I am stunned, I really am. These two devices which combined cost around one hundred seventy euros, bring so much value that I am floored, I really am.
And this was an eye-opening experience for me, as I thought you need to spend a lot more to get this quality, and Fosi just opened my eyes. I mean, add around 70 euros to buy Fosi K5 DAC, and create a fully integrated system.
Utility of this two devices and build quality
The utility of P3 and V3 can be used for many different purposes, and there are two major scenarios which are probably the most common. One is as part of a HIFI system, as a preamp and amp combo, and the other is for improving your computer streaming capabilities with an external DAC and preamp with active speakers.
But the one most close to me is, of course, this acting as power to my passive speakers. And I will not review this as two individual products for this scenario but speak about synergy to power your passive speakers.
And let's speak to what you first see, and that is the build quality and just how small and compact they are. Both of them can fit easily wherever you want, whether that be on your desk next to your PC, or on a table along with other components of your system. And they are very well built with buttons being stable and firm. I did not feel like Fosi skipped material quality here.
Purpose of this two machines
Maybe we can speak about the purpose of both of these two devices, as they cannot work individually. A preamplifier or line level amplifier is a device that takes a digital signal from DAC and turns it into a line level signal that your speakers can reproduce. Also, a lot of the character of sound is built and created in the preamplifier. But the line level signal it creates is usually very low, so it cannot drive any speakers. And there comes the power amplifier, which takes that line level signal and boosts it so it can drive your passive speakers to reasonable and high levels.
Fosi V3 Explanation
We have V3, a Class D power amplifier. This is a 2-channel amp that, on Fosi's website, says it is able to do 300W inputs. Now that is one big if, and it depends on dependency and your power supply. The V3 comes in 3 bundles, with thirty-two watts and forty-eight watts, including a forty-eight watts GaN power supply. To achieve that fabled 300W, you need speakers that operate in 4 ohms, but also to have a power supply that is forty-eight watts 10A, which Fosi does not sell in a bundle but separately, and it costs alone around 110 euros. But to me, the middle option, the one that I have, of forty-eight watts 5A is more than enough. It provides 230W and 115W in 4 and 8 ohms respectively, and if you have amps like this, it is more than enough power to drive a lot of speakers. I highly doubt somebody will use Fosi to drive Magnepans, or some 3000 euro speakers, but I digress. The connectivity is very simple with line in and speakers out. But this kind of stereo amps are usually used as a bridge between preamps and DACs, so simple connectivity is not strange here.
Fosi P3 Explanation
P3 is a preamplifier, to be precise, a tube preamplifier. Being tubes will be very beneficial, but I will explain that a little bit later. You can control the digital signal, with treble and bass controls, it is a great add-on for adjusting sound, to fit your room's resonances and limitations. If it is too boomy and too bright, well you know what to do. You can connect P3 via RCA, or via Bluetooth. The addition of Bluetooth is a nice add-on and it comes in nice aptX HD. There is also a headphone output, but I did not test this so you will have to go to some other reviews to learn about how good the headphone out is. It is a device that takes information from your players or from DAC and makes them warm and rich.
As I said earlier, these two combine the power that is needed for your speakers, but what is the sound they mold?
Amazing sound synergy - Class D + Tubes
And let me tell you, these two devices combined create some amazing synergy. And I think the decision to pair class D with tubes is actually a great idea. Personally, I am not a huge fan of Class D, even though it is really efficient, I think the sound is really dry, and a bit sterile. It can create some magic, with clear and transparent sonic pictures, which can at times have sometimes high treble. It could be a wonder if you like a sound like that, it is just not my preference. But then in the other component, we have tubes which are by nature warm sounding. It is more weighty and full sound, which emphasizes a bass that has more definition and size.
So defined and high treble and rich and deep bass. Sounds on two different dynamic spectrums merge together to create audiophile magic. It truly is, as now sound is clean and clear but also has a bit cheeky weight and definition. It takes a little bit from the best of both worlds.
Now there is a minus in there as this combination is not too warm, not having this beautiful warm and big sound, nor is it super clear and transparent and very detailed. So lovers of both dynamic end spectrums are not going to be blown away, but to me this combination is better than both. Especially in this price range.
The sound really focuses on placing instruments correctly on the soundstage. And giving enough room to breathe and focus. That is certainly the greatest strength of this combination. And the reason I say that is because usually what happens in cheaper devices, is there are colorations in any direction, and transparency and separation can get lost really easily. And here the clarity between every instrumentation is defined, but also their body has a firm presence.
Soundstage while not having the biggest dispersion, is helped by crystallizing that separation and giving dynamics to every instrument. So that dispersion will not be grand, but common, it is really good in this price range.
A great thing with the addition of P3 is that it also gives certain warmth to instruments, so it gives them that sweet edge a little bit, grounding them with weight. Which is why I really enjoyed this. It is not that P3 is bursting through the chain to be dominant, but it adds enough spice and life to the sound to create some mind-blowing sound in this price range.
Philosophy of separates to build clean sound
The decision for Fosi to build separate and not integrated is also a smart choice. As they can easily focus to push certain parts of the system chain to the max of its capability in its price range. Many times in my reviews I spoke about how hifi components are misanthropes, as they love to be separated and that is when they show their strength. And the same can be said here.
Clean input, lack of distortion to get that current inside the machine to not switch between preamp, amp, and DAC, making isolating them far easier for cleaner sound. And they are not constrained by size, making it truly easier to build max out of components possible. It is a tale as old as time that HIFI needs separate and not integrated to build that full sound. So having DAC, preamp, and amp as separate boxes truly helps to maximize the potential of sound.
Even cleanliness helps with vocals to cut through the grain. I can hear them, they are dynamically present and the warm preamp helps them be weightier. Giving them weight even though a little bit boxy as they do not open so much.
But cleaning a sound, did wonders for treble. As it was in the top end clean enough to expose details. As driving sections of the top end with percussions and cymbals, violins had good separation and exposure in the dynamic section.
Listening Experience
And I tested this with Another Green World, remaster from 2004. It is so well produced and even better mastered now. It is an art rock album with a lot of ambient textures and passages. But it also has prominent use of fuzz guitar. And now why is that even important for this review? As the album was produced with visions of great articulation and textures in drums and other instruments, I think Eno's love of African tribal instrumentalism showed here, as you can hear great separation but also a bunch of textures to them. And on St. Elmo's Fire, Fosi did allow that separation to happen in the top end and to be separated nicely from vocals, guitars, and synths in mids. And that fuzzy guitars have weight to them, not the weightiest weight of warm guitars, but certainly could color it in a specific way. So I wish more textures here in every aspect of sound, from vocals to percussions to guitars, but it separated nicely, and it allowed that kind of instruments to have a nice presence. Including vocals. Constantly investing in better DAC will help here. It was an enjoyable audiophile experience with very little money. It did present everything on the table, with great rounding of details in the soundstage. So that you understand that these amps excel above and beyond their price range.
Hidden costs to consider
I think the only minus that I see with separates, besides taking more space, but as Fosi devices are small that is not such a big issue, is that it requires additional investment in cables. And for a lot of other hobbies, cables are afterthoughts but don’t bottleneck and limit your device with bad cables. And no I am not saying to shell out for cables above the price of these devices. But some decent cables around 50-60 euros should do the trick in the long run. You need cables to connect your source to the preamplifier, or alternatively transport to DAC and then to the preamplifier, and then to connect the preamplifier to the amp. That can add to the costs of these devices and are hidden costs, that you should consider.
If you are interested in great cables, that can really work well with this amp/preamp please look in the description of this video. Also, don’t forget that in order to maximize your amp you need to buy better power supplies, which is adding even more to hidden costs. You need to be wary about that. This can add up to even more 300 euros in costs. But the positive thing about that is, it all stays for any future buy that you do. So it is an investment but it is an investment in the future of your HIFI journey.
Do they justify the price?
And continually speaking about sound is kind of difficult with these devices. Do they justify their price? Yes, they really do. I don’t know anything in this price range that delivers this much clean, powerful, and dynamic sound. It is a must-buy as your first system in my regards. If you are watching this video, and you have a budget of around 200 euros, and have speakers and already a source or a DAC, just don’t think go and buy it, it is amazing.
Comparing them to more expansive devices
But how does it fare against more expensive devices is something I want to test. I want also to expose the problems of this device, by telling what improvements to make in order to be an amp killer in this price range.
To me, two aspects of improvement can be done in order for this to be that giant killer. Detailed extraction does exist but honestly lacks a bit of texture in order to truly fully realize it on soundstage. And also to be given presence and reach. The soundstage is great, but it could be better with bigger dispersion. Also for the brand and for memorability in the ears and minds of listeners, build unique traits to create uniqueness so that presentation could be a great thing, so you will be memorized in the minds of audiophiles on longevity.
And please, I know it is hard when you have individual components like this, but somehow please get me a remote. I listen to a large variety of music, I constantly adjust the volume, it kills the mood when I have to get out of my comfy chair to add and remove volume. Hahaha
I hear from a lot of reviewers on the channel how it bests even the 1000 euro amps, and I don’t know any 1000 euro amp that this combination sounds better from. And don’t get me wrong, it is not a detriment. Quite the contrary, I think you get, if you add I don’t know 200 euro DAC in conversation, almost 80-85% of that sound for 500 euros less. And that is a great bargain.
While I don’t know any integrated amp in this price range, I know a few budget amps and I will try to compare this combination with some of them. In reality, this fights easily with amps in the around 400-600 euros price range. But what this integrated has under its sleeve is a thing called uniqueness and characters in their branding. Think about it, Rega Brio what do you think of when I first say that name? Incredible detail resolution and extraction, it is Brio for you friends. Oh wait, Rotel A11, an incredible soundstage dispersion in budget level, a friend to a friend in need. It helps with memorability and longevity. Yes, these amps I mentioned do provide that better than this Fosi combination, but they are more expensive. But Fosi is so stable and surefooted and does everything well, that it is hard for me to not recommend Fosi even though I can see some more expensive amps deliver some things better. But Fosi does everything well, and in a much smaller and cheaper package.
And if Fosi can be a killer of something it is certainly a budget option of top brands. It is not a killer of giants even though it is a nice clickbait title. But it is not even trying to be. And a good thing with this combo, while I cannot see I use my trusted Denon PMA 600NE as my PC's bridge to speakers, I can see this combination doing so, as it is much more compact and can fit on a table, the versatility in that regard is enormous.
Conclusion
In conclusion to all this, I am surprised and as far as my experience goes, this opened my horizons. In that, I think there can be a lot of jewels in the sea of HIFI electronics even in a cheap price range, definitely, I will try to explore that ocean and you will see more reviews like this in the future.
But this great combo of warm tube amps and class D precision creates a magical combination that easily rivals much more expensive amps. You get enough separation, and transparency helped by class D and sprinkled that with a hint of warmth to create a more rounded and weightier presentation. You will get dynamics and soundstage open and explorable, and details in the top end to envision all those instruments on the soundstage.
Certainly, this is worth every penny and if you do not need a large variety of connections, and even that could be easily helped with accompanying DAC, you have a winner here. It is a great first gear, heck it is a great gear overall that will make your hifi odysseys far more enjoyable. So I give big praise to Fosi here, and keep making these wonderful devices, and can't wait to hear more from them.
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Keep daydreaming, and see you in the next video!
Summery Highlight
Pros:
Value for Money: Excellent sound quality and features for the price.
Compact and Well-Built: Small size and solid construction.
Versatility: Can be used in various scenarios, including as part of a HiFi system or for computer streaming.
Tube and Class D Combo: Combines the warmth of tubes with the clarity and efficiency of Class D amplification.
Sound Quality: Good instrument separation, clean and powerful sound, weighty and full presentation.
Bluetooth Connectivity: AptX HD support for wireless streaming.
Treble and Bass Controls: Allows for sound customization to fit room acoustics.
Transparency and Dynamics: Provides clear and dynamic sound with good detail extraction.
Investment in Future: Upgradable components, including power supplies and cables, for long-term use.
Cons:
Hidden Costs: Additional investment needed for better power supplies and cables.
Lack of Textural Detail: Could use more texture in sound for a fully realized presentation.
Soundstage Dispersion: Soundstage dispersion could be better.
No Remote Control: Lack of a remote can be inconvenient for adjusting volume.
Not for High-End Speakers: May not be suitable for very high-end speakers like Magnepans.
Limited Uniqueness: Lacks distinctive traits that make it memorable compared to some more expensive amps.
Integrated vs. Separate Components: Separate components require more space and cables.
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