Fosi Audio V3 Mono Amplifier Review

[Jtabos]

There you have, orange knob ...and close to the speaker

 

[antcollinet]

I want it with the orange knob

Your wish....

Plus a few other copper coloured bits and pieces

 

[Endibol]

Next up people are going to start posting their impressions swapping op amps. Ugh.

Let them have their fun! That's what this hobby is all about, right?

 

[korgua]

Well, let's start off with some great news....the two monos + two 5A arrived, tracked all the way to the UK ( Backer 469 ) with emails then SMS from Royal Mail. Thank you Fosi.

This is my first post on the forum so a) admin, please make this a sticky b) thank you to everyone who contributes information to these forums, really is very useful for making informed decisions.

Now the best news....the monos are outstanding....could not be happier.

I have hooked them up via RCAs ( XLR>TRS being made in my man cave real soon ) to an SMSL C200. Speakers are Dali Mentor Menuet....4ohm 86dB. I play FLACs over USB from a mini PC through the DAC

Playing some of my favourite tracks that are known for their audiofilliness ( that is a word now ).....well, f'ing superb. The sound is magical.....could not be happier. Not bothered in trying to explain the sound, have listened to enough gear over the decades to know what I like and recognise 'quality'

I don't know what moving from RCA to XLR will improve...if anything.....and I will be swapping the sh@tty 72 strand speaker cable out.

Worth noting....they are 43 degree C when warmed up, even without anything playing anything, unless you put them into auto mode.

My Smart plug reports 35W of the UK's finest grid juice is used by the mini PC / SMSL DAC and two monos....regardless of how loud I go. Seems very low but I have no reason not to believe the smart plug.....use them on all sorts of projects. Power consumption drops to 18W when the monos are sleeping.

I hear a small click / pop just before the next track plays. I am using Windows PC with Squeezelite player using SMSL as "USB DAC ASIO"

Overall, over the moon and look forward to some new cables.

I hope you enjoy the photo

 

[antcollinet]

This is my first post on the forum so a) admin, please make this a sticky

Welcome to the forum. But posts in threads cannot be made sticky - on the other hand there is nothing to make them go anywhere unless you break moderation guidelines - which you have not.

Not bothered in trying to explain the sound, have listened to enough gear over the decades to know what I like and recognise 'quality'

Yep

I don't know what moving from RCA to XLR will improve...if anything.....

If you are not currently hearing ground loop noise (eg Hum or hiss from the PC) then nothing. Though will give you double volts if needed.

 

[korgua]

Welcome to the forum. But posts in threads cannot be made sticky - on the other hand there is nothing to make them go anywhere unless you break moderation guidelines - which you have not.



Yep



If you are not currently hearing ground loop noise (eg Hum or hiss from the PC) then nothing. Though will give you double volts if needed.

Thank you, my sticky request was my idea of humour, sorry about that

 

[antcollinet]

Thank you, my sticky request was my idea of humour, sorry about that

Sorry - that went wooosh.

 

[Tatr76]

Well, let's start off with some great news....the two monos + two 5A arrived, tracked all the way to the UK ( Backer 469 ) with emails then SMS from Royal Mail. Thank you Fosi.

This is my first post on the forum so a) admin, please make this a sticky b) thank you to everyone who contributes information to these forums, really is very useful for making informed decisions.

Now the best news....the monos are outstanding....could not be happier.

I have hooked them up via RCAs ( XLR>TRS being made in my man cave real soon ) to an SMSL C200. Speakers are Dali Mentor Menuet....4ohm 86dB. I play FLACs over USB from a mini PC through the DAC

Playing some of my favourite tracks that are known for their audiofilliness ( that is a word now ).....well, f'ing superb. The sound is magical.....could not be happier. Not bothered in trying to explain the sound, have listened to enough gear over the decades to know what I like and recognise 'quality'

I don't know what moving from RCA to XLR will improve...if anything.....and I will be swapping the sh@tty 72 strand speaker cable out.

Worth noting....they are 43 degree C when warmed up, even without anything playing anything, unless you put them into auto mode.

My Smart plug reports 35W of the UK's finest grid juice is used by the mini PC / SMSL DAC and two monos....regardless of how loud I go. Seems very low but I have no reason not to believe the smart plug.....use them on all sorts of projects. Power consumption drops to 18W when the monos are sleeping.

I hear a small click / pop just before the next track plays. I am using Windows PC with Squeezelite player using SMSL as "USB DAC ASIO"

Overall, over the moon and look forward to some new cables.

I hope you enjoy the photo

View attachment 378808

How long to ship to UK? Just got notification mine are on the way.

 

[korgua]

How long to ship to UK? Just got notification mine are on the way.

Shipped 18th, arrived at Royal Mail 29th, delivered 1st July

 

[SMen]

I'm not getting the obsession with this product.

There are lots of use cases with two mini monoblocks like this.

They fit nicely under a television with the speakers on either side, and pre-amp / dac / phono pre + turntable meters away next to the listener ... or just say, on a whim, someone might want to try difficult to drive magneplanars or such.

Previously the only solution would have been power amplifiers costing many times the price of these Fosi V3 monos. The whim would have remained a whim.

People have commented about the heat, and class AB ... what about heat and Class A ... driving Magnepans? Never mind any speaker below 90 DB.

Game changers for those of us who took the plunge on kickstarter ... (just wish mine would hurry up )

 

[Megaken]

Is there a guide for changing op amps?

 

[DavidMcRoy]

There are lots of use cases with two mini monoblocks like this.

They fit nicely under a television with the speakers on either side, and pre-amp / dac / phono pre + turntable meters away next to the listener ... or just say, on a whim, someone might want to try difficult to drive magneplanars or such.

Previously the only solution would have been power amplifiers costing many times the price of these Fosi V3 monos. The whim would have remained a whim.

People have commented about the heat, and class AB ... what about heat and Class A ... driving Magnepans? Never mind any speaker below 90 DB.

Game changers for those of us who took the plunge on kickstarter ... (just wish mine would hurry up )

I have been driving “diffiicult load” Acoustat Spectra 1100s in a mode of operation that results in a 1 Ohm load at very high frequencies with Fosi V3 Stereo amps with no problems. The V3 Monos are going to work fine.

A Magnepan is not a difficult load, being primarily resistive at about 4 to 6 Ohms across the spectrum. They just like a lot of peak power, and I’m confident the V2 Monos will work.

 

[GoDawgs]

Is there a guide for changing op amps?

No official guide, that I'm aware of, on this forum although you may get some pointers by searching through other threads.

 

[effj]

I'm not getting the obsession with this product.

Maybe some people are obsessed. Some people just think the V3 Monos provide great value and fit their application well. I remember when I built the first iteration of my system last year, the XLR-based amps at my then-favorite electronics dealer started at $500/channel. The price of the V3 Monos alone is incredibly appealing to me, not to mention it fits my application.

Is it just the idea of owning monoblocks because Paul McGowan and Jason Stoddard endorse the benefit?

I prefer a stereo amp with balanced volume control, but will settle for monoblocks. They are more versatile than an a stereo amp, though.

So you've got two enormous floor warts that need to be hidden,

If they fit the application and can be hidden, the visible part has the advantage of being extra small. I love how little space they take up in my home office.

people are going to ridiculous lengths to keep them cool (let's face it, if a $140 product needs supplemental cooling by the user the entire philosophy is messed up)

Yeah, I don’t get this either.

and in the end nobody seems to be placing them next to the speakers to shorten the speaker cables.

Shortening the speaker cables is not something I’m concerned about. The XLR inputs are very attractive to me, though, after being plagued by computer ground noise with RCA connections.

Why not just get a cool-running stereo amp at that point, unless you actually need tons of power that the Fosi's don't even provide?

Power is one of the reasons I bought these. Lots of lower wattage, yet pricier options on the market.

 

[TimF]

Is shipping to and delivery in the USA any problem for Audiophonics?

 

[Cal_Cobra]

I've no idea which is the final design - but I prefer the sound from the black woofers.

Same here, the copper woofer speakers were pretty bright and lively (although admitadly more visually appealing). It would be nice if they played a bit of a variety to see how dynamic they are, instead of just demo'ing the jazz track they were using (anyone know what music it is so I could see what it's supposed to sound like?).

 

[Cal_Cobra]

Surprise surprise! Mine arived this morning, together with 2x Muses opa's. They have been playing for about 1hr now. No pops or clicks with 2x 5A psu. I haven't changed the opamps. Too early to tell if I like them or not. The XL t-shirt turned out to be a 6XL and is the biggest t-shirt I've ever seen, ever.
I have placed them on a DeepCool laptop cooler with a single, silent 180mm fan powered off usb. Heat won't be an issue. Banana plugs seat deeper than I'd hoped, which is nice.

View attachment 378728



View attachment 378729
View attachment 378730

Looks great! What's the streamer with the digital VU meters?

 

[antcollinet]

Is there a guide for changing op amps?

This guy has it....



(Just for LOLs - this is what Dall-E 3 thinks an electronic engineer looks like)

 

[antcollinet]

Is shipping to and delivery in the USA any problem for Audiophonics?

I'd wait until you can get it from a USA based supplier (Other than APOS). Amazon will have it before long.

 

[despoiler]

Is there a guide for changing op amps?

You can read the manual that came with the amp. Though do not use a tweezers to remove them as it recommends. Buy an op-amp puller tool or you will bend/break the pins.

I'm pretty happy with the sound of the monos. It's neutral without being sterile sounding, The amps sound like they are getting out of the way of what is playing. Good stuff. I do not however like that they idle in auto mode at 10w. Save a bunch of power while listening to music and then use a ton more when you aren't. My much older M5si manages to idle at 0.5w which is basically just the status LED. Why did Fosi design such a poor standby?