Aune is a Chinese company known for its minimal and sleek designed audio gear with a focus on high fidelity sound at a reasonable price. The aune B1s is the first overall upgrade of the well acclaimed aune B1. One of the best value in budget amps.
The aune B1s has been lent to me by @ethosian on the case of a sponsored European tour. I have tested the amplifier for about week. I'll try to be as accurate and objective as my ears and my brain let me to be.
#SPECIFICATIONS:
The aune B1s comes in a black box with a thick usb cable and a humble 3.5 to 3.5 interconnect. So me manuals in Chinese and English. No need for more.
#BUILD
The B1s has the dimensions of a 5" smartphone except it's a bit thicker. It is too big to fit my jeans pocket but it's small enough to be in a jacket or coat pocket. It's a bit heavy, I wouldn't like to drop this thing considering it has a glass panel. The volume knob is made of high quality plastic. The chassis is of brushed metal glued to what looks like aluminum on a side and leather on the other. There is a small led button to check battery life.
The knob has large travel and it's really easy to fine tune the volume desired. I noticed channel imbalance at very low volume but nothing alarming considering the quality of the low gain.
There is two gain modes. The low gain is quite conservative and you can easily use sensitive earphones without hassle. The high gain has power and I only need to go as far as 20% to get comfortable volume with my 300 to 600 ohm earbuds. The amp can get rather warm. Slightly more than lukewarm. At the time of the review, it is very cold in Europe right now, But I would assume, in summer or in a tropical area, this may be uncomfortable for some.
I don't know how easy it is to open it but I guess you'll have to tear down some panels considering I couldn't find any screw. I guess it is not meant to be eventually repairable or modded. Something that concern me considering the battery life is on the short side (c. 8 hours on CLASS A). If used on a regular basis, I don't know how well it will pass the two years mark.(average life of a lithium battery before it start to degrade significantly)
airy, smooth, clear like the Swiss mountains on a sunny day
For the review I will mostly use the nuansa P1 (Philips multibit DAC TDA1387T) as a source with a jensen silver cable with oyaide plug interconnect. I will also do some test with the Zishan Z2(AK4490 DAC)
#SOUND
earphones used: Puresounds PS100-600, K's 300 samsara, SeaHF F650S, Blur black cable.
Coming from the aune m1s, I felt at home with the aune B1s sound, It's quite airy and clear. The imaging is accurate. Compared to the m1s, the sound stage is larger, the treble more controlled and overall it sounds more musical. There is a holographic-like presentation, It's easy to sense the space of the scene. The sub bass is of excellent quality, and can reach low with the right earphones. The sound is airy, It has an holographic quality, the layering and separation is excellent. It's very resolving and textures are rich. Overall the tonality sounds right to me. There is a slight upper mid lift which gives an overall sense of clarity.
The sound signature of this amp could be described as an "airy and fresh" for the lack of better term, If you are happy with the aune M1S, you couldn't be more satisfied with the B1s.
Although it sounds excellent on many levels, I noticed some drawback: The upper mid lift can be tiring, Especially If you pair this amp with the wrong earphones. I had issues listening to some song where the piano would be a tad too present. The snare of some techno recordings can be too much as well. With some recording that are a bit old and/or modest in terms of mastering the B1s will be unforgiving. The sound will be relatively thin, acid, and flaws would be overly apparent. "Angry" music will sound a bit too polished and relaxed.
Pairing in order of preference with their sound signature and how they react with the aune B1s:
Note: Using the Zishan Z2 DAP line out as a source, the sound is more dry, more 2D, somewhat hollow. Please bear in mind the price difference, considering it is ten times cheaper than the P1. It is nice to notice that the aune B1s is very transparent to it's source. And scale very well with a higher end DAC.
Aune B1s vs Revamp Acoustics Nuansa A1
Nuansa A1 is a discrete amplifier made by Revamp Acoustics, a one man business from Indonesia. It has similar spec in terms of power output, the price is significantly higher though (240usd+40usd shipping vs the 230usd with free shipping of B1s) They are both neutral amplifier although the approach is quite different. On the P1, The sound stage is smaller. There is less air between the instruments, the sound is more upfront and energetic. A tad less resolving, details are melted in the overall presentation. On high end recordings, the B1S is a step further in clarity and agility. The holographic feel is more present, each instruments feels more palpable on its own. However The sound presentation is more even and less colored on the A1. The A1 is more versatile for pairing with different earphones and/or listening to different type of recordings. The A1 has an analog quality. Old recordings, "lo-fi", still sound excellent on the A1.
A1 is smaller with its cigarette pack size, use a generic replaceable battery and is very sturdy. It does look quite rugged, especially next to the aune B1s which has a sophisticated allure.
It's hard to find a clear winner, it's all a matter of compromise on different factors.
#FINAL THOUGHTS
Aune B1s is a neutral amplifier with an airy sound, holographic presentation and excellent clarity. The value of this amp is probably unmatched at this point, It scales very well, has a very controlled sound, great build quality. Low gain is actually low and High gain is dangerously high.
From my experience, It pairs better with U/V shaped and neutral to warm earphones. My main issues are the fact that it can be too analytical with some pairing, the battery life is a bit short and there is no obvious way to replace it in case of degradation.
The aune B1s has been lent to me by @ethosian on the case of a sponsored European tour. I have tested the amplifier for about week. I'll try to be as accurate and objective as my ears and my brain let me to be.
I tend to prefer a neutral to warm sound signature with a slight U shape or a fun sound depending on the mood. Less interested in clinical and critical reproduction of the music. I mostly listen to IDM, electronic music, experimental, pop, ambient, new age and jazz. From Top end Hi-Fi recordings to bedroom broken tape. Old and new. Random names: Autechre, Gigi Masin, Chra, Jun Togawa, Ryuichi Sakamoto & Alva Noto, Jon Hassel.
#SPECIFICATIONS:
- Typical line output indicators
- Frequency response (from 10 Hz to 20 kHz): ±0.02dB
- THD + n: 0.00015% @300Ω
- SNR: 124dB @300Ω
- Crosstalk: <110dB @300Ω
- Max output: 6.443Vrms 18.4dBu(10Hz to 20kHz)
- Headphone output power: @300Ω 84mW , @600Ω 42mW ,@32Ω 74mW
- Class-A: 25mW/16R 50mW/32R
- Size: 125×65×18(mm)
- Weight:230g
- Output impedance: c.1ohm
The aune B1s comes in a black box with a thick usb cable and a humble 3.5 to 3.5 interconnect. So me manuals in Chinese and English. No need for more.
#BUILD
The B1s has the dimensions of a 5" smartphone except it's a bit thicker. It is too big to fit my jeans pocket but it's small enough to be in a jacket or coat pocket. It's a bit heavy, I wouldn't like to drop this thing considering it has a glass panel. The volume knob is made of high quality plastic. The chassis is of brushed metal glued to what looks like aluminum on a side and leather on the other. There is a small led button to check battery life.
The knob has large travel and it's really easy to fine tune the volume desired. I noticed channel imbalance at very low volume but nothing alarming considering the quality of the low gain.
There is two gain modes. The low gain is quite conservative and you can easily use sensitive earphones without hassle. The high gain has power and I only need to go as far as 20% to get comfortable volume with my 300 to 600 ohm earbuds. The amp can get rather warm. Slightly more than lukewarm. At the time of the review, it is very cold in Europe right now, But I would assume, in summer or in a tropical area, this may be uncomfortable for some.
I don't know how easy it is to open it but I guess you'll have to tear down some panels considering I couldn't find any screw. I guess it is not meant to be eventually repairable or modded. Something that concern me considering the battery life is on the short side (c. 8 hours on CLASS A). If used on a regular basis, I don't know how well it will pass the two years mark.(average life of a lithium battery before it start to degrade significantly)
airy, smooth, clear like the Swiss mountains on a sunny day
For the review I will mostly use the nuansa P1 (Philips multibit DAC TDA1387T) as a source with a jensen silver cable with oyaide plug interconnect. I will also do some test with the Zishan Z2(AK4490 DAC)
#SOUND
earphones used: Puresounds PS100-600, K's 300 samsara, SeaHF F650S, Blur black cable.
Coming from the aune m1s, I felt at home with the aune B1s sound, It's quite airy and clear. The imaging is accurate. Compared to the m1s, the sound stage is larger, the treble more controlled and overall it sounds more musical. There is a holographic-like presentation, It's easy to sense the space of the scene. The sub bass is of excellent quality, and can reach low with the right earphones. The sound is airy, It has an holographic quality, the layering and separation is excellent. It's very resolving and textures are rich. Overall the tonality sounds right to me. There is a slight upper mid lift which gives an overall sense of clarity.
The sound signature of this amp could be described as an "airy and fresh" for the lack of better term, If you are happy with the aune M1S, you couldn't be more satisfied with the B1s.
Although it sounds excellent on many levels, I noticed some drawback: The upper mid lift can be tiring, Especially If you pair this amp with the wrong earphones. I had issues listening to some song where the piano would be a tad too present. The snare of some techno recordings can be too much as well. With some recording that are a bit old and/or modest in terms of mastering the B1s will be unforgiving. The sound will be relatively thin, acid, and flaws would be overly apparent. "Angry" music will sound a bit too polished and relaxed.
Pairing in order of preference with their sound signature and how they react with the aune B1s:
- Puresounds PS-100-600 (U shaped, warm neutral) probably the best pair up. The sound is balanced and airy, bass is agile, treble is smooth. Overall sound is very rich and clear. Holographic sound stage. I could listen to any kind of music and be from extremely happy to satisfied.
- Seahf F650S (V shaped, neutral analytical) Sound is very balanced, very little coloration. It's objectively excellent although not as engaging as the PS, more kind of critical listening
- K's 300 samsara (Fun, warm lush) It's a sort of in between, it does sounds nice but not on everything, The warm lush characteristic sound of the samsara with the airy output of the B1s makes it not ideal. I think samsara prefer a thicker sounding source
- Blur (mid centric, neutral warm) Bad match, Bass doesn't extend beyond lower mid for some reason. Brass are thin and a bit gritty. Overall too clinical and mid centric.
Note: Using the Zishan Z2 DAP line out as a source, the sound is more dry, more 2D, somewhat hollow. Please bear in mind the price difference, considering it is ten times cheaper than the P1. It is nice to notice that the aune B1s is very transparent to it's source. And scale very well with a higher end DAC.
Aune B1s vs Revamp Acoustics Nuansa A1
Nuansa A1 is a discrete amplifier made by Revamp Acoustics, a one man business from Indonesia. It has similar spec in terms of power output, the price is significantly higher though (240usd+40usd shipping vs the 230usd with free shipping of B1s) They are both neutral amplifier although the approach is quite different. On the P1, The sound stage is smaller. There is less air between the instruments, the sound is more upfront and energetic. A tad less resolving, details are melted in the overall presentation. On high end recordings, the B1S is a step further in clarity and agility. The holographic feel is more present, each instruments feels more palpable on its own. However The sound presentation is more even and less colored on the A1. The A1 is more versatile for pairing with different earphones and/or listening to different type of recordings. The A1 has an analog quality. Old recordings, "lo-fi", still sound excellent on the A1.
A1 is smaller with its cigarette pack size, use a generic replaceable battery and is very sturdy. It does look quite rugged, especially next to the aune B1s which has a sophisticated allure.
It's hard to find a clear winner, it's all a matter of compromise on different factors.
#FINAL THOUGHTS
Aune B1s is a neutral amplifier with an airy sound, holographic presentation and excellent clarity. The value of this amp is probably unmatched at this point, It scales very well, has a very controlled sound, great build quality. Low gain is actually low and High gain is dangerously high.
From my experience, It pairs better with U/V shaped and neutral to warm earphones. My main issues are the fact that it can be too analytical with some pairing, the battery life is a bit short and there is no obvious way to replace it in case of degradation.