Douk Audio ST-01 First Impressions

Douk Audio ST-01 First Impressions

[@Gryllus2501]

Amazon was sold out of AIYIMA T9. I got the Douk ST-01, which from i can appear be all the same parts with the exception slight thinner wifi antenna. I pair that with Micca RB42 or Sony CS5 speakers & SVS SB-100 pro off 3.5mm for desktop pc sound in small/medium room. No issues pair my iPhone13 to BT, USB to PC, TOS Xbox OneX, RCA to Korg Kaoss DJ controller, & Coaxial to CD player. Love it for cheap audio great sound. Both have a slight power down if no noise on inputs after 8-10secs, then with slight click once input has noise. The Bass/Treble knobs have 40 clicks. Volume knob has 30 clicks and blinks input when min or max. Gotten speakers past 98db sounding clear.

[@snuffpappy]

You need only to listen to this amp to know it's one of the most revealing, musical and entertaining amps under $1000. I've owned Cambridge, NAD, AMC, and others. I added a DAC to my AMC and still feel THIS little amp brings music alive better than any of them. I can't address its' longevity but sound quality is stellar and build quality is very good. I played the Titanic soundtrack, Ron Sexsmith, McCartney, Johnny Cash... all showed more detail right down to the quietest sound as songs fade. I'm hearing details in the arrangements that are amazing. Bass extension was better than my AMC, the tone controls are very musical... bottom line, for under $200 Canadian it's a steal. DONT consider it a "little, desktop amp." Mine is paired with a pair of Monitor Audios. This amp belongs in an "audiophile" setup.

[@RaveyDavey]

Bollocks is it. It's a cheap digital amp with some tubes and a VU meter stuck on, further eating into the engineering budget.

[@brianyearling7810]

I own the T9... basically the same thing. I have a marantz pm7000n, great integrated... this thing does things that $1200 integrated can't do. The separation, the detail in space, shocking and an absolute blast. Doesn't sound great on every recording, but when it does... it's awesome. Dire straits, money for nothing, opening!!! Never heard anything like it. Is it worth $130... without a doubt.

[@simonzinc-trumpetharris852]

​@@RaveyDaveyHave you heard one?

[@700gsteak]

People elsewhere are saying it takes 2-3 seconds to click back on but here its shown it turns back on in less than a second.

[@dariomargeli]

I bought one of these Douk amps and it had this problem where when you stop the music in RCA mode, but you kept the amp on, it would make constant click sounds every 10 seconds which was very annoying. Since I like some quiet once in a while. In amazon I found others who had the same problem.

[@simonzinc-trumpetharris852]

M1 on the remote disables auto mute.

[@MrAlexds02]

Good for the price but the auto-mute, delay with power saving mode is really a bad thing. I want to solve this problem or find an other amp with same pecs without this problem.

[@onyachamp]

I think I have an improved revision of this. Mine clicks into the power save mode after about 15 seconds.

[@twooger]

Does it continue to click every 15sec or it clicks just once?

[@Rafa-iz7sr]

@@twooger Spróbuj M1 na pilocie

[@glenngogoll6166]

Its got speaker terminals dosent it? Like the Aiyima T9? Then its an integrated amp, not a pre amp.

[@Madswede1929]

It’s definitely an amp, with built in DAC, and tone controls; my apologies; first video I’ve uploaded in about a decade. Doesn’t excuse the potential misinformation. I’ll do better if I upload more.

[@Vdubatron]

if you crank both tone controls all the way to the right, is that different than just turning up the volume?

[@CinemaDemocratica]

Sure it's a toy/desktop amp for those people who are fortunate enough to be able to look seriously at $1000 integrateds by Audiolab and Naim and Rotel, but for the person who desperately wishes that he could get 80% of the way there on a much, **much** more limited budget, it's a godsend. Personally I'd go the powered speaker route (and did) but this thing and a pair of Neumi BS5's are one hell of a system for under $300 total.

[@hamjabuns]

What song is this? These are the kinds on songs im looking for recently Thank you

[@LCMessinger]

Bought one, sounds great, but it gets extremely hot quickly. I would think this will limit it’s longevity..

[@AmbientWanderer]

Stil working?

[@twooger]

Clicking is really annoying if you're using it for desktop setup. Imagine working and it just clicks every 10sec. Returned mine after 3 days...

[@glenngogoll6166]

That looks exactly like the Aiyima T9, is it?

[@Madswede1929]

It’s exactly the T9, as far as I can tell…just branded differently.

[@Madswede1929]

Yup…

[@jemsmay2167]

Got the Aiyima a couple of months ago, connected to a WiiM via toslink. Have not heard any clicking. Don’t know if they fixed it or if it’s not a thing when using optical. Either way sounds really good thru my CS5s.

[@user-cu7ws4nu3w]

what's the name of song you play?

[@okpush]

Clicking problem is really annoying problem. same happened to me. I want to hit T9 with hammer.

[@twooger]

I've contacted their support, they replied it's a feature, not a bug 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@denroy3]

You didn't say much, weren't completely clear...I got, you didn't like it but didn't say why.

[@jkresyman1787]

Worth the wait. (3 wk.)powering pioneer cs-63dx👍headphone Jack to Crown xli 1500 (Skar12”) So far,👍🍀😜

[@nathan6508]

How does it sound with a headphone jack going into your crown power amp ?

[@jkresyman1787]

@@nathan6508 I go through a cheap Technics eq then crown amp.

[@fun-life]

What music is this?

[@dylanemeraldgrey]

Hi. Thinking about using this as a pre-amp/dac between my computer and a/v receiver. Currently have a sonata pro dac going from computer usb and a 3.5 to rca into a/v receiver. I'm assuming I'd do the same with the Douk? A little more warmth would probably do my system some good, but not sure if it's worth it. I also wonder how long these cheap items will last...

[@glenngogoll6166]

Dylan, I’m thinking again that the Douk is an Aiyima T9 with a different name. It looks absolutely identical. I got an Aiyima a week ago for my bedroom system & listened long & loud all weekend.(wife was away) I was astonished by its sound quality, just driving a cheap pair of little 4”, 2ways. My main system is a Yamaha AS 1100 with a pair of Dali Suite 1.5s, about $5k retail in Australia. This little jigger had me entranced all weekend. Depth brilliant, sound stage, spectacular & all for $450 Australian. I like it better than my other system. Thinking of selling it & getting another T9. If the Douk does NOT have the ability to drive speakers, like the Aiyima, then it is a pre amp. If it can drive speakers, like the T9, then it is an integrated amp.

[@dylanemeraldgrey]

@@glenngogoll6166 Thanks for the reply. Yeah, it appears to be identical. I'd be surprised if it wasn't. I'm kicking myself a bit because the T9 was all the way down to around $80 for a minute on Amazon a couple of months ago and I didn't pull the trigger. Now it's unavailable and the douk is $129. Interesting info about how good you find the T9. I really just need a preamp, but you do make a compelling case. I'll probably wait until the T9 comes back and goes on sale, or the douk goes on sale... Still wish I knew definitively if I could use it as I described, but maybe someone will reply in the meantime. Let me know if you have any issues that arise. I'm still a bit wary of the overall quality. Anyway, thanks again. - Cheers

[@glenngogoll6166]

@@dylanemeraldgrey i only got mine a week ago from Aliexpress, direct from China. Cost $150 Australian,inc delivery. You can still find tham cheaper but beware, the price usually wont include a transformer. Mine was $98 + $30ish for a tranny. Plus postage brought it to $150. I cant tell you how pleased I am with the sound. All this from a box about the size of a 500gm block of butter. Buggered if I no how they do it.

[@glenngogoll6166]

Know, not no

[@glenngogoll6166]

They do make a straight pre amp with valves & no speaker output.

[@bryanwilliams3665]

Can you use a seperate DAC with this .. Thanks

[@glenngogoll6166]

Bryan, if its the same as the Aiyima T9, which it looks exactly like, it has DAC built in with optical & rca digital inputs.

[@bryanwilliams3665]

@@glenngogoll6166Cheers Glenn... They have told me, this morning, you can use an external DAC into it if you so desired...I can't though, get a straight answer from them, if the current stock has the' relay cutting in and out ' issue has been fixed. ( quote:: " The issue is under investigation. The problem is still completely resolved").... I don't really get that message... It's a bit mixed?

[@Madswede1929]

@@bryanwilliams3665 it most certainly has a built in digital/analog converter…I’m currently using this little guy as a preamp into a 70’s Technics integrated receiver. I recorded the video with direct output to some bookshelf speakers though, right out of the douk itself.

[@bryanwilliams3665]

@@Madswede1929 Do you have an issue with the 'relay cutting in' and putting the unit into a sort of 'standby mode'if there is an extended gap between music tracks .? tracks..Many people have been annoyed.With it.

[@Madswede1929]

@@bryanwilliams3665 “sort of”…it’s not as bad as people make it out to be, but as shown in the video, if there isn’t signal input for about 3 seconds, it switches to a power save mode. When signal input is returned, it takes about a second to switch back on. Not a deal breaker for me, all things considered.

[@Rafa-iz7sr]

Wymień lampy na GE 5725 usłyszysz różnice :)

[@glenngogoll6166]

Hans, you need to write in English, I know you can, you did it yesterday to me. I don’t recognise your language, Czech, Magyar?

[@Rafa-iz7sr]

@@glenngogoll6166 POLISH :)

[@glenngogoll6166]

@@Rafa-iz7sr can you please translate into English. I dont read or understand Polish. I’m guessing that you changed out the valves in the T9 to GE 5725s. Im also guessing that it was an improvement.

[@WormZes]

Masz ten wzmacniacz? :D

[@anxietydisorders5917]

is an hybrid or full tube?

[@Madswede1929]

Hybrid

[@RodrigoAmaraldj]

@@Madswede1929What is a hybrid tube preamp?

[@reserva120]

you "Guess" a Great deal..

[@Madswede1929]

After a few weeks of running it, I still “guess” that it sounds pretty good, especially considering the price! Nice little garage/desktop setup!

[@petermiller4097]

@@Madswede1929 ummmmm

[@i23intheplace2b]

It's a superb deal.

[@e4300]

OMG this KZbinr just wastes time and says absolutely nothing. He could not get to the point if it was a matter of life or death.