubert and based on the Serial number on them, they were manufactured in 2012. I do hope that the crossovers inside of them are still good and that they are repairable hopefully when the need comes.

Thank you RandomEar fot the encouraging feedback on softer listening experience with the A7.

I was reading a post that said something that a very low levels (which I may do at late evening times), the channels may be unbalanced up to 3db. Is this something that I should be concerned? I may have read this wrong perhaps?

 

[Ruediger]

I have Cantons older than that. Never had problems with the crossovers. But it's something to look for when buying used. People also modify them, not always in a competent way.

With Nubert you have a brand that you can contact here in Germany. Same as with Canton I guess they can even supply you parts and drivers should you ever need them.

Here is a pair of speakers I use with the A7 to high levels. No problems whatsoever and I trust the amp. No difference in sound to other class D amps. But next to no hiss compared to class AB / AVR, that's a good point mentioned.

 

[RandomEar]

I was reading a post that said something that a very low levels (which I may do at late evening times), the channels may be unbalanced up to 3db. Is this something that I should be concerned? I may have read this wrong perhaps?

I remember reading something along those lines, now that you mention it. But I can't find the actual posts. In any case, that is a risk with all analog volume pots. To avoid that problem, you can manage the volume using your DAC and set the A7 to bypass mode.

 

[Ruediger]

To my knowledge that applies to the first quarter / third of the volume knob way.

Various ways to work around using that area at all. The A7 basically offers 3 gain options. High, low and XLR in bypasses the opamp completely to an even lower value. It's easy to make that knob go to 50% or higher.

 

[Link01]

I see, thank you both for the explanation. My plan is to use the A7 in bypass mode. Thank you for clarifying.
I do have one more question if you could shed some light. After watching a couple of videos on YouTube about this amp, in both videos they swap out the op-amp and claim that they did get an improvement on the output. As you can tell so far, I am a novice at this, however, I am also an enthusiast in other technical fields, so this subject definitely caught my attention. My questions would be, would you recommend a novice to also buy a couple of op-amps to go along the 3E Audio A7 amp? It would make sense from a shipping standpoint for me to add that to the shopping cart now rather than later. I do appreciate any feedback or knowledge that you may have on this.

Video 1 replaced stock op-amp with a SX52B and Video 2 replaced with a Sparkos 3602.

 

[Roland68]

Hello,

I am new to the forum and relatively new to the matters of HiFi audio.
I have acquired a pair of used Nubert NuVero 14 and find myself in need of an amp. The irony is that I do not listen at high volumes (need to keep my tinnitus in check - so why did I get these humongous speakers? I don't have an answer) and especially for long durations of time. My question is: would the E3 Audio A7 stereo provide as good of a listening experience at low levels of volume as a A/B class amp?

With the A5/A7 models, the volume potentiometer's range between the 7 o'clock and 9 o'clock positions can be affected by channel imbalance.
I’ve observed this on four different units so far; the issue ranged from inaudible to very pronounced.
That’s why I use my A5 in power-amp mode paired with the SMSL D200 DAC, utilizing the latter's analog volume control.

Regarding your tinnitus, you certainly didn't go wrong with the nuVero 14s—quite the opposite; unfortunately, I have a lot of experience with this condition. In terms of price-to-performance, those speakers are unbeatable.

If you don't plan on listening at very high volumes anyway, you might want to take a look at the 3E Audio A5. The TPA3251 chip used inside offers slightly more refined detail and marginally better measurement and noise figures.
I just calculated that the A5, driving the nuVero 14s, achieves over 97 dB at a distance of 3 meters based on a measured output of 92 watts. Since the A5 delivers over 120 watts at 1% THD—and actually pushes 180 watts into the nuVero 14's 3–3.4 ohm impedance—the setup can actually reach 100 dB. That is more output than many speakers can handle effectively.

If a maximum of 97 dB is sufficient for you, I would definitely recommend the A5. For one thing, the lower end of the volume pot is more usable, shifting any potential channel imbalance issues down to a lower range. For another, we both know how sensitive one can be with tinnitus. That factor, along with the slightly better transparency, was the deciding reason I chose the A5 over the A7. The speakers I use with the A5 have a sensitivity of 85 dB, and the volume control has never gone past the 12 o'clock position.

Is your tinnitus stress-related?

 

[Ruediger]

I see, thank you both for the explanation. My plan is to use the A7 in bypass mode. Thank you for clarifying.
I do have one more question if you could shed some light. After watching a couple of videos on YouTube about this amp, in both videos they swap out the op-amp and claim that they did get an improvement on the output. As you can tell so far, I am a novice at this, however, I am also an enthusiast in other technical fields, so this subject definitely caught my attention. My questions would be, would you recommend a novice to also buy a couple of op-amps to go along the 3E Audio A7 amp? It would make sense from a shipping standpoint for me to add that to the shopping cart now rather than later. I do appreciate any feedback or knowledge that you may have on this.

Video 1 replaced stock op-amp with a SX52B and Video 2 replaced with a Sparkos 3602.

Op-amp rolling is considered snake oil (by many if not most here). It was measured on occasion that it does absolutely nothing for the user, sometimes even degrades the sound. The only upside could be a bad opamp choice from the maker, but that is not the case here (nor do I know of any such case + upgrade ability).

File that with the $1000 speaker cable, power cable, network cable, isolation feet and all the other areas where these offers usually reside. Hard to measure or prove anything, if at all, leaving all room to trick the brain of the buyer into bias.

Why does 3e audio provide such an obsolete "tuning" option then you ask. Same reason many other brands do. To not exclude people who like to do that. It's a hobby and everyone is free to spend a lot of money on useless things, if they enjoy it.

 

[Link01]

Thank you for saving me from spending 170 euros on a pair of BURSON AUDIO V7 VIVID PRO Dual OPA that may not have done anything.
Now that you mention the A5 sounding even better at lower volumes, that makes me rethink my buying option. 100 dB is way more over what I would accept to listen to for even a brief time. I don't think that I would ever push this that loud.

My tinnitus comes from a career as a DJ as a young man and working in loud venues repeatedly. I did wear earplugs for most of the time; however, it only took me one time to take off my earplugs and enjoy 1 hour of night party that got me in the end with the permanent ringing that only gets worst if I expose myself to loud noises.

 

[Ruediger]

The only reasonable "upgrades" I can recommend for the A5/A7 are some speaker feet that lift the amp a bit higher. 1.5-2cm does a good job for air convection. But it's not mandatory and you can ignore that for low levels. And maybe completely for the A5.

 

[Roland68]

Thank you for saving me from spending 170 euros on a pair of BURSON AUDIO V7 VIVID PRO Dual OPA that may not have done anything.
Now that you mention the A5 sounding even better at lower volumes, that makes me rethink my buying option. 100 dB is way more over what I would accept to listen to for even a brief time. I don't think that I would ever push this that loud.

My tinnitus comes from a career as a DJ as a young man and working in loud venues repeatedly. I did wear earplugs for most of the time; however, it only took me one time to take off my earplugs and enjoy 1 hour of night party that got me in the end with the permanent ringing that only gets worst if I expose myself to loud noises.

Yes, you can save yourself the expense; 3E Audio already uses high-quality op-amps that are perfectly suited to the circuit design.

I’ve sent you a message regarding the other matter.

 

[Bleib]

The only reasonable "upgrades" I can recommend for the A5/A7 are some speaker feet that lift the amp a bit higher. 1.5-2cm does a good job for air convection. But it's not mandatory and you can ignore that for low levels. And maybe completely for the A5.

While I wouldn't lift it up as high as 2cm, I can imagine that in some hotter countries it can be helpful. Lifting up my AVR about 1cm does wonders, and AVRs do run quite a bit hotter than probably just about any class D amp.

 

[HighFutility]

Hey all, I wasn't aware this thread had gotten to 85 pages.

Amazon Canada had the https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0FC5Q4LL9?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title 3E A7 MONO for a crazy price 163$ Canadian, comes with Gan amp. Or 115$ USD. I potentially might have panicked and bought two immediately just in case they went OOS. I'm not aware of anything on the market for this kind of price/performance. Is there anything in these 85 pages I should be aware of?

Thank you kindly in advance.

 

[Ruediger]

Just enjoy your dual mono amps! Insane deal.

 

[john61ct]

unavailable to USA

 

[Dave TR3A]

Amazon Canada had the https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0FC5Q4LL9?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title 3E A7 MONO for a crazy price 163$ Canadian, comes with Gan amp. Or 115$ USD. I potentially might have panicked and bought two immediately just in case they went OOS. I'm not aware of anything on the market for this kind of price/performance. Is there anything in these 85 pages I should be aware of?

The 3e Audio A7 is a fabulous amp. I loved them. However they weren’t a good fit for my system.

My tri-amped speakers are very efficient (tweeters are 106 dB) and so that very little voltage is applied to the HF when listening to music at modest volume — too low for the A7’s autosense to recognize that they should be on. If they’d had a 12V trigger I wouldn’t have had a problem.

Unless you are bi-amping or tri-amping very efficient speakers, I expect you’ll be delighted with the A7.

 

[Alannn]

Hey all, I wasn't aware this thread had gotten to 85 pages.

Amazon Canada had the https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0FC5Q4LL9?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title 3E A7 MONO for a crazy price 163$ Canadian, comes with Gan amp. Or 115$ USD. I potentially might have panicked and bought two immediately just in case they went OOS. I'm not aware of anything on the market for this kind of price/performance. Is there anything in these 85 pages I should be aware of?

Thank you kindly in advance.

If any 3e Audio amp has the features you want, then you should need to know nothing beyond what you stated. There was talk of a next generation amp with internal power supply a while back, but nothing new on that in a long while. Recently Amazon coupon deals have appeared on 3e Audio amps.

Try not to brag too much about imported product prices in Canada. Here in the US we were given crazy tariffs along with other worse problems and we endure, while waiting for government to stop degrading further into corruption and incompetence.

 

[john61ct]

talk of a next generation amp with internal power supply a while back, but nothing new on that in a long while

Perhaps that was about the new multichannel ALSOZONE amps

Which many assume will spec out as good as A7, at least not audibly different

 

[HighFutility]

If any 3e Audio amp has the features you want, then you should need to know nothing beyond what you stated. There was talk of a next generation amp with internal power supply a while back, but nothing new on that in a long while. Recently Amazon coupon deals have appeared on 3e Audio amps.

Try not to brag too much about imported product prices in Canada. Here in the US we were given crazy tariffs along with other worse problems and we endure, while waiting for government to stop degrading further into corruption and incompetence.

Believe it or not, we don't ever get any audio deals. It's still wildly cheaper for me to buy stuff in America, import it, and pay tariffs. Basically, across the board. We are lucky to get 15-20% off our inflated MSRP.

 

[HighFutility]

The 3e Audio A7 is a fabulous amp. I loved them. However they weren’t a good fit for my system.

My tri-amped speakers are very efficient (tweeters are 106 dB) and so that very little voltage is applied to the HF when listening to music at modest volume — too low for the A7’s autosense to recognize that they should be on. If they’d had a 12V trigger I wouldn’t have had a problem.

Unless you are bi-amping or tri-amping very efficient speakers, I expect you’ll be delighted with the A7.

I initially bought one unit since they are 2 ohm stable and was going to use it as a subwoofer amp. Currently using a Crown XLS 1502, but it's overkill.