An amplifier remains the beating heart of any high-performance audio system, but in 2018 a truly versatile integrated amp needs to cover many bases – digital and analogue sources, wireless connectivity for portable devices, a phono stage to cater for vinyl playback, amplification for headphones as well as speakers… That’s a lot to pack in, whilst keeping performance high and the price tag affordable – and yet, that’s exactly what the 6000A delivers
Outwardly, the 6000A bears strong resemblance to the 8300A with its rotary controls and large, central OLED display. Unlike its costlier, analogue-only sibling, it incorporates high-quality D/A conversion, enabling digital sources to be connected directly without an external DAC. It supplies four digital inputs, three line-level analogue inputs, an input for a turntable, wireless connectivity via Bluetooth and a dedicated headphone amp, in addition to its ability when driving loudspeakers
Much effort has been made to ensure the 6000A’s digital circuitry delivers the level of quality one might expect of a high-performance standalone DAC. As ever, Audiolab has turned to the ES9018 Sabre32 Reference chip family to perform D/A conversion, utilising ESS Technology’s 32-bit HyperStream architecture and Time Domain Jitter Eliminator to deliver ultra-low noise and high dynamic range
The 6000A’s discrete Class AB power amp stage delivers 50W per channel into eight ohms, with a maximum current delivery of 9 Amps into difficult loads. The output stage of the discrete power amp circuits uses a CFB (Complementary Feedback) topology, ensuring superior linearity and excellent thermal stability, as the idle current is kept independent of the temperature of the output transistors
In recognition of the recent vinyl revival, Audiolab has included a phono stage for moving magnet phono cartridges – a high-quality, low-noise, JFET-based circuit with precise RIAA equalisation. Similarly, an increasing number of people are using headphones for music listening, so Audiolab has incorporated a dedicated headphone amp with current-feedback circuitry
PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
Gain (max.) +8dB (Line) +55dB (Phono MM) Input Sensitivity 720mV (Line, Volume = 0dB) 3.1mV (Phono MM, Volume=0dB) Input Impedance 10K (Line) 47K//100pF (Phono MM) Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) < 0.0004% (Line, 1KHz @ 2V, Volume = 0dB) Frequency Response 20Hz-20kHz (+/-0.1dB) Output Voltage 2.3V max. (Volume = 0dB) Output Impedance 120 ohm Signal-to-Noise Ration (S/N) > 110dB (Line, A-weighted) >76dB (Phono MM, A-weighted) DAC D to A converter ES9018K2M Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) < 0.0006% (1KHz @ 0dBFS) Output level (0dBFS, 1KHz) 2.05V Max. Sampling Frequency 192KHz Signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) > 112dB (A-weighted) Digital Filters Fast Roll-off , Slow Roll-off , Minimum Phase Power Amplifier Section Gain +29dB Rated Max. Power Output 2 X 50W (8 ohm, THD<1%) 2 X 75W (4 ohm, THD<1%) Frequency Response 20Hz-20kHz (+/-0.3dB) Input Sensitivity 720mV Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) <0.003% (1kHz @ 40W/8ohm) Signal-to-Noise ratio (S/N) > 110dB (A-weighted) Max. Output Current 9A Headphone Amplifier Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) < 0.01% (1kHz, 50mW) Output Impedance 2.35 ohm Load impedance 20-600 ohm General Standby Power Consumption <0.5W Power Requirements 115V ~ 50 - 60Hz 100V ~ 50 - 60Hz Dimensions (mm) (W x H x D) 445 x 65.5 x 300 Carton Size (mm) (W x H x D) 512 x 467 x 146 Weight 7.8kg (Net).
