Review and Measurements of SMSL SP200 THX HP Amp

[Veri]

Why did you need the RCA to XLR? Was it some defect in your DAC or faulty cable?

noise over RCA cables, it can happen. could have been a subpar cable but the >XLR one was perfect.

 

[nhatlam96]

GUYS BREAKING NEWS.
I have contacted SMSL about the SP200 channel imbalance issues and they said:
"Hello,
The issue we have fixed it in January. If you have any question please feel free to contact us. Thanks.
Best regards,
S.M.S.L"

 

[nhatlam96]

Just a Quick question about this cable here: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07MDVMWC6/
Does this cable work for connecting a dac to this amp?
Because it says XLR to RCA, instead of RCA to XLR. The signal is starting from Dac's RCA OUT then finished at the Amp's XLR IN. I feel stupid

 

[Veri]

Just a Quick question about this cable here: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07MDVMWC6/
Does this cable work for connecting a dac to this amp?
Because it says XLR to RCA, instead of RCA to XLR. The signal is starting from Dac's RCA OUT then finished at the Amp's XLR IN. I feel stupid

sure it'll work fine no worries

 

[taudier]

Hello,

Just a Quick question about this cable here: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07MDVMWC6/
Does this cable work for connecting a dac to this amp?
Because it says XLR to RCA, instead of RCA to XLR. The signal is starting from Dac's RCA OUT then finished at the Amp's XLR IN. I feel stupid

For what I understand, the purpose of balanced signal (XLR connector or jack TRS) is to cancel the noise aquired during the cable traveling. A XLR to RCA cable would be a cable with two ground and it wouldn't surprise me if it's worse than a RCA to RCA.

 

[Veri]

Hello,
For what I understand, the purpose of balanced signal (XLR connector or jack TRS) is to cancel the noise aquired during the cable traveling. A XLR to RCA cable would be a cable with two ground and it wouldn't surprise me if it's worse than a RCA to RCA.

All true. An RCA to XLR input cable though, is harmless.

 

[taudier]

But with RCA to XLR the SP200 will add the ground noise to the signal, no ? And with XLR to RCA as claimed by the product name you just lose half of the signal, which can be harmless, not degraded.

yes, xlr to rca cable
no more buzzing issues.

Read "rca to xlr" (Fiio K5 PRO to SP200).
So it can actually improve the signal ! Is it because the signal is tainted by the same noise as the ground ? It would be rather exceptional, or a rule like "if your signal is dirty, so is the ground" ?

 

[Veri]

But with RCA to XLR the SP200 will add the ground noise to the signal, no ?

Again, it will just pass the RCA pin signal to one of the XLR pins, RCA>XLR is a harmless way to interface single ended into a balanced input.
Only the other way around, balanced to single ended can be a problem when you short one of its connectors to ground,

 

[Santi]

That is only true with Dynamic-driver type headphones from Beyer and Senn. Planar Magnetics like Audeze, DC Audio, etc are immune to source output impedance.

I agree. I always test this comparing my Beyer dt 1990 pro vs Hifiman Sundara, listening in Tidal HIFI the MQA version of Euphoria - Loreen. There is a clear distortion in the Beyer and all is under control with the Sundara

 

[odyo]

I agree. I always test this comparing my Beyer dt 1990 pro vs Hifiman Sundara, listening in Tidal HIFI the MQA version of Euphoria - Loreen. There is a clear distortion in the Beyer and all is under control with the Sundara

This is from Tyll's Sundara review:

Impedance is dead flat at 43 Ohms, with only a gentle change in electrical phase in the top octave. The lack of visible features in the impedance plot usually points towards a well behaved headphone.

Which one is better you think ? I have DT 1990 and considering buying Sundara. Can you compare them for me ?

 

[Santi]

This is from Tyll's Sundara review:


Which one is better you think ? I have DT 1990 and considering buying Sundara. Can you compare them for me ?

Difficult question. I'm using both, because they are different and somehow complementary to each other. The dt1990 pro sounds more open and with total transparency. I love to listen vocals, classic or soft music with them. They are also good in tecno, electronic music or rock, but the Sundara here evidences a bit better punch and control, as a I said.
If I would forced to choose only one, I would take the 1990

 

[odyo]

Difficult question. I'm using both, because they are different and somehow complementary to each other. The dt1990 pro sounds more open and with total transparency. I love to listen vocals, classic or soft music with them. They are also good in tecno, electronic music or rock, but the Sundara here evidences a bit better punch and control, as a I said.
If I would forced to choose only one, I would take the 1990

I like dt1990 for short listening sessions but they are unbearable for longer usage for me. Too forward, too aggressive and overwhelming. Can you say sundara is more laidback and distant ?does it give more space between you and the sound ?

 

[Santi]

I like dt1990 for short listening sessions but they are unbearable for longer usage for me. Too forward, too aggressive and overwhelming. Can you say sundara is more laidback and distant ?does it give more space between you and the sound ?

Absolutely. But less scene and fineness

 

[Santi]

This is absolutely hapiness

 

[odyo]

This is absolutely hapiness


View attachment 60978View attachment 60979View attachment 60980View attachment 60981View attachment 60982View attachment 60983

Beautiful... I'm curious about those MQA capable dacs. How is it ? Does it better or worse or noticeable ?

 

[Santi]

Beautiful... I'm curious about those MQA capable dacs. How is it ? Does it better or worse or noticeable ?

Well you know, some people will tell you that is not noticeable. Others will identify a difference in less than 5 seconds.
In my case, and after so many time comparing, I enjoy my old library of MP3 sometimes, using Audirvana. But only with, let's say, rare songs, not easy to find. With this setup they still sound well enough, but it's easy to identify the limitations.
All my CD's are now in FLAC format, also in Audirvana, and what I'm not missing in that scenario is the CD player. The quality is the same.
When enjoying more variety or allowing Tidal to surprise you with a nice radio, jazz or clasical, in MQA format, the fidelity and quality is the same or sometimes almost superior to my FLAC collection. That really depends on the track.
For the price of the m500 I really recommend it, at least to try. And with your dt 1990 pro... Enjoy

 

[nhatlam96]

I'm wondering, what exactly is affecting the soundstage of an amp?
For example on the SP200, multiple people saying that it has limited soundstage:
1. currawong "SP200 sounds flatter than Asgard 3"
2. soundnews "The soundstage is medium sized"
3. mon "The SP200 is poor at recreating space"
Is this all biased or is it actually true?

 

[Veri]

I'm wondering, what exactly is affecting the soundstage of an amp?

Human imagination. The SP200 is a LOUD amp and this makes for rapid volume attenuation and increases. This makes people imagine all kinds of things that are flat out not there but yeah that's audio reviewers for you.

 

[wassim01]

I'm wondering, what exactly is affecting the soundstage of an amp?
For example on the SP200, multiple people saying that it has limited soundstage:
1. currawong "SP200 sounds flatter than Asgard 3"
2. soundnews "The soundstage is medium sized"
3. mon "The SP200 is poor at recreating space"
Is this all biased or is it actually true?

For my config: smsl sp200 + akg k712 + smsl m300 mk2 with an ak4497 chip I can guarantee that the soundstage is huge, with a dac ifi zen dac is medium sized . So the soundstage varies according to the dac used.

 

[Santi]

Human imagination. The SP200 is a LOUD amp and this makes for rapid volume attenuation and increases. This makes people imagine all kinds of things that are flat out not there but yeah that's audio reviewers for you.

JAJAJAJA
It is true that, because the power and loudness, you can feel the music a bit less warm or let's say transparent. But poor soundstage or similar perls...
If you are using the low gain setting the soundstage is all there. But with tons of vitamins.
In high gain maybe the things start to change. I avoid that.

What I can say as always... All is very related with the combo DAC+HP used and the kind of music. With rock or techno music + something like the Sundara, the SP200 is terrific and the soundstage for me is great, same or better than connecting directly to the m500.
Using HP more delicate, as the dt1990pro, sometimes I have to recognize you loose something in the SP200.
Maybe I need to still burn it. I will continue testing.