Fosi Audio TB10D Amplifier Review

[hukkfinn]

@Fosi Audio
Simple tone defeat and basic remote (may be an option to use universal remote, if addition of physical remote isn't possible for cost) would make it choice for many.
I personally found Fosi product build quality better than others on this price point.
BTW, K5 pro DAC is another good product from your house.

I would say, at well under $100 this product is currently near perfection.
Personally I don't care about remote, or tone defeat.
My only request would have been, give us a BT20A with the better-sounding 3255 chip.
And they did, with the BT20A Pro.
Adding a remote would be nice but as the price exceeds $100 the segment of the population that will be open to buying will shrink.
I guess I am saying, you're asking them to build a new and different product. Which is totally fine. I just hope they keep the under-$100 product as well.

 

[SIMJEDI]

I am maybe thinking of changing the power supply but have no idea where to purchase the 48v from

Go for one that has high amps as this will help with the with bass notes and be able to feed the amp faster with the needed power.

I use the Mean Well HLG-320H-30A and it has performed very well when used for both full range and bass duty. A bit pricey but it's built like a tank and high quality.

 

[hukkfinn]

Go for one that has high amps as this will help with the with bass notes and be able to feed the amp faster with the needed power.

I use the Mean Well HLG-320H-30A and it has performed very well when used for both full range and bass duty. A bit pricey but it's built like a tank and high quality.

Very nice. Does the Mean Well happen to have the correct barrel size for inserting into the TB10D’s DC input?

 

[SIMJEDI]

Very nice. Does the Mean Well happen to have the correct barrel size for inserting into the TB10D’s DC input?

You will have to buy and solder both barrel plug and ac plug as it comes with none already installed.

 

[tonycollinet]

Go for one that has high amps as this will help with the with bass notes and be able to feed the amp faster with the needed power.

(my bold)

That's not how it works. More amps will just allow it to deliver the available power into lower loads (eg 4 ohm speakers instead of 8, or where a speaker frequency response has significant impedance dips) where a lower current rating might current limit (rather than voltage limit)

It does't impact the speed of power delivery at all.

 

[Jeromeof]

For those interested in the BT20A Pro - I created a separate thread to discuss:

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...dio-bt20a-pro-opinions-and-comparisons.42913/

 

[Fosi Audio]

@Fosi Audio
Simple tone defeat and basic remote (may be an option to use universal remote, if addition of physical remote isn't possible for cost) would make it choice for many.
I personally found Fosi product build quality better than others on this price point.
BTW, K5 pro DAC is another good product from your house.

Thank you for your suggestion, yes, the remote is a plug for many products.

 

[Talisman]

What I have noticed with this amplifier is that it is absolutely unmanageable at very low volumes, the minimum volume where both channels push equally is incredibly loud, so much so that I can't use it as background music in the evening if I use the fixed output of the dac. I find this very annoying in an integrated amplifier, and I don't like managing the volume from the dac. I hope that with later models you fix this problem @Fosi Audio

 

[ClassicGuy]

What I have noticed with this amplifier is that it is absolutely unmanageable at very low volumes, the minimum volume where both channels push equally is incredibly loud, so much so that I can't use it as background music in the evening if I use the fixed output of the dac. I find this very annoying in an integrated amplifier, and I don't like managing the volume from the dac. I hope that with later models you fix this problem @Fosi Audio

Probably a combination of linear pot and high gain settings. Companies tend to make these design choices because of cost and consumer ignorance. Sadly some users judge amplifier performance based on how loud it plays when volume knob is at 1/4 etc.

 

[tonycollinet]

What I have noticed with this amplifier is that it is absolutely unmanageable at very low volumes, the minimum volume where both channels push equally is incredibly loud, so much so that I can't use it as background music in the evening if I use the fixed output of the dac. I find this very annoying in an integrated amplifier, and I don't like managing the volume from the dac. I hope that with later models you fix this problem @Fosi Audio

My suggestion to solve this for you.

Turn the volume on the dac down to minimum. Now turn the amp up to max. With the amp at max, turn the dac up to the highest volume you'd ever want to listen to, and leave it there.

Now control the volume from the amp.

 

[Talisman]

My suggestion to solve this for you.

Turn the volume on the dac down to minimum. Now turn the amp up to max. With the amp at max, turn the dac up to the highest volume you'd ever want to listen to, and leave it there.

Now control the volume from the amp.

This is a good suggestion, I could do this in the evening.
The problem is only when I use the CD player, which has a fixed output volume, if I use Bluetooth I can adjust the volume directly from my smartphone.
But apart from the solutions that can be found, in general, I hope that the next products will either have better volume management, and maybe finally a logarithmic potentiometer

 

[Juampa1989]

Translated by moderator.

Hello dears. Good afternoon, ask, what durability can you expect from this amplifier? I have read Amazon reviews of several Chinese amplifiers and apparently they are not very durable, applied to brands such as fosi audio, aiyima and smsl. I want to buy one to test it but if it does not have good durability or it is better to save and buy another from more recognized brands such as Yahama or Marantz. They are more expensive but I imagine that they are much more durable and safe with better protection against voltage changes. What you get in sound may be sacrificed in quality to other components such as construction. What do you think?

 

[Fosi Audio]

What I have noticed with this amplifier is that it is absolutely unmanageable at very low volumes, the minimum volume where both channels push equally is incredibly loud, so much so that I can't use it as background music in the evening if I use the fixed output of the dac. I find this very annoying in an integrated amplifier, and I don't like managing the volume from the dac. I hope that with later models you fix this problem @Fosi Audio

Thank you for your suggestion, we have developed a bluetooth TPA3255 amplifier, the volume control is Taper A which volume will rise slowly at first. If you have any suggestions, you are welcome to tell us.

 

[AlexG-21350]

Yes, good idea thanks - if it is subpar I will definitely return it.

Though, I didn't seem any measurements of the A07 Pro - just someone opinions about the RCA on the A07 Pro in a different thread?

I just bought the Aiyima A07 Pro and wanted to share my thoughts. I tested it with several speakers in my collection, including the 4 Ohm 3-way Sony and the 8 Ohm KEFs - both sounded really good due to the ample power the unit provides (300 W into 4 ohm/150 W into 8 ohm) and the upgraded Texas Instruments chipset - TPA3255. At comfortable listening levels I did not hear any distortion, the bass was clean and deep, going into 44 db on KEFs, and the highs were detailed and clear. Tested using BT and Tidal's hi-res streaming - jazz, rock and blues. The vocals on Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody sounded really sweet and almost 3 dimensional! I'd say this little amp sounds almost as good as my Denon. All in all, I'm very happy with the A07 Pro and will definitely keep it.
Finally, in my opinion, the source matters as much as the amplification. After comparing Tidal's hi-res to regular mp3s, the difference was very clear.
Here's the tech scoop on the TPA3255 - it is a high-performance class-D power amplifier that enables true premium sound quality with class-D efficiency. It features an advanced integrated feedback design and proprietary high-speed gate driver error correction (PurePath™ Ultra-HD). This technology allows ultra low distortion across the audio band and superior audio quality. The device is operated in AD-mode, and can drive up to 2 x 315 W into 4-Ω load at 10% THD and 2 x 150 W unclipped into 8-Ω load and features a 2 VRMS analog input interface that works seamlessly with high performance DACs such as TI’s PCM5242. In addition to excellent audio performance, TPA3255 achieves both high power efficiency and very low power stage idle losses below 2.5W. This is achieved through the use of 85 mΩ MOSFETs and an optimized gate driver scheme that achieves significantly lower idle losses than typical discrete implementations.
Cheers!

 

[Talisman]

Thank you for your suggestion, we have developed a bluetooth TPA3255 amplifier, the volume control is Taper A which volume will rise slowly at first. If you have any suggestions, you are welcome to tell us.

I want to trust you because you are a young and affordable brand that is trying to improve. So I bought the BT20pro, we'll see if there have been improvements, I still don't like the bluetooth that is always active and cannot be selected with a toggle.
Did you send a sample to Amir for measurements?
@Fosi Audio

 

[Fosi Audio]

Here is a bluetooth version TPA3255 amplifier.

 

[Fosi Audio]

I want to trust you because you are a young and affordable brand that is trying to improve. So I bought the BT20pro, we'll see if there have been improvements, I still don't like the bluetooth that is always active and cannot be selected with a toggle.
Did you send a sample to Amir for measurements?
@Fosi Audio

Thank you for your great support, yes we have sent a sample to Amir for measurements. Here is the result.

 

[kiwipaul]

Has anyone thought about how to add a tone defeat switch to this amp? From looking at the PCB it looks like there is one set of op amps to adjust the line level in, and anther set used for tone control. If correct, it should not be too difficult to put in a changeover switch to bypass the tone controls....

Has anyone got a schematic?

 

[kiwipaul]

Just received the Fosi Audio TB10D(new version) and Aiyima A07 from Amazon.

Apart from the tone controls, both the Fosi Audio TB10D and the Aiyima A07 seem similar.

To be fair, the tone controls circuit should be shorted before reviewing testing as having tone controls will reduce the SINAD, you can see in the testing pictures (A07/84, TB10D (with tone controls)/80, TB10D (shorted tone controls)/85). （The data measured by different instruments will be slightly different）

As shown in the circuit layout, the electronic components of the A07 are arranged on the left, while the right side of the board has a large blank area, and the TPA3255 chip has a relatively small heat sink, so the A07 is quite hot during operation, whereas the TB10D has a more reasonable circuit layout.

There is no great difference in listening between the two, except for the fact that there is a noticeable difference in power and more playability with the tone controls with the TB10D, and the Amazon price is the same ($79.99).

My preference is for the Fosi Audio TB10D (p.s., the new version).

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Can you please share how you bypassed the tone controls?

 

[Mustang]

Hi All,

I have a single rear speaker presently powered by a Dayton APA150. I am going to order one of these FOSI's and compare. Was encouraged by my wife to try it based on the much smaller size. This single rear is in our living room behind the couches and anything that hides some electronics is favorable to her. So who am I to argue in trying new gear out especially when it can be returned to amazon. Got it for $59 plus tax after coupon.

Anyone have an opinion on what I will expect with this vs a bridged APA150?

Thanks