Arylic B50 Integrated Amp

[Haywood]

I decided to build a new pair of speakers for my daughter as part of my overhaul of her bedroom. These will be a back loaded horn design featuring a 4.5" Fostex full-range driver, which I'll start a separate thread on when I start building them.

I wanted to get her an amplifier that would provide maximum flexibility and provide many years of service. The recommended power for the speaker design is around 15W into 8 ohms, which is about what most of these little 50W (4 Ohm) amps put out with the included power supply. I wanted something with an HDMI ARC input so she can plug all her video sources into the TV and just run 1 HDMI into the amp. I also wanted to get something with a range of inputs. The Arylic B50 was a perfect fit. It has line level, phono, optical, USB Host (for thumb drives), USB-C DAC (for PC), and HDMI ARC with CEC. One neat thing about the Bluetooth is that it can transmit to two Bluetooth devices (such as headphones) in addition to being a receiver. It comes with a remote, but can also be controlled via a mobile app. It also has a subwoofer out.

My initial impressions are very positive. The packaging is nice, the documentation is nicely done, and the fit & finish are excellent. It does not feel cheap and has a nice heft to it. I'll let you know more after I get it hooked up, but I'm impressed so far. It is incredible how much you can get for $139 these days.

Arylic B50

 

[Haywood]

They also make an otherwise identical preamp-only version of it called the BP50 for $99.

 

[Flint]

I would love to learn about the noise floor of that unit.

One of the things I love about many of the modern and very affordable class-d amps is their shockingly low noise floors in real world use. Often so low you cannot tell the system is even on until the music starts. But, in my tests at home, I am going straight from a source to the amp and there are no added components, like preamps, in the circuit. Those could add noise, hence my interest in this model.

 

[Haywood]

I would love to learn about the noise floor of that unit.

One of the things I love about many of the modern and very affordable class-d amps is their shockingly low noise floors in real world use. Often so low you cannot tell the system is even on until the music starts. But, in my tests at home, I am going straight from a source to the amp and there are no added components, like preamps, in the circuit. Those could add noise, hence my interest in this model.

I will let you know when I get it hooked up. I've been laid up with the flu for a few days, so I haven't done anything with it. I might do a quick hook-up in my office just to play around, because it will likely be a few weeks before I get the speakers built. I've got some work to do in the shop first and I have to drive to Chattanooga for a funeral. On the plus side, I'm pretty confident these won't take anywhere near as long as the last pair I built.