AudioSource Amp One/A 160-Watt Stereo Power Amplifier with Internal Bridging

Amazon Customer Reviews

(5 out of 5)

Excellent value and sound; one of the best deals in amps!

I have been an audiophile since I was a teen (over 20 years), having owned some truly high end amplifiers like Bryston, Audio Research, and currently in my main system, a McIntosh MC162. All phenomenal amps. I also happen to own an AudioSource AmpTwo and an AmpOne, both superb amps for the money. The only difference with the AmpTwo, is that it has left and right channel lit VU meters that measure watts output and 'headroom' in db units. Very cool indeed! Other than this, the AmpOne is identical to the AmpTwo. The AmpOne is set up in my home office connected to higher end equipment like Parasound and a Denon HDCD player. My speakers are the very venerable and respected bookshelf horn speakers, the JBL HLS-610, which is very well balanced and revealing of source material and equipment. And lastly, I run fairly expensive 'StraightWire' interconnect cables between my components. That said, I have been blown away by the quality and neutral sound of this amplifier! The amp sounds detailed, accurate, warm, sweet, and powerful - attributes usually found in more expensive high end amplifiers as mentioned above, usually costing thousands of dollars! Quite an amazing feat for this solid little affordable AudioSource that satisfies even high demand audiophile ears like mine. Moreover, I have tested the AmpOne and AmpTwo while driving difficult power hungry loads, such as Magneplanar 4 ohm speakers, and they performed beyond my expectations. Kudos to AudioSource for providing one of the truly 'best bang for the buck' deals in stereo amplification out there! I highly, HIGHLY recommend this product.

(5 out of 5)

AudioSource Amp One/A - great value and quality!

I bought 2 AudioSource Amp One/A's and am running them as monoblocks to drive my front L/R speakers. The difference in sound quality over my Marantz SR-5300 (brand new) is quite stunning. The sound stage sounds much wider and deeper, and even the most delicate note can be clearly heard. I'm using the Marantz as a preamp to drive the AudioSource amps, BTW. With the AS's taking the load of the front speakers, the Marantz's dynamics and clarity have also improved dramatically with multi-channel recordings since it's now only handling the center and surround speakers.

I'd recommend buying a pair of these to anyone who has a low-mid priced home theater receiver with preamp outs. The difference is quite extraordinary. I now understand why people spend thousands of $ on monoblock amps.

I also tried running the AS's stereo mode, driving Front L/R, Center and Center Surround speakers. The sound was not as dynamic or clear using them this way, though movie soundtracks sounded dramatically better (the Marantz was now doing even less). I'm more of a 2 channel music buff who happens to love multi-channel movies, so I'm sticking with the 2 monoblock approach. Eventually, I may purchase additional AS Amp ones to drive my other speakers...

OK - I guess it's obvious I'm really happy with this product. Try it for yourself, you won't be disappointed. It's the cheapest way to get a monoblock amp without spending alot more, or dealing with equipment with noisy cooling fans!

(3 out of 5)

You get what you pay for

The sound from the Audio Source Amp One/A was fuzzy and unclear, when compared to my old Audio Research SP4. I also made a comparison with a Yamaha intergated amplifer model AX-596. The Yamaha also sounded more clear and distinct than the Audio Source. I returned the Audio Source for a refund. Speakers used for the test were NHT super zeros, with a powered NHT sub woofer. I feel the NHT speakers are the best part of my audio system.

(5 out of 5)

VERY good amp for the money

very flat sounding. i'm tired of people comparing other amps and thinking they are better for one reason or another.. but thats consumer audio for you... the goal should be to have flat sound that is as true to the origional recording as possible.

at any rate, this amp doesnt stray much in frequency response across the spectrum, has practically no noise (most notably, you can turn it up all the way with no audible hiss at all) and very low harmonic distorion.

the only real downside to this amp (for this price.. or mabye even a much higher price) is that it would have a pretty hard time driving some of the bigger floorstanding speakers.. but if you have a good subwoofer, who cares, right?

(2 out of 5)

Disapointing

We purchased this amplifier to drive a 5-ohm load based on the manufacturers claim of a low impedance 4-ohm capability. The unit arrived dead out of the box. Amazon promptly credited us and provided a return label. We purchased an identical amplifier locally because of time constraints. When connected to the 5-ohm load it worked but got extremely hot and we shut it down. We double checked the ohm load and it was 5-ohms. We returned the amp and purchased a completely different amp in slightly higher price range from a different manufacturer. The new amp worked fine. The audiosource is OK for a basic, small 8-ohm load and does not have the low impedance characteristics advertised by the manufacturer.