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 a long one. I had been looking for a replacement computer speaker set and getting wholly frustrated. I finally decided to try something else. This SMSL amp is much more than I imagined it would be. Being class D it barely gets warm under load. Not to mention the quality is surprisingly good. I am running Optical off my ASUS Tuff motherboard to the unit. The speakers of choice are old Samsung units off a surround unit purchased for $20 from ebay. The sub is a Polk home unit PSW110. Its WAY over kill for any computer set, and sounds AMAZING. I do wish it had Hi pass for the speakers so I could adjust them but the Samsungs seem to be doing ok. Much better than the Sony set I tested first. Now the "whaaaat???". The speakers are 3 ohms and I have noticed no issues whatsoever. No clipping, no power drop, no distortion. Oh and its RIDICULOUSLY loud if you aren't careful with the volume. Design wise its much smaller than expected and the screen is a little tough to read. It could use a selection button for headphone/Speaker. Instead you have to click the main dial twice then switch and then wait to turn up/down the volume. However this allows me to leave my 3.5mm splitter plugged in (I run Sennheiser Game 1 for PC and Xbox). Note: The Sennheiser Game 1 I still have to max out the volume, something that drives me nuts on the Xbox as well. However a pair of HD515 were near blasted out at full headphone volume. I believe the volume adjustment on the Game 1's is the culprit, not the amp. For such a quality amp, a 6.35mm plug would have been a better choice. OR a mic input in the rear and a gaming 3.5mm out in the front. One major complaint. The volume is placed way too close to the headphone out. The other minor complaint is the silly 3.5mm to Coax needed to run a subwoofer (you will need to buy one) and then you get to guess which side is the sub. I have no doubt this could power large bookshelf speakers based on preliminary testing. Considering getting a second one to power speakers in the garage (plan on using some Polk 6.5 components I have lying around from my last car). However I have no way to power a sub in this case so I am looking at other options as well. Bottom Line: EXCELLENT value for the money. Small, powerful, and great sounding. This is a tough little guy to beat. Will test NFC at a future date and update if there are any issues. Also did not test remote.

The system is quite small, and it's hilarious to see peoples faces when they see it for the first time and the sound that it can output, with all of its features in such a small box. I paired the SMSL AD18 with a pair of Micca MB42X speakers, it happily drives them without issue, the two are a perfect match. The unit does get warm when playing for a while, but it's nothing to be worried about, I had it playing for 10 hours straight at lvl 15 on the volume and it just got a little warm (not hot to where you burn yourself) just have it in a well ventilated area like with any device that puts off heat. The screen is well lit but some of the text is quite small, so at a distance it will be hard to make some of the on screen text out, but the most important settings as well as when changing the volume are using the bigger text size. The headphones I own are also a perfect match (Sentry black diamond), the headsets are 32ohms which is the the optimum for the SMSL AD18, it'll will push them to very loud levels with plenty of bass and highs and mids. And yes the AD18s EQ and bass and treble settings also apply to the headphone output. But just a heads up, the AD18 only has a max headphone output of 53mW at 32ohm, so anything with a higher ohm load it won't be able to push as good (headphones at 64ohms outputs only 26mW, and at 150ohms 11mW, so make sure you have headphones with at least 32ohms to get the best possible output from the headphones. I made sure I bought the newer version with the sub out (they still sell the older version here on Amazon which does not have the sub output), so if you want the one with the Sub out, make sure you click on the listing that says sub output at the end. The Bluetooth is very clear and has a pretty darn good range (all thanks to its little antenna). I haven't tried the USB input yet (it is to turn the AD18 into an external sound card), the USB port does not play audio files (and I knew this going in). With the many input options on this unit I can just buy a stand alone Fm and audio file player is I really need to play FM and MP3s or other types of audio files. Being that this has Bluetooth Mp3 and other audio file playback can be done on your phone or other device that has Bluetooth, or you can just plug the PC into its USB port and play them that way. I have my AD18 hooked up to my TCL Roku TV by Toslink, and the audio quality is amazing (this is a far better option than a soundbar, and even better option that the upcoming Roku wireless speakers which can only be used on a Roku). NFC works flawlessly with my SONY Xperia XA1 ultra, tapped my phone on top of the AD18 a few times and it paired without any drama. I don't own a powered sub yet to to use the sub out, but that'll come soon. I'm totally happy with my purchase.

The first one of these I ordered would make a nasty, digital sounding chirp every five to ten minutes, even on an analog input. It's remote was also DOA. The one I exchanged it for is a good amp. The sound quality is excellent; pristine and powerful. Loaded with either a pair of Klipsch R26F, or my home built Karma Indignia, you are at a comfortable listening volume at "15," good and loud at "25" and doing serious damage to your hearing at "40." Theoretically, the dial reaches "60." I hadn't used the Bluetooth function until just now. It pairs easily, the audio is of very good (not quite perfect, it's Bluetooth) quality, and its range is impressive! The amp lives in the basement of my 1800 sq ft brick and wood construction row house, and works from most places inside, including the second floor. My biggest issue is with the remote. It eats a set of batteries every couple of weeks! Sometimes it quits working entirely, and you have to remove and replace the battery. The IR receiver doesn't register input unless you're within 20 degrees of the face. Overall, cheap and cheerful. Good value despite poor quality control. Try to find something else like it, though... I challenge you. If you're looking for the greatest number of digital inputs in the smallest possible package, you've found it. (In an effort to communicate with the Internet of the Future, if a better product does present itself, let me know.)

Wow. Just awesome! I purchased this DAC/amp for a specific purpose, but even without that need, I would have bought this little gem because I've been waiting for a product like this for a long time. This little guy offers much more than your average DAC or DAC/Amp combo. Given the reasonable price and extensive list of features and capabilities, it's impressive to me that this little amp does everything that it does, and does everything at least adequately well. Most of what it does, it does very well, and a few things (including power output and sound quality) it does exceptionally well. There have been many nice DACs or DAC/Amps on the market for some time now, but there was always some limiting factor when you bought one (including high price). For example, I also own the Audioengine D1, which is a fine little DAC/Headphone Amp, but it is only usable with powered speakers or headphones. It gives you only 1 USB and 1 optical input, but no analog input, no COAX input, no speaker amp, and no Bluetooth. The S.M.S.L. AD-18 gives you 2 Optical inputs (44.1KHz-192KHz/24 bit), A COAX input (44.1KHz-192KHz/24 bit), a USB input (44.1KHz-96KHz/24 bit), an Aux analog input, Bluetooth (4.2), a Sub-woofer output (line level), L/R speaker terminals (5-way binding posts with 80 watts/channel @ 4 ohms), a built in headphone amp with 3.5mm output (front), bass/treble/volume controls, 7 preset EQ's, a remote control, and a nifty display screen! The D1 has a decent headphone amp (a little stronger the the AD-18's actually), but no speaker amp, and that's what I needed for my bookshelf into computer desk speakers project. Many of us out there have noted, with some sadness, at what passes muster for good sounding speakers these days. This is especially true for those products that slide the word "computer" in front of speakers. Basically, they suck for the most part, unless you are willing to spend way too much $$ for overpriced powered speakers that have (IMO) just average sound quality. For anyone out there like me, with a pair of really great sounding passive bookshelf speakers which they would love to use again, or use as computer speakers, then this is the amp for you! I have an old pair of Advent AR1122's that positively sing as oversized computer speakers now that the AD-18 is powering them! I used the line level sub output to add a powered Polk sub-woofer, and the sound with this combo is just amazingly full, rich and dynamic. The sound quality is sweet and detailed even at very low volume levels, and is impressively lively and powerful, with no harshness, when playing near the full-monty level. I had not expected that. I expected that the AD-18 would be an improvement over other DAC/amps in terms of connectivity and functionality, but not sound quality. It sounds significantly better than other DAC/Amps I've heard. I certainly didn't expect it to rival some full size stereo receivers in terms of power and clarity, but it definitely does. The AD-18 sounds very, very, good indeed, and for an audio product, that's easily the most important thing. So, what needs improvement? Well, if S.M.S.L. is reading these reviews, then the following is my suggestion box for your already great product: Headphone amp - For the vast majority of people out there, the Headphone Amp on the AD-18 will be more than adequate, especially considering what it's usually replacing (computer/phone HP jack). However, for those folks that have high impedance headphones, you may want to look at a dedicated high output headphone amp instead. The HP amp on the AD-18 works fine on my Grado's, so that's all I care about, but if S.M.S.L. wanted to add more power there, it would certainly widen the fan-base for the AD-18. Additional Outputs: It's not a must have, but it would be really nice if there was a line level analog output. Also, a digital output with pre/post or bit-stream output would be really nice, but that might raise the cost too much. Still it would be a nice and useful addition. In conclusion - this is a fantastically good product, that, if it lasts, will also be an exceptional value. I like it so much that I just bought a second one for another project! Note: Video was updated to prove to the doubters that 'Yes indeed, it can - power those in-efficient speakers!' In this case it was a pair of B&W DM 610's. Sounded beautiful, and LOUD! **UPDATE - July 17, 2019** After reading several negative comments about this product, claiming that it is a poorly designed piece of junk, I felt it necessary to update my original review. I have 3 of these units, and I can say that it is definitely a 5 star product. The one on my desktop, has been in daily service for more than a year, and is just as impressive today, as the day I unboxed it. I imagine that some of the negative reviews are genuine, but I believe that many of them are from competitors, trying to steer people away from this excellent, segment leading, product. If you're in the market for a desktop, workshop, or even main stereo amplifier, with excellent sound, power, and features at an affordable price, then shop no further because this is the one you want! Don't be dissuaded by the naysayers. This is a fantastic and RELIABLE product.

This caught my eye as I was looking to create a budget desktop system There's no floor noise at all, and its EQ choices & bass/treble controls make it easy to adjust the output to suit your gear. I played around with it and found it was quite easy to dial in the sound on a pair of Nuemi BS5 bookshelfs (wide & wonderful) and a set of vintage JBL 2800 floor spkrs (oh what fun to hear those old boxes blast off again)! The speaker volume at 10 is ample, at 15 I'm shutting the door, at 20 I'm just begging for trouble...Bluetooth/NFC works great, and I love that it has a headphone jack on the front, but it might not deliver enough power for high impedance cans. Nice to get that 24 bit/96khz output from Amazon HD Music. Yeah, the remote is probably the weakest part of this pkg (extremely basic and the IR requires line of sight) , but I prefer it over the multi-task button on the amp for scrolling through the settings. Got it on sale for $124.00 and its now hooked up to a pair of Mission MS-50's (Facebook Marketplace for $25 bucks), a new Monoprice 8" sub ($79) via USB to my PC. I consider $250.00 quite a bargain for such a sweet sounding system (incl banana plugs, 14 gauge wire & $16 for the pair of stands I made from Home Depot parts). Just over $300 total if I swapped the smaller Missions for the bigger Nuemis. Not an audiophile, but I enjoy good sounding music and highly recommend this compact, well built 2.1 dac/amp as the centerpiece of a budget audio system! 1/02/23 UPDATE: After a year and a half, this little 24-bit DAC/AMP still works great & sounds amazing as a desktop driver! While it allows one to tweak the EQ settings a bit, for the most part I prefer the dynamics of the SDB setting for general listening. Love swapping speakers around to see how it sounds on each set, and thus far it has not disappointed. Bought a 32-bit dongle DAC for an old laptop and for comparison, tried it on the USB port of my desktop. Plugged in a few low-impedance headphones/IEMs, yet I preferred the SMSL sound signature. Highly recommended...For all-in-one units, the Loxjie A-30 DAC/AMP is probably the closest competitor, and I hear its superior for headphone use & might be worth the extra dough... 7/15/24: Still going strong. Now paired with Micca OoO's on desktop along with lil Monoprice sub. Mahvelous...