Douk G7 Amplifier Review

[thewas]

What you mention os 100% subjective, many don't care form factor
What is important is objective performance, and that's what we get from Amir, Hence very poor on this unit tested

We should stay on objective comments imo

Of course is design a subjective matter but since at home audio such devices are also a part of the living environment it matters to many. Also since the manufacturer is an active member here feedback can be helpful for future decisions.

Who cares????

You may not, but seeing the likes on my comments obviously others do.

 

[thewas]

Another factor to consider is the small size opens up possibilities for using these amps in more locations that would not handle traditional 17" hifi components. That is certainly true for my multiple use cases. Examples include desktop system in home office, small music system in kitchen, small music system in a garage or workshop, etc.

Of course, I don't negate the advantages of such a form factor, I just wish both options would be available.

 

[Sokel]

No, the 43cm width seems outdated to me nowadays. It's just unnecessary.

There's nothing cosmetic, subjective or outdated when it comes to passive thermals if chassis is used as heatshink, that's pure math.
Unless one wants to use hacks like these after-market PC fans we see on top of tiny amps with unknown measurable interference problems.

 

[SoySalsaPicante]

There's nothing cosmetic, subjective or outdated when it comes to passive thermals if chassis is used as heatshink, that's pure math.
Unless one wants to use hacks like these after-market PC fans we see on top of tiny amps with unknown measurable interference problems.

The moment I see active cooling on something of this type where there are literally dozens of passively cooled alternatives, I instantly cross the device off the list. Regardless whether the fan is quiet enough to be masked by room noise floor and/or music, you get the dust accumulation, the potential EM noise/interference (as you mentioned), and, most critically, a potential point of mechanical failure. Screw that crap!

 

[GGroch]

The 43cm width discussion is stupid approaching insipid. So, one more:

Douk's choice of 43cm width for the G7 is literally and figuratively Horizontal Marketing. They make dozens of tiny amps so adding a 43cm wide model to broaden (↔) their appeal makes sense. 43cm matches the width of legacy components providing nostalgia for old farts and symmetry for those stacking vintage gear. In some rooms it will have a higher WAF than tiny black boxes.

Clearly they did not design the amp to be their biggest seller. They hope it will appeal to customers Douk did not reach, and that some will pay the more premium price for it. Horizontal marketing.

Douk does a lot of horizontal marketing. The retro steam punk Douk P1 Plus was not aimed at Macintosh customers who want a legacy stack. This does not make it stupid. Whether they sell enough determines that. Douk markets like Prego. See "The Ketchup Conundrum".

The 43cm discussion exhausts because it either assumes that objective performance is the only valid goal for consumer electronics; or that every design choice must appeal to me personally and that others here are keenly interested in my preference.

 

[VientoB]

There's nothing cosmetic, subjective or outdated when it comes to passive thermals if chassis is used as heatshink, that's pure math.
Unless one wants to use hacks like these after-market PC fans we see on top of tiny amps with unknown measurable interference problems.

Lol. Are you saying there is not enough cooling nowadays? Cooling fins etc can be used to save space. 43cm width is completely unnecessary for that

 

[Redman43]

This follows the Duok A5 Pro and Ampapa D1 from them. They have repeatedly demonstrated that they are not capable of state of the art circuit design.

This is a 299 bucks amp...
And you go on about "state of the art circuit design" ?
You need to reconsider your expectations for 299 dollars.
It is not 1922 anymore.

 

[Dougey_Jones]

This is kind of a bummer because aren't there amps using the same chipset with SINAD in the 95-100db range?

 

[TurtlePaul]

This is a 299 bucks amp...
And you go on about "state of the art circuit design" ?
You need to reconsider your expectations for 299 dollars.
It is not 1922 anymore.

Fosi v3 Mono - $278 per pair of monoblocks - 100 dB SINAD
Topping Mini 300 - $139 - 105 dD SINAD
3e Audio A7 - $299 - 102 dB SINAD

All based on the same TPA architecture with PFFB. It is not 2022 anymore. All of the Chinese amp makers (except Duok) have figured out how to get Hypex-like performance. PFFB is a handful of 10 cent resistors and 20 cent capacitors. If you get the math right, less than a dollar of cost improves SINAD by ~15 dB and eliminates the frequency response sensitivity to speaker impedance.

 

[Redman43]

Right....so SINAD HIGH-->performance great ?
And great Sinad is in your world a sign of SOTA circuit design?
Alright thank you for your input.
Am gonna go out on a limb and guess that you don't design electronics for living

 

[Beershaun]

I am calling it poor because of the significant clipping performance difference between the two channels.

 

[Sokel]

The 43cm width discussion is stupid approaching insipid. So, one more:

Douk's choice of 43cm width for the G7 is literally and figuratively Horizontal Marketing. They make dozens of tiny amps so adding a 43cm wide model to broaden (↔) their appeal makes sense. 43cm matches the width of legacy components providing nostalgia for old farts and symmetry for those stacking vintage gear. In some rooms it will have a higher WAF than tiny black boxes.

Clearly they did not design the amp to be their biggest seller. They hope it will appeal to customers Douk did not reach, and that some will pay the more premium price for it. Horizontal marketing.

Douk does a lot of horizontal marketing. The retro steam punk Douk P1 Plus was not aimed at Macintosh customers who want a legacy stack. This does not make it stupid. Whether they sell enough determines that. Douk markets like Prego. See "The Ketchup Conundrum".

The 43cm discussion exhausts because it either assumes that objective performance is the only valid goal for consumer electronics; or that every design choice must appeal to me personally and that others here are keenly interested in my preference.

The panther seems rather big at the photo so I searched and if I got it right G7 is 275 * 190 * 78 mm, not full size, at all.

Lol. Are you saying there is not enough cooling nowadays? Cooling fins etc can be used to save space. 43cm width is completely unnecessary for that

What I'm saying is that any claim of power more than a few ms must have the thermals to follow.
And as we are at an objective forum, here's the math:

How to Select a Suitable Heat Sink

Laptop computer designers, audio amplifier makers, and power supply manufacturers can keep their products cooler by following these fundamental heat-sink

www.designworldonline.com

We already have the datasheets for power losses for these chip-amps, etc, so it's not hard.

 

[VientoB]

The panther seems rather big at the photo so I searched and if I got it right G7 is 275 * 190 * 78 mm, not full size, at all.

What I'm saying is that any claim of power more than a few ms must have the thermals to follow.
And as we are at an objective forum, here's the math:

How to Select a Suitable Heat Sink

Laptop computer designers, audio amplifier makers, and power supply manufacturers can keep their products cooler by following these fundamental heat-sink

www.designworldonline.com

We already have the datasheets for power losses for these chip-amps, etc, so it's not hard.

That says nothing about needing 43cm wide cases, let's be honest.

 

[Sokel]

That says nothing about needing 43cm wide cases, let's be honest.

That's true.
For continuous serious power at difficult loads for a bigger room one may need not only full size but also proper heatshinks at the sides, fins and all.
Or active cooling.

Or the opposite for a near-field, desktop setup for example.
There's all kinds out there.

 

[VientoB]

That's true.
For continuous serious power at difficult loads for a bigger room one may need not only full size but also proper heatshinks at the sides, fins and all.
Or active cooling.

Or the opposite for a near-field, desktop setup for example.
There's all kinds out there.

"May need"

 

[amirm]

Right....so SINAD HIGH-->performance great ?
And great Sinad is in your world a sign of SOTA circuit design?
Alright thank you for your input.
Am gonna go out on a limb and guess that you don't design electronics for living

Plenty of people who design electronics for a living produce bad results across full suite of measurements.

High SINAD is a predictor of good performance. Not a guarantee. This is why I run a lot more tests than that. That aside, this amp is a lot better than it would have been, had the company NOT focused on good SINAD.

 

[bmwr75]

That is a cool looking amp, wish it had tested better. May Douk will read the review and take action to improve its performance.

 

[xanalog]

No, it adds to the enjoyment of music. It also tells you the amp is getting signal, in case you are having issues trying to debug. Indeed, I used it for that when I thought it was not getting signal but VU meters were showing that it was.

This has bugged me for a long time: As a fan of [VU] meters, would you NOT get more information from a [Spectrum] meter... an accurate, calibrated, RGB, LED version, with ~16 bands/bars (L/R)?

 

[amirm]

As a fan of [VU] meters, would you NOT get more information from a [Spectrum] meter... an accurate, calibrated, RGB, LED version, with ~16 bands/bars (L/R)?

Calibrated VU meters defeat the main reason many of us want them: something to look at as the needles move. Go and look at an old school amp like the Mac playing even at high volumes. Their lazy needles barely move.

But yes, a spectrum analyzer is more useful and that is how I usually use my DACs with such a feature.

 

[xanalog]

But yes, a spectrum analyzer is more useful and that is how I usually use my DACs with such a feature.

I should've also added dampening/ballistics/peak-hold as some additional features, which DoukAudio may want to venture forth with, as a sideline.
An "Amir Commemorative Edition" as a Christmas 2026 present.