[legcramp]

Anyone have any experience with this speaker/headphone amp combo unit? Small footprint and seems to be lots of power for a desktop speaker setup and also power hungry headphones. I am thinking of buying one to try with my HE6SE which is currently being powered by a power amp through speaker taps (Ncore 252mp modules).

You can use a jumper to make the headphone out "direct drive mode" which pretty much gives it 50w/ch at 8ohms.

https://emotiva.com/collections/basx-series/products/basx-a2m-stereo-flex-amplifier

• Power Output:
  (Two Channels Driven)
  50 watts RMS per channel; 20 Hz – 20 kHz; THD < 0.1%; into 8 Ohms.
  90 watts RMS per channel; 1 kHz; THD < 1%; into 4 Ohms.
• Power Output (headphone output; normal mode):
  8 Ohms: 60 mW / channel
  33 Ohms: 200 mW / channel
  47 Ohms: 250 mW / channel
  150 Ohms: 430 mW / channel
  300 Ohms: 440 mW / channel
  600 Ohms: 350 mW / channel
• Power Output (headphone output; direct drive mode - requires internal jumper; USE WITH CAUTION):
  8 Ohms: 50 watts / channel
  33 Ohms: 12 watts / channel
  47 Ohms: 8.5 watts / channel
  150 Ohms: 2.6 watts / channel
  300 Ohms: 1.3 watts / channel
  600 Ohms: 0.6 watts / channel
• Power Bandwidth (at rated power; 8 Ohm load): 20 Hz to 20 kHz (+ / – 0.07 dB).
• Broad Band Frequency Response: 10 Hz to 80 kHz +0/-1.8 dB.
• THD + noise: < 0.02% (A-weighted); ref rated power.
• Signal to Noise Ratio (8 Ohm load):
  > 112 dB; ref rated power; (A-weighted).
• Minimum Recommended Load Impedance (per channel): 4 Ohms (which equals one 4 Ohm load or two paralleled 8 Ohm loads).
• Damping Factor (8 Ohm load): > 500.
• Input Sensitivity and Gain (for rated power; 8 Ohm load):
  Fixed gain mode: 0.7 V / 29 dB.
  Variable gain mode: 0.5 V / up to 32 dB.
• Input Impedance: 27 kOhms.

 

[ezduzit2500]

Anyone have any experience with this speaker/headphone amp combo unit? Small footprint and seems to be lots of power for a desktop speaker setup and also power hungry headphones. I am thinking of buying one to try with my HE6SE which is currently being powered by a power amp through speaker taps (Ncore 252mp modules).

You can use a jumper to make the headphone out "direct drive mode" which pretty much gives it 50w/ch at 8ohms.

https://emotiva.com/collections/basx-series/products/basx-a2m-stereo-flex-amplifier

It's a swiss army knife of a one-piece desktop amp solution. I own the previous model. It has been a staple of my desktop for almost 4 years. I initially used it for driving a set of inefficient Fostex t50rp mkiii's but kept it because of it's SQ and versatility. Direct drive is bonkers too. Make sure you unplug the unit before installing jumpers. Also: just as important - turn down the volume before you press play. Easy to hurt both your headphones and your ears with it's power unrestrained.

 

[ezduzit2500]

It's a swiss army knife of a one-piece desktop amp solution. I own the previous model. It has been a staple of my desktop for almost 4 years. I initially used it for driving a set of inefficient Fostex t50rp mkiii's but kept it because of it's SQ and versatility. Direct drive is bonkers too. Make sure you unplug the unit before installing jumpers. Also: just as important - turn down the volume before you press play. Easy to hurt both your headphones and your ears with it's power unrestrained.

Let me know if you have any more questions. I'll try my best to answer to the best of my ability.

 

[DuncanDirkDick]

Only question is, if it measures as crappy as the A-100. If not, it might be a very nice amp for he6 or susvara.

 

[ezduzit2500]

Only question is, if it measures as crappy as the A-100. If not, it might be a very nice amp for he6 or susvara.

I really don't think either version of the A-100 - whether original mini-x or A-100 - measured "crappy", especially considering it's price point, flexibility, and functionality. One would be hard pressed to find a small form-factor 50 watt integrated amp, that's 4 ohm stable - and with a powerful integrated HP amp and preamp functionality - at the price of about $300 US. Schiit makes one in the Ragnarok. It's probably better performing but it costs $1,500, which is 5 times more expensive. I wouldn't worry about that ASR "review" of the A-100, the one that doesn't recommend it because of "measurements". In the real world - as in real life use - those very same measurements are acceptable on much less flexible gear and are likely indistinguishable from much higher priced units that measure only slightly better.

 

[DuncanDirkDick]

I really don't think either version of the A-100 - whether original mini-x or A-100 - measured "crappy", especially considering it's price point, flexibility, and functionality. One would be hard pressed to find a small form-factor 50 watt integrated amp, that's 4 ohm stable - and with a powerful integrated HP amp and preamp functionality - at the price of about $300 US. Schiit makes one in the Ragnarok. It's probably better performing but it costs $1,500, which is 5 times more expensive. I wouldn't worry about that ASR "review" of the A-100, the one that doesn't recommend it because of "measurements". In the real world - as in real life use - those very same measurements are acceptable on much less flexible gear and are likely indistinguishable from much higher priced units that measure only slightly better.

Channel imbalance is a huge no-go for me. Plus, I owned it at one point. I's just not a good amp, maybe this one is though.

 

[ezduzit2500]

Channel imbalance is a huge no-go for me. Plus, I owned it at one point. I's just not a good amp, maybe this one is though.

Did your sample have a channel imbalance? Mine sounds a little rough when it's first turned on, but once it's warmed up it sound pretty decent for an inexpensive Swiss Army knife amp/HP amp. Amir didn't let his sample warm up before he started to test it, I don't think. I still stand by my first comments, that it's a good component for what it is and for how much it costs. I've been thinking of doing some mods on mine at some point in the future - like changing out the opamps for better ones. I think the stock opamp is an ne5532 - one of the oldest and most basic ic opamps. That would positively change how the amp sounds overall and would be a good way to mod it.

 

[DuncanDirkDick]

Yes, and noise was quite bad as well. Back then, I mainly wanted to use it as a speaker amp, but on slightly sensitive speakers it was horrible. But since I went with active speakers and high sens headphones, I'm not in the market for it anymore

 

[ezduzit2500]

Yes, and noise was quite bad as well. Back then, I mainly wanted to use it as a speaker amp, but on slightly sensitive speakers it was horrible. But since I went with active speakers and high sens headphones, I'm not in the market for it anymore

I first bought the A-100 for a set of T50rp mk3's that did well with the power. Of course the noise floor bothers some people (it is a power amp after all) with very low impedance cans but the Fostex were 50 ohms and didn't suffer from the higher noise floor. I later bought Sundaras, Anandas, and Aryas and never experienced objectionable hiss from the noise floor - though I did put a preamp in front of it - that seemed to reduce the noise somewhat. It was actually pretty quiet for a speaker amp, though my dedicated HP amps were quieter and sounded better - except any of the thx or other chip amps. They didn't sound as natural as the Class AB A-100 or the Class A Gustard I bought later.

 

[legcramp]

I don't know about how it measures... but I also own a set of HypeX Ncore 252MP that measures amazing that I also use with my HE6se with speaker taps. I went ahead and picked up this new BasX A2m amp for my desktop as an all-in-one solution. What I can say so far is it powers the HE6se without breaking a sweat and then some, honestly I can't really say anything stands out when running my HE6se on speaker tap on the Ncore amp vs. BasX A2m.

I'll eventually get to an A/B once I have more time but it drives the HE6se with authority unlike my original Burson Soloist (which sounds amazing btw, it can drive any headphones short of the HE6se in my experience). I'll probably move the HypeX Ncore amp and convert it into a LCR setup for my home theatre and sell the Soloist eventually.

Note: I don't have any affiliation with any of these companies, just trying to get the best bang for my buck on my desktop setup and to downsize the amount of electronics at my desk... as you can see three amps and a dac is too many at the moment.

 

[Jimmyblues1959]

Spec's look similar (if not identical) to the A100. At least from an aesthetic perspective, the basx A2M looks like it has a new
faceplate, while the rest of the amp is dimensionally very similar to the A100. The A100 was an incredible bargain for its performance, so
it's not surprising that Emotiva would have made its successor very similar to it. I notice its $299.99, compared to the $229.99 price of the A100. I still really enjoy the A100 with my HE4XX, T60RP, and T50RP MK 3 planars. It would be interesting to see if anyone has been able to compare the A100 to the A2M.

 

[tameral]

I've been enjoying my new BasX A2m. I immediately installed the jumpers and did not ever and probably will not ever listen to the amp without them.

Quick impressions:

I think this is a far better amp for the He6se V2 than the Jotunheim 2. Basically, I think you may be deceiving yourself if you think the Jotunheim 2 really powers the HE6se V2. I know I was for awhile until I set the headphone aside because there was no point with the LCD-X around.

In my opinion, the Jotunheim 2 with the HE6se V2 is not balanced. It's a little bright. It sounds technical but not engaging. You reach for the high gain and the bass EQ to compensate for the fact that otherwise it's not really driven to fullness.

I love my Jotunheim 2 for other headphones, including the LCD-X - but this BasX A2m is a lovely find. The stage is blown out and the bass is authoritative. The sound is balanced and full. I see no need to EQ at this time with the Emotiva BasX A2m - I can enjoy this He6se V2 for its strengths and faults.

I don't have any issue with noise. It's very clean. Most importantly, it's a cost-effective solution to driving one of the hardest headphones to drive.

This amp is a tremendous value at 300$.

 

[califmike33]

Spoke to emotiva on the phone the difference between this and the previous model is only aesthetics the inside is basically the same thing. How dare anybody complain about a noise floor for $300 and if you listen to those stupid reviews on measurements you're missing out on some wonderful products out there.

 

[ezduzit2500]

Spoke to emotiva on the phone the difference between this and the previous model is only aesthetics the inside is basically the same thing. How dare anybody complain about a noise floor for $300 and if you listen to those stupid reviews on measurements you're missing out on some wonderful products out there.

Exactly...and I still run mine weekly and I'm quite satisfied for a cheap swiss army knife unit (it's going on 3+ years). I'm thinking about modding it by changing out the original op amps to TI OPA 2134pa's (I think it's got NJR NE 5532's in it now). I haven't taken off the heatsinks yet but I hope they're DIP8 sockets...I've got a set of 2134's all ready to be installed.

 

[B3645]

Spoke to emotiva on the phone the difference between this and the previous model is only aesthetics the inside is basically the same thing. How dare anybody complain about a noise floor for $300 and if you listen to those stupid reviews on measurements you're missing out on some wonderful products out there.

I don’t think the A2M has RCA outs like the A-100 did.