The Best Amp Under $400 But Costs A Fraction Of That? - 3E Audio A7 Review

[@roverdad]

First time seeing this channel. A nice review. I already have an aiyima 3255 amp and am happy with it. I am always looking at other options and more importantly other audio channels. Subscribed and looking forward to future videos.

[@MattCoykendall1]

Glad you enjoyed the video! Welcome to the channel and community!

[@brettb9600]

I've got the 3e A5. This little amp is the equal of my $5000 PS Audio BHK 250! No, it doesn't have the same power and takes a bit more gain to reach the same volume, and won't play as loud...but I rarely if ever use the extra headroom of the BHK. It's every bit as clean and I think handles the bass even better. The BHK is 83lbs. Class AB biased heavily to A and consumes ~200watts at idle. I'll happily swap it for this 2lbs. super efficient little box.

[@naibafabdulkobor4301]

I actually love the no-nonsense straight industrial look of the A5 / A7 series. 😍 It might be worth noting that not only do all the 3e Audio amps implement PFFB AND use high quality output filter coils. The A7, A5 and A7 Mono also run in Parallel Tie-bridged Load configuration, making them absolutely stable down into 2 ohm loads. If your speakers are true 8 ohm or very well behaved 4 ohm speakers, the A5se or A7se provide some reasonable cost cutting.

[@Jeep_on_audio]

Just too bad they use elco coupling caps. That pretty much destroys all benefits of the other things you mentioned. And if your speakers go down to 2Ω it's pretty safe to say they are badly designed.

[@naibafabdulkobor4301]

​@@Jeep_on_audio That's over generalisation and over simplification. 😅

[@edholmwood2263]

Good review my friend. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours.

[@MattCoykendall1]

Merry Christmas to you as well! Take care!

[@johnstump2433]

I definitely appreciate an amplifier with less bells and whistles within my systems.. and let the preamp handle those.. Yep, I bet that was quite a wake up call! It sounds like the speakers you were using at the time survived since you didn’t mention any damage so that’s a good thing. Thanks again Matt for a great review.

[@MattCoykendall1]

Well thankfully I had a pair of speakers inline with low sensitivity so while it was really loud it wasn't damage my speakers or ears loud, caught it in the first second.

[@318ishonk]

The PCB design, quality of output inductors and choice of MELF resistors in the feedback loop can improve the qualities of an amplifier substantially, and the 3E guys seem to know how to do that without driving the total cost too high. For those who don't like the big, external power supply there are alternatives in amplifiers with modules like Hypex NCore or ICEPower. Both with Power numbers like 200W@4 and 120W@8 Ohm for 200...300 bucks. And then there's value products like the ICEPower 1200AS2 (600W@8 Ohm per channel) for under a grand.

[@FunFiEmpire]

Thank you so much for great new FunFi and honest, helpful, and informative review. It really looks like a great upgrade to the Fosi monoblocks in many ways.

[@MattCoykendall1]

It’s a legitimate amp at it’s price point for sure, I really like it.

[@josephkelly478]

​@@MattCoykendall1you're the second KZbinr I've seen reviewed this amp (Old guy Hifi the other) but non if you guys made mention if can be used as a monoblock. It's stated on AliExpress as stereo mono amp. Can you confirm whether it can be used in mono mode? Thanks

[@JMJM75257]

There are different models. The a7 is a stereo amp the a7 monos as per the name are monoblocks. There is also the a5 which is a tpa3251 based amp which is less power but equal sound. The se models I'm not sure on but I feel they are probably inferior. @@josephkelly478

[@Douglas_Blake]

@@JMJM75257 There's a chart on the 3E website showing the different A series models. The "Se" models are single chip amplifiers running in BTL/Stereo mode. The other models are dual chip amplifiers each running in PBTL/mono mode (for stereo output). The A7Mono is a single TPA3255 running in PBTL/mono mode for single channel outputs. Depending on the implementation specific details the only real difference between the TPA3255 and TPA3251 is the maximum power supply voltage. 48 volts for the 3255, 36 for the 3251. Of course the lower supply voltage does limit power somewhat.

[@Jeep_on_audio]

Rest assured. It's not an upgrade over the others. There's an A5, an A7 and a mono version. Great flat wire inductors, but why totally kill that tiny benefit with using cheap inferior elco coupling caps? That is so stupid. That's what makes this product 'fun-fi' instead of HiFi. You could laugh about it if it weren't so sad. I would call it bad-fi. First you think you hit the jackpot, then you find out she's been cheating on you.

[@mickshrimpton6494]

Sold. Great review,Matt, thanks!

[@MattCoykendall1]

Glad I could help!

[@3eaudio]

Appreciate you great review our amplifier with enhanced PFFB design.

[@ForeverAnalog]

Great video - love those Zu speakers!

[@MattCoykendall1]

They are certainly lookers

[@Telecomman8434]

Great review! Will pair with the WIIM Ultra.

[@MattCoykendall1]

It’s a good match, was listing to that combo today.

[@michaelwright1602]

A7 on the way! Thanks for spending my money Matt. ;-)

[@cobar5342]

Thank you for a very good review

[@donnywidodo8874]

i felt that eye contact!

[@MattCoykendall1]

LOL good!

[@eduardog.8586]

Hola Matt! Muy buen video con traducción al español. Saludos!

[@MattCoykendall1]

Glad to hear it, greetings!

[@c0mbat15]

It's a shame that they don't do UK plug power supplies because I'd be tempted otherwise.

[@alexanderk8135]

THX.... So it really beats the Fosi monos?!

[@riccitone]

Love this amp already. Still wondering how one like this would compare with a quality power amp with similar output at around 1.5 - 2k. I guess I'm just looking for that wanna tinker with opamp swapping fun-fi justification, Or, am afraid of just how good it could sound. Another great review, thank you!

[@MattCoykendall1]

I won’t say it beats everything above it but it certainly handles its price point and above it within reason. If you want to tinker just to see how it works out for you it’s a really good starting point.

[@michaelwright1602]

Matt, when did you get the Zu's? Are you going to review them any time soon? Love the color!

[@MattCoykendall1]

I have had them in for around a month now, will likely keep auditioning and testing and then release the video later in February, I like to really get a feel for the product if I can before I shout out my thoughts for the masses on here.

[@michaelwright1602]

@@MattCoykendall1 Class A or a warm A/B, along with tubes. I like the EL34 tube amps the best. Though the EL84 sound great too. KT88, not so much. ;-)

[@Douglas_Blake]

_I SEE CLIPPING LIGHTS!_ For those unfamiliar with this feature, the lamps are a warning that you are overdriving the amplifier, likely to produce huge bursts of distortion and, with some speakers, even damage the tweeters. They're your notice to cool it! In the TPA3255 chip the Clip/OTW feature will light at about 0.1% distortion, which is right before the onset of hard clipping. It can also latch on to serve as an overtemperature warning, 3E got it right! 3E audio is mainly an OEM providing advanced audio products to professional audio users and manufacturers. I've used a couple of their earlier boards in projects and found them to be of exceptionally good quality. Their website lists several other models of this same amplifier. When this guy's little brother the A7se comes to market, I will be buying several. Thanks for the review Matt ...

[@MattCoykendall1]

I knew you would be here for those clipping lights!

[@Douglas_Blake]

@@MattCoykendall1 You betcha ... about time they started doing this. I've been adding them DIY style for a couple of years already. Now, finally, I don't have to take a drill and soldering iron to a brand new amplifier! The advanced cooling solution... with vents on bottom and sides and the heat spreader at the top of the case is a welcomed adaptation as well.

[@gtg-inspections]

Looking for something like that but with sub out. Replacing my Martin Logan Forte Amp.

[@theoriginalcraig]

I didn't know you were a Zu man! Duuuude. You ROCK. My already-high level of respect for you...just went through the stratosphere.

[@michaelwright1602]

He is now "In the Club". ;-)

[@MattCoykendall1]

I wish I could say they were mine. I have had them in for around a month now, I plan to audition them for likely another month still before putting out my thoughts on here, so far so good, really interesting speaker. Who knows, maybe I will join the club at the end.

[@michaelwright1602]

@@MattCoykendall1 Too bad you missed the Zu sale, they had some incredible discounts for Black Friday. Love mine, especially with EL34 tubes. ;-)

[@trevorbartram5473]

Hi Matt, please do comparative reviews. The A7 versus a comparatively priced class-AB amp & perhaps a price/performance leader like the Fosi V3 (stereo), that way we'd know what we are missing/gaining sonically. What opamp did 3E use for single ended to balanced conversion? I assume it's completely switched out of circuit in balanced mode?

[@MattCoykendall1]

I could certainly look into a comparison like that, the single to balanced is the typical NE5532. Correct, its out of the loop through the balanced connections.

[@RUMBLEGO1]

There are some but not many reviews out there of the Douk Audio A100. PFFB implemented. To me it is a 30% improvement IN MY SYSTEM over the Fosi V3. Not a fan of the looks of it but it sure sounds good! Was able to pick it up for $100 shipped when they were offering an introductory price. Want to just try it knowing i could send it back if not any upgrade. It has stayed. This amp looks very interesting! Definitely looks better than the Douk A100! The mids on the Douk are what initially I couldn't believe. Implementation is definitely a thing as it also is a tpa3255 chip. I now own the original Aiyima A07 and Fosi V3 and now this Douk A100. The journey has definitely gotten better with each successor. Going to stay put for now as I'm totally satisfied with my sound. MacMini>SMSL 6dS>EasternElectricMinimax TubePreamp>Douk A100> Mirage OM9 omnidirectional floorstanders. Your reviews are getting better Matt! Keep up the good work and thanks!

[@MattCoykendall1]

I like Douk as they do make some interesting products, I observed much of the same. It's a good sounding amp but the design on that A100 is certainly something.

[@MarkSWilliams27]

Eastern Electric Minimax preamp! Nice!

[@Douglas_Blake]

As I get more and more into this, I'm discovering there are very real differences in engineering in these chi-fi products. In the example of the TPA3255 based amps the chip itself is very robust and stable. The surrounding circuitry... not so much. The design and board placement of the output filters definitely has an impact on performance. On one amp, I even ended up cutting a fin off the heatsink to get the coils away from it and stop inductive heating. On another I found the layout was optimal but the coils were not. On still another I found everything to be okay. The same is true of the power circuitry. There is a real tendency to skimp on the bulk supply filtering. To compensate for the resistance of the power supply cord and connector, these little amps need at least 2,200uf caps right on the power pins for the TPA3255 outputs. Until recently, most were using 1,000uf and you could see the ripple on the internal bulk rails because of it. On some the logic voltages are high enough to damage the TPA3255's control pins. On some the +12v supply to the op-amps (etc) is just a simple buck converter with marginal filtering. On one I was very happy to find a buck converter with decent filtering followed by a 7812 analog regulator producing a totally flat line 12v supply. Most are somewhere in between. Then there are the op-amps themselves. Many of these designs are just following the schematic of TI's development boards and are using the same parts as TI supplies with the dev-kit. This gives us the ubiquitous NE5532 op-amps in most of these products. Op-amp swapping is almost a necessity as these chips have diode clamping on their inputs which I believe is the source of the "digital sheen" many people have noted. (Class D is not digital, btw) The big gain in chip flipping is not in putting in an exotic op-amp, it is in getting the NE5532s out. Even a $0.40 part like the RC4558 or a $1.10 part like the RC4580 is going to give you a substantial improvement in sound quality. From there the differences with exotic op-amps are barely noticeable and certainly not worth the exorbitant prices people pay for them. Finally there's the issue of feature loading. Nobody needs 1 each of 5 different inputs on an amplifier. Nobody wants a power switch on the volume control. Nobody with a lick of sense wants auto sensing to turn an amplifier back on right after it shuts down in a heat panic or from a shorted speaker lead. The right course is where they started... simple power amps with a power switch and gain control on the front. All the rest is in the domain of a pre-amp and should remain there. And don't even get me started on "fully balanced" topologies. We use balanced to single end converters on the inputs to an amplifier for good reasons, deferring the noise cancelling benefits to the final outputs does literally nothing to improve the sound quality. Of course the problem, so far is that I've yet to find all the good stuff in one amplifier... so almost all of these chi-amps one way or another qualify for the "Missed it by THAT much" award. kzbin.info/www/bejne/pamQf56vequHo9Esi=YWHuqzvO-imQPhiN

[@RUMBLEGO1]

@@Douglas_Blake Way over my head my friend! If you had to pick just one of these inexpensive ones to live with forever, which would it be? Curious. My previous setup was large horn speakers and a large subwoofer all from Bag End. Was running the mentione EEM tube pre into a pair of George Wright SET 300B monoblocks. I thought it sounded phenomenal. A few friends commented on how it is the best system they have heard. Had to scale back after I moved. Can't believe how satisfied I am with this Douk Audio A100. This with just the stock NE5532. Feel no need to replace. Just the other day I was listening to some music using Qobuz. Some of those songs I have never heard sound so good! For the $100 i paid for this amp I am not complaining! Would have gladly paid the full $200+ and be totally satisfied. I'm sure we are just scratching the surface as to what these little amps can accomplish. I"m not technically savvy AT ALL. Just using my ears. Sounds GREAT to me. Thanks for the input!!

[@RUMBLEGO1]

@@MarkSWilliams27 Love it!! Great pre! Blast for the not so distant past eh? hah

[@JMJM75257]

Got my a7 monos on order. I'm looking forward to giving them a listen and compare them to the v3 monos, I suspect the v3's will be up on eBay soon! I reckon I'm going to spend the bulk of my cash on a really nice dac. Probably the d90 iii discrete. Pending the review and comparison with the R2R Centaurus. Worth checking out the earmen staccato streamer, they are on clearance and i reckon you get a lot for the money. What's your view on order of importance with components? I've always been of the mind that what's upstream is more important as without that what's downstream is bottlenecked. In my case streamer, dac/pre then amp.

[@MattCoykendall1]

Looks like if your in the market Earmen has a number of products on discount. The most important for myself is the speakers as its the voice and heavily influences the sound. When shopping everything upstream I look for a clean source and then after that just try to match up the features my particular implementation requires, it can vary so much these days with all the options.

[@JMJM75257]

@@MattCoykendall1 I have a variety of speakers i rotate somewhat regularly. therefore i value clean linear and transparent sounding gear. im curious about r2r dacs as well as this topping discrete. i currently us a smsl do300ex but did try the k11 r2r . It was pleasantly smooth but bass was rounded and overall not the best clarity wise. still fun. I really want a dac that does well with multiple genres while being as transparent as possible. I eagerly await more reviews and comparisons!

[@Jeep_on_audio]

I like your reviews. Really. And I like tpa3255 amps. I am using them now in my system. But this one, I do not like. I'll tell you why. I've done tons of mods on many Chinese audio products for over 15 years. And I use them too. I think I know a thing or two of how they make stuff. The lower tier stuff often have great ideas but there's always some dumb mistake in there that keeps it from reaching its full potential. And one that keeps on popping up is ELCO COUPLING CAPS. Those tiny sneaky killjoys. And I see 4 of them in this one. That means you can forget any aspirations for this amp to be as scalable as, Aiyima or Fosi competition. Upgrading opamps will be a waste of money of you do not replace those tiny crap elcos with big foil capacitors. Good luck fitting that inside right next to your Burson opamps. Yes, I'm playing with Aiyima A70 mono's with Sparkos opamps, and they made some weird choices. But they don't sound bad. They're in my main system (Laiv dac+HP2a) and that is a great combination. I also have an SMSL with Infineon MA12070 where I had to remove those elco coupling caps. That sounds ok now in the bedroom. But before that... Not good. That makes this amp just right for any budget gear. But when you start to upgrade, this will soon be the weakest link.

[@3eaudio]

looks like if an amp can't be modify by yourself especially the coupling cap,then it is not a good one.😇

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

Is your smsl the same as the Loxjie-a40? What did the cap replacement improve? What's the main weakness of your Smsl before and after the cap replacement?

[@Jeep_on_audio]

​​@@3eaudio Sorry. You're totally missing the point. Your amp is a lot more expensive and has $0.10 coupling caps holding the entire product down. It doesn't matter what I can do, or could, not would... It doesn't matter. You are holding your model down. And 99% will not notice. But in the end, it's a bad move. Your product will never reach its full potential and upgrading opamps is a waste of money.

[@Jeep_on_audio]

​@@crazyprayingmantis5596 The elcos reduce resolution, speed, detail, air, spatial resolution. And introduce electronic hash. In short, it makes a potentially great amplifier sound like a bluetooth speaker.

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

@@Jeep_on_audio What's the main weakness now after the cap change? I'm asking because I have a Loxjie-a40 I'm considering tinkering with.

[@JffMrtynz]

Good job.

[@sparklemotionguitars]

Is it bridgeable?

[@DavidBrown-eo3hw]

Good review. Unless l missed it, the website doesnt have a 48v/10a version only a 48v/5a version. It does have a 48v/5a A7 mono version though. Any chance of reviewing the A7 mono? Thanks.

[@MattCoykendall1]

I am guessing the 10a must be out of stock, I would keep an eye on it if your interested. Not sure on the mono, the performance should be similar but I would always be willing to at least find out.

[@tofffsymagic1099]

​@@MattCoykendall1According to what 3e Audio said to me when I was hesitating between A7 mono and A5 they told me that A5 was the best choice TPA3251 be superior if I don't need as much power. They will soon update their Ali shop with A7 mono without power supply and maybe 48V 10a sold separately also. Their amplifiers will be available on Audiophonics also and be on Amazo is also a goal for 2025

[@fivish]

The Yamaha RS202D is a great amp with 100+100 Wrms into 8 ohms.

[@Douglas_Blake]

You do understand the A7 is a power amplifier capable of 120w/ch on 8 ohms and 240 on 4 ... right?

[@Brian_Romska]

Cool, thanks Matt! Are your speakers ok after the volume mishap? I’ve got an adcom gfa 555 power amp and I always hold my breath for a second whenever I power it up after swapping something else out, just in case I missed something, so far so good, thanks!

[@MattCoykendall1]

Right, you never want one of those surprises! Everything was OK thankfully, I still had my hand on the power so it was very brief.

[@caidelander2561]

Hey man, I currently run a pair of Wharfdale diamonds 12.2s with a Svs SB1000pro and a topping DX3 pro+ and a Fosi Audio TB10D Upgraded version. I just got a wiim pro as a birthday present and maybe looking to return it and get a Wiim amp. Or would getting this amp make a bit more sense ? At the moment I manage a lot of my streaming on a Samsung S90C TV. I could maybe go with the wiim ultra and this amp or what would you recommend ? My topping dac is supposed to sit on my desk but is currently being used as the dac for my set up.

[@User_not_found_403]

Enough space for the Sparkos SS2590s?

[@MattCoykendall1]

I wish I could say for certain, I dont have that one in. I can reach out to Sparko's and see if I can get one for future fitment questions.

[@User_not_found_403]

@@MattCoykendall1 Yes, you should. They put the ss3602 to shame. Also the virtual hifi parallel op amps are amazing too. I have supersonic v2 and they also beat the ss3602 by a large margin. I’m on a aiyima A70 stereo but want a pffb amp with space to accommodate the bigger op amps.

[@amarchelhello3382]

​@@User_not_found_403 virtual Hifi? The guy in Poland?

[@User_not_found_403]

@@amarchelhello3382 yes

[@tofffsymagic1099]

​@@User_not_found_403You can use your amp upside down with wired dip8 sockets extenders if you want to use opamps that are larger than the opening in te case. I've order the A5 and will use it that way with Virtual Hifi Hypersonic opamps that run too hot to be used inside an amplifier enclosure

[@OSQQ123]

Compared to Fosi ZA3?

[@MattCoykendall1]

I prefer this but the ZA3 has its own flavor and really doesn’t disappoint within its price range. I could easily listen to one or two ZA3’s without much for complaints.

[@Jeep_on_audio]

I saw there are elco coupling caps in this one. That's a BIG no- no in my book. Defeats the benefit of any upgraded opamp.

[@DenBogatyrev]

flat scene? no one will say about it

[@MattCoykendall1]

If I had to label the sheen, maybe satin? Not glossy at all, not a finger print magnet.

[@amarchelhello3382]

Guess there was no reply to my message. Later

[@EARLandPEARL-c3i]

spend $100 more and get the Edge A2-300

[@MattCoykendall1]

It's certainly an option

[@naibafabdulkobor4301]

In Europe the difference between a 3e Audio A7 and an A2-300 is roughly 60% or 170 EUR. Is the ICEpower module really better than a maxed out TPA3255? It's debatable at least. The main advantage of the A2-300 is the absence of an external power brick. And you can decide to go mono later on, buying another unit.

[@Patrick-t4y]

ALWAYS SPEAKING ! STOP ! tiresome ! 000

[@tonymolina7744]

@mattcoykendall1 He got jokes! Awkward eye contact ... classic! Thanks for another product review that is informative and useful. You rock, keep them coming! 🙃

[@MattCoykendall1]

Thanks for watching as always!