S.M.S.L AD18 Audio HiFi Stereo Amplifier with Bluetooth 4.2 Supports Apt-X,USB DSP Full Digital Power Amplifier 2.1 Small 80Wx2 Class D Amplifier with Subwoofer Output

This amp has been my COVID special. Its on almost all the time everyday. I use it with BT from my iPad or iPhone in the morning for some quick news or a podcast. Once I get my coffee going I switch into some music via the Coax connection while I read my email. Then I flip on the TV monitor to catch the rest of the news through the optical 2 connection, which also works fine for mirroring the President's Corona Briefings. I bought an HDMI adapter for the iPad and found I get a better picture and sound than mirroring. I'll use that for movies. I don't use the tone controls very much but they boost the realism for an action movie from one of the services. The bass response is powerful enough to rattle the walls. I never had a class D amp before, this was a surprise. I have no problem with the sound quality, sounds just like my class A amps, and it's so incredibly flexible it makes a great attachment point for all my electronic devices on the long days of sheltering in place. OK, it's been 6 months and I can't tell you how impressed I am with this powerful little Amp . In the meantime I've noticed a few things. As good as the BT sounds from my phone or iPad, the coaxial connection blows it away. So much so that I only use BT for non-audiophile applications, or if I'm too lazy to plug the powered Doc into the iPad. I'm using an old Blue Circle Thingee (which was very well regarded in it's day) as my USB to Coax converter because my Peach Tree X1 is on another system. I tried an original HiFace. I didn't think it would work because it needs a driver, and it didn't. I'm going to pick up a better USB to coax converter because even with the Blue Circle I can easily hear the difference between an ALAC or 320 internet radio broadcasts and standard lower bit rate broadcast and I know a better converter is going to sound even better. For Speakers, I recycled a 3 piece Polk Satellite system from an old surround hook up and am using it for nearfield listening... and every time I listen to it it blows me away. Clear crisp bass notes and well a articulated treble. These speakers didn't sound this good when I had them connected to an 80W per Ch class A amp, (also in nearfield). I'm impressed. The only other thing I'll mention is that using the Coaxial input sounds sounds better than using the USB input. I haven't tried headphones so I can't comment on the headphone amp. So now it’s 10 months and everything is working well. I have it on a lot during the day and then again at night. After a long session, I noticed that it was warm to the touch but not hot. Never the less, with all the failures that have occurred, I’m looking around for a replacement in case my unit fails too. It’s too bad that these units fail because I really like it. The Blue Circle Thingy has been replaced with a Douk Audio U2 XMOS XU208 USB to COAX converter. Very nice upgrade. Sounds fantastic. One of the things I’ve discovered is that my iPad Pro can Bluetooth video to the TV. Not nearly as good as mirroring, which is not as good as HDMI. I ended up buy a UNI dock for the iPad which allows me to connect a wired mouse, (Bluetooth keyboard) , USB to COAX converter, thumb drives for the file system and a HDMI cable, and charge the iPad at the same time. The only downside to this arrangement is that every once in a while I forget to plug in the 60W Anker charger and the iPad batter runs down until I notice that it’s not charging and plug the charger in. Maybe I should leave it plugged in all the time.... Anyway, back to a Netflix movie... I’ll update this if it fails. It’s now 2024. The S.M.S.L AD18 never failed. I moved it to another room along with the satellite speakers and the subwoofer and it’s no longer Nearfield. My new Nearfield set up is now an RME ADI-2 DAC, 2 Genlec 8010A Powered Studio Monitors and a Genlec 7340A Powered Subwoofer. - Very Nice - The question is always, Does it sound $3000. Better? I think so, but the SMSL AD 18 is very hard to beat and the speakers are different and in another room, so it’s hard to make a valid comparison. What I do know is that the AD18 can EQ my satellites to a very close approximation of the much more expensive rig. ( But the connections have to be wired, and you need the higher Specs of the Douk USB to COAX to do it. The Bluetooth sound is acceptable, but not outstanding )

I've been using this amp for a while now, so I thought I'd write a review to help others who are considering a purchase. I own a number of small amplifiers I purchased through Amazon from various manufacturers. I have two Nobsounds, two Shunnos, a Douk Audio, and a total of 3 SMSL amps (I'm including this SMSL AD18.) After trying many others, I purchased a SA-50 for my first SMSL amp. I immediately noticed improved sound quality versus all of my existing micro/mini amplifiers. Unfortunately, it only had the most rudimentary subset of functions. There were many things missing, which I was accustomed to having in all of the other amps. The SMSL SA-50 had really great sound, but little input source flexibility. There was no Bluetooth and I was also annoyed that it didn't have a subwoofer output. Even line level sub outputs would have made me much happier. Still, I began to use that amp more than any other because the sound quality was just so noticeably superior. Eventually, the lack of input options and controls became too frustrating, so I decided to see what the next level of SMSL model upgrade would offer. Back to Amazon, I went. There, I discovered there was an SA-50 Plus. Kicking myself for not noticing it when I bought the lower model, I still bought one immediately. It had a display, as well as several control buttons for play, pause, skip forward, and skip backward, etc. Even better, it has a USB port which allows one to load a large thumb drive with music then plug it into the unit to create a very compact, self-contained, stand alone media player. There was even a microSD slot! The additional features really didn't cost a lot more than the basic unit, so like I said, I bought it immediately. The SMSL SA-50 Plus was almost perfect for what I needed. ...Almost... In my excitement over seeing the thumb drive support, microSD, nice screen, and extra song controls on the Plus, I failed to notice that it lacked one more feature I really wanted to have. There was no Bluetooth support. I considered (in fact, I'm still considering) purchasing an external Bluetooth receiver just to have Bluetooth on that unit. When I started looking on Amazon for Bluetooth though, I came across the SMSL AD-18. It had the Bluetooth I wanted and many other features. The grass truly does look greener on the other side of the fence, but it nearly always turns out to be an illusion. The SMSL AD-18 cranked out more power, which meant I could reach the same volume levels with less distortion because the amp wouldn't be working so hard. It would be working in a more conservative portion of its output range than the lower model amp. Plus, this AD-18 actually had optical(!) inputs. It also had a USB port, although for some reason it was Micro USB. It even had a line level subwoofer output! Which was a feature I had in my original herd of lower quality amplifiers. As I ticked off all of those "wish list" features, I realized this might be the perfect micro amplifier for me. It is definitely the best of the many tiny amps I've tried. Of the amps I currently own, only my Denon AVR-X6300 is easily able to beat this little amp in every way - but the Denon was 18-20 times the price. This amp is truly a huge value for the price and was also very very close to perfect for what I wanted. Unfortunately, there was one blemish on the silky skin of this nubile amplifier, which I discovered when I set it up. The USB port on this amplifier works completely differently than the one on the SMSL 50-Plus. On the 50-Plus, I plugged in a 128GB thumb drive full of music and used it most of every day to listen to the music on the thumb drive. Since the AD-18 had a micro USB port, I had purchased an adapter so that I could plug a normal thumb drive into that small USB port. So, I filled another thumb drive with music, added the USB adapter, and attached it to the amplifier. My euphoria over the AD-18 took a hard hit that day. It turns out the USB port on the AD-18 only works as an input to use the amp as an external sound card for a PC. It completely ignored the thumb drive I connected. I couldn't read or play any of the music on the drive. If, like me, you were planning to use the USB socket on this amp to play music from a thumb drive, you will be sorely disappointed. It might even be a deal breaker for many folks. Besides the lack of support for song storage media, there are two other minor annoyances I have with this amplifier. The click/long click/turn/click again method of getting to various settings makes it far more annoying to configure the amplifier for your specific needs. In addition, when you are trying to adjust the volume, it is far too easy to accidentally click the knob while you are turning it a dozen times to try to increase the volume. As soon as it picks up your unintentional click, the volume adjustment ceases and you have potentially inadvertantly changed one of the settings. So, how do you get around this odd interface? Basically, I have set the thing at a satisfyingly high volume which is below the "halfway mark" of the volume level and I never touch the amplifier for any reason other than turning it on and off. Instead, I make volume adjustments and song selections using one of my old iPads which is wired directly to the amplifier using a headphone adapter. I could accomplish the same setup using Bluetooth, if I desired, but they're sitting next to one another on my desk anyway, so I figured why not cable it? This basically gives me a dedicated touch screen media server that is always connected to this amplifier. Used this way, this is a fantastic amplifier for filling any room in your house with music. Overall, this amplifier has more features than the SA-50 Plus and the sound quality is truly excellent. If they sold a version of this with the ability to read music from thumb drives and microSD cards, there wouldn't be anything out there that could come close to the performance of this amplifier at this price. That's why I gave this amplifier 5 stars. You really can't do better for the price and the sound it produces is warmer and more inviting when compared to other micro amplifiers. I can't see myself ever buying a different brand of micro amplifier after having 3 models from SMSL. I highly recommend SMSL micro amplifiers and this one in particular is exceptional.

So far so good. I've had it about a week so far. It's driving a pair of Fluance SX6's and a 10" Polk audio powered sub. The Bluetooth works flawlessly and easily. I assume the Bluetooth has the newest tech considering how well it sounds. I've been playing 320kbps mp3s with the Bluetooth. Bluetooth seems to be mixed louder than the other inputs for some reason, but not enough to be a nuisance or anything. The "aux in" works great. The optical works great as well. I haven't used the USB out yet, buy I'll go ahead and assume that it works well too. My only complaint and the reason for the 4 stars instead of 5 is that during dry winter months, the static you build up walking on carpet can cause problems. Anytime you touch the unit without grounding yourself first, the unit will drop the audio output regardless of the input. You have to turn the unit off and then back on. Luckily it comes with a remote. I may try to ground the unit a little better myself later on, but until then I can deal with the static issue. It's probably not the best thing for the unit, but I'll consider my troubles a test. EDIT**** SIX WEEKS IN, THE ZAPPING ONLY PRODUCES AN AUDIBLE POP AT A LEVEL BELOW THE LEVEL OF THE AUDIO. IN MY EYES, THIS IS AN IMPROVEMENT. I DIDNT DO ANYTHING TO IT. THERE FOR A WHILE, IF I TOUCHED ANYTHING CONNECTED TO THE AMP AND IT ZAPPED, THE AUDIO WOULD CUT. WHETHER THE TV, XBOX, OR RECORD PLAYER WAS TOUCHED. ILL BUMP MY RATING UP TO 5 IF IT LASTS LONGER THAN A YEAR. Well worth the money. Would recommend. EDIT**** IF YOU THINK ITS BROKEN, CHECK TO MAKE SURE OUTPUT IS SET TO SPEAKERS AND NOT HEADPHONES. THAT'LL SPARE YOU OF ANY EMBARRASSMENT, IF YOU KNOW WHAT IM SAYING.

This is my 2nd AD18 from SMSL. Been using it since 2019. Buying it for a family member. Its Afforable and I got significant time-limited discount offer from Amazon, if compared buy from Lazada! Seller was fast to ship and deliver the product. Thank you FINE MUSIC and Aamazon!

===EDIT=== Despite the product description claiming it's supported, there is a problem with this amplifier and the 96kHz USB sampling rate, where every so often the speakers will output a deafeningly loud cracking/hissing noise. This can be resolved by setting the sampling rate in windows back to the default 44.1kHz sampling rate. ========== I bought this wanting a compact, Bluetooth-enabled amplifier that would compliment my Wharfedale Diamond 220 speakers without breaking the bank while also not being so incredibly cheap the quality is in question. I'm a student so the limited space of my student bedroom meant I was looking for something with a compact package. I managed to get a relative bargain by getting a customer return from the Amazon Warehouse, thankfully it was in perfect condition as I've found the warehouse to be a bit hit-or-miss. The unit has loads of connectivity, I opted to use the USB connection (configured at 96kHz) from my laptop as this would bypass my laptop's sound card and instead send the digital signal directly to the amplifier. I connected my speakers up with some speaker cable bought from Richer Sounds and some soldered banana plugs from Amazon. I'm very happy with the sound, my speakers are rated for 50W each and this amplifier can go up to 80W per channel. This amplifier is **loud**, and I've gone nowhere near the limits. The proprietary 'SDB' EQ mode makes for a good listening experience, I also did a +2dB bass offset because I don't have a subwoofer (although there is a port for connecting an active/powered subwoofer in the future). I'm no audiophile but I think it sounds pretty great! The Bluetooth interface supports APT-X, a low-latency audio codec. My phone and laptop both support this, I think it sounds fantastic too. This is great if I'm watching movies in bed from my laptop as I can avoid using my laptop speakers, I do notice a tiny bit of lag where the audio is behind the video. (With VLC video player you can set a delay on the video if this annoys you). The display is good for configuring the amplifier, it works well and is intuitive enough. The remote is nice for controlling the volume and settings from in bed, however, the remote leaves a little to be desired... Sometimes the amplifier doesn't respond to button presses on the remote, so you have to press 'A' to sync it back to the amplifier. The remote won't allow you to change to modes without direct sight of the display because there are no buttons like 'Bluetooth', 'Aux', instead there's a button for switching between inputs, but you can't tell which is selected without sight of the display. If I'm in bed and want to switch from 'USB' to 'Bluetooth' it's hard to read what the display is set to from that distance. Overall I'm really pleased with this amplifier. It's small, affordable, well built, sounds great and has great specs.

Utomordentligt ljud - blev faktiskt mycket förvånad över ljudkvaliteten. Liten och behändig. Snabb leverans. Det enda negativa är, att jag inte kunnat hitta inköpskälla för den kombinerade audiovideokabeln för coaxial input och subwoofer output ( som visas i manualen att ansluta i det kombinerade coaxial/subwoofer uttaget). Den behövs naturligtvis inte om man inte har behov av coaxial input! Praktisk fjärrkontroll medföljer. Mycket bra köp, slår troligen alla konkurrenter i prisklassen. I varje fall mycket bättre än den miniförstärkare av annat fabrikat jag hade tidigare. Rekommenderas!

Bu anfi tamda aradıgım ürün almadan önce çok araştırdım smsl marka ürüne karar verdim kulaklık be masaüstü ses sistemi blut. La yada kablolu kullanım için bulunmaz bir ürün her yönüyle iş görür kulalık ve ses sistemi sesi harika bir şekilde yükseltiyor türkiyede ilk alan benim heralde biraz pahalı ama kesin iş gören bir anfi ve dak tavsiye ederim

Mais pourquoi n'ai-je pas investi plus tôt ? J'avais besoin d'enceintes de bureau, et écoutant pas mal de musique pas du tout envie d'investir dans un set 2.0 moisi d'une quelconque marque pour périphériques PC. J'avais une paire de Davis Acoustics Cluny qui ne me servaient plus (sinon j'aurais acheté une paire de Highland Aingel 3201 pour 130 €). J'ai acheté ce petit ampli et il drive parfaitement ces enceintes. Branché en USB sur mon Mac mini 2012 il est parfaitement et immédiatement reconnu, et ne prend aucune place sur le bureau. Avantages : il est petit, simple à utiliser (même et surtout sans utiliser la télécommande), et une de ces qualités de son ! Aucun souffle, un son ciselé comme je l'aime, et le tout pour un prix très contenu. Je redécouvre mes musiques :) Inconvénients : je cherche encore ...