Fosi Audio ZA3 Amplifier Review

[Petevid]

OK John, I’m getting the sense that you don’t like this little Amp. But tell us what you really think?

For someone on a budget and looking for an affordable amp for a small two channel setup it does have some value here. No Remote is a big miss. But every little feature adds cost. To achieve your list above can you offer any alternative amp(s) with similar performance but all these features for a Buck Fifty? I know you know what you’re talking about and it would be interesting to see what you have in mind that compares but has more of these features you list.

You can pair this with a Wiim mini/pro/pro plus and using a Wiim remote control volume, multiple inputs and accessible online services . Should online technology move on then you only have to replace the Wiim.

 

[dmilller]

In 1979 a NAD 3020 was £71, about £362 today, and gave you ~20W.

It also sounded like crap compared to high end gear of that day. Sometimes I wish we could still buy noticeably better sound from expensive amps.

 

[Power Pop 23]

You can pair this with a Wiim mini/pro/pro plus and using a Wiim remote control volume, multiple inputs and accessible online services . Should online technology move on then you only have to replace the Wiim.

I am using the 12 volt trigger output of a $99.99 'refurbished' WiiM Pro to signal the 12 volt trigger input of my ZA3 to power up or down in a secondary location, driving a pair of ELAC DBR62's with an existing Topping EX5 between the WiiM Pro and the ZA3. I find it hard to reliably hear a difference if I take the EX5 out of the audio signal chain.

 

[AudioSceptic]

What's astonishing exactly? A chip amp, in a tiny aluminium can, with an off-the-shelf SMPS. I don't see anything remotely astonishing about it. Personally, I think it's way overpriced for what it is (or isn't)

How grown men can get excited about an "amplifier" lacking pretty much everything that makes an amplifier remotely useful is beyond me.

One set of speakers- not switchable
No headphone socket
No tone controls
No filters
No loudness
No tone defeat
No signal routing options
No processor loops
No remote control
No muting
No phono stage
Only two inputs- LOL what a joke.

All of these things (except remote) were standard on ~USD$100 integrated amplifiers in the 70s/80s/90s and into the 2000s.

Yebbut this is *not* an integrated amp, is it? It's a power amp with variable attenuation.

 

[Multicore]

Yesterday I was wondering idly about what to do if we had to send the Buckeye NC252 away for service. What would I choose for the couple of weeks the service might take?

 

[MaxBuck]

Really nice little amp.

 

[AudioSceptic]

You had those things back then in a preamp or integrated because you had multiple sources, so it made sense to put the eq there. Now a lot of people only have one source - a streamer - with most of that functionality built in. What they need is closer to a power amp, hence things like this. A more relevant complaint is that it doesn't have bluetooth for people who only use their phone as a source.
Inflation has made your price comparison somewhat meaningless. In 1979 a NAD 3020 was £71, about £362 today, and gave you ~20W.

I remember all the big names had a wide range of integrateds, starting at about 12-15W/channel (8 Ω), with quite small steps between them (15, 25, 35, etc.)

 

[ROOSKIE]

OK John, I’m getting the sense that you don’t like this little Amp. But tell us what you really think?

For someone on a budget and looking for an affordable amp for a small two channel setup it does have some value here. No Remote is a big miss. But every little feature adds cost. To achieve your list above can you offer any alternative amp(s) with similar performance but all these features for a Buck Fifty? I know you know what you’re talking about and it would be interesting to see what you have in mind that compares but has more of these features you list.

The usual suspects under $200usd.
Both of which often go on sale new for $99-150.
1. Yamaha R-S202BL
2. Sony STR-DH190

Much larger units with more features and remotes. I think I'd personally prefer one of these myself. The size increase is a downer though for certain use cases.

You might need these spring clip to banana wire adapters.

Amazon.com

 

[daniboun]

A useless waste of money in an amplifier that makes low cost its strong point, I don't know why so many people are so annoyed by external power supplies, for me they are fanatical because they can be hidden anywhere and do not take up space on the main surfaces, as well as reducing the possibility of interfering with the performance of the amplifier

It has nothing to do with that. Powerbrick type PSUs are less efficient than open frame type PSUs. The most limiting factor with power bricks is their limitation in dissipating heat. On the other hand, open frame PSUs are more technologically advanced and therefore more expensive (PFC, LLC, etc.). I would have difficulty comparing a Micro Audio high end power supply with a Power brick no name power supply for example....But it must be admitted that quality also has a price.....

Finally what do we know about that 48V powerbrick ? Ripple ? Efficiency ? LLC or PFC or not ? Etc... Nothing is said

 

[Talisman]

It has nothing to do with that. Powerbrick type PSUs are less efficient than open frame type PSUs. The most limiting factor with power bricks is their limitation in dissipating heat. On the other hand, open frame PSUs are more technologically advanced and therefore more expensive (PFC, LLC, etc.). I would have difficulty comparing a Micro Audio high end power supply with a Power brick no name power supply for example....But it must be admitted that quality also has a price.....

Finally what do we know about that 48V powerbrick ? Ripple ? Efficiency ? LLC or PFC or not ? Etc... Nothing is said

It's a flawed argument at its core, you're not buying a power supply, you're buying an amplifier with its own power supply, the performance you see includes the performance of the power supply. A power supply integrated into a case means a much larger case and much greater cost for performance that perhaps could be better, but at what cost?
As I said, the strength of these products is the quality/price ratio rather than the performance in absolute terms, from this perspective the choice of external power supply is by far the most sensible one.

 

[Toslink]

I just hooked mine up. Been waiting for over a month. Replacing a PA5. First impression is it sounds a tad dark? I like it. The gain is higher than the PA5 because I barely have to turn up my preamp. Really nice case. I'll run it a couple weeks and if it's ok I'll buy another for monoblocks.

My experience mirrors yours, though I'm using the brother to the ZA3, the V3. My reference amplifier is an NAD M22 that uses the Hyper N-Core modules. The difference in tonality is immediately audible with my speakers. My sense is it's speaker-dependent.

 

[daniboun]

It's a flawed argument at its core, you're not buying a power supply, you're buying an amplifier with its own power supply, the performance you see includes the performance of the power supply. A power supply integrated into a case means a much larger case and much greater cost for performance that perhaps could be better, but at what cost?
As I said, the strength of these products is the quality/price ratio rather than the performance in absolute terms, from this perspective the choice of external power supply is by far the most sensible one.

Indeed if we only consider the quality/price ratio without taking into account the quality-price ratio Sinad then we can make the sacrifice on the major attributes which make all the difference between a basic TPA325X module and a TPA325X PFFB module with a psu worthy of this name.

For $280 you can get a SOTA amp.

"ASH-400 Project" Sylph Audio FB-100 Stereo Module with advanced PFFB

Hi amigos, I'm coming back to the forefront with a new project. This time I focused on the Sylph Audio FB100 module, based on a TPA3251 and an advanced implementation of the PFFB. Voltage Gain is factory set @ 14dB (5V/V) on this module. So I intended to couple it to my DAC SMSL D6s which has...

audiosciencereview.com

 

[dtaylo1066]

You really can't ask for more than this in a $149 amp! Entry level amps and DACs now at astonishingly low prices.

 

[AudioKC]

Oh, very appealing device for 2.1 system. Nice to see good performance and power from such a budget device.

If my Ayma A07 will die, will replace it with this box.

 

[Glades]

Guys, I trade your old A/B high end amps for this Fosi thing anytime. They sound the same anyway, right? Just let me know when you want to make the trade.

Happily. Do you accept an Audiolab 6000a and in return 2 ZA3's?

 

[Deleted member 48726]

Happily. Do you accept an Audiolab 6000a and in return 2 ZA3's?

Do you consider this a good deal and what are you hoping to achieve?

 

[Glades]

Do you consider this a good deal and what are you hoping to achieve?

I think this would be an interesting deal which may answer both your questions.

 

[Deleted member 48726]

I think this would be an interesting deal which may answer both your questions.

What?

 

[digitalfrost]

I wouldn't want a power amplifier without attenuators- it's just a totally dumb idea to not put them on.

I had equipment failure once and it put full line voltage (2V) into a Sony TA-N77ES which reaches max volume at like 0.7v input I think. Rated 200W at 8Ohms. The only reason my speakers didn't blow was because I used the variable input at -12dB, which made effective input voltage 0.5v.

 

[JimBean]

I'm very happy with my ZA3, after waiting a while for it to get here from China. I did get 15% off when I ordered it from Fosi's website. Seems to pair well with my 4 ohm Monoprice Encore T6 towers. I have the volume set to max on the amp and use my Schiit Magnius as my preamp.I will probably order a second and try them out as monoblocks. To be fair, my listening area is small, and I do listen pretty close, about 5-6 feet away.