Looking for small amp to allow use of HiFI speakers on PC, advice appreciated please. :)

Richdog · 2 Jun 2021 at 06:42

Hi guys. I now have a pair of Dali Zensor Pico's (https://www.dali-speakers.com/products/zensor/zensor-pico/) which have become available for use on my PC due to a main front speaker upgrade in my living room. Clearly they are HiFi speakers that need speaker wire, so I need something acting as an amp that I can then plug into my PC 3.5mm jack to give me nice stereo sound at low to moderate volumes.

Is there any kind of super compact amp or amp-esque device that would do the job of allowing me to hook those speakers up? It doesn't have to be anything super powerful or expensive, just decent with as small a footprint as possible for my PC desk.

Thanks in advance for any recommendations.

EDIT - WOUld something like on this be decent? https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-mini-stereo-amplifier/

UPDATE 19.06.2021

I set up the Fosi BT20 today and it drives my Dali Zensor Pico speakers perfectly well and goes really loud (way louder than I will ever run them). Compared to most PC speaker systems my new setup light years ahead and I can safely say that I now have Hi-Fi quality sound on my PC, which is pretty crazy when I think about it and I am happy I educated myself on the possibilities.

maj · 2 Jun 2021 at 22:12

Something like the SMSL SA-50 should suffice depending on your budget.

LizardKing · 4 Jun 2021 at 14:43

If your not after perfection then yeah those Class D amps are decent for the money!, i've got a nobsound ns10g powering some eltax monitors that does a reasonable good job (even the built in dac is more than good enough for general tv usage), not to dissimilar to the SA-50 suggested above.

Sgt_Pepper · 6 Jun 2021 at 10:32

Maybe above your budget but £123 would get you an SMSL AD18. USB, Optical and 3.5mm aux inputs, so perfect for PC use, also has Bluetooth input and a headphone jack too in-case you wanted to listen in privacy.

jackboy · 8 Jun 2021 at 17:43

Tangent Ampster? Never had one but when I was looking it came up in my search……….

Richdog · 9 Jun 2021 at 09:13

Hi guys thanks for the replies, I did read them and research what you suggested! In the end I have decided, based on many online recommendations and reviews, the Fosi Audio BT20A as seen here https://fosiaudio.com/products/blue...or-home-audio-system-fosi-audio-bt20a-updated and here https://www.amazon.de/-/en/gp/product/B07BQC7GNL/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?smid=A27MPXN0R8YFPE&psc=1

Price is decent, looks aren't too offensive and the feedback about it on many communities is overwhelmingly positive.

TangoEchoAlpha · 9 Jun 2021 at 16:44

Got a Douk Audio G3 Pro sat on my desk, driving a pair of Roth OLI RA1 speakers. I'm not an audiophile, but it sounds better than any set of PC speakers I've ever had and I prefer it to the old Creative T40s that they replaced.

https://smile.amazon.co.uk/Nobsound-Bluetooth-Audio-Amplifier-Integrated-Black/dp/B07QQ47RTZ

Worth a punt IMHO, if you don't like it then the rainforest are good for returns

jackboy · 19 Jun 2021 at 20:27

Are you happy with Fosi?

Richdog · 19 Jun 2021 at 20:54

jackboy said:
Are you happy with Fosi?

Hey man (and everyone else who kindly posted in the thread). I set up the Fosi today and it drives my Dali Zensor Pico speakers perfectly well and goes really loud (way louder than I will ever run them). Compared to most PC speaker systems my new setup light years ahead and I can safely say that I now have Hi-Fi quality sound on my PC, which is pretty crazy when I think about it and I am happy I educated myself on the possibilities.

In short: I recommend the Fosi BT20A, it seems to do the job very well.

BigStevieTT · 19 Jun 2021 at 21:05

There's a whole ton of cheap D-amps on an auction site. Some of them are good.
Happy to hear the Fosi works for you

IMHO, for sound, the amp is maybe the most important link in the chain, so I'd spend a few quid more. But then, I use my setup for music as well as games

Richdog · 19 Jun 2021 at 21:07

BigStevieTT said:
There's a whole ton of cheap D-amps on an auction site. Some of them are good.
Happy to hear the Fosi works for you
IMHO, for sound, the amp is maybe the most important link in the chain, so I'd spend a few quid more. But then, I use my setup for music as well as games

There is no need for me to spend a few quid more, music also sounds great and I played a couple of hours of it today. For the size it is a cracking little piece of kit and does exactly what I need it to do.

Guest2 · 15 Jul 2021 at 10:44

Interesting how amps have gone from big heavy slabs of metal to things that look like devices that belong in aeroplanes

It's gone to a better home now, but I had much love for my y2k Nad C370 - http://www.hifi-review.com/150467-nad-c370.html

SourChipmunk · 15 Apr 2022 at 02:52

I just ordered the Fosi BT30D to drive my Klipsch Reference Cinema System. I used two of the speakers for my rears on my main system and also used the center, so I needed to find a use for the other two speakers and the sub. PC seemed like a perfect fit. Hopefully this Fosi will do the job.

Richdog · 15 Apr 2022 at 06:48

SourChipmunk said:
I just ordered the Fosi BT30D to drive my Klipsch Reference Cinema System. I used two of the speakers for my rears on my main system and also used the center, so I needed to find a use for the other two speakers and the sub. PC seemed like a perfect fit. Hopefully this Fosi will do the job.

Hi chap. I've been using mine for the best part of a year and I am very happy with it. Combined with my Dali Picos the sound is way in advance of 99% of PC stereo solutions out there and I am very happy I was able to repurpose the speakers like that.

Guest2 · 15 Apr 2022 at 10:37

I see this thread has resurfaced. I remember looking at the Picos and Fosi but went with iLoud micro monitors instead due to their size
Review here - https://mrbullfinch.com/speaker-review-the-iloud-micro-monitor-from-ik-multimedia/

Also many comparisons from DSaudio on Youtube

I wonder how passive speakers like the Dali Picos and a mini amp holds up against active monitors. Slightly different target audience I expect, music listening as opposed to monitoring.

SourChipmunk · 20 Apr 2022 at 13:12

Guest2 said:
I see this thread has resurfaced. I remember looking at the Picos and Fosi but went with iLoud micro monitors instead due to their size
Review here - https://mrbullfinch.com/speaker-review-the-iloud-micro-monitor-from-ik-multimedia/

Also many comparisons from DSaudio on Youtube

I wonder how passive speakers like the Dali Picos and a mini amp holds up against active monitors. Slightly different target audience I expect, music listening as opposed to monitoring.

I had spare kit from a recent purchase (2 Klipsch RCS-SATs plus 10" sub) so had to find them a good home. This little Fosi BT30D drives them extremely well! I'm very happy with the performance so far. No overheating issues, solid controls, just all-around good quality. Thanks for all the tips!

mattyfez · 21 Apr 2022 at 15:10

They look really good, I've got a 20yr old full size AV amp hooked up to my PC, very tempted to replace it with something small and cute like this.

Are they really as good as a proper AV amp? are they more power efficient etc?
I only really need stereo amplified and a sub pre-out, although if they did a delux version that could do 4.1 or 5.1 that would potentially be a 'nice to have' feature.

hornetstinger · 22 Apr 2022 at 21:08

mattyfez said:
They look really good, I've got a 20yr old full size AV amp hooked up to my PC, very tempted to replace it with something small and cute like this.

Are they really as good as a proper AV amp? are they more power efficient etc?
I only really need stereo amplified and a sub pre-out, although if they did a delux version that could do 4.1 or 5.1 that would potentially be a 'nice to have' feature.

No way would I replace a avr with that. The avr does so much it's essential

Bass managment crossovers
Audio streamer, dvd, pcs and console sources
Time alignment
Room Eq
Hdmi input and output

Richdog · 24 Apr 2022 at 05:35

mattyfez said:
They look really good, I've got a 20yr old full size AV amp hooked up to my PC, very tempted to replace it with something small and cute like this.

Are they really as good as a proper AV amp? are they more power efficient etc?
I only really need stereo amplified and a sub pre-out, although if they did a delux version that could do 4.1 or 5.1 that would potentially be a 'nice to have' feature.

Of course it's not "as good as a proper AVR", lets inject some common sense into this discussion. It's a £60 stereo amplifier, small in size, with only barebones features vs any full-size AVR.

However if all you need on your PC desk is stereo 2.0 in a space-saving solution, without any of the additional benefits that a full-size AVR brings, and you do not use your PC as a movie-watching media center, then a Fosi does the job very well and is for me far preferable to having an unnecessary full-size AVR that is 20x the size on or around your desk for no reason.

NewbieOneKenobi · 30 Apr 2022 at 19:28

If you need it for a computer or phone and want a USB stick for portability, grab a used Dragonfly Cobalt at a bargin. Those are difficult to beat. G6 is slightly larger (like a pack of cigarettes or something) and usually available at half price from Creative's outlet. It isn't the best, but it's hard to beat at its outlet price. I've recently bought a similarly discounted Creative SXFI Amp from the same source, and it's a USB stick that claims to be able to support 600ohm cans easily. Its main attractant is the speaker-like presentation for headphones, which I suppose acts like some really good virtual surround for actual stereo speakers. Another option was X3 — more of a PC user's thing, with plenty of connectors for phones, speakers, mikes, etc., two different VSS options (SXFI and SBX), a satisfying knob and compact size. Just obviously not as compact as a USB stick but not as bulky as e.g. the K5 on my desk (which is still portable anyway). It's more the size of a simple cable extension with volume control.

If you need something more amp-esque than a USB stick, then I'd still opt for something fully functional and with a wall plug, just perhaps not as big and heavy as some of them are but probably not a portable device for non-portable use. You never know what sort of power hungry cans you're gonna buy next or at some later point, and having access to wall juice helps with that, so you don't need to go buy a stronger amp just because you got some planars on Black Friday.