[SmartCheetah]

For example the topping A30pro I have has better measurements

Please don't.

So by your logic, it should be fine if it had problems with volume control or overheating

No. But none of these actually affects the Aune S17 Pro.

The volume control thing was fixed long ago with a firmware update.
The "overheating" in the sense of switching from 100mA to 50mA after reaching 69 degrees in a few hours is an inconvenience, I get it. I'd be annoyed by that. But it doesn't affect all units in the first place. Mine has been on for more than 10 hours today, sitting at 60 degrees. The only thing I did was raise it by ~ 4cm/1.5 inches. I've never seen it go above 62 degrees like that and I'm using a number of different headphones and cables.

 

[Hooster]

I have had my S17 for 4 months now. I will share my impressions.

I elevated mine a bit by putting taller feet under it and I don't have any temperature issues.

My unit has the old volume control firmware and it is not a problem. I can adjust the volume to my liking easily.

As a headphone amplifier I enjoy it very much. It does the job and the sound quality is excellent. It has dimensionality, detail and it is non fatiguing.

As a preamplifier it is simply superb. I have had many preamps in my system, and this is easily the best, both in terms of sound quality and practicality. A really nice detailed 3D sound that makes music a pleasure to listen to.

I love it and I am keeping it. To be perfectly honest a lot of the so called "issues" reported in this thread sound more like hysteria than any real problems.

 

[Erick Muller]

I have had my S17 for 4 months now. I will share my impressions.

I elevated mine a bit by putting taller feet under it and I don't have any temperature issues.

My unit has the old volume control firmware and it is not a problem. I can adjust the volume to my liking easily.

As a headphone amplifier I enjoy it very much. It does the job and the sound quality is excellent. It has dimensionality, detail and it is non fatiguing.

As a preamplifier it is simply superb. I have had many preamps in my system, and this is easily the best, both in terms of sound quality and practicality. A really nice detailed 3D sound that makes music a pleasure to listen to.

I love it and I am keeping it. To be perfectly honest a lot of the so called "issues" reported in this thread sound more like hysteria than any real problems.

Yep, this headphone amplifier really truly shines as a pre-amp, especially for passive and active speakers.

Thanks for sharing your impressions.

 

[Erick Muller]

I love it and I am keeping it. To be perfectly honest a lot of the so called "issues" reported in this thread sound more like hysteria than any real problems.

Inexperience and unfamiliarity with fully discrete, class-A amps I think would be a more fair description of the situation tbh. There have been issues of course, I think one person did report that his amp went into the the top 70s, which the amp shouldn't allow for and other person I think did report that his unit didn't work, right out of the top of my head, which is unfortunate but in general, the amp is working as intended and it's working fine for most people, but some people have come to this thread with really bad takes and outright misinformation recently, some of them I think given how bad their takes and arguments where that I'm starting to think they never own the amp to begging with and just came here to do some of the trolling.

 

[Coolmoose]

I'm addressing other people in this thread comparing the S17 to other amps that cost several times what this amp cost.

Right, and I'm saying there are class A amps cheaper that doesn't have the heat issue

I never said that in any part of my argument, learn to read please.

Its literally in the last sentence you wrote and I find your reply a little condescending

Irrelevant point.

So its okay for you to give an opinion on this product but not me? got it.

The amp it's not "over heating"

The software/hardware on this unit has to step in to stop the temperature from rising higher which will damage the components, that is literally the definition of overheating.

what happens is that when the amp reaches 69 degrees, it changes back to 50ma mode, that's it, it seems that people think that when this amp reaches 69 degrees it explodes or something, nope, you can still listen to music and it still sound great on 50ma mode for most people.

I don't think you understand my point, the unit was designed and advertised with 100ma as a feature, so I expect to use it without a hitch, if it needs external cooling, I would very much like the manufacture to tell me before I buy the product. It has nothing to do with the sound quality.

Please don't.

I was replying to an other user commenting on his subjective view on sound. Very nice of you to take it out of context.

The "overheating" in the sense of switching from 100mA to 50mA after reaching 69 degrees in a few hours is an inconvenience, I get it. I'd be annoyed by that. But it doesn't affect all units in the first place. Mine has been on for more than 10 hours today, sitting at 60 degrees. The only thing I did was raise it by ~ 4cm/1.5 inches. I've never seen it go above 62 degrees like that and I'm using a number of different headphones and cables.

I'm glad you are not experiencing any issue with your unit, and I hope you can get years of enjoyment out of it. But for the rest of us that are having problems, this is an issue. Walk in my shoes for a moment, I come into this forum and read that your unit is nice and cool where as mine overheats in about 1 hour, and when I complain about it, I get responses telling me that "I should put up with it because its cheaper than the competition and it sounds good", "it's a feature so if it doesn't work don't worry about it". Also your experience shows that there is alot of unit variation, so maybe also QC issues?

I also find it shady that this amp costed less than 500 USDs brand new on Aune's official JD and Taobao store when it first came out, so about 200 USD less than it was sold for internationally. But after about a month they raised the price to match its international pricing, and when ask about it, they said that it was "on sale" when it first released.

 

[Erick Muller]

Right, and I'm saying there are class A amps cheaper that doesn't have the heat issue

Do this amps allow you to change the current mode they're operating at, do they offer the same power that his amp offers at this price point? if so, please share them.

Its literally in the last sentence you wrote and I find your reply a little condescending

Quote me directly then where I literally say this then.

So its okay for you to give an opinion on this product but not me? got it.

You can have any opinion that you want, if you don't like this amp, that's fine, what I'm going to call you out on is trying to push your opinions as fact and when you're spreading misinformation

The software/hardware on this unit has to step in to stop the temperature from rising higher which will damage the components, that is literally the definition of overheating.

It has already been stated in this very thread that there's some issue with temperature management with this amp ad naseum, but it's not universal and some of the people reporting the issue, we don't know how there set up is, in what conditions is the amp operating at, etc. That it's very different than the amp overheating, and doing temperature management via hardware and software is very different than what you're describing.

I don't think you understand my point, the unit was designed and advertised with 100ma as a feature, so I expect to use it without a hitch, if it needs external cooling, I would very much like the manufacture to tell me before I buy the product. It has nothing to do with the sound quality.

If you're having or had issues with the amp switching to 100ma and simply not working, then you could have contacted Aune directly to see if they could've help you out with that problem, people have done so in this very thread and aune has help them. Aune has very clearly stated that this mode increases the operating temperatures of this amp and when it reaches 69 degrees, it switches back to 50ma mode, it's basically a turbo button that you have access to. Yep, I have personally complain in this very thread that if Aune had put more substantial feet on this amp like the Topping A70 pro has or higher, many if not all of the temperature concerns that people have complained about would have been adverted, but if you just raised the amp a couple of inches, most of the temperature issues with this amp go away, it's not a big deal.

I was replying to an other user commenting on his subjective view on sound. Very nice of you to take it out of context.

Yep, I understood that, and I'm not taking anything out of context. If the amp didn't sound good for you, that's fine, everybody has different tastes and preferences.

I'm glad you are not experiencing any issue with your unit, and I hope you can get years of enjoyment out of it. But for the rest of us that are having problems, this is an issue. Walk in my shoes for a moment, I come into this forum and read that your unit is nice and cool where as mine overheats in about 1 hour, and when I complain about it, I get responses telling me that "I should put up with it because its cheaper than the competition and it sounds good", "it's a feature so if it doesn't work don't worry about it". Also your experience shows that there is alot of unit variation, so maybe also QC issues?

I do get that some people have had issues with this amp, and we personally have help them with them, the most basic thing you can do is to raise the amp a couple of inches and for the vast majority of people that had issues with the temps of this amp going up like crazy, it has solved them for the most part.

I also find it shady that this amp costed less than 500 USDs brand new on Aune's official JD and Taobao store when it first came out, so about 200 USD less than it was sold for internationally. But after about a month they raised the price to match its international pricing, and when ask about it, they said that it was "on sale" when it first released.

There was a version of the amp that sold without the remote that was less expensive, but it was an exclusive for China. It's not weird or shady in anyway that Chinese manufactures do special versions and deals for the chinese market.

 

[Coolmoose]

Do this amps allow you to change the current mode they're operating at, do they offer the same power that his amp offers at this price point? if so, please share them.

What does offering different current mode have anything to do with being class A?

Quote me directly then where I literally say this then.

“It personally annoys me a lot that we're willing to call this amp "bad" when other companies can get away with the same or even worse."

It has already been stated in this very thread that there's some issue with temperature management with this amp ad naseum, but it's not universal and some of the people reporting the issue, we don't know how there set up is, in what conditions is the amp operating at, etc. That it's very different than the amp overheating, and doing temperature management via hardware and software is very different than what you're describing.

Most users who report problems with temperature also post information such as amp placement and room temperature, it shouldn't have this much unit variation which would indicate an issue with QC.

If you're having or had issues with the amp switching to 100ma and simply not working, then you could have contacted Aune directly to see if they could've help you out with that problem, people have done so in this very thread and aune has help them. Aune has very clearly stated that this mode increases the operating temperatures of this amp and when it reaches 69 degrees, it switches back to 50ma mode, it's basically a turbo button that you have access to. Yep, I have personally complain in this very thread that if Aune had put more substantial feet on this amp like the Topping A70 pro has or higher, many if not all of the temperature concerns that people have complained about would have been adverted, but if you just raised the amp a couple of inches, most of the temperature issues with this amp go away, it's not a big deal.

I have tried tinkering with different positions for the amp, including giving more clearance to the bottom but to no avail. Giving the option of two current modes is a feature which Aune decided to add which i would of like to use for more than an hour. I personally believe this is a design or a QC issue that falls on the manufacturer, if you believe otherwise that's fine, I respect that. Agree to disagree

Yep, I understood that, and I'm not taking anything out of context. If the amp didn't sound good for you, that's fine, everybody has different tastes and preferences.

This quote wasn't directed at you.

I do get that some people have had issues with this amp, and we personally have help them with them, the most basic thing you can do is to raise the amp a couple of inches and for the vast majority of people that had issues with the temps of this amp going up like crazy, it has solved them for the most part.

If this was the issue then it should of been very easy for Aune to pinpoint and fix before mass production.

There was a version of the amp that sold without the remote that was less expensive, but it was an exclusive for China. It's not weird or shady in anyway that Chinese manufactures do special versions and deals for the chinese market.

Sure if its a special version and indicated so, that's fine. But when its the exact same unit plus a remote for 200+ dollars more, yea to me that shady.

 

[SmartCheetah]

Walk in my shoes for a moment, I come into this forum and read that your unit is nice and cool where as mine overheats in about 1 hour, and when I complain about it, I get responses telling me that "I should put up with it because its cheaper than the competition and it sounds good", "it's a feature so if it doesn't work don't worry about it".

If it reaches 69 degrees in an hour, then yeah, your case is quite bad and I'm sorry you have this issue.

Most users who report problems with temperature also post information such as amp placement and room temperature, it shouldn't have this much unit variation which would indicate an issue with QC.

With this I agree, I tried to find a pattern but failed, it seems random and the variation between units is large, it can't be just a room temperature difference. For me it's cool, 62 degrees max so far for daily use and 10+ hours on, the only time the temperature kept raising above 65 degrees was the first day I got it, when I had it directly on my desk with another large amp stacked on top. No doubts it would reach 69 and throttle to 50mA if I left it like that.

Sure if its a special version and indicated so, that's fine. But when its the exact same unit plus a remote for 200+ dollars more, yea to me that shady.

It's actually super common, I wouldn't be suspicious. A slight discount/special bundles at premiere is a common marketing practice, same for lower prices for home markets. Hifiman directly sell ALL their stuff, including their bestsellers, at 60%-80% price of my local resellers here in Poland. This is how I got my Arya Stealth and this is how I'll buy the HE1000SE soon.

 

[MiguelP]

Mine (and many others) also reaches 69°C @100ma within one hour (with elevated feet and no fan).

 

[SmartCheetah]

I'm really interested to see how my unit behaves during heatwaves in a few months then.

 

[MiguelP]

I'm really interested to see how my unit behaves during heatwaves in a few months then.

I would say for you to expect that the unit temperature to raise more or less the same absolute value than the room temperature.

 

[Erick Muller]

What does offering different current mode have anything to do with being class A?

avoiding the question

“It personally annoys me a lot that we're willing to call this amp "bad" when other companies can get away with the same or even worse."

Again, it's not saying what your implying AT ALL, AGAIN, FOR THE SECOND TIME, because I already address this SAME POINT YET AGAIN, if you read the entirety of what I say, it's completely clear that I was pointing to double standards and bias in this hobby, that's all. I was not in anyway exculpating bad business practices or manufactures selling bad products.

Tbh I don't feel that I had to address any of your points because you're clearly not arguing in good faith. I'm really sorry if you had a bad experience and/or got a bad S17 and/or you didn't get what you where expecting from this product, it happens unfortunately, but I do no feel that I can keep wasting time casting pearls before swine.

 

[risingsun1981]

Hi everyone,

A quick update on my end. I returned the amp as I was tempted to give a shot to the Audio GD Master 19. So, back to the shop it is (and all the fans and so on…thanks to Amazon return policies, hahaha!).

It is a bit more pricy but I am really wondering how it fares compared to the S17.

I am planning to take it at Magna Hi-fi as I am French. Same thing, if I feel this is not worth the asking price, I will return the product.

Will let you know guys when I am able to get it as it will take a bit of time for the refund to reach back to me and handle the new order.

I think the sound is really nice and the bass kicks hard. The medium high to treble is bit strange though. I have trouble to put this into words…

I could have kept it but the curiosity got the best of me.

Thanks again to @Currawong for spending time to get back to me, this was valuable.

Cheers and enjoy the music guys.
It is after all more important than temps and class a or ab…

You like or don’t like your gear. If you don’t, move on and keep searching. He he!

 

[MiguelP]

Depends on the headphones, but in most cases I will have to admit it would be hard to make out the difference.

If your amp won't reach 69 °C you are unable to know. I also can hear differences knowing that I'm changing the current, but something completely different is noticing the switch when you are just listening to music.

 

[Erick Muller]

If your amp won't reach 69 °C you are unable to know. I also can hear differences knowing that I'm changing the current, but something completely different is noticing the switch when you are just listening to music.

I can reach 69 degrees but only under very specific conditions and I can hear the difference in some headphones but less so on others, and the difference is really noticia ble on speakers,