Fosi Audio ZA3 amplifier review - bargain HiFi for everyone (disassembly included)
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- čas přidán 27. 07. 2024
- I am a bit late to the party because it needed 200h burn in. Watch for advice on opamps and disassembly as well as sound quality impressions
- Věda a technologie
Hi, thanks for the honest review. I took two of these and tested them heavily for a month after 200 hours of burn in period with Sparkos OPAs. I really give them a chance and my conclusion is the same like yours. They are good for the money and good for the desktop application. So, don't expect the miracles from these amps especially if you are used to bigger solid state Class A or similar amps. On one amp I went a one step further and I have replaced the power capacitors and signal capacitors with same values but it totally messed the sound picture of amp. The quality of installed components is questionable, including factory installed OPAs. The quality of PCB, trace lines and pads is really poor. BTW, I have Aiyima A07 Pro amplifier and I prefer the sound of Aiyima more.
Yes these are good value for the money, but the hype is not real. BTW thats interesting what you're saying about A07 Pro. For some reason I find A07 Pro with better opamps one of the amps I want to keep, souds really good though the build is not as simple as others and it has dreaded bass and treble controls ;)
@@k4syx I use A07 Pro in combination of OPA1612 and BB OPA2604 and to me A07 sound neutral and natural. Even with affordable TI LME49720NA A07 Pro will sound transparent. Pair it with warm sounding DAC (e.g. AKM bases) or in my case DIY tube DAC and you have everything for good start. With Fosi's I always have feeling there is something around music and it not part of original recording (i.e. some kind of noise is present).
Nice pro tip on removing all the back plate screws for disassembly. Thanks.
Disassembly tip: just remove the (2) m3 screws on the BOTTOM. Next, remove the (2) m3 screws that are CLOSEST to the EDGE on the back- that's all you need to do (4 screws total). Reply if you have any questions...
@@billmcginley how will you slide out the PCB then?
@@k4syx Sorry. I forgot a critical step. Remove the volume knob and 10mm nut on the potentiometer. NOW you can remove the front panel and pull the pcb out from the back.
@@billmcginley Not exactly. What you've described is standard method for disassembly. It requires removing the volume knob which some people find unnerving. Also it can be tricky re-aligning the toggle switches with the front panel holes. And finally there is some risk that you can bend the tiny LED lamp so that it does not shine through the lens on the front plate. @k4syx's method avoids all this.
@@billmcginley so you just pull the knob? Mine just wouldn't let go, and I was afraid I'll damage it as it doubles as a switch. If there's a nut underneath then it's standard solution...
Hey. Nice video. How does the sound compare to your dartzeel clone amp? Be good to know your feedback on how the tone compares?
Fosi is great for a TPA3255 integrated device. But DartZeel clone plays in different league.
Everything is better, but it's not exactly fair comparison because of the price difference.
Can you put a link to where you bought the OPA828 in SOP8, please?
Sure, here you go:
a.aliexpress.com/_EQ08x9z
I got 6 of them for my different amps and DACs.
Did you ever replace OPAs in Gustard x26 DAC too?
@@jarkos6019 No, X26PRO has discrete output stage. I'll do a review on this DAC as it's my daily driver now.
can you do video to listen to this set? Can it play without pre-amp?
It has volume control so as long as you're ok with two sets of inputs (XLR and RCA) you don't need preamp.
I could do a video with sound test, but it won't do much good because I don't have a good microphone. So the recording quality will be baaad :(
Hi how does the za3 compare to the fosi v3 thank you
It's better, looks better, sounds better, has XLRs but it's also more expensive!
@@k4syx ok thanks bro
Which XRL cable sounds better to your ears?
The best I've tested so far was fake Audioquest WEL XLR cable. But it costs more than this amplifier :)
For this amp I would go for something cheaper like diy based on Magami cables.
Ok...thanks
Is it better than MF A1 clone?
@@maxrider2887 no it's not, however this one is like two times cheaper
I have booth A07max & za3 , aiyima has better build quality, za3 has faulty switches and problems in volume knob ...aiyima sounds better as well
And Aiyima is cheaper. Though after my MF clone testing I'd rather take MF for SQ and comparable price over two of them any day (unless I would reaaalllyyy need powah ;) ).
lol you broke i guess 12v input cable ;D
Nah it's perfectly fine :)
it should be mentioned that Fosi messed up the deign of the ZA3 and they are getting ready to replace it... the design issue with the ZA3 is its missing some of the filtering and so its sound characteristics change when its presented with different speakers with different load ratings... on some speakers it sound very bright due to this problem....
It's a trait of most if not all TPA series amplifiers. They are a bit brighter at the top and that usually compensates with more difficult load over 10-12kHz. But in my experience with about 7 different set of speakers it was never an audible problem. This gives them openess at the top end, but at the same time I have to admit I wouldn't pair them with something excessively bright. Too much of a good thing :)
@@k4syx its simply because they didn't pay attention to the design specs that Texas Instruments documented for them.... they are now getting ready to release a newer design with the proper filtering included.... the older ZA3 is also a FAKE mono design as the switch doesn't do much besides turn off the other channel... also the newer design will be mono and not include the volume knob... it also will have better power supply with 10amps available...
@@dixter1652 that doesn't bode well for future sales, right? :)
@@k4syxwhat speakers can you offer?
@@andrews4379 what do you mean? What can I recommend?