3e audio A7/A7 Mono Amplifier Review

[peng]

Why don't you post a high-resolution image of the area?

View attachment 556245

I did my best, with my iphone 15, anyway I just asked my wife to use her iphone 16 pro, and she has steady hands. She tried the lighted mag glass, couldn't see it, but the iphone 16 pro did it, amazing!

So it is 1656, I have no issue with either because I know I am unable to hear the difference for sure, but just curious and want to know both have the same IC, don't want to have 1612 in one and 1656 in the other lol..

 

[LambdaCDM]

I did my best, with my iphone 15, anyway I just asked my wife to use her iphone 16 pro, and she has steady hands. She tried the lighted mag glass, couldn't see it, but the iphone 16 pro did it, amazing!

So it is 1656, I have no issue with either because I know I am unable to hear the difference for sure, but just curious and want to know both have the same IC, don't want to have 1612 in one and 1656 in the other lol..

1612 or 1656 - nevermind.

 

[Ruediger]

I mind though that I have two of those with no print on them besides a smeared white point.

Is that something where people can put knockoffs in and then do an amazon return?

 

[scumpup]

I'm planning to buy 3 a7's. I'd prefer to have one power supply that can funnel an adjustable 48-52V at ~10A or whatever the chassis can handle reliably for maximum headroom. Any power solutions I can use to minimize the number of plugs I have to plug in? I'm planning to purchase more as my setup expands so I dont want to eventually have to spend 8 power connectors on amplifiers...
If I cant get multi channel in a box with proper power input I'm just going to build my own board with XT30 connectors or something i can put in a rack with like powerblades or something no idea, but not building a modular scaling system for these amps is crazy. 16ch mono 600W per channel mono blocks in a few layers of rack for ~120 per channel would be an incredibly scaling system.

 

[Raiju]

I would like to know if my pair of mono bought last Dec from Amazon.ca have the OPA1656 or OPA1612 but the number on the chip cannot be seen through the square hold, and I am sure even if I pull it out the quality of the printing is just too poor to be seen. I can see the caps are Rubycon not the Elna they advertised at the time (and still do iirc).

Is that anyway to know which opa I have. Not that I think I can hear a difference, just curious, the 1612 seems to cost a lot more on per unit basis.

View attachment 556228

Your op amp bypass capacitors are Elna.

 

[Ruediger]

I'm planning to buy 3 a7's. I'd prefer to have one power supply that can funnel an adjustable 48-52V at ~10A or whatever the chassis can handle reliably for maximum headroom. Any power solutions I can use to minimize the number of plugs I have to plug in? I'm planning to purchase more as my setup expands so I dont want to eventually have to spend 8 power connectors on amplifiers...
If I cant get multi channel in a box with proper power input I'm just going to build my own board with XT30 connectors or something i can put in a rack with like powerblades or something no idea, but not building a modular scaling system for these amps is crazy. 16ch mono 600W per channel mono blocks in a few layers of rack for ~120 per channel would be an incredibly scaling system.

Have you looked at the multichannel amps from alsozone, 3e audios other name?

The A5 and A7 lives on there in various larger amps with internal psu.

 

[bracko]

Your op amp bypass capacitors are Elna.

Is that unusual for A7? I thought that Elna is the standard.

 

[scumpup]

Have you looked at the multichannel amps from alsozone, 3e audios other name?

The A5 and A7 lives on there in various larger amps with internal psu.

are they cheap? I cant find the 3e audio shop on aliexpress

 

[Ruediger]

are they cheap? I cant find the 3e audio shop on aliexpress

They are in line with the mono/stereo unit pricing I'd say.

For some layouts like 3/4/5 channels there are other offers like Hypex. But 6/7/8 channels have much less options. And $1k for an 8-channel amp based on the A7 tech, yes I'd say that's pretty cheap.

If I were in the market for 5 or more channels for home theater use, I would def. consider one of these.

3e audio and Alsozone is present on amazon here with all products. Maybe in your region too.

 

[scumpup]

They are in line with the mono/stereo unit pricing I'd say.

For some layouts like 3/4/5 channels there are other offers like Hypex. But 6/7/8 channels have much less options. And $1k for an 8-channel amp based on the A7 tech, yes I'd say that's pretty cheap.

If I were in the market for 5 or more channels for home theater use, I would def. consider one of these.

3e audio and Alsozone is present on amazon here with all products. Maybe in your region too.

I'm checking it out, issue is I don't have a use for 4 channel, only 3 or 5, and then I'd have to get 6. Do you happen to know if I can just stick another module in if I get a 3 or 6 channel amp later to fill out the rest?

 

[Ruediger]

I'm checking it out, issue is I don't have a use for 4 channel, only 3 or 5, and then I'd have to get 6. Do you happen to know if I can just stick another module in if I get a 3 or 6 channel amp later to fill out the rest?

Adding internals probably is no option. But not using one or more channels is.

The choice of 1-series or 2-series is harder to make IMO

 

[Roland68]

I'm checking it out, issue is I don't have a use for 4 channel, only 3 or 5, and then I'd have to get 6. Do you happen to know if I can just stick another module in if I get a 3 or 6 channel amp later to fill out the rest?

Adding internals probably is no option. But not using one or more channels is.

The choice of 1-series or 2-series is harder to make IMO

As 3E Audio has frequently confirmed—and as documented in the manual—individual modules of the same type can be retrofitted by the owner.
You likely need to contact support to arrange this at the moment.

Both models are available with 3 modules (upgradable to 4); for a 5-module version, simply email the manufacturer. Alternatively, you could just buy a unit with more modules and swap them around (PAM252 and PAM256 correspond to PAM253 and PAM255).

The differences between the PM15x (TPA3251 / 38V) and PAM25x (TPA3255 / 48V) series lie in power output, internal supply voltage, and measurement figures.
The TPA3251 offers slightly better measurements—if that is a priority for you—though it delivers lower total power. However, especially for active speakers with dedicated amplifiers, the power output of the PM15x / TPA3251 is already more than sufficient; there is no real need for the PAM25x / TPA3255.

 

[scumpup]

Adding internals probably is no option. But not using one or more channels is.

The choice of 1-series or 2-series is harder to make IMO

I was gonna go 2 series because I'm not sure how much power i need for my system but 150W seems like not enough overhead.




Seeing a lot of reviews of broken/failing units after 1-3 months. I think the quality of these boards just isn't there. Runs too hot not enough cooling, power component quality isn't there. Failing 12V triggers that brick AVRs, have seen that issue on all of the big brands for these boards. Just embarrassing.

 

[Ruediger]

I was gonna go 2 series because I'm not sure how much power i need for my system but 150W seems like not enough overhead.

Seeing a lot of reviews of broken/failing units after 1-3 months. I think the quality of these boards just isn't there. Runs too hot not enough cooling, power component quality isn't there. Failing 12V triggers that brick AVRs, have seen that issue on all of the big brands for these boards. Just embarrassing.

Also see the info about modules one post above yours. I did not expect there to be options, but there are.

For the watts needed an honest calculation is a good idea (SPL vs. distance, your speaker sensitivity). It Is often way less than we think. For front LR that is and maybe assuming usage without subwoofer (music, pure direct etc.). Home theater use with subwoofer(s) doesn't draw a lot of power. But we want good headroom for transients and dynamic content in general, that's true.

Personally I use A7 stereo and mono for home theater channels. But I know the A5 would also be sufficient.

 

[ianovic69]

View attachment 542088




Doesn't the fan noise bother you?

I like those where are they from?

 

[ianovic69]

I installed the Lintons on their bespoke stands and then hooked up the A7s. I took out my old Denon tuner as that's not been used in 2 years, and now the A7s have replaced the big chunk of Japanese engineering the shelving looks a bit over specced....
Minutes to setup, working as expected. I spent more time vacuuming up the dust from behind the shelves. They're barely warm after a normal sub 80dB session and auto power off / on works perfectly.
They sound sublime with the Lintons and the BK subs after a bit of fettling, and of course I'm revelling in the post procurement euphoria fuelled placebo of perceived sonic improvement. I shall be keeping them.
Yet to verify the 105dB target in my room is achievable with the 5A bricks, that's another exciting episode to report back on.
Otherwise another informed purchase thanks to the efforts of the multiple testers in this community.


View attachment 538161

I'm aiming for the same, without subs. What's your room size?

 

[LambdaCDM]

I like those where are they from?

Ali express, some sort of silicon crystal feets.

But i've got new one, recently. Much better, black anodized aluminum feets Ø 30x25mm https://de.aliexpress.com/item/1005011867614657.html

Spoiler: Aluminum feets

And get small aluminum heatsink for OP-Amps. https://de.aliexpress.com/item/4000532648266.html They use 3M self-adhesive thermal tape, and they must be applied very carefully—after first removing the op-amp from the amplifier—to ensure the heatsinks do not touch exposed contacts and cause a short circuit!

Spoiler: OP-amp heatsink

 

[Ruediger]

But i've got new one, recently. Much better, black anodized aluminum feets

When you turn them around, the 3e feet fit perfectly into the opening.

 

[Bernard23]

I'm aiming for the same, without subs. What's your room size?

5m wide and around 9m long ish. Has a weird half apex / half flat ceiling, and is open into a kitchen diner area that roughly the same size but at 90 degress (so a large L shape with a double door space separating each section.
I've had them a while now, and I have tried to fry them by switching the subs off at high SPL and the full sub bass boost EQ profile and they didn't get particularly hot, I was measuring between 85 and 95dB at listening position. That's with the bundled 5A PSUs for each amp.

 

[ianovic69]

5m wide and around 9m long ish. Has a weird half apex / half flat ceiling, and is open into a kitchen diner area that roughly the same size but at 90 degress (so a large L shape with a double door space separating each section.
I've had them a while now, and I have tried to fry them by switching the subs off at high SPL and the full sub bass boost EQ profile and they didn't get particularly hot, I was measuring between 85 and 95dB at listening position. That's with the bundled 5A PSUs for each amp.

Thanks for that, I think I'll be ok without any subs. I'll use a stereo a7 with the 5A 48v PSU.
Going by your dimensions and roughly comparing my room by imagining the differences (super scientific eh?), the Lintons will be perfect for me.
I've been thinking about this for a long time and every little piece of info and advice I've picked up from people here and elsewhere has been so useful. Kindness abounds.

Cheers
Ian