[elvispreasley]

Guys, have a question for you regarding AK380 AMP. In the instruction, which is going with this amp, written that it needs to be charged with only 5V 2A charger. Using any other charger to charge the amp will cause battery malfunction or other serious issues.
So, I have original Samsung Galaxy S8 charger, which is exactly 5V 2A, but it also support fast charging mod, where it works with 9V 1.67A.
Now here is the question: is it safe to use Galaxy S8 charger - to charge AK380 amp (I'm going to use it with AK320)? I'm kinda have a doubts, as this charger in fast charging mod might give far more voltage then it needs. I know, that AK320 (as well as ak380 amp) is not supporting fats charge, so theoretically Galaxy S8 charger will works with it in 5V 2A mode, but still decide to check with you. Just in case)

 

[KimChee]

I just use standard charger

 

[lil BANE]

I just read all 589 pages...what a rush!

 

[Bruno28]

Im having issues with my AK380 amp charge. Its not charging to 100%
I have left it charging overnight with the AK300 plugged on. The AK300 was 100% but the amp is just 16%.
I have tried to charge it independently without the AK300 attached and left it overnight and it still only charges to 16%.

It did jump weirdly to 26% but then it went back to 16%. The amp was purchased in 2017 so its out of warranty


I don't know if there is any issues or I just need to completely discharge it to 0% and then charge back up to reset the limits on the battery management system?
No matter how long i leave it charging, the white LED is always on, showing that its charging.

Can the battery be replaced?

 

[KimChee]

I’ve been wondering this myself, I figure my 380 and amp battery will go bad eventually...probably best to get ahold of the AK people and send it in see what they can do for you...

Im having issues with my AK380 amp charge. Its not charging to 100%
I have left it charging overnight with the AK300 plugged on. The AK300 was 100% but the amp is just 16%.
I have tried to charge it independently without the AK300 attached and left it overnight and it still only charges to 16%.

It did jump weirdly to 26% but then it went back to 16%. The amp was purchased in 2017 so its out of warranty


I don't know if there is any issues or I just need to completely discharge it to 0% and then charge back up to reset the limits on the battery management system?
No matter how long i leave it charging, the white LED is always on, showing that its charging.

Can the battery be replaced?

 

[Bruno28]

there is some videos on youtube on how to open the AK380, Ak320 and Ak300, but nothing on the amp. Looks pretty simple actually.

 

[KimChee]

I’ve seen the one for 380, it looks simple and battery is on aliexpress...dunno which battery for the amp though...

there is some videos on youtube on how to open the AK380, Ak320 and Ak300, but nothing on the amp. Looks pretty simple actually.

 

[Bruno28]

Hopefully someone can assist on my issue and I dont have to be a guinea pig and opening it up.

I’ve seen the one for 380, it looks simple and battery is on aliexpress...dunno which battery for the amp though...

 

[KimChee]

Head-Fi is all about the latest and greatest, and I figure many people have moved on from AK380, even though it’d one of the best DAPs still, so you might have to be a pioneer lol. I’ve looked online as well and couldn’t find anything..380 amps are harder and harder to find these days and I figure I myself will have problems finding another copper amp...it looks simple enough similar screws as the dap maybe there’s a number on the battery you could try to research. I imagined if you opened it up there’s not much to it inside. I got quoted $80 for battery replace for the 380 dap a long time ago.

 

[JasonNYC]

Im having issues with my AK380 amp charge. Its not charging to 100%
I have left it charging overnight with the AK300 plugged on. The AK300 was 100% but the amp is just 16%.
I have tried to charge it independently without the AK300 attached and left it overnight and it still only charges to 16%.

It did jump weirdly to 26% but then it went back to 16%. The amp was purchased in 2017 so its out of warranty


I don't know if there is any issues or I just need to completely discharge it to 0% and then charge back up to reset the limits on the battery management system?
No matter how long i leave it charging, the white LED is always on, showing that its charging.

Can the battery be replaced?

I'm pretty sure we do offer battery replacement service for the 300 series AMP. I am checking and will confirm. We do offer battery replacement service for all of our players.

 

[JasonNYC]

Im having issues with my AK380 amp charge. Its not charging to 100%
I have left it charging overnight with the AK300 plugged on. The AK300 was 100% but the amp is just 16%.
I have tried to charge it independently without the AK300 attached and left it overnight and it still only charges to 16%.

It did jump weirdly to 26% but then it went back to 16%. The amp was purchased in 2017 so its out of warranty


I don't know if there is any issues or I just need to completely discharge it to 0% and then charge back up to reset the limits on the battery management system?
No matter how long i leave it charging, the white LED is always on, showing that its charging.

Can the battery be replaced?

We can do battery replacement on the 300 series AMP. It would need to be sent into our service center in Korea. You can reach out to your local authorized Astell&Kern dealer to start the process. If you have any issues, please feel free to PM me.

 

[Bruno28]

I dont think its the battery, because I was getting over 10 hours of playback on the amp. The dac got about 9 hours to 0%, while the amp still had about 20% left.
It suddenly stopped working. So my guess is the charging electronic that gets power from the micro USB to the battery.
How difficult is it to open up the AMP? I want to see if i can charge the battery externally with my multi battery charger. Then i can find out if its the battery or the charging mechanism.

This past night i ran the 16% left on the amp until it shut itself off. Then i left overnight charging and its at 1%. So it didnt charge at all after 8 hours plugged onto a 2A 5v usb supply\.

We can do battery replacement on the 300 series AMP. It would need to be sent into our service center in Korea. You can reach out to your local authorized Astell&Kern dealer to start the process. If you have any issues, please feel free to PM me.

 

[Bruno28]

So i managed to open the AK380 amp without any damage and ill show some photos to help those that decide to do this to change the battery.

1. Unscrew two screws at the bottom. (headphone jack area)
2. Remove plastic piece that has some double sided tape, so will need some small force to slowly peal it out.
3. From this same side once black piece is removed, there are about 6 Phillips head screws inside. Remove all of them.
4. Once thats done, you need to remove the little tape on the top right of the amp, a hidden screw is underneath there.
5. Slowly pry open the black plastic from the top section of the amp, close form where you removed that top hidden screw. There are multiple tabs, they are tricky but easy to click out of their attachment. And if you do it carefully, you wont break any tabs.
7. Once all tabs are clicked off from aluminium frame, just slide the black part off the charging port (port that attaches to the DAP).

 

[Bruno28]

More internal photos for the curious minded.

 

[Bruno28]

Battery Size is:
81mm x 47mm
7mm thick

Model: PR-754680N which is the same as AK380 player. So easy to find on aliexpress.
The battery seems to be wrapped with a plastic A&K packaging that is removable and shows a regular Li-ion Battery inside. I would remove this black wrapping and put on the new battery when you swap out. This would prevent the battery being lose and shaking around.