hmm.. new STA350BW based SMSL Q5 amp?

I've read mixed things about the chip - I suppose the proof is in the pudding.

It's a shame that SMSL skimped on a headphone output. Otherwise, this would be just the desktop amp I'm looking for.
 
I received my SMSL Q5 yesterday. I've been using a Raspberry Pi B with Hifiberry I2S ES9023 dac running Volumio 1.5, Music First TVC preamp & Audiobah TPA3116 amplifier with Lundahl input transformers. I connected the SMSL Q5 to the Raspberry Pi via USB, deactivated the I2S driver, rebooted the Pi and Volumio automatically recognised and selected the QAMP playback device. I've tested 16/44.1, 24/44.1 & 24/96 files and all work fine.

The Q5 sounds great. The dynamics, bass depth and power and clarity in mid/top is brilliant. Small details like quiet brushed cymbals remain clear even with loud trumpets etc. The overall impression is of a really focussed, detailed but warm sound.

I've not yet tested with other sources. I suspect digital sources via toslink and s/pdif will be equally good, and analogue input a bit worse (given the ADC stage) but the quality via USB more than justifies the cost, to my ears. It will be interesting to see how it compares to a NAD D3020 or Nuforce DDA-100 (I've not heard either).
 
Resurrecting this thread because I just ordered this:

http://www.parts-express.com/smsl-q5-2x50w-amplifier-dac-with-optical-coaxial-usb--230-208

I'm looking to simplify my 2-channel TV setup in the basement and this should take care of all my input needs (and it has the prerequisite remote for my wife). It sounds like SMSL has worked out some kinks in a new version via firmware updates, and all recent reviews seem to be positive. It should be to my house early next week and I'll report back then. If it works well it will replace a preamp, amp, external DAC (FiiO D3), and the associated tangle of cords. Like winters860 said, this unit would be particularly sweet if it had a headphone out and/or pre-outs...

Has anyone else tried this amp?
 
The smsl sa 60 which uses the tpa 3116 chip is very good walks all over a topping tp21 that i have. It is very revealing and transparent and I am thinking of buying another one as backup.It has a good build quality and will shock you with the SQ....every bit as good as my nad 325 bee I would say it sounds more neutral then the 325 bee.
 
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I am not kidding David I was a sceptic but as far as sound quality from a SS amp I cant think of a amp I have had that beats it in sound quality and I have had a few amps. I shake my head at this little amp.
 
Thanks for bringing back this thread, I had missed it and that does look like an interesting piece. I am very impressed by the SMSL SA-36A Pro TPA-3118 amp and was thinking having a built in DAC would be nice.
 
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wsissons said:
I am not kidding David I was a sceptic but as far as sound quality from a SS amp I cant think of a amp I have had that beats it in sound quality and I have had a few amps. I shake my head at this little amp.
Click to expand...

and i'm getting yet another SS amp soon...just because I can.
will see how that stacks up against the 3116. I have both the cheapest red board and the best green board.
 
Gnesen said:
Resurrecting this thread because I just ordered this:

http://www.parts-express.com/smsl-q5-2x50w-amplifier-dac-with-optical-coaxial-usb--230-208
Click to expand...

A quick review: this is a neat little amp. This is perfect for anyone wanting an array of audio inputs for a two channel home theater or computer setup, but not wanting a traditional receiver or integrated (and the associated size and price). The sound quality is great for dialog, decent for music -- very defined and articulate. I'm inclined to think the rated power is close to accurate (50wpc into 4 ohms, 35wpc into 8), but, like a lot of chip amps, the highs can be a little harsh at times. The remote has worked well for me so far.

At the moment this amp is driving Advent Heritage's through a powered sub (Dayton PSW10). It's not hi-end, but very enjoyable. I might try to post a photo or two later.
 
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I've been doing some reading about the SMSL Q5...appears many people think it is even better than the very well liked TPA3116D2 based chip amps which has beaten many $$$$ amps...so the Q5 has me very interested.

I tried an audiobah 3116 amp with a linear power supply any found it to be about equal in SQ as my Indeed TA2020 amp (which is awesome btw). The reason I didn't keep it is because it had a higher noise floor and I listen to my speakers only 3ft away...the low level hiss was a deal breaker.

So on to the Q5...I may give this a try as it has a bit higher output than my current tripath and possibly a lower noise floor than the 3116 based amps. I don't really need the DAC since I currently use the Stoner Acoustics UD120 (outstanding value btw!), but I've seen it performs better via USB.

I've also tried a Crown XLS2000, but it did not sound as good as the TA2020 t-amp and had a audible background hiss.

I'm also curious about some of these chinese tube amps i.e. Yaqin, Mingda, etc...They are way more expensive and a fortune to ship, so I'm a bit hesitant about trying one of these...worrying about the expense of return shipping.

Any thoughts on how these compare?



sharpi31 said:
I received my SMSL Q5 yesterday. I've been using a Raspberry Pi B with Hifiberry I2S ES9023 dac running Volumio 1.5, Music First TVC preamp & Audiobah TPA3116 amplifier with Lundahl input transformers. I connected the SMSL Q5 to the Raspberry Pi via USB, deactivated the I2S driver, rebooted the Pi and Volumio automatically recognised and selected the QAMP playback device. I've tested 16/44.1, 24/44.1 & 24/96 files and all work fine.

The Q5 sounds great. The dynamics, bass depth and power and clarity in mid/top is brilliant. Small details like quiet brushed cymbals remain clear even with loud trumpets etc. The overall impression is of a really focussed, detailed but warm sound.

I've not yet tested with other sources. I suspect digital sources via toslink and s/pdif will be equally good, and analogue input a bit worse (given the ADC stage) but the quality via USB more than justifies the cost, to my ears. It will be interesting to see how it compares to a NAD D3020 or Nuforce DDA-100 (I've not heard either).
Click to expand...
 
I'm still using the Q5, and haven't felt the need to go back to my other dac(s) + TVC preamp + power amp(s).

I've experienced a couple of issues during the time I've had the Q5: I've had to power off then on to get things working with the USB input after my Rasp Pi has been rebooted or USB disconnected. Once I also had two left channels with the USB input (power cycle made it right again).

Apparently there are V2 & V3 versions of the Q5 that fix these issues, and provide a more consistent volume control (the slightly varying steps in volume increase/decrease with my V1 never bothered me).

All in all a great little amp that I think betters the the ES9023 dac + TPA3116 combos I've tried. Assuming the slight operational bugs have now been fixed I think it's a no brainer.
 
sharpi31 said:
I'm still using the Q5, and haven't felt the need to go back to my other dac(s) + TVC preamp + power amp(s).

I've experienced a couple of issues during the time I've had the Q5: I've had to power off then on to get things working with the USB input after my Rasp Pi has been rebooted or USB disconnected. Once I also had two left channels with the USB input (power cycle made it right again).

Apparently there are V2 & V3 versions of the Q5 that fix these issues, and provide a more consistent volume control (the slightly varying steps in volume increase/decrease with my V1 never bothered me).

All in all a great little amp that I think betters the the ES9023 dac + TPA3116 combos I've tried. Assuming the slight operational bugs have now been fixed I think it's a no brainer.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback!
I think I may try the Q5 to see how it compares to my Stoner UD120/Indeed TA2020 combo. If it isn't much of an improvement, I suppose there's no harm in returning it, but...if it exceeds expectations...

I may start looking at the Q5's big brothers: The QA100, POPU D6 and the DSOUND D310 :)
 
Resurrecting this thread in hopes that someone can comment on how well the Q5 Pro performs with analog input. I'd like to use this in a bedroom TV situation with the optical input but I have concerns about the WAF of adding another remote just for controlling volume (as opposed to using the TV remote to control volume). That being the case, the analog inputs would be the fallback. It would be extra great if you anyone could compare Q5 analog input performance to other SMSL offerings or other chip amps. I'm also thinking about the SMSL SA-160 (great deal on Massdrop at the moment) or SA-60.
 
MFaughn said:
Resurrecting this thread in hopes that someone can comment on how well the Q5 Pro performs with analog input. I'd like to use this in a bedroom TV situation with the optical input but I have concerns about the WAF of adding another remote just for controlling volume (as opposed to using the TV remote to control volume). That being the case, the analog inputs would be the fallback. It would be extra great if you anyone could compare Q5 analog input performance to other SMSL offerings or other chip amps. I'm also thinking about the SMSL SA-160 (great deal on Massdrop at the moment) or SA-60.
Click to expand...

I have to say I love these amps. I dug out all my old hifi stuff a few months ago - including my old Cambridge Audio amp and B&W DM4s. I immediately remembered why I hated that amplifier - as soon as you turn it on you can hear hiss from the speakers. So I ebayed the old tape deck, CD player, Minidisc (!!) and amplifier but kept the speakers and got inspired to try them out with Chromecast Audio and an SMSL SA-36 Pro. The difference between that set up and the Cambridge Audio amp was simply amazing. Even with the little SA-36, there's tons of power and I could hear more in the music than I ever had with the old set up (those B&W DM4s are pretty awesome too - not bad for 42 years old.)

I decided to upgrade and bought a Q5 v3. I got it from China and waited the requisite couple of weeks. It's great. More powerful than the SA-36 and now I can have the flexibility to plug in some more stuff and sit back on the softa and turn it up. I ended up buying another Q5 and some decent speakers (and another Chromecast audio) for the front room, and some new speakers for my kitchen which are powered by the SA-36.

I'm sure I could spend a small fortune on hifi stuff and get slightly better sound, but for me the SMSL amps with good speakers are as clear and precise as good headphones and helping me regain my music collection. Don't believe everything the audiophile snobs want you to believe about why they had to spend £10k or £25k on their systems!

And to answer your question! Due to the other things I want to plug into the Q5s - in one room I have the Chromecast plugged into the analog input and in the other room I've got it going into the optical. It's testament to the DAC on the Chromecast and the amp that I can't hear the difference. If anything I prefer it through the SMSL DAC but it's marginal and I bet I couldn't tell them apart on a blind test. That being said, I like having the remote rather than relying on the volume of the input and if you're thinking of using the headphone out rather than a line out, you could end up with different problems.
 
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