Singxer SA-1 / Balanced Amplifier Fully Discrete Class A - beyond THX 888 ?!
Jan 12, 2021 at 2:51 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 2,563

Muataz

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This is a new Headphone Amp/Preamp fully discrete resistor with superb measurement ( The cleanest ever ) ?!
At maximum output, SNR and DNR are 147db.
When outputting 50mv at low gain, THD+N still has -96db @1khz A weighting 20-22khz.

More masurements on this link > Measurements of Singxer SA-1 Headphone Amp(Pre Retail) | L7Audiolab

It can output
16Ω 10W
32Ω 5.5W
68Ω 3.1W
120Ω 2.0W
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UPDATE:
The Class A mode of the SA-1:

In Balanced 16 ohm load: under 500mw;
32 ohm load: under 1000mw;
68 ohm load: under 3000mw;
Load of more than 68 ohm : almost all the power is class A.

****************************************************************

It has Low-Z / Hi-Z Headphone output impedance switch ( 0.7 Ohm to 11 Ohm )
2 Gains which can be switched from the bottom of the unit. ( You have to turn all 4 switches on the bottom)

The following is the maximum input without distortion at the maximum volume. no load:

low gain: XLR 15.5VRMS,RCA 7.4V RMS;
high gain : XLR 4.4VRMS,RCA 2.1VRMS.

When there is a load, it is about 10% lower.

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I got mine this week and I liked it so sooo much, I'm waiting for my other amps to come to compare it. I have DAC Aeon and Focal Clear pro to test it with.

I open this thread to get any feedback from anyone brought this amp, I have feeling this amp will be a big hit as it measure well better than THX amps and based on discrete design and can function as Preamp

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I got mine this week and I liked it so sooo much, I'm waiting for my other amp to come to compare it but it is clearly .
 
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Jan 12, 2021 at 2:58 PM Post #2 of 2,563
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Jan 13, 2021 at 11:43 AM Post #4 of 2,563
I also bought this.. Now replaced my Topping A90 with SA-1.
My chain:
Roon->HQPlayer->Topping D90->Singxer SA-1->2x Benchmark AHB2
Headphones tested:
Hifiman Ananda, Sennheiser HD650, Meze Classics99

how you compare it to A90?
Have you thought about DAC Singxer SDA-6 ? It seems better DAC with USB isolation and non-feedback preamp with good measurement
 
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Jan 13, 2021 at 11:51 AM Post #6 of 2,563
I've picked one up to demo, high hopes the pre performance is exemplary so I can move some gear around.

This is a really nice design with quality parts.
 
Jan 25, 2021 at 3:17 PM Post #7 of 2,563
I've picked one up to demo, high hopes the pre performance is exemplary so I can move some gear around.

This is a really nice design with quality parts.

Did you got it ? Any thought
 
Jan 25, 2021 at 3:43 PM Post #8 of 2,563
Arrives today, I'll need some time. I'll be testing it with HE-6 and in my 2ch setup. Unfortunately it looks like SE performance is not good, which my 2ch is RCA so conversion there will be bad so it's all down to headphone performance for me. This'll be compared to Jot2.
 
Jan 26, 2021 at 10:41 AM Post #9 of 2,563
Arrives today, I'll need some time. I'll be testing it with HE-6 and in my 2ch setup. Unfortunately it looks like SE performance is not good, which my 2ch is RCA so conversion there will be bad so it's all down to headphone performance for me. This'll be compared to Jot2.
SE performance even it is lower SNR but still better than many high product.

I prefer SE headphone output to my topping L30 for Focal headphone
 
Jan 26, 2021 at 6:24 PM Post #10 of 2,563
I've given it a listen for a few hours and it's fantastic. I also ordered some jumpers for the DC cap bypass and will test that soon but as-is it's decent. The Jot2 has more treble energy however the SA-1 is definitely more even. The bass presentation on Jot2 is more inviting however, SA-1 is neutral and tight. Drives the HE6 just fine as well. I got a bit of listening fatigue though that seems to happen to me sometimes on hyper-measurement focused gear. Will give it a few more days of testing to see if it settles into my stack nicely. The amp seems to run warmer when not in use than when running headphones. It doesn't get hot which is nice, especially given the power output. It's less powerful than the Jot2 which IMO is a good thing. Jot2 is just through the roof.
 
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Jan 26, 2021 at 9:48 PM Post #11 of 2,563
Tonight's session went well, no fatigue. Great amp! The class A of chip amps, though I'm unsure it's true class A due to low heat. It's not constant heat output. Single ended is low power for sure on my headphone, but still sounds clean enough. This amp is a home run!
 
Jan 27, 2021 at 12:34 AM Post #12 of 2,563
Tonight's session went well, no fatigue. Great amp! The class A of chip amps, though I'm unsure it's true class A due to low heat. It's not constant heat output. Single ended is low power for sure on my headphone, but still sounds clean enough. This amp is a home run!
At high output it will switch to Class AB
 
Jan 27, 2021 at 2:15 AM Post #14 of 2,563
Tonight's session went well, no fatigue. Great amp! The class A of chip amps, though I'm unsure it's true class A due to low heat. It's not constant heat output. Single ended is low power for sure on my headphone, but still sounds clean enough. This amp is a home run!

If you have HD660S try it, it may sound a lot better than iDSD BL ( as per your signature :)
 

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