AIYIMAT8 6N3 Digital Tube Preamplifier QCC3031 Bluetooth 5.0 Vacuum Tube Preamp USB DAC Headphone Amplifier Coaxial Optical Stereo Audio Decode Support APTX with Remote Control

Before going into details below, I will say right away; this is the best price/performance value preamp&DAC I ever used considering the sound quality and so much functionality in a nicely built device.I don't claim to be an audiophile with many many years of experience but I do care about audio quality and I love trying different devices within a reasonable price range.I have tried several budget preamp/DACs/Amp/Integrated Amp combinations to this date and I will write my review based on my personal experience and comparisons.What is included in the box?- USB audio cable- A remote controller with tone controls- Bluetooth antenna to attach at the back- Power adapter (though the cable is not very long, more like a cell phone charger length)- 6N3 Tube for headphone amp (more on this later)- A USB thumb to install drivers and a software for controlling bitrate output though I don't exactly know what it does.- A quick set up guide along with specifications and descriptions of interfacesWhat is not included?- An RCA cable to connect to an amp if you wanted to use this as a DAC for a hi-fi setup- Optical sound cable- Batteries for the remote (Requires 2xAAA)Build quality- It looks and feels very solid.- I really like the looks of it, it has an industrial look with a bit of a retro feeling especially with the tube and also the wooden pieces on top.- The volume know is the main thing you use and it feels very solid and clicking sound is strong and satisfactory.- Digital display is simple to use and it has useful information with incoming sound bitrate, volume and active input selected. When you change tone controls from the remote you also see those values.- Remote looks cheaper but it does the work and you have to cut costs somewhere.Setting up- It's very straightforward. You plug the power adapter and connect to your PC with the provided USB cable or your own optical cable and that's it.Be very careful when plugging the tube on top, tube pins can be very sensitive and you don't want to bend or break them. This has nothing to do with T8, just be careful in general :)In order to use different inputs, you need to press the volume button to change the input and you can see it on the interface. USB, RCA, BT etcWhen you switch to BT for bluetooth, it goes into pairing mode and it's immediately discoverable on your mobile device. You pair it right away and it's ready to use.The USB thumb drive includes drivers and a software. I think, you don't need this and manual guide doesn't tell you to install them. It's already plug and play and you can control USB bitrate output from Windows.What is my setup?- Aiyima A07 amp- A pair of Q Acoustics 3020i speakers- Windows 10 PC with USB & Digital out- Mobile phone with bluetooth- Several audio streaming services with ultra quality/MQA output.Sound qualityI tried the device 2 different ways:1- Using with digital inputs (Bluetooth, optical, USB) and connecting it to an amp with RCA cables at the back so it functioned as a DAC2- Connecting the headphone out headphone out at the front so it functioned as a headphone preamp1- Using as a DACWith the USB interface it sounds very good. It depends on your personal taste but I thought it felt rich and warm. It sounded very similar to more expensive DAC only devices I used.It supports up to 24bit 192KHz. Make sure to change those settings on Windows for getting the maximum output.It sounded very clear and spacious (though could have been more spacious for my taste)All the instruments and vocals felt very clean and lively to my ears.Optical was similar but somehow I felt USB output produced better sound quality. Which is manageable anyway as you already have a USB cable included and you don't need to shell out extra cash for digital output. It has no benefit over USB anyway.The fact that you have tone controls on the remote control is actually very convenient and adds to the overall value of the device. Changing the settings helps you improve the sound output to match your expectations better.Bluetooth connection gave very clear and lively sound as well but do not expect it to match USB or optical interface. Bluetooth can't match the bandwidth of those inputs. For what you need as setting up a convenient wireless streaming from your phone, laptop etc, this one does the trick and it sounds pretty good for that setup.2- Using as a headphone preampNow this is what surprised me. As I said it sounds very nice as a DAC but in fact when you connect a good quality headphone, this thing sounds even better. It provides more clarity and more spaciousness.The reason for that is that when you use headphone out, it actually uses the tube on top.So keep that in mind. People use different types of tubes from different brands. I'm not an expert but I guess it could be effective here as you see the immediate difference of using a tube.So depending on your taste / preference you might actually get a headphone - RCA Y-cable and use headphone out to connect to an amp instead of RCA out at the back. This might change the experience as a DAC too.ConclusionThe main point here is the incredible value you get as I said at the very beginning. You can get more expensive DACs or preamps and they could sound better. I'm saying "they could sound better" because it depends on your taste and if you have been investing time and money in training your ears to perceive differences. To me that's not even very noticeable.Those devices would not offer you so much connectivity/functionality. For anything like that with a premium sound you'd normally have to pay A LOT more money.Also don't forget, this thing has a remote controller with tone controls which is very convenient.With this much functionality and such beautiful sound, T8 is easily the best budget headphone preamp & DAC combo I have seen out there.

Have the T9 set up with the A8 Pro and the combination creates fantastic sound at even more fantastic value.

For me this DAC / preamp makes my desktop audio experience much smoother and better quality than I had before. It looks rather neat and quirky on my desk, although the red knob looks a bit out of place. And of course the look of the valve is alluring to some.My previous setup was a USB soundcard to my amp/speakers, and for headphone use I had a separate USB headphone DAC/amp. This was a bit of a pain to manage in the hardware and software. This unit however replaced both of those components, given that plugging in headphones will cut the RCA level output to the amp. I was surprised to see a USB stick included; I am always suspicious of USB sticks that come with hardware, but luckily I can just plug it into my PC with Windows 10 and it will work just fine without using the stick. Also, plugging into a Raspberry Pi works just fine. So it's safe to say it will work for 99% of those who buy this.Bluetooth audio quality is superb and better than any Bluetooth audio receiver I've owned, but not as good as the USB or optical/coax inputs. A great feature is that when you select a source other than Bluetooth, any paired Bluetooth device is disconnected; I was actually concerned this wouldn't be the case.The garish display does show useful information such as the input, volume, and the current bitrate of the input source, in bright blue. The display can be switched off with the remote, but annoyingly, should you operate the remote or volume knob, the display comes back on and stays on until you switch it off.They have no problem driving my 250 ohm headphones (Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro) to more than adequate volume levels. The valve helps give the headphone output that lovely warm sound. I would say this sounds better than my Cambridge Audio DacMagic XS, but I still miss my Asus Xonar Essence STX, which in my opinion is quite a bit better.The RCA output I have connected to a A07 power amp and it makes for a great combination. They produce a detailed and mostly neutral sound. Paired up with Cambridge Audio Minx XL speakers I have plenty of sound that sounds way "bigger" than their size suggests, including the size of the preamp and power amp.I bought it on a sale, I think it is worth it for that price (about £70). Can't fault it except for the poor build quality of the remote control, the choice of blue OLED display, and shiny red knob. It would look so much more slick with a white OLED and black knob.

Just to mention I'm running the line out into a valve (not expensive) headphone amp.optical in from a cd transport works well been streaming music on a PC using the usb out.brilliant quality but the better the source the better the result.on well recorded older 1960s recordings its truly a breath of fresh air with detail timing and nuances I've never heard until now and I'm not a young man.it doesn't suffer fools however if its an indifferent recording you'll know about it....I'm looking at you home studios, not an insult as I use such facilities but you'll appreciate the studio craft of your predecessors and the talent of " proper musicians and singers "

Clever little device, well finished, used it to feed a fosi audio class d power amp. It sounds better through the head phone output. The Bluetooth stopped working after a year or so, but that's the risk you take with chi-fi. I gave this and the amp to a friend who is very pleased with it.

great value

Bought Douk ST1 and really impressed and was using it every day.Now with this and Ayima AO7 and sound is even better so this is now my go to HiFi every day.