Douk Audio H7 Amplifier Review

[Doodski]

Dual volume? I feel like this is some joke from a Rick and Morty episode... but it was dual-bag bro!! This is a terrible design design, one that made me vote headless panther. Very poor design decision.

I don't mind the dual volume pots @ all. It can serve some purpose. I've had preamps with funky tone control stuff and no balance control and dual volume pots but they where a stacked concentric audio potentiometer. Two knobs/controls on one shaft.

 

[thecheapseats]

...I will suggest an equally cheap rubber band between the two volume pots...

hilarious... gotta' love a great kludge...

 

[DavidMcRoy]

Thank you @amirm,
Some years ago, I had purchased a ClassD amp which arrived with a 32Vdc adapter, but the webpage had stated that it was a 48Vdc adapter.
When inquired about the discrepancy I was told that the TI's TPA3255 life-expectancy significantly reduces with DC@48V.
Is this true?
I also don't know whether the use of a higher input voltage results in any significant changes to your measurement results (re: @32Vdc).

Just anecdotally: I ordered two 48 VDC power supplies directly from Aiyima for two recently purchased (directly from Aiyima) A07 amplifiers. Both amps squeal like pigs on those supplies and work fine on 32 volt units. I have no idea what's going on.

 

[AndreaT]

Nice price for those on a tight budget. The Mark Levinson ML-12 preamplifier has dual volume pots, I never used rubber bands. I personally pass on it: too many amps already. It is more powerful than the SMSL A300, has balanced inputs, the VU meter, but lacks the SMSL flexibility, the sub output and BT. Thank you Amir for a most excellent review of a new product.

 

[TonyJZX]

to my mind this is overly *fiddly* for what is a 40w amp

at this point i guess its supposed to be a power amp w/ trim knobs... also what is the point of a 3 position input switch when one is "OFF"... its like a mute button then? no remote also lends to this case

also all those charts make it seem like there's a huge degree of slackness in the tolerances of this unit

so what does this do every the perrenial favorite, the Aiyima A07? not friggin' much

they spent their money on silly stuff like a VU meter and case and i'd be ok with that if it performed better than an amp costing half as much

i also think these things are largely disposable outside of warranty so all these frills mean for naught when it ups and dies even during warranty

 

[TonyJZX]

ironically some thoughts here already

Suca Audio U7 aka Aoshida A7 aka Nobsound H7 aka Douk Audio H7 tear down

TPA3255 base amplifier with xlr input. Suca Audio U7 or other models with similar chassis . Got it from aliexpress around $87. This amp is the cheapest of all 4.

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[GWolfman]

I wish everything had XLR, so I commend them for this and the VU meter.

Thanks!

 

[Gord]

If one doesn't need XLR inputs, this Douk seems no better than the less expensive Aiyima 08 Pro.

Or is the sensitivity knob on this Douk a real differentiator?

I have an Aiyima AO-7 TP, and it sounds pretty damn fine, being fed from a reasonably nice front end. I guess my question now is would I hear much of a difference if I upgraded to something pricier, like maybe Benchmark or something similair?

 

[TonyJZX]

i feel like XLR is a good thing if your source (say DAC) and amp are of high enough quality

ie. if you feed a good signal to the H7 via XLR then whats the point if the amp itself isnt a 'good' enough quality

 

[amirm]

If it is adjustable, how to calibrate it?

Or is it eye candy?

I don't know what it is measuring. I set it to 0 dB but forgot to check to see if it accurately displays other levels.

 

[amirm]

i feel like XLR is a good thing if your source (say DAC) and amp are of high enough quality

The benefit of XLR is reduction of the potential for ground loops. The source doesn't have to be high quality for it to benefit this way.

 

[amirm]

Both amps squeal like pigs on those supplies and work fine on 32 volt units. I have no idea what's going on.

This reminds me. Under extreme pressure, i.e. at or near clipping, there is a high pitch squeal from this amp as well. But otherwise it is quiet.

 

[amirm]

they spent their money on silly stuff like a VU meter and case and i'd be ok with that if it performed better than an amp costing half as much

Beyond bling, VU meters are also useful to know if the amp is doing anything. I use the spectrum analyzer on my RME DAC all the time for this purpose. You get no sound but if the display is moving, then you know everything upstream is OK.

 

[pseudoid]

they spent their money on silly stuff like a VU meter

Some people enjoy VU meters and may get insulted.
The Douk VU3, @amirm reviewed few years ago, cost around $150.
Think of the all free 'stuff' you get, along w/a VU meter, when you pay a similar price for the H7!

 

[Dougey_Jones]

What's the thought process behind the dual volume controls? Who asked for this feature?

 

[pavuol]

stackable to satisfy both warm-hearted and cold-blooded audiophiles..

 

[Mnyb]

The load dependency is not ok imho ( among some other issues ) , so therefore I voted poor

 

[polmuaddib]

What's the thought process behind the dual volume controls? Who asked for this feature?

Many power amps have independent gain settings. If you think of it as a power amp, it makes sense. And this product reads more like a power amp then integrated.
I do wonder how it would perform, and if those pots are matched, when turned all the way.

 

[respice finem]

For this price, a fine little amp, but still, setting the volume separately for each channel would annoy me every day.
Gimmicks are nice, but then, two VU meters and one volume knob would IMHO be better.

SOT: Speaking of VU meters https://doukaudio.com/products/dual...r-speaker-audio-switcher-box-db-panel-display

 

[Blumlein 88]

Douk Audio H7 HiFi Balanced XLR Digital Amplifier Home Stereo Speaker Amp w/VU Meter 300W×2

Features Stronger output power and RCA output added: use TI's classic power amp IC 3255, each channel can output 300W(4Ω) and easily to drive all 4-8Ω passive speakers; stereo RCA output is added, easy to connect another amplifier or active speaker / subwoofer to build multiple channel system...

doukaudio.com

Unfortunately they claim 300 watts per channel for 4 ohms.

I think the VU meter is goofy too, but many feel differently. There have been threads just about the VU meter and odd this very company sells just a pair of VU meters that cost as much as this amp. I've never understand the fascination with VU meters. I don't think they look good nor are they much useful. Log LED meters are better to me if you have a use for that.