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SMSL SP200 THX AAA-888 Balanced Headphone Amp
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SMSL SP200 THX AAA-888 Balanced Headphone Amp
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Product Description
SMSL has joined forces with THX to create a high-performing balanced headphone amp with next to no distortion. True to its name, the SMSL SP200 THX AAA-888 Balanced Headphone Amp features ground-breaking THX AAA-888 technology to deliver detailed audio with extreme output power and impressively low crosstalk Read More
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Customer Reviews
4.7
(79 reviews)
5star(59)
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keyboard_arrow_downNew2thehobby
29
Feb 17, 2021
checkVerified Buyer
Very impressed! Enough Power For My HifiMan HE6se's..
I recently purchased a Topping A90 amp plus D90 DAC to replace my JDS Atom amp and Topping D50S DAC. I have to say, I am not impressed with the Topping A90/D90 combo. Fortunately, the SMSL SP200 amp just arrived and to my ears, the SMSL SP200 pairs much better with either of my Topping DACs. I think the SMSL SP200 is a warmer, more musical listen than the Topping A90. Particularly in the treble, the SMSL SP200 is less metallic, brittle or clinical sounding. To my ears, the SMSL is much less fatiguing and more listenable, where as the A90 is too digital - to a fault. If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't have purchased the Topping A90. I simply prefer the sound of the SMSL SP200.
Recommends this product? Yes
RyanPin
325
Jul 8, 2020
checkVerified Buyer
Solid headphone amp
With a smaller footprint than the thx aaa 789, this looks great on a desk, and when paired with the smsl m200 DAC, which features the same angular body shape, they stack beautifully. I would recommend finding some short XLR interconnects to connect the two together.
mad for sound... it’s super clean. As you expect from a thx aaa amp. Transparent through and through. Get plenty loud as well. It makes easy work of difficult to drive headphones. On high gain, I barely get to the 12 o’clock position for either my Dekoni Blues by Fostex or my hd 6xx. On the low gain settings, more efficient headphones have no problem there as well. I have not played around too much with iems with it, but from what I’ve heard is that it get difficult to work with since you are trying to get a little power from a massive source. It’s like filling a coffee mug with a fire hose.
people complain that it’s not really balanced, and the volume levels are the same across both the single ended and xlr. To me that’s not an issue. It’s not like you’re going to listen to both ports at the same time. And the sound is so clean that you really don’t have to worry about it.
I really do enjoy this metal flip switches on the front. They have a satisfying click and snap to them. People complain that there are only two setting for gain, but truth be told I feel that this is all you need. I don’t think that this was intended for iems in the first place.
solid design, built in power supply so you don’t need the external transformer makes for a clean set up. My only complaint is that it doesn’t have the rca pass through like the 789. That just means that I have to use an av splitter rather than daisy chain the sound from my record player to the av receiver. Still sound great in that setup, just requires more points of potential failure.
the price point is lower than the 789, but not really by a lot, and I feel that the sound quality is just as good. Either way, you could go with one or the other, but you won’t be disappointed if you go with the smaller form factor, and cleaner setup.
Recommends this product? Yes
BigBallBag
106
Feb 15, 2021
so you are saying using the dac to lower the volume to the headphone amp will degrade sound quality?
Centuri0n2013
15
Dec 6, 2020
checkVerified Buyer
Great compact amplifier with the THX sound
This amplifier produces a very clean sound and low noise floor. This is a legit amp that punches hard for its size. The SP200 has detailed rich sound that is a big improvement if you have an entry level amp and want an upgrade. It features the 888 chipset that was used in the Benchmark HPA4, which is a $3000 dollar amplifier. What you end up with is a high end processing chipset in a compact package with a price that regular people can afford. There is a slight issue, but only if you are wanting the amp for this purpose. Balanced output. This amp while it has an XLR output, is not balanced in any way. All it is, is an output for convenience. Normally the benefit of going balanced is for the low noise floor, but the THX amplification is so clean you almost barely can notice it. I bought it at $218 which is well worth what it is. If you've never heard the "THX sound" its something to try. I've used it with a few different headphones (6xx, MDR 7506, Pro 80's). The 6xx sounded great, but very similar to many other amps, the difference being the amount of power this amp can push. It can push the 6xx to very high volume levels. Overall, it didn't change the sound too much at all, which to some is a great thing. This doesn't colour sound. The MDR 7506's had a different effect entirely. The 7506's are very sensitive and bright. This is where this amp shines, instrument separation and dynamics came alive. If you have sensitive headphones that are low impedance, this amp shines (but low gain is still a ton). The Takstar Pro 80's had a neutral and clean sound on this amp. Nothing was of note, it just sounded like it should.
All in all this amplifier has many advantages; the price, the THX 888 chipset, the metric dumpload of power, and the compact size. For a person looking to upgrade from something entry level, this is a great option. At 218, this is hard to beat. But if you have the 789, probably save your money, they are very close. I do in fact recommend this amp in general though however.
Recommends this product? Yes
Shahoff
49
Dec 23, 2020
checkVerified Buyer
I just love this amp.
Just lovely amp for the money. I never tested more transparent headphone amplifier in my life. No sound colouring AT ALL. Noise floor is somewhere WAY below my ears threshold.
My DT177xGo in balance mode with SU-8 DAC sounds absolutely amazing.
SP200 also managed to open full potential of my cheap Fidelio X2HR.
The only thing what I would add is 4.4mm connector as I have all such connector on all my headphone's cables, but I sorted this with XLR4 to 4.4mm plug.
(Edited)
Recommends this product? Yes
2ill
5
Jan 20, 2022
checkVerified Buyer
Amazing power house! 5 Stars!
Absoluetly elated with this amp. Mine was purchased for the sole purpose of driving my newly acquired Hifiman Edition XS which requires additional power to drive correctly.
This amp does the job perfectly and then some.
My max volume adjustment is 11-12 o'clock on High Gain. 1-2 o'clock with a Bass focused EQ profile.
The power output is insane and will realistically drive any pair of headphone ever created.
It'll drive them well too, being a THX amp it provides neutral output which is accurate to the true recording, works really well with EQ if you want to emphasise or add anything to the sound.
The small foot print & integrated power supply is amazing, fits perfectly on my desk without taking excess space.
Ignore any comments/reviews which compare this to a Balanced amp, it's irrelevent as THX amps already have no noise floor which is exactly what Balanced Amps try to do. The true balanced comparison is irrelevent when it comes to this amp.
Purchased for $140 USD, even for $400 this is a steal.
This is my End Game amp.
(Edited)
Recommends this product? Yes
JongsuChong3
18
Jan 7, 2022
checkVerified Buyer
This is the second SP200. There is no other product like this value for money.
I was already using SP200 in the past. The SP200 was sold at a low price, so I bought it again. The list price was around $300. Now you can buy it for less than half that price.
The THX888 chip is huge. It can be seen that there are few drawbacks. For the price, I heard that the performance is about 90% of the products that are about 10 times the price. In fact, the performance is so good that there is a huge difference from products under $200. Originally I was using the product in Topping a50s, but the 50s also sounds quite good for the price, but the performance difference from the sp200 is significant.
SP200 is a good product that produces a wide sense of space, delicate sound, wide dynamic range, and a sound that will satisfy all users.
However, the downside is that the analog volume lever makes noise when you use it. I don't have the skills, so I don't have the skills to fix this on my own.
Recommends this product? Yes
citysinz
33
Dec 21, 2021
checkVerified Buyer
Good Value, So Far
From market research, the big concerns for purchasing on Drop were:
- Buyer Beware.. no Warranty, take a care. Order, wait, hope for the best. Let AmEx cover the rest.
- Volume knob.. oh, the knob, aka potentiometer with low potential, barely up to the job. ;-)
- It leans.. I definitely see what that means. So under the desk it goes, along with my toes, you knows.
- Balanced input, balanced output..but balanced, it is not. My ears can't tell, there's a thought.
- Use with IEMs.. back to #2, perhaps best not to.
- No pass through. So, back at the DAC, reroute the stack, and add a switch, to do the trick.
Recommends this product? Yes
dtbach
6
Apr 26, 2021
checkVerified Buyer
Very Happy
This little baby is fantastic for the money! Sounds clear as a bell and has power to spare. Have a JDS Atom which is also great for the price but it couldn’t drive my HE560’s or DT990 (600 ohm) headphones adequately. No issue with the SP200. It is quite precise but not cold. Not fatiguing at all to listen to for hours. Pairs perfectly with my AKG712’s and HE560’s. Very pleased with it.
Recommends this product? Yes
Graomanan
5
Apr 3, 2021
checkVerified Buyer
Nice sound for the value.
I can’t compare the sound with other headphone amplifiers, because previously I used portable players with DAC functionality. Some times, I pass the signal through an old NAD desktop amplifier.
I must say that I don’t have any amplification problem with my current headphones the 58X jubilee, the HD599 or the PXC 550, but thinking to make future investments in power demanding headphones, I acquired this first headphone amplifier. I’m also want to taste the THX chipset sound, as commented in the net the low distortion and neutrality.
In any case, I wasn't expect a great improvement with my current headphones, that are moved quite well with any mobile device.
I received the amp before a new ordered GRACE SDAC that complete my current stack. Waiting that SDAC arrive to Spain, I used the SP200 with a Raspberry pi stacked with a DAC card, and the Volumio image.
Using this simple configuration, I was surprised for the improvement, despite the lack of accuracy that provides the Rasp Dac card.
Recently I received the SDAC and I finished to mount my current stack. I’m very pleased with the investment and the result. Using that configuration, I appreciate a great improvement in the musical scene and instrument separation. I can enjoy and appreciate that improvement in any kind of music. The sound is not fatiguing at all.
I’m using the stack mainly with the 58X, and love the detail and space I feel in the scene. About the amplification, I usually listen the music in low gain and practically never pass from the 9 o clock. I feel that I can use this configuration with more power demanding headphones in the future.
Recommends this product? Yes
Graomanan
5
Apr 19, 2021
I don't know the costs of the customs payments in this case. I hear that can be a 2?%, but I can't ensure because in my case the package arrived directly by Correos without any previous notification or request.
(Edited)
GoodOutcome
96
Aug 9, 2020
checkVerified Buyer
So far pleased with this amp
Powerful, clean amp. Hope it continue to serve me for a long time.
Recommends this product? Yes
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