NEOHIPO ET30 VU Meter Speaker Switcher Review

[Rick Sykora]

Am I the first to have a failure? Meters were stuck. I tried to press the buttons on the front, no change of state, turned the knob for colors, no change of state, unplugged and plugged in, will respond sluggishly after several presses but doesn't work right, eventually just stuck again. Same behavior on a different 5v power source. I'm on a bad run for this kind of stuff. My 2nd PA5 is out on warranty right now. Had a NAD M10 die in the last couple years also.

From what I have observed, I would definitely blame the cats. They crave attention and seem to sabotage anything that gets in the way. Am convinced all these are hairball clogs!

 

[GPJ]

Am I the first to have a failure? Meters were stuck. I tried to press the buttons on the front, no change of state, turned the knob for colors, no change of state, unplugged and plugged in, will respond sluggishly after several presses but doesn't work right, eventually just stuck again. Same behavior on a different 5v power source. I'm on a bad run for this kind of stuff. My 2nd PA5 is out on warranty right now. Had a NAD M10 die in the last couple years also.

Could you provide info on how you hooked it up?

my book says they provide 24 month warranty service .... [email protected]

Mine has been working very well. I don't use it as a switching device, but just using the VU meters. I chose to run only a single set of wires from the speakers to the ET30 into the speaker 1 jacks. Nothing else is hooked to the ET30. The needles are responding perfectly.

The only issue I had was with using rechargeable NiMH batteries in the remote. The remote acted like it was broken with intermittent operation. Then I switched to standard alkaline batteries and now it works perfectly with good range.

I paid $115 a couple weeks back when Aliexpress was having their sale. Really happy so far.

 

[iLoveCats]

Could you provide info on how you hooked it up?

my book says they provide 24 month warranty service .... [email protected]

Mine has been working very well. I don't use it as a switching device, but just using the VU meters. I chose to run only a single set of wires from the speakers to the ET30 into the speaker 1 jacks. Nothing else is hooked to the ET30. The needles are responding perfectly.

The only issue I had was with using rechargeable NiMH batteries in the remote. The remote acted like it was broken with intermittent operation. Then I switched to standard alkaline batteries and now it works perfectly with good range.

I paid $115 a couple weeks back when Aliexpress was having their sale. Really happy so far.

I have the amplifier (Topping PA5 until it died, Ayima A07 temporarily now) hooked to the the device and then the speakers also hooked up to the device. I'm not using it for any switching.

I just processed the return through Amazon and I dropped it off and I'm getting another in return.

 

[djb]

Just found this thread. Some people are just obtuse. To those that are confused, this is just bling….spinners for your system. I’ll get one for the light show. I may see if I can adjust the sensativity so it goes into the red above 90 db. If not, I’ll still enjoy the pretty bouncing needles.

 

[GPJ]

To those that are confused, this is just bling….spinners for your system.

Nope, it's a functional switcher too obtuse one.

 

[djb]

Touche, should have specified the VU function. No one is arguing about the functionality of the switcher, just the accuracy of VU measurements.

 

[dmilller]

I bought it and I love it. It's big, it's metal, and the worthless meters are pretty. Not one of my stupider purchases of recent times.

 

[GPJ]

I bought it and I love it. It's big, it's metal, and the worthless meters are pretty. Not one of my stupider purchases of recent times.

It's a great device for what it is and no one can convince me otherwise.

 

[Redver]

Just got mine wired, works a treat, bought after reading your review Amir, Thanks.

 

[djb]

The came back in stock, so I ordered one too.

Can someone please explain the parallel wiring? If not, I’ll just use the mic input.

 

[GPJ]

The came back in stock, so I ordered one too.

Can someone please explain the parallel wiring? If not, I’ll just use the mic input.

The best result for me was to just run speaker wire from each speaker back to the ET-30 as shown in the diagram. The VU needles react perfectly and there is no affect at all on the audio. I don't use it as a switcher and only use one set of speakers. Also, I tried the MIC input and it was lackluster. The reaction is much better on the wire (as it should be).

 

[djb]

Thanks GPJ. This was my guess; thank you for the diagram.

I should be in VU nirvana in about 2 weeks.

 

[GPJ]

Thanks GPJ. This was my guess; thank you for the diagram.

I should be in VU nirvana in about 2 weeks.

Sure, and you don't need heavy gauge wire back to ET30. Enjoy!

 

[Megaken]

Can this be used as just a VU meter with one amp and one set of speakers? No switching.

 

[Deleted member 48726]

Can this be used as just a VU meter with one amp and one set of speakers? No switching.

I think it has been mentioned many times, and also in the review, that you can parallel wire the thing.

 

[ironhorse128]

I bought this NC252MP based amp from audiophonics, which is widthwise a great match for the neohipo.
audiophonics-ap300-s250nc

The amp costs 549€ and has a great feature set (XLR, RCA, adjustable gain). Amps from audiophonics have been reviewed positively by amir, so the implementation of the amp should be solid.

Never heard highs this clear and base this deep ;-)

EDIT: I forgot. The amp also has trigger in functionality.

 

[djb]

I have had this for a couple weeks and love it. It's bling, but I think even my wife thinks it is pretty cool.

 

[GPJ]

my shtack ....

 

[Cal_Cobra]

I ordered these three amplifier/speaker switchers w/VU meters to test them out:

Fosi Audio LC30:

Erisu Audio:

And the NEOHIPO ET30 reviewed here:

It'll be interesting to test out all three models, but I may already be biased towards the Neohipo ET30 with it's adjustable RGB LED colored VU meters, McIntosh blue will look great!

I think all of the makers of these amplifier/speaker switchers are missing the mark to a degree, first it would be nice to have the ability to have more than two amps to select. Second, in this day and age, they should all come with adjustable RGB LED colored VU meters, kudos to Neohipo for taking the lead there. Now how about more inputs, or even assignable ones so if say you had three amps, and one pair of speakers you could mix and match the four inputs/outputs as needed. The main reason I purchased three of these, one just wasn't going to cut the mustard!

 

[Cal_Cobra]

Nice test Amir. Cool gadget.

I assume the NEOHIPO ET30 is the same as the Fosi Audio ET30 Dual Analog VU Meter? Especially when it says Neohipo on the remote control that is sold together with the Fosi Audio ET30.They look the same anyway.

NEOHIPO ET30 Dual Analog VU Meter, 2-Way Amplifier/Speaker Audio Switcher Box | eBay

The VU strap has m ultiple color backlights and also has an automatic color changing mode. Amplifier Boards. Support single-channel 300W output power amplifier. Maximum amplifier output power supported: 300W Max X 2 (2 ohms).

www.ebay.com

The Fosi does not have adjustable RGP LED colors on the VU meters, they're a static color. I'll have both soon and can post side by side shots of them.