SMSL A8

[nicky]

n a french forum I read that the lack of depth is due to the DAC.
It seems the amplifier section is great but left down by the DAC.
On the forum they say that hooking up an exernal DAC transforms the amp.
Well i sold all my dacs so i will have to get a new one... surely a D50S

 

[VintageFlanker]

n a french forum I read that the lack of depth is due to the DAC.
It seems the amplifier section is great but left down by the DAC.
On the forum they say that hooking up an exernal DAC transforms the amp.

I guess the French forum was HCFR? Unfortunately, none of the claims mentioned here are relevant without blind test or measurements to back it up...

 

[nicky]

exactly VintageFlanker, it was HFCR
Well first step will be to finish my valve amp and test the DAC output on it.
As I said before I think the sound is relly great, on femal vocal jazz it is mid blowing, it is just on blues, I miss the "reverb" on the guitars, the breathof Buddy Guy and the sensation of slight echo singing in a big room. The sound just cuts out.
So test in a week or two when my amp is finished.

 

[nicky]

OK so I decided to format my pc. I must have had some drivers here and there from older gear.
After that the sound is great, forget what I said before. The faint hiss is still here but the sound is great, detailed. I can listen at low volume without any loss.
Bass is tight but not invasive, mids and hights are clear and not layed back.
A good complete setup.
I have no regrets.
I tried it for movies but it is not taylorded for that use. The voices are way back compared to the effects. You have tu push the sound up for dialogues then when the effects arrive your eardrums burst.
So exclusively for music

 

[Spaxton]

OK so I decided to format my pc. I must have had some drivers here and there from older gear.
After that the sound is great, forget what I said before. The faint hiss is still here but the sound is great, detailed. I can listen at low volume without any loss.
Bass is tight but not invasive, mids and hights are clear and not layed back.
A good complete setup.
I have no regrets.
I tried it for movies but it is not taylorded for that use. The voices are way back compared to the effects. You have tu push the sound up for dialogues then when the effects arrive your eardrums burst.
So exclusively for music

Glad You found a way to make it work properly. Watching movies sounds like that because the AMP was designed for uncompressed audio signals. Movies will certainly use dynamic compression. That's why some house music will sound bad on it... At least in my case.
Did You make it to use ASIO?

 

[nicky]

Yes I made it use ASIO from MusicBee. I reinstalled Foobar and lowered the volume in the app (also using ASIO).
I also stream from DEEZER.
For the movies I used an optical cable from the TV to the amp.
Anyway, it will be a good complementary amp with the 300B for fast listening and summer listening (the few tests I did with the work in progress valve amp generated enough heat for my living room in winter )

 

[nicky]

I was wondering if it was worth putting an EMI filter on the A8 power cord. I think the amplifier section must already have its filters but the DAC stage surely not.

Any thaught is welcome.

Thanks

 

[Kervel]

I bought the A8 a few months ago, and am a happy owner. Use it in my office with Kef LS50 speakers. I do hear a high tone (guess around 2-4 k hz or so) someone mentioned, but only with my ear next to the tweater. With regular listening distance (40 cm!) I hear nothing. Must've gotten lucky!

The unit has a ton of power and runs cool. Perfect size for a desktop. Screen is small so works best from close distances. The box is made of a metal that smudges easily, and has very sharp corners (should've been rounded), and the volume button does not stick out from the enclosure making it tricky to use. Just use the remote and all is well. In my view, excellent sound and affordable all in one solution!

 

[Spaxton]

I was wondering if it was worth putting an EMI filter on the A8 power cord. I think the amplifier section must already have its filters but the DAC stage surely not.

Any thaught is welcome.

Thanks

Hi there..

It makes no sense putting the EMI filter on an amplifier that produces sounds by itself. I don't know friend, You can try and post here if You test it.

Best Regards.

 

[Spaxton]

I bought the A8 a few months ago, and am a happy owner. Use it in my office with Kef LS50 speakers. I do hear a high tone (guess around 2-4 k hz or so) someone mentioned, but only with my ear next to the tweater. With regular listening distance (40 cm!) I hear nothing. Must've gotten lucky!

The unit has a ton of power and runs cool. Perfect size for a desktop. Screen is small so works best from close distances. The box is made of a metal that smudges easily, and has very sharp corners (should've been rounded), and the volume button does not stick out from the enclosure making it tricky to use. Just use the remote and all is well. In my view, excellent sound and affordable all in one solution!

Hello,

My main problem is that I hear it 100 cm away from my ears. It's not that loud but I can hear it if the acoustic guitar is playing softly. Everything else You said is the same in my situation. Besides this, I do like the product.

 

[nicky]

Well I tried a filter but as expected it didn't change anything. It will be going to my valve amp.
For the hiss, your device may be faulty as I have to stick my ear to the tweeter to hear it.
10cm away and nothing.

 

[nicky]

ok a little feedback on this amp. I used the dac output, sent the signal to a 4 tubes 12at7 preamp (hetian mao design) then to my 300b single ended amp. An what I can say is that the dac part is wonderful. The detail, positionning is perfect. You get averything as it should be. The preamp is mandatory to get the most of it (i tried without and it was really bad). low volume, no problem, you get everything you need, hight volume, no ear fatigue.
So overall, the amp is quite good the way it is with the limitations of class d, but as source for à class A amp, it is just great.

 

[Drengur]

Sorry for resurrecting an old thread. I have had one of these for a few years (maybe 3-4 years now). In contrast with others here I have had no problems with hissing or sound, on the other hand it does not run cool at all. It is actually surprisingly warm. I use it to drive a couple of Jamo floorstanders (they suck, and it's not the amps fault).

I have had two problems with it; it tends to just... stop outputting any sound unless I restart it. (It is used at least 5-6 hours a day) The other problem is that the volume-pot is malfunctioning - which brings us to my question; has anyone tried to fix the volume knob? Wondering about how easy it is to access? I suspect the warmth of my unit has caused it to "bleed" grease from the pot and was thinking about cleaning it up.

 

[xaon60]

I have one for two years and since I have my pa5 I use it as a headphone amp. Indeed the volume button jumps a few notches sometimes. I have no problem with it.

 

[Drengur]

I have one for two years and since I have my pa5 I use it as a headphone amp. Indeed the volume button jumps a few notches sometimes. I have no problem with it.

It started like that, but lately it has almost stopped working. I don't really use the volume knob that much, so it does not bother me. But I want to fix it regardless.