The Aiyima A80 DAC / Power Amp - What’s missing?
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Saturday January 11, 2025
David Mellor
David Mellor is CEO and Course Director of Audio Masterclass. David has designed courses in audio education and training since 1986 and is the publisher and principal writer of Adventures In Audio.
@UMEJIA17: Can I get this and use it with my wiim ultra?
@davespagnol8847: Here's a question: Could I use the TRS input as a second RCA Phono input? If so, how?
@AudioMasterclass replies to @davespagnol8847: Can’t you just do the normal things in the normal way? Like normal people like me?
@davespagnol8847 replies to @davespagnol8847: @AudioMasterclass The think is that if I wanted to use this amplifier, I'd probably want two analogue inputs.
@darrellwoods5961: I use Toslink
@mariop8101: It's missing a 3.5 mm audio jack for headphones, so it's missing a lot for me.
@darrylcombe2469: Just received mine to replace my Aiyima T9. Great on Bluetooth and all inputs except optical, which glitches often and randomly. Have tried all settings on my LG smart TV to correct without success. It is disappointing as the T9 has worked flawlessly for years. No response from Aiyima customer care WhatsApp. 😢
@francohic replies to @darrylcombe2469: What happened to your T9? Is the A80 better or worse? Im asking because I have a T9 and considering this one too
@jackelofnar: Optical is very relevant if you plan to drive from TV
@peters7278: Can the usb-c be used for headphones? Seeing how many cellphones forego the 3.5 mm jack, maybe thats the thinking behind no jack on this device?
@AudioMasterclass replies to @peters7278: There are such things apparently. I haven't looked into them yet regarding pros and cons but I'm sure I will at some point in the future.
@PeterMilanovski: It's got bass and treble controls but doesn't have midrange control which is centred around the 1kz band!
I absolutely hate midrange! Where an equaliser is available I always drop the 1kz band and raise the bass and treble....
That's exactly how I enjoy listening to music! Lots of bass and treble and very little head drilling midrange!
I recently got a Tribit Stormbox Blast 2 Bluetooth speaker which has a built in graphic equaliser that is controlled by a phone and once set will stay set no matter who's connected to it... It's powerful enough to rattle doors and windows throughout the house, performance outside is just as impressive! It's a power house! It's better and less than half the price of the equivalent JBL speaker.... Highly recommend to anyone who might be looking for a portable Bluetooth speaker.... Regarding the audio quality! It has a subwoofer and passive radiators and I was concerned that some music might sound better than other genres but I have been pleasantly surprised to find that it plays everything really good! So much so that I have been listening to all my music collection all over again to see if I can find something that doesn't sound good!
There's plenty videos on this device though the people behind it are more focused on portable Bluetooth speakers...
Honestly, I haven't been using any of my hi-fi systems since I got this thing....
The only thing that I need now is a dedicated audio player because using a phone is not good! The phone has basically become a pocket advertising device which wants you to keep picking it up and looking at all the ads it wants to show you and will interrupt your music playback just to get your attention.... I like to have a physical copy of my music! I used to make playlists for music on YouTube until one day I went looking through the playlist and found that a lot of tracks had been taken down.... And people used to say that once someone posted something on the internet, it can never be removed.... Unless you posted or leaked naked pictures of yourself which in that case you are scared for life.... Don't do it! You are not a record label and don't have any clout..
@franksaldana6027: Saludos desde Colombia
@jlgas9554: Don’t have HDMI input
@TheCvp33: Anyone else have the BT function stop working on these?
@i1pro: Best technical explanation. Thank you so much!
@ermyril: With Internal power supply it could be much trickier to deal with the noise and interference, so it might make sense from this standpoint
However I was as well, not too stoked to see it
As for optical input, though I've never used it - I don't see any other means of connecting this thing to my TV or PS5 and use integrated DAC on a device while doing so
Except for bluetooth, but why use bluetooth when you can avoid it.
I absolutely didn't get the idea of judging amp output based on it's power supply, it doesn't indicate how much power amp can produce, it only indicates how much power it can potentially draw from this specific power supply, isn't it?
It's not uncommon for devices to include external power supplies with lower outputs than the device can possibly draw, because it'll satisfy 98% of use cases and in situations when it doesn't - people are usually informed that they need to replace a power supply with the different one.
@Nowalon: good review with interesting takes like about "DAC inside".
The good product with excellent specs, I really like this device. The only issue for me - the software, especially indication - it is good to have some large icons appearing for input sources switching and volume adjusting (i.e. percentage number) during remote contol using - since the actual source and volume indicators are very small and become as not recognized at 1.5-2 meters distance. of cource source can be selected through the main menu steps which has larger icons, but it is not really convenient and fast and makes RC "select" source button useless.
@Nowalon: balanced inputs are suitable for long distances. on short distances are useless, no advantages. the optical is not legacy. for 10-15 meters disance (cable length) I prefer the optical connection comparing to any other - and will be sure in signal quality without any gold-plated finger-thick cables. i.e. for projector connection.
@jollyjack67: The A80 looks like a solid amp and includes features lacking in some of their other amps. The design looks winning and sales numbers may prove it so.
@marklawrence17: I connect my TV with optical, and my Blu Ray/CD with the coax. The Blu Ray is also connected to the TV with HDMI. The RCA connects to my phono preamp. one shelf holds the a80, the Sony s3700 and the ifi phono. A shelf up is the turntable. Speakers are mg 20.7. TV is TCL 98". No sub. I also have a couple rather hideously expensive amps, I can't hear a difference. I also have a couple somewhat expensive dacs, I can't hear a difference.
In fairness I must admit I'm not an audiophile. I listen to music, not stereo gear. I consider my speakers to be as good as you can buy. And I consider the rest of my stereo to be sonically as good as you can buy.
Don't mess with my digital inputs, thanks very much.
@led-max5117: китайцы всех сожрут?
@paulburton9904: this fella should be the new presenter on rainbow
@yl9154: I find it very commendable that you review inexpensive equipment that Audio Phil would sneer at! Can an average student afford to spend 20 000 pounds or dollars on audio gears? Or even a retiree on a budget who's trusty old equipment failed and would cost an arm to repair (assuming a repair shop can be found)? Or maybe someone who would wisely want to put its money on good speakers first and maybe upgrade the rest later, rather then maxing out its credit card. I was 40 years old before I got to afford a system with the sound that I truly liked (not a "hum generator"), despite definitively not being an "audiophile". 25 years later, I got a DAC that fully satisfies me for less than 100 pounds. Electronics has come a long way in affordability and it is time credible people also shine a light on "democratic" equipment, not just on the McIntosh of the audio world. Thank you.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @yl9154: You’re welcome, but the fact is that no-one has offered to send me anything expensive yet. I wait in hope.
@hazomaa18: Its called dac amp 😂
@AudioMasterclass replies to @hazomaa18: Or a ‘Damp’ for short.
@hazomaa18 replies to @hazomaa18: @AudioMasterclass if you say so "_"
@hazomaa18 replies to @hazomaa18: I have a question: i have iem with 8ohm impedance and 103 dp sensitive.. i want to buy the newest best most capable portable dac amp for it ...
But at a reasonable price between 400 to 1000..
Or a dap ...
If you could answer the question.. it would be great..
Thanks and have a great day (*_*)
@AudiophileTubes: Pardon my old school ignorance, but would this DAC work with the RCA analog inputs? What exactly does a DAC do? I just want to connect my PC's audio output to the amp's RCA analog inputs so I can have a good amp for my PC setup. My speakers are small KEF Q100 speakers. Currently using a Kinter Tripath K2020 A+, but want to upgrade. Thanks!
@AudioMasterclass replies to @AudiophileTubes: DAC = digital to analogue converter. Therefore there is no need for the DAC to be operational when the RCA inputs are used. Having said that, when a volume control is digital then the analogue input would have to be digitised, then presumably the digital signal after the volume control goes back to the DAC.
@AudiophileTubes replies to @AudiophileTubes: @AudioMasterclass Thank you for the explanation. So in that scenario, the DAC might be used in the amp's internal audio chain? If so, would the sonics be somehow enhanced or changed at all?
@teufeliano: excellent review!, new subscriber here
@MrSlipstreem: There are different levels of functionality though like an amplifier with no tone controls that will always sound wrong, and an amplifier with room correction that stands at least some chance of sounding right. I go for the latter because I don't want a system that's absolutely guaranteed to sound wrong.
@MegaBrownbanana: If optical cables weren't any good for transferring digital signals then it would take a very long time to download this video , and there would be bits of audio and picture missing...its just ones and zeros, no more, no less.
@max79444: To be honest, I don't like clutter and unnecessary Flashing Gubbins being annoying. I hate light pollution and run all LEDs on Amplifiers via buck converters so I can get them to barely illuminate. I hate my retinas being burnt out!. My Amplifiers are all boxes with heatsinks, preamps have a volume and selection switch, and the DAC is controlled by my streamer and phone. Can't understand why sub woofers are so common these days?? I have big transmission line floor standers.Keep up the good work!
@max79444: Great review ! I always use optical interconnects. Can cut down on Ground loops. I've gone to the dark side after Lockdowns, I've built a few Chinese Amplifiers and preamplifiers, ( far better sounding than my quads ) all driven by optical output from a DAC.. Keep up the good work !
@johnsoothe3202: I want a balance control. Remember these.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @johnsoothe3202: Indeed, I still have integrated amps that have them. And phono inputs.
@jean-lucd3846: They call these things "integrated amplifiers"...
@AudioMasterclass replies to @jean-lucd3846: Some old timers perhaps might expect there to be a phono input to be properly integrated.
@GetOffMyyLawn: 12v Power input is standard on these devices to keep them car audio ready. This one even has the trigger input, so the amp turns off with the car power.
@MKVally: preferably optical and coaxial
@barlow2976: Your unboxing music reflects that sense of excitement I feel when I tear into a box with total disregard for the possible (or likely) return of the item. How's about getting the girls to do a dance routine, sort of an Audiophile's Pan's People?? Just a thought.
I'm disappointed to learn that the days of Toslink and coax inputs may be numbered, I thought I was up there, with the kids.
@markpenland: Integrated amplifier with dac.
@Hitsujiomeguruboken: It’s a great review as always and as it has to be.
And the world does need this item: if you use your PC as a streamer, and if you don’t have active speakers, it is a cool quality improvement over the build in DAC in the PC.
@basbass429: I always use optical inputs. No hassle with expensive cables, guaranteed interference free. Although some are HDMi's I use, but those are digital too, which means good enough is perfect. But yes, i've got multiple optical inputs in use.
@Edward-Norton replies to @basbass429: Of course. I don't understand what this guy is talking about asking if people would want digital inputs? I guess he's used to old 70's and 80's receivers that didn't have digital inputs or why would he suggest such a stupid thing? What's the point of the built in DAC otherwise?
@jp5393 replies to @basbass429: @Edward-Norton When you listen music VIA BT - you also use this DAC) Old industry use analog connections (many equipment - vinyl, radio receiverers etc.) - IMHO too many interference in this case...
@justinschlicher631: As others have stated, it's an integrated amplifier when it has integrated volume and/or tone controls. I like how these companies keep getting better with things the public may want, but one thing missing is adjustable high and low pass filters (high for the speaker outs and low for the aux out).
@ColoGrayWolf: Enjoy your channel, and your British humor is growing on me...I would like to point out, however, that you should be careful to account for inefficiency when projecting the potential max power output of the amp by observing the max wattage consumption of the amp's power supply. I realize it's a class D and therefore pretty efficient, but would guess that not all the 240 watts from the power supply are getting to the speakers as true effective power, due to losses. You pointed out that it's rated at 300 watts per channel at 4 Ohms, so a good guess might be 150 watts per channel at 8 Ohms...but then again...
Also, with most of these little Chinese class D amps, you can replace the stock power supply with one having higher voltage and or amperage and develop even more output power to the speakers, something possible with the outboard power supply and not so easily done if it was internal...Of course, one would need to check the maximum voltage in, usually printed right next to where the power supply cord goes into the amp!
Enjoy this channel, please carry on!
@AudioMasterclass replies to @ColoGrayWolf: Thank you for your comment. It's a brief moment in the video but when I mentioned the maximum power available from the psu I also said, regarding the amp, "if it gets close to that figure", so yes it's not going to be the full 120 watts average power per channel, and certainly nothing like 300 watts continuous average power, even into 4 ohms. The maximum voltage printed just above the supply input is 48 volts, as is the supplied psu.
@ColoGrayWolf replies to @ColoGrayWolf: @AudioMasterclass thank you for your reply! On my little amp, it says up to 48 volts in, but only came with a 24 volt supply, so I am going to upgrade it for greater output power, as mentioned in several YouTube videos by various authors. You are a knowledgeable and interesting person, please keep making more of these videos. Good day, sir!
@MrKentaroMotoPI: Please consult the TI TPA3255 datasheet regarding power output . A 48 V 10 A power supply is required to produce 300 Wpc. Ideally, the chip should have 51-54 V according to TI. A trimmable fan-cooled power supply is ideal. These units are often bundled with lesser power supplies.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @MrKentaroMotoPI: You can see the specs of the psu in the closeup image in the video.
@KS1956-f2w: Aiyima products are win win i.e good products n cost friendly. I have two sets of power n mono aiyima amplifier. I put my yamaha n Sony entry level amp. into state of hibernation.. Tq Aiyima engineering engineering
@stevewaugh2191: Hi! Thanks so much. In future reviews, if you have a moment to give info on what formats can be sent into the Coax input it would be useful to know. There are several options these days that come via that cable so please expand (I like to be able to send AES without using an additional stage for example. Or other digital formats that may need selection in the menu etc). Cheers.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @stevewaugh2191: I would be surprised if it were anything other than S/PDIF. Going back some decades, it has been known for S/PDIF inputs to accept AES/EBU, or is it the other way round, or both? Can't remember. Anyway, the days when I used either of these are long gone.
@stevewaugh2191 replies to @stevewaugh2191: @AudioMasterclass The difference between S/PDIF and AES requires caution in terms of voltage, but not absolutely always a problem*. But COAX also carries formats such as DSD flavours and family. Plus SDIF (not to be confused with S/PDIF). If a DAC does DSD, it's sometimes/commonly done on COAX, e.g. Benchmark DAC(x).
*I have half a dozen Prism devices and they are robust enough to simply use a cable from AES to Coax (supplied by Prism). But a couple of my TC Electronics DACs recommend using a stepdown adapter (Neutrik etc).
@kineahora8736: What about the DAC section? What’s the tech even? ESS SABR? Or AKM dual “velvet sound” tech?
@tessie4204 replies to @kineahora8736: It's primarily based on an ESS9038Q2M DAC chip and a TPA3255D2 amplifier chip.
@kineahora8736 replies to @kineahora8736: @ aha. Ok.
@kineahora8736: Speaking of practicality—I got a Fosi ZD3 SPECIFICALLY because reviewers thought it was decent for its very cheap price AND it has HDMI (ARC) for my TV! (as well as blue tooth, both of which I have been using exclusively). This doesn’t have HDMI.
@Zoyx: Does Aiyima make a class a/b amplifier?
@francohic replies to @Zoyx: I dont think so. Class D for sure
@robertmcdougall3166: Great price and Aiyima tend to make good products BUt no headphone = No deal and No Ethernet to connect to my huge NAS based music = No deal.
@joeshmoe7485: I've used Aiyima dac/amps in the past and have been pleased with their sound and features. I was running an Aiyima D05 up until recently but upgraded to something better. The A80 has very similar specs and inputs/outputs to the D05 but has a newer screen (the A05 also has a proper rca sub out). I'm sure the A80 is a solid product.
@michaelkay3197: Really, oh dear?? Another cheap looking Chinese product from a make we haven't heard of. You don't judge Hi-Fi by its specifications. They tell you very little. You judge it by its sound - which you barely mention. But the quoted power output was quite funny at least.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @michaelkay3197: Clearly you have golden ears and can hear beyond the limits of human perception. Fabulous. If only we could all be the same.
@TriAmpMyFi replies to @michaelkay3197: @AudioMasterclass. Tone & Timbre are within the audible frequency range of average old people so nutz to the Golden Ears theory. And giving weight to one manufacturer's specification whilst making excuses for their others' isn't objective.
Acid Jazz. Funk & Brass🔈🔉🔊
@michaelkay3197 replies to @michaelkay3197: @AudioMasterclass It's not really that though. The only thing that really matters is how it sounds with the kind of other equipment it is likely to be used with. Nowadays all reviewers 'review' everything in isolation - just look at the magazines. What would benefit buyers would always be how it sounds against the main similarly priced competition. The feature set and specifications tell you only so much but a good review tells us how it sounds. I'm not sure why I watched really as I am not in the market for anything like this. I gave over listening the Hi-Fi ages ago and only listen the music nowadays. The other massive criticism of just about everyone's reviews is that everything is marvellous and little meaningful criticism is ever levelled against any product under review. I suppose if it was the manufactures wouldn't send you the products to test. But it is somewhat sad that unknown brands from China feature so frequently in everyone's reviews. There remain so many good sounding British components that could be reviewed instead. Just a thought. You are, of course, completely free to review whatever you wish and say whatever you like.
@michaelkay3197 replies to @michaelkay3197: @AudioMasterclass You deleted my very polite reply? Why would that be?
@AudioMasterclass replies to @michaelkay3197: I don’t delete any comments. YouTube has a filter though, how it works is not entirely predictable. I suggest you try again.
@SwedeSnail: Agreed! I hate external power supplies!
@ColoGrayWolf replies to @SwedeSnail: But those do allow for an upgrade path. Please see my other post for details. Also, it allows for heat dissipation to occur outside the amp enclosure. But yeah, they're ugly!
@bernhardkaiser9677: I like optical inputs. They interrupt ground loops.😉
@l.s.1709 replies to @bernhardkaiser9677: Me too, not only ground loops, but also other noises introduced through the ground connections
@TheCompton2010: im looking for a capable headphone dac/amp that has VU meters. this is close, but no headphone out :(
@michaeldeloatch7461: As soon as you revealed the power output of the external brick, I wondered if it was charging lithium cells internally storing up power for those 300 watt bursts. No big capacitors in that lil' box.
@jp5393 replies to @michaeldeloatch7461: big capacity condensator - myth, in these scheme
@michaeldeloatch7461: I have never used optic connection. It seems too Jetsons for my vintage tastes. I am still getting used to the idea of stereo, after all. However that said -- from the purchase a cheap soundbar for use under my desktop monitor when I don't feel like firing up the real equipment, I acquired my first optic cable. I had it coiled up for storage in my desk drawer, or so I thought. It somehow got caught in the drawer works and snapped in half. Not even the cheapest speaker wire from a 1970's combo stereo would have done that. For me, it is copper and gold all the way, in the A and D domains. Optics, schmoptics! Thanks for a nice review. PS I thought hey there's the headphone jack right there on the back with the hash marks around it.
@rabit818: I had a minor dyslexia attack, I read it as Yamaha. There goes objectivity. It looks fine, the electronic VU meters looks comatose.
@Lif-999: Now don't go casting aspersionson on the wisdom of using optical inputs and outputs. Sure, the Toslink standard has been around for a while now, but for connection between a digital source and a DAC, the Toshiba link - with it's immunity to RFI, EMI and ground loop noise coupled with a high bandwidth, is the cable of choice.
@TriAmpMyFi replies to @Lif-999: But now Fiber Optic USB is here. Goodbye Toslink.
@RedSinter replies to @Lif-999: Now, now specifications only demonstrate overall through put and don't affect the sound as much as the components used in a speakers crossover. I refer you to Danny Richie's channel and his showing 3 identical crossovers each produce the same frequency response in measurements yet with each unit the components increase in quality as subsequently costs, but that's not the reason for the demonstration, but how they change the sonic experience versus identically measuring the same with identical electrical impedances etc.
@Lif-999 replies to @Lif-999: @TriAmpMyFi Frankly, unless you have a need for super long cable runs, I think fibre optic USB cables are a little... overkill in domestic audio applications.
I mean, it's not as if there is any audible difference at audio frequencies, and beside, have you compared the prices?
However I can perhaps see the case for FO USB in studios and at live events.
@TriAmpMyFi replies to @Lif-999: @Lif-999 Fiber Optic is cheap. About $100 for the convertor or PCie card & next to nothing for the LC to LC cable. It's not overkill because data streams are getting denser & denser every month. It's not just the distance for audiophiles, it's the DtoD optical bridge to reduce noise.
@l.s.1709 replies to @Lif-999: I hooked up my living room rig to USB one time for sake of experimenting and I experienced horrible ground noises and switched back to optical/toslink as fast as I could.
@xoop3579: I totally agree, I have way more than enough power supplies!
@ac81017: Was wondering if you'll ever review REAL Audiophile gear and not this cheap junk? Maybe it's time Audio Phil starts his own channel?
@wmrg1057: Call it a DAMP.
would want network.
What happens when you plug all these pieces in to an USB hub.?
@aesculetum: i identify as an audio hobo
@lau1812: Too much bs
@AudioMasterclass replies to @lau1812: If you can give me a timestamp where you found the most BS I’ll make sure to do more of it.
@andymouse replies to @lau1812: @AudioMasterclass LOL !
@michaeldeloatch7461 replies to @lau1812: @AudioMasterclass I think the gentleman / lady is referring to the lack of tb in your music re the spectroscope rendering. It had lots of bs and a fair bit of md but not so much tb. You probably cooked that separate spectrograph.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @lau1812: @michaeldeloatch7461 You accuse me of cheating so you are not my friend. Please don’t visit my channel again.
@michaeldeloatch7461 replies to @lau1812: @AudioMasterclass Oh dear. I thought you Brits were into subtle humor. I would never ever accuse you of such shenanigans. I was putting a silly punning spin on "BS" is all. Goodness me. I will run out of YT channels if I keep giving offense unintentionally.
@marxman00: Im an Audio Objectionist.... I shall not concur !
@thetraveller1246: What is better than 1 VU meter? 2 VU meters!
@NicoRas-e9m: If you needed a sub woofer with B&W 801 there is something very wrong with them (or your ears)
@AudioMasterclass replies to @NicoRas-e9m: Looking at the specs I could have a sub going down further into LF. On the other hand, I’m OK as I am.
@SastusBulbas1 replies to @NicoRas-e9m: Well it depends on what model, though none of the B&W 801 was actually specified to go below 20hz, the series 1 with no port became one with a port to augment low frequency base with a claimed +-2db at 20hz if you used an equalizer, the later 801 matrix with a 15" driver was +-2db at 37hz. All three went low, but relied on room gain and often EQ to get clean defined low frequencies.
The Series 1 and 2 cannot handle the modern bass of movies all that well due to just how much gain is added to LF movie content, the bigger 801D could handle power a bit better but was way down in output level at meaningful low frequencies.
Great speakers, but not your subwoofer class, subwoofer class is in my opinion below 20hz with meaningfull output.
@NicoRas-e9m replies to @NicoRas-e9m: If you had your speakers for long enough (mine is more than 30 years) the compliance has increased significantly and therefore so does the LF response. I bet if you measured them now you would find that they will operate far below 20 Hz. Much better than their original specification. A loudspeaker is about the only mechanical thing that gets better with age and use.
@SastusBulbas1 replies to @NicoRas-e9m: @NicoRas-e9m if the compliance has changed that dramatically then you do not have low controlled bass, any port tuning and crossover filtering is not specified anymore to that driver, and your more likely listening to the room or distortion and an underdamped response.
In professional circles many monitors will actually get reconed when they get done or past a certain age.
If you know how to run speaker testing and design software you could measure the TS parameters of your drivers and compair them to original spec, or even take them out in the middle of nowhere, or if you have a friend with an anechoic chamber or even better a Klippel measuring device to see the variations.
Even an ATC domed midrange can need a service, bass drivers often need reconing and surround/spider replacements have been a thing for decades too, and tweeters too, especially anything with ferrofluid.
I still run and service old speakers, no speaker that rolls off at 45hz odd changes to 20hz with age, especially one with a plastic cone and rubber surround.
Not all drivers are the same, old heavy cones will need ocassional rotation due to sag, original 801, Kef 105 as examples sag more than a 1970's 12" Wharfdale paper cone in some systems.
Spiders and surrounds will deteriorate more than cones themselves often depending on humidity. People are still running 15" pro drivers from the mid 80's, yet others are having Volt and ATC bass drivers from 90's monitors reconed. Drivers wear in to a degree, but their rubber surrounds, spiders and cones, do not improve with actual age.
I may be wrong, I am sure that the gentleman running this page making these video's is running the original B&W 801 series 1 with the sealed bass cabinet, which had a specified frequency repsonce of 45hz +-2db and was expected to give usable in room responce down to 37hz. The bass driver was a 270mm thermoplastic cone.
The speaker was great, but many were not too enamoured with the bass performance.
The very 1st versions had a battery for the protection circuit, and I believe a 1000uF in series with the woofer to protect from subsonic material.
If it's a 1987 801 Matrix well for many that was an improvement, that system used a 6th order Butterworth alighnment via an external equalizer to acheive 17.5hz at -6db, this was pretty much an RCA in/out box with a wallwart power supply.
Without that filter the system basically ran as a 4th order Bessel filter with -9db at 19hz, and again around +-2db at 37hz I think it was. -9db is quite a lot, and age doesn't increase the compliance of a bass driver to the point it changes a port tune and crossover network for +9db gain only in a spoecific frequency range.
The Nautilus 801 was arguably the biggest change, a 15" paper/kevlar bass driver. Yet this speaker was +-3db at 32hz.
I know how bass drivers age, I have owned and worked on speakers from as far back as the 60's, and some age better than others, spiders can need replaced, often surrounds, paper cones can lose some rigidity, they can go out of spec, and age is always detrimental to the original TS parameters, though rarely enough to make a huge impact unless you clearly hear distortion, or work in a mastering studio and run at continual high SPL for long sessions.
But no full range three way speaker systems are giving subwoofer bass below 20hz with any meaningful output, and by that I mean matching the power and depth of a modern subwoofer with even a moderate +-2db 17hz specification.
No speaker driver changes it's parameters so drastically it can change a 45hz tuned cabinet and it's own resonant behavour to become an accurate 20hz capable system.
Any subwoofer operating above the 20hz area is not a true subwoofer but simply bass reinforcement or extension. Infrabass, well thats down into single digit Hz.
Most mid priced subwoofer systems are capable of output levels at 16hz no high end stereo speaker could ever acheive.
B&W 801 are all great, all capable of great bass, and in room gain can make this sound awsome, but they are no match for a pair of bass managed decent mid priced subs below 40hz. You can actually open up the depth and percussive qualities of these old speakers with a sub taking over the low frequency high excursion production, with a pair and room managent under 500hz even greater results can be had, though you always treat a room 1st and EQ as a last resort.
Subs are not for everyone nor needed by all, there is something comfortable about a nice pair of floorstanders driven by a capable amp. And I would always advocate trying a good power amp with high dampening and current capability into something like the 801 if your using an old integrated, well before trying a sub.
I can only assume your running an 801 Matrix with the EQ. Which for music and production yeah, will not "need" a subwoofer as it was the most capable 801 regarding LF extension, but still will not be as capable as a true modern subwoofer.
@JoseFerreira-zb7wh: What's missing is sub out with selectable crossover frequency (high pass speakers+low pass sub). Also, it's not completely acurate to say when there are digital inputs there's a dac inside. You have digital amplifiers now that have those inputs but no dac inside.
@thelowprofile9767 replies to @JoseFerreira-zb7wh: Give an example.
@JoseFerreira-zb7wh replies to @JoseFerreira-zb7wh: @thelowprofile9767 i have a sabaj a30a for example. I know there's a similar model from smsl. Technics also has some, don't know the model names.
@jp5393 replies to @JoseFerreira-zb7wh: lol How in your opinion you convert signal from optic or BT to analog in this box?))))
@buckaroobonsi555: I am old man so I am often wrong on the internet! I would call this an intergrated amplifier! Why? Because that is what you call an amplifier when it intergrates other functionality like a preamp or DAC. If it had a tuner in it and amplifier it would be a Intergrated amp with tuner or tuner/Intergrated amp etc......When I was a child the first "intergrated amplifiers" combined pre-amplifier with the amplifier. I have to say that made far more sense than the Monster Recievers that came before that had 250wpc housed in an AM/FM Tuner that was often huge!
To my way of thinking the Pre-Amplifer function is huge since a preamp can cost you a small fortune so having that functionality in this black box with amp is the huge the DAC is icing on the cake if you need a DAC.
It appears that is has tone controls. If it also has built in eq no matter the type it is quickly aproaching an all in one solution just needing a tuner. Maybe add in HDMI ARC functionality that works every time and is idiot proof and again your approaching what could be an all in one box for a younger person with a small apartment a phone and some speakers.
@rienpost: I'm a little disappointed you never open these things up. I'm not expecting you to do a breakdown of the electronics or explain the signal path but I would like to see the quality of the build.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @rienpost: Too fiddly.
@andymouse replies to @rienpost: @AudioMasterclass Wuss. :)
@yourchildrensghost9736 replies to @rienpost: They have pictures and schematics on their website.
@gijoe9587 replies to @rienpost: There are other reviewers that do this, every reviewer has their own take
@paulmcdonough9595 replies to @rienpost: Hi I don’t recall you specifically mentioning that you are an objectivist before even though the tone of your videos has always suggested this to be the case.
@tylerpanteleeff8581: That unboxing music... so much excitement and anticipation!
@thexfile.: Current Bluetooth is 5.4
@middleearthltd: I am going out on a limb and calling it an integrated amplifier
Crazy notion but now I said it so I will have to live with it
Integrated amplifier
@exitar1: You don't see white cones that often...they look nice..
@Retro480i replies to @exitar1: The Yamaha NS-10s were ubiquitous in studios large and small in the 1980s and 1990s. They were so popular that as a teenager I spray painted the cones on my no-name speakers. Sad but true.