-
WANTED: Happy members who like to discuss audio and other topics related to our interest. Desire to learn and share knowledge of science required. There are many reviews of audio hardware and expert members to help answer your questions. Click here to have your audio equipment measured for free!
A rotary encoder is connected to the knob, and it rotates smoothly with a light click.
However, the axis of the rotary encoder has a little wobble.
The perception of sound varies greatly from person to person, and I am not very good at expressing sound quality.
I will write straight what I felt though it is extremely subjective.
From the moment I heard the A30a's sound quality, I knew it was unlike any amp I've ever used.
The sound is very clear and each sound is separated beautifully and you can hear it three-dimensionally.
The sound field is very wide in the front, back, left and right, so you can hear the positional relationship of the instruments more clearly.
Even if you listen to an orchestra that mixes many sounds, it doesn't feel too loud.
The rise of the sound is fast and the sound has a dynamic feeling.
As I felt with PA5, the background of the sound is very clear. It has a very black background.
The above is my impression of the sound of the A30.
Amplifiers used for sound quality comparison include SMSL AO200/A300, Sabaj A20a/A20a 2022/A8, Topping PA3/PA5, and AYIMA A07/A04.
The heat generated by the amp has been alleviated as the temperature has dropped slightly due to seasonal changes.
Hello everyone,
I just read the whole 13 pages and tried to understand most of it, I am a non-expert, so excuse me.
I'm really interested in this unit but I would like to get the whole "spectrum" of sample rates if I use it.
As you stated @Toku, maybe I understood it wrong, the A30a says on paper that i can do 16-32bit. 44.1 - 768kHz & DSD (USB) but in practice, it only does 44.1 & 16bit?
Up to now I only knew ESS & AKM and I don't understand the process of the conversion in this unit, I also noted that there is no "Hi-Res" sticker on the device.
So my question would be, do I get a great DAC with this device which handles all sample rates like a pro DAC or is a there a catch?
For some reason, the data sheet of the AXIGN AX5689 chip has two types of descriptions: PCM44.1kHz~PCM192kHz 16bit~32bit and PCM32kHz~768kHz 16~32bit. I'm not sure which one is true. (Orange frame in the figure) AX5689 input is actually connected by I2S, so both are possible.
However, what kind of processing is performed for the output of ASRC DIR in the block diagram (framed in red in the diagram) and the output of the DSP (framed in orange in the diagram) and what type of signal is output? ? "It's completely unknown." Nothing has been disclosed about the processing of this part.
So we really don't know. But the sound is wonderfully good.
This amplifier is a full digital amplifier. Neither AKM nor ESS is required. The input digital signal is directly converted to PWM to drive the speaker.
Attachments
@Toku
Thank you very much for the explanation!
So your subjective impression is that the DAC is doing a great job. Would be great to know what SMSL/Sabaj (sister companies?) have to say about the process, is there any official member from SMSL on this forum?
If not, I could write an Email to Sabaj and ask them what exactly is happening on that stage?
Thank you very much for the explanation!
So your subjective impression is that the DAC is doing a great job. Would be great to know what SMSL/Sabaj (sister companies?) have to say about the process, is there any official member from SMSL on this forum?
If not, I could write an Email to Sabaj and ask them what exactly is happening on that stage?
Sabaj and SMSL are in the same capital group but different companies.
From my experience doing research and development at a Japanese manufacturer in the past, there are times when I can answer technical inquiries from users and times when I can't.
I wanted to ask Sabaj about the A30a's signal processing process, but I didn't because I thought they probably couldn't answer.
Sabaj staff occasionally participate in forums for Sabaj products such as the A30a.
Last edited:
Unfortunately, we don't have direct measurement data for the A30a yet.
However, although the design time is different from SMSL VMV A2, the internal configuration is almost the same.
Therefore, the measurement data of SMSL VMVA2 at ASR is helpful.
However, although the measurement data from ASR can be used as a reference when purchasing, it cannot be used as a criterion for judging whether the sound is good or bad.
I also bought the PA5 and compared the sound quality with the A30a, but the measurement data doesn't make much sense in terms of auditory comparison.
Johannesthalos
Member
- Joined
- Jul 31, 2022
- Messages
- 31
- Likes
- 13
I'd be interested to know if the sound quality gets (slightly) worse when you plug a DAC to it via RCA compared to all-integrated via USB.
Unfortunately there is no high pass crossover included, which means I would have to put a DAC like the Topping DM7 before it in order to achieve an active crossover.
Does it sound equaly good with an external DAC or does it only perform optimal with the USB?
Unfortunately there is no high pass crossover included, which means I would have to put a DAC like the Topping DM7 before it in order to achieve an active crossover.
Does it sound equaly good with an external DAC or does it only perform optimal with the USB?
I think you will be curious about the difference in sound quality between the two inputs, whether you use the A30a with digital input (COAX/OPT/USB) or AUX input.
As I reported before, when Topping E50 is connected to the AUX input, I get the impression that the sound quality is slightly inferior to that of the digital input. Also, the input level feels a little lower than the digital input.
The sound quality of the A30a's digital inputs is pretty good. I think middle-class products are best suited for DACs that connect to the AUX input.
But I'm currently hooking up the new Topping E30 ll. I've also tried high-end models, but I really like the sound quality of this inexpensive DAC combination.
A30a is a 2ch stereo output amplifier.
The subwoofer output of such an amplifier is prepared as a supplementary role when the bass is insufficient.
It's a simple feature like adding a tweeter to a full-range speaker that lacks treble. This way of thinking is common for the SW output of amplifier products.
The amplifiers with the high pass crossover you point out mean that they split the band perfectly and act like a multi-amp system. There are very few 2ch stereo amplifier products with such a way of thinking. I think those uses are probably in the minority.
It seems that the use of Topping DM7 is also in sight, but I think that DM7 did not have a filter setting function.
Last edited:
A firmware update has been uploaded to the A30a.
The details of the update are unknown, but it seems better to update for the time being.
A30a MCU_FW_220919
www.sabaj.com.cn
I have updated the firmware, but I don't know what changed.
The details of the update are unknown, but it seems better to update for the time being.
A30a MCU_FW_220919
Sabaj Audio Official-Sabaj音频官网
Since the establishment of our company, we have been committed to an enterprise integrating audio product design, R&D, production, market operation and service.There are mainly three categories: decoder/headphone amplifier/power amplifier. Our company is composed of a group of members who love...
I have updated the firmware, but I don't know what changed.
Last edited:
A firmware update has been uploaded to the A30a.
The details of the update are unknown, but it seems better to update for the time being.
A30a MCU_FW_220919
Sabaj Audio Official-Sabaj音频官网
Since the establishment of our company, we have been committed to an enterprise integrating audio product design, R&D, production, market operation and service.There are mainly three categories: decoder/headphone amplifier/power amplifier. Our company is composed of a group of members who love...
Firmware for optical input issue.
It is reported that the sound is cut off periodically in some environments when using optical inputs.
In some windows, there may be cases where 'connected' is not available in the update program.
Therefore, it is recommended to try to update in the genuine window that is not tweaked.
Tonton_ZEeD
Member
Hello,
i just bought the A30A days ago, first impressions are great but i've dicoverd a malfunction.
I have a subwoofer, obviously i did connect it via the SW-OUT to my sub line-IN.
Only the bass from the right channel are redirect to the SW-OUT, :/
i tried a single rca L-in and R-in and i tried a Y-rca cable with both L and R in, same result.
Lucky me my subwoofer have some binding post to connect via the speackers-out from the amp.
I'm thinking about RMA it back to Amazon.
Sorry for my bad english, not my native language.
i just bought the A30A days ago, first impressions are great but i've dicoverd a malfunction.
I have a subwoofer, obviously i did connect it via the SW-OUT to my sub line-IN.
Only the bass from the right channel are redirect to the SW-OUT, :/
i tried a single rca L-in and R-in and i tried a Y-rca cable with both L and R in, same result.
Lucky me my subwoofer have some binding post to connect via the speackers-out from the amp.
I'm thinking about RMA it back to Amazon.
Sorry for my bad english, not my native language.
From your explanation, the connection form of A30a and SW is not well understood.
Is your SW input a monaural input type with only one RCA?
Or is it a 2ch input type with two RCA inputs of L/R?
If you can use A30A's AUX analog input, test the following:
Does the SW output when only A30a's AUX L-CH is connected?
Does the SW output when only A30a's AUX R-CH is connected?
If the SW output of A30a is really connected to R-CH only in the internal digital processing process, the sound will not come out from the SW when connected to the L-CH of AUX.
If so, you need to report your symptoms to Sabaj.
The method of obtaining the SW input signal from the speaker output of the amplifier is often not usable in the BTL method such as A30a.
Please carefully check the specifications to see if the SW you are using is also compatible with BTL type amplifiers.
Last edited:
Tonton_ZEeD
Member
My primary source is my PC, the A30A is linked by USB, drivers installed.
test are made with one song and one "demo"
Blossomn - Plunge: the bass line is sweeping from right to left, pretty clear on headphones.
When i first listen to it with the A30A i've noticed the bass line have changed, like a hole, then i've listened to a "demo" on youtube
this "demo":
SW input of the subwoofer is a line-in, 2 RCA White\Red
i tried:
- a30a sw-out -> mono-rca -> L channel input SW
- a30a sw-out -> mono-rca -> R channel input SW
- a30a sw-out -> Y rca -> L+R channel input SW
same result, there is bass only on the right channel, when only the left channel play, no bass.
I tried with an external dac:
PC> USB> Topping D10S > stéréo RCA> A30A, with the same three output as before, same result
I went back to another amp, with a sub-out:
Onkyo TX8020: https://eu.onkyo.com/en-GLOBAL/audi...-amplifiers/stereo-receivers/tx-8020/p/157415
PC> USB >D10S>optical> TX8020 > Y RCA> Subwoofer. no problem.
Attachments
Last edited:
Thank you for reporting the test results.
I have found from your testing that the A30a works fine.
There are two ways of thinking about SW output.
One is to mix and output R-ch and L-ch, and the other is to use only either R-ch or L-ch.
Since the deep bass that SW takes charge of is included equally in the left and right channels, there is no problem with only one of them. In particular, the A30a has a low passband frequency, so it is OK to use only one side.
Similar threads
