TESTING a Tube Preamplifier with DAC and Bluetooth - Aiyima Tube T6 Pro
Вставка
- Опубліковано 2 лип 2024
- Ever wonder if you would like a tube preamplifier? What about the tone controls or the volume control - Do those actually do anything? If so, what? What if you could add that warm sound of a tube preamp, while also adding bluetooth and a USB DAC? This is what the Aiyima Tube T6 Pro offers. But is it any good? Come check it out as I test it empirically.
💵Buy this T6 Tube Preamplifier here: amzn.to/2Y99lKg
GE Upgraded Tubes: amzn.to/398BYgY
My Testing Gear: parts-express.sjv.io/doW1kW
Watch how the basic Preamp did: • Putting a Tube Preamp ...
Buy the Basic Tube Preamp here: amzn.to/2IXepeu
🔥 Where to Buy Speaker Parts and Kits:
US and Canada: parts-express.sjv.io/jW7oZb get 5% off with code TOID
UK and Abroad: bit.ly/3skOGRJ
Worldwide: Amazon: amzn.to/3aPhKYD
Car Speakers/ Home Audio and electronics: howl.me/cg5oP9UKd1Z
🏠Get Whole House Audio:
Arylic: bit.ly/2wFUUQ4
🍿Theater Seating
Valencia Theater Seating: bit.ly/3Jbagjm
📄Speaker Plans: toidsdiyaudio.com/shop
🎙️Sound Advice Podcast: anchor.fm/sound-advice8
🎧Buy Audiophile Headphones: howl.me/cg6GDjmAHzS
🆓Get it with Prime - Free for your first 30 days: amzn.to/326cZqe
FREE Audio Books for 30 days from Audible: amzn.to/3a7lBS9
👋Connect with Me:
www.toidsdiyaudio.com/forums
🤝 Support:
Patreon: / 123toid
Disclosure: This channel is viewer-supported. When you buy through links on my site, I may earn an affiliate commission. I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. - Навчання та стиль
I can dig! Just wonder why these companies design these without remote control capability? I mean, you don't need it if using with your computer or if you have BT connected, but otherwise it is very useful to have a remote. Excellent review, product looks very compelling.
Hello, BigDWiz.
His mobile is the remote.
Dont see the need.
They make models with remote control, but this unit assumes you're using your source such as a cell phone or computer for volume control.
Great Clear concise explanation.
Thanks for your review. I will buy it.
great work, thanks!
I have the Suca-branded version of this and I'm really impressed. Really nice tone, great analogue tone controls. Really nice space in the music, too. Was going to use a separate DAC input as I'd heard the ones in this type of device are bad, but it sounds absolutely fine to me.
The only thing I would change is the knobs on the front. I've had to tilt mine up to make twisting them easier. Alternatives on the market often have top-mounted controls.
Cool channel 👍👍👍
Your video is so information thank you. I am confuse what to get. I wanna get the most out of my hd58x. And now looking either DAC amp or something. Now I found a preamp DAC. Too.
I need a booster.Did you test the volume to see the DB increases? nice video for other options Does anybody know the lifespan of tubes are?
if you want to get even more amazing sound out of your tube buffer put the Rockville R7EQ car eq in the signal path (yes at home) . i know it sounds crazy but the r7eq is an anomaly of a hidden gem especially at $40. I've never heard highs so clean and crisp as this eq is able to produce, and yes i have experimented with MANY different eq's.
Thanks for the tip! I'll have to check it out.
How do you plug it in for power?
@@killebrewje use a 12 volt power adapter
Lol I have a 7 band car eq same as the Rockville it's just the audio Legion brand and I've got my bravo v3 tube headphone amp that uses I think a 12axblablabla tube and I have it running into the 7band eq then from the eq into my old school Phenix gold tantrum 4 channel amp and it's powering a set of 3 way kevlar components I got off of Alibaba there kinda like fake focal k2's and I have to say I've had plenty of different systems in both my car and house and this is hands down the best sounding I've ever had
I was actually thinking of using an Active crossover meant for cars in my system to cut out the low end bass on my Aiyima A07 and rather have my sub play them
I like that they added bluetooth.
Yeah it was definitely a great feature and needed.
Thanx for the quick rundown of its abilities.
One minor quibble: It's a headphone OUTPUT, not input. And it "switches" so quickly to the headset when you plug it in because the headphone jack physically reroutes the audio signal from the unit's rear rca outputs to your headphones. There's actually no switch involved.
Anyway, this unit does provide a somewhat fuller, more "rounded" sound quality that modestly approaches that tube sound that higher quality tube amps are known for. It's a small but noticeable enhancement, especially in vocals and acoustic instruments.
I got it mainly to add Bluetooth capability to my 24 year old 110 watt Yamaha stereo amplifier, which it does perfectly with nearly no quality loss as compared to using the USB input. Only at louder volumes with more complex music am I aware of the slightly inferior Bluetooth sound quality. Slightly.
The DAC chipset does a good job converting the digital signal to analog considering the cost of the unit; very clean and accurate with minimal anomalies or artifacts. It does a MUCH better job than my mid level laptop's built-in DAC (and amp) and very noticeably better than my mid level Android phone's DAC.
As far as creating genuine tube amplifier sound - if that's what you're hoping for - it's more of a charming attempt, but the sound it produces IS very nice.
I like it, use it A LOT, and would instantly replace it if something went wrong. Hopefully that won't happen for a while, which is asking a lot because nearly ALL PCBs with microchips are known to be prone to heat induced failure. It's mostly just a matter of time. But then again, for the price it's not worth fretting about.
It's useful, works very well, is well made, has quality switches, has a tiny footprint, allows some personalization by "rolling" different tubes, and it looks really neat. The blue LED lights in the tube sockets create a cool blue glow beneath the tubes' warm orange glow. There's even red LEDs inside the box that flicker just to add a little more pazzaz. Cute. 🥰
thank you for this great info, just placed an order an will be getting mine soon, crazy that u can have so much for so little money. I'm definitely excited :)
‘Pizzaz’
@@thelowprofile9767 I'd really like a slice of pazza 🥸
Great video ! Could you advise if it’s possible to replace the opamp ourselves ?
There's no need to have the Bluetooth antenna standing up where you can see it unless you're having connectivity issues. So long as it works, simply orient the antenna horizontally behind the unit or even *downward* behind furniture or other equipment. Pointing it directly backwards is also fine. These types of wireless systems are not strictly polarized such the antennas need to point upward.
You will probably get the best range with the antenna visible from your current location, however, as radio obviously works best with a clear line of sight.
The only reason the antenna is even necessary is because the preamp case is made of metal and likely grounded internally, which means that radio signals cannot readily enter or exit the case. Bear in mind also that Bluetooth and traditional 2.5GHz WiFi use identical antennas as they operate in the same frequency band.
That's a great point!
First thing I thought about the antenna complaint, just orient it horizontally behind the unit as long as connectivity is still good. Nice write up.
Great review ,have you tried the aiyima pro 8 pre amp
When doing the test for volume knob, where did you have the amplifier volume set?
I have a simular one. The Douk Audio P1. The downside of this unit is that on the output the left is actually the right and Right is left. Better check it because I bet it has the same circuit board.
Different board. The bluetooth chip is different and it uses fewer C47's not to mention an entirely different layout. Slightly different power supply as well (I own both, btw). I prefer this one to the P1 personally.
What type of tubes are used in this unit?
Do you know what DAC chip it uses?
good review. i have tried 4 other tube buffers and didnt like any of them until i came across FX AUDIO TUBE-03MKII... INCREDIBLY CLEAN and zero hiss at max volume , minus is no dac and head phones do not stop line out sound. but SNR: 100dB THD: 0.001% is great. i wonder how the sound compares to the one you reviewed here with SNR:110db THD 0.02%. You should consider reviewing the FX AUDIO TUBE-03MKII you will not be disappointed.
If the THD is really 0.001%, which I sincerely doubt, then those tubes must be disconnected from the audio path. Tubes inherently add distortion and color; that's why people like them in the first place ;). I have difficulty believing that /any/ consumer-level preamp has THD of only 1 thousandth of 1 percent, let alone a tube-based one that costs $50 from Amazon :).
@@antibrevity yes I agree BUT you need to buy it and try it, if you don't like it Amazon takes it back no questions asked. I was skeptical too at first but now it's a permanent part of my main set up
i got the aiyima without BT and i can't hear a difference
6:14 There is nothing really wrong with the antenna. That is kinda the way radio systems work, they have an antenna at each end or the radio path. If you have a mobile phone you will notice that the antenna is usually internal and not really visible, but the antenna on the cellular base station is huge, quite often mounted on a 20 metre tower or something like that. This is because it makes sense to have the huge antenna on the base station and then all the mobile devices can be small. This unit is also a base station and unless you cat is attacking the antenna and dragging the unit down onto the floor, it isn't doing any harm.
Do you have any videos or recommend any websites to help with designing a 6th order bandpass?
The tubes works also with the headphones?
They sell these on aliexpress for less than a third of the amazon price for those of you who´d wanna buy it. Just type tube Bluetooth tube preamplifier
Be careful about what you buy on aliexpress. A lot of times they look identical. But what will happen is they'll use inferior parts. This happens a lot on different products on ali express. Basically they'll take the parts that don't quite pass inspection and then they'll put it together on a another unit maybe even slap a different name on it and sell it for cheaper. Case in point, people are trying to buy ice amplifiers off aliexpress. Come to find out that it was a knockoff that used a lot of inferior parts. The savings, we're not worth the inferior product. Just be careful. Not to say that there aren't some good things on aliexpress, there definitely is. You'll just want to be careful.
@@Toid -- You can avoid that (very unlikely, in my experience) possibility by buying from Aiyima's own AliExpress storefront.
@@editorjuno that's a great point. A lot of people were buying the ice powered boards from AliExpress and we're getting inferior products. That's why I was just tell people to be cautious. I like you said, if you can buy from their own store page on AliExpress, that's a great idea.
Can I connect this tube pre-amp directly to an integrated receiver (in addition a non integrated amp)? For example: Phone Bluetooth --> Tube Pre-Amp --> Integrated Receiver --> Passive Speakers? And if I do this will I still get the sound benefit from the tubes?
Are teh tubes working in the circuit when you use RCA outputs?
will this be a viable option for a turntable?
what about the T8, dose it use the same type of tubes? Thank you!
Thanks for the great review, man! Could this DAC/AMP be connected to powered speakers? For example like the Edifier ones?
yes
Does it say “ze Bluetooth twice is leady to Pell“?
I have this same model and it has a static popping noise. It’s not very noticeable but enough to bother me if it’s on and no music is playing. Some sort of interference maybe.
Great review of an unknown product and brand, to me that is. A minor correction if I may, is that there are no digital amplifiers as you mention at 3:16. However, I know what you mean especially when mentioning class D amps and their brightness.
You're right. Thanks for the correction. I don't know why I said that, but I appreciate that.
@@Toid No big deal! Again very useful presentation of such combo. Not many quality tube preamps/DACs out there, at a reasonable price.
dous this have bt 5.0 (transmit and receive)?
Any idea what the output impedance of the preamp is? I am looking at the T7 on Amazon and can’t find this info.
is equal to dilvoetry t6?
Hi Friend, This product can update mod opamp muses 02?
Do you have any recommendation for a replacement subwoofer amp?
I blew my Orginal Heco metas (400watts) buid in subwoofer amp unit. I’d love to exchange the amp board maybe with some class D...
I just found some visatone system for a fairly lot of money... or a class D board but only 24V ac... the toroidal transformer to change from Europe 230v is like 3 times the price of the Bord...
What is the diameter of the volume dial on the T6 Pro?
No optical input and no remote probably gets really hot great dac
Would this work as a preamp for a turntable with RCA phono output?
Thanks for the review, very honest
No, because there's only an RCA input which doesn't have the necessary frequency and there's no ground for the turntable.
Can I use dt 990 250 ohm w it tho ? Idk what to buy I want treble control
Great overview it’s a nice looking little preamp for sure! That is if you don’t use the blue cable 😬
Haha! Seriously! 😁🤣 Lloks like someone caught the outtake
if you want to remove this antenna you can replace with wired antenna extension (just be careful with connection type). WiFi works on same frequency as BT so you can use WiFi antenna too
What's the advantage if i connect the Bluetooth anthena to wifi?
@@trulyblessed5236 let's say you want to shove Tube Preamplifier under the desk where due to obstruction of desk signal may be attenuated(poor reception). Since BT and wifi use the same frequency we have twice as many antennas to choose from. Included one (dipole) should work fine in most cases.
for signal reception improvements my suggestions:
1st move the preamp to a better location
2nd leave preamp in a bad location just add antenna to the setup and receive signal with a wired antenna from elsewhere (example ASUS 2T2R)
3rd use high-end dipole antenna (from the pricier router) this may provide better signal reception characteristics just don't expect excellent performance from included with preamp.
Thanks for this job. There's not much information on this device and I'm just learning about Dac. I'm not very aware of what it means or specifically in which cases an amplifier or pre-amplifier is used but if I know that a DAC significantly improves the listening experience. My question is if you can connect this device to some edifier r1280t speakers that bring one active and the other passive?? Or I need something else??. It's to listen to my music through my computer.
Yes but only to the RCA inputs
@@Toid Thank you for your disposition. Cordial greetings from Chile 🇨🇱
I have this same unit, i tried connecting my soundbar bluetooth through its bluetooth mode, but it had difficulty in pairing. Anyone could answer if this is feasible? Thank you!
I will guess you could utilize this to add DSP
Bluetooth from phone->this preamp RCA out-->RCA in dayton audio 408 DSP RCA out-->RCA in amp-->speakers
What's the song used to demo at 5:22?
Great video! I think faulting the color of the cable is asking a lot for how little you're paying for what you're getting 😉
BTW keep up with the great content!
Haha! Great call!
Sound?
Missing one feature that would make this more desirable. It needs an RIAA equalized phono input.
That would be nice
Hi any way I can boost my home sub for Mexican songs that don’t have much bass?
Idk if it was just a shitty aux cable but going from USB c to rca to my mix for aux in I got alot of crackling and low sound. Maybe I need one of these in between that connection or a newer dac like a helm dac
Anybody who has this know if you can remove the red tube guards? They look kind of cheesy to me.
You could add an extension to the BT antenna and put it where you don't see it... problem fixed
That's s great idea?
can we use ,, no computer,,, play from cd,, rca line in... and line out goes to power amp and spkrs,,,
Yes
What is a tube preamp? What is a hybrid tube amp ? This seems to be a hybrid but obviously a good one ar the price point. In case one is into vinyl there is no phono preamp.
Yeah it would be nice if there was a phono preamp built in. Although I found that a lot of people are finicky about which phono preamp they use. So it might be a decent thing that there isn't one. But it's definitely something that I could see people using.
wondering if I could turn on my aiyima tube preamp with the tubes taken out of the sockets. if there is sound then the tubes do nothing like many people say. can I damage the preamp if I do that?
If I remember correctly the manual specifically stated not to plug the tubes in or take them out while it was on. I can't remember it saying anything about running them with out them, but I wouldn't chance it.
@@Toid Guess you are right, thanks!
@@Toid ....Could this warning be because the preamp still works without the tubes? There is so much being said by the "experts" that the tubes do nothing but light up on all these Chinese tube products. Wish we knew for sure.
@@roybertalotto6355 I've built a few of them so I know for a fact that they work but is all there doing is sending just enough power through them to make them work and basically they "are in the way" of the signal before the signal gets to the MOSFETs or the IC or whatever the amp configuration is. So they flavor the sound but there not used as amplifiers like a real tube amp is
Hi. Does this sounds better than douk P1?
What preamp can u recommend for aiyima a07?
Hope u answer. Thanks
I've never used the douk P1, but in general I like Aiyima better. I can't imagine anything that it would do better than this. You don't really need a preamp for this particular unit, since it has a DAC built in.
@@Toid thank you for your reply.
Do u think it will be a good match with Aiyima A07?
Or do you have other recommend budget amplifier aside from A07?
Price would have been nice if you mentioned! that really bugs me people do a review but don't give a price on the item
I used to mention price, but the price on products has been fluctuating so much during covid, that is hard to say what it will be when you look at it. But I always put a link in the description to the product.
Can it work as Record/Phono line?
I don't think it can. I have a separate phono before connected to this preamp.
I think it needs to switch on there to go headphone to preamp that way you never have to unplug your headphones
That's a good call. I don't leave mine plugged in, but I could see that being beneficial
@@Toid I was thinking it would be great like that for a desk so that you could leave your headphones plugged in and just hang them up when you were listening to speakers and then just grab the headphones without having to plug or unplug anything
clarification - it has a headphone output not an input
No remote is a deal breaker. It amazes me at just how many pre-amps does not have a remote.
That is the one thing that I think would bring this over the top. I would love to see a remote control for it.
the remote comes with the topping E30 that you should be using as your dac :)
gear that is meant for desktop use doesn't need a remote but i can see the appeal.
@@robertorodriguez2609 yeah I think with the added dac, that's the most likely use for this.
Ha finally 1st comment.
Would this power my subs?
Ha! Since it's a preamp, no. But it might just add that nice tube warm sound.... To your subwoofers? 😁🤣
@@Toid I don't want a warm sub..
As Toid said, this is a preamp and cannot power speakers, but I would never recommend a tube-powered amplifier for subwoofers. Tube-based amps have poor bass response and control. Tubes are not terribly good at driving speakers in general, but should definitely be limited to non-subwoofer applications. Class D amps are great for subwoofers.
The antenna is ugly? It's an antenna you know....
It just adding "hairbrush harmonics"+ heat :) Yes it sound different just saying :)
I'm sure that this isn't a problem with this brand, but viewers should be warned that some of the "tube" preamps from China, at least in the past, don't actually have the tubes in the audio path and simply hook up the tube heater circuits for visual effect. In other words, the tubes in some devices don't do anything except glow.
I consider that to be fraud, but to be honest, it's probably a *good* thing for sound quality. The best-sounding tube is no tube at all ;). I love tubes myself, so there's no need for tube lovers to be upset. People like tubes because they *aren't* high-fidelity or low-distortion and people can lead much happier lives if they simply admit this up front :). As said in the video, tubes can make old music sound old, which is often what we prefer.
And pay no attention to which tubes people "say" sounds better, such as the GE shown in this review. This is just like having someone tell you that a piece of equipment sounds "better" with the bass or treble knobs in particular positions; their opinions are worthless unless they are sitting in your room listening to your speakers and even then it's just their personal opinion, not yours.
From what I have heard and read a tube amp can yield a more linear response than a solid state amp. I believe this to be true. If that is the case then you shouldn't be knocking tube amps. I don't have one. Never even listened to one. Just my two cents based on what I been told.
Thanks for the reply. I did not "knock" tube amps and even said that I liked them. They are NOT linear devices, however, and certainly not as linear as any decent solid-state design. Tubes can sound quite nice, but that aren't "better" in any way. They will never reproduce the input sound as accurately as a well-designed solid-state device, but fans don't *want* accuracy; they want "tube sound". This is not a matter of opinion. People who claim they are more linear are delusional ;). Virtually nothing could be less linear than a tube and that's why people run them in Class A as that's as linear as they can get.
@@antibrevity www.theaudioarchive.com/TAA_Resources_Tubes_versus_Solid_State.htm
This website and some others seem to disagree with you. I was hoping for a graph showing freq response for tubes and transistors but did not find it. I'm not sure if you are correct or these sites are at this point. I'm not really interested in vacuum tubes. I do however like class A amps and a more accurate reproduction of my music. Just a curiosity.
@@Ryan_Tidwell Thanks for the link. They are correct that tubes can be more linear *without* negative feedback, but negative feedback is often considered "bad" by audiophiles for reasons I've never understood.
The site even claims that distortion is a disadvantage of solid-state, but that seems unfair considering that almost any solid-state device that you test will have less distortion than a typical tube device; negative feedback *works*. Either type can still sound flawless, however, as people often worry too much about inaudible amounts of distortion.
Class A tubes are inherently linear, but only because they're always running full-bore ;). I don't care for Class A devices, however, as they are extremely wasteful *unless* it's winter and you need the room heat anyway. Class A preamps are much more reasonable than Class A power amps, but still wasteful.
I don't intend to dismiss tubes as I love how they work and perhaps even like the danger involved. I think tubes are much more interesting and elegant than solid-state, but I also feel that tube fans tend to exaggerate their abilities.
I used to work on guitar amps, which are serving a very different purpose than music amps. However, there is a lesson from guitar amps that can be applied to music devices; distortion is not always bad ;). Though music reproduction is ideally transparent, the right kinds and amounts of color and distortion can be wonderful to our ears.
Linearity is generally desirable, regardless, and Class A can be very linear, but one could run solid-state in Class A and achieve linearity as well. Tubes will better withstand this abuse, however; they don't care so long as their B+ voltage is reasonable.
@@antibrevity Thanks for the reply. I think you should reconsider class A amps. I currently have an old Adcom class A 5 channel amp that sounds awesome. It's not a heater. I can put my hand over the top after it's been running for hours and can't feel any heat coming off of it I'm disgusted by the proliferation of these class D amplifiers to save a few cents of electricity. I can hear the difference and it's like night and day. I paid a pretty penny for my previous amp and side by side the other one sounds so bad it's funny. At the end of the day a sound system is up to the owner and everyone likes different sound. If you haven't tried klipsch speakers you should check them out as well. I know some don't like their sound but I think they are great.
Your talk and you measurements means nothing, how is the sound? I haven't hear any tone. Best regards Martin
Tones on UA-cam don't mean much anyway.
The only people that would deal with the hassle and inefficient nature of tubes are crazy audiophiles. This device does not seem to cater to that group. Cheap modern low fidelity preamps have no business using vacuum tubes. There are many reasons they are no longer used.