Burson Funk - 3Wpc Headphone Amp and 45Wpc Class-AB Speaker Amp

Let's start with the build quality, Burson is known for high quality parts and equipment. The funk is as expected, or should I say unexpected as I had no idea this was coming in lol.

The IO is basic in its presentation, you have a single ended headphone out and a headphone and mic combo, made for gaming. while this is a good idea 90% of gaming amplifiers have built in DAC chipsets, a feature the Funk doesn't unfortunately. It also doesn't have balanced input and outputs. What you do get is speaker out, but this is only 45w and on larger speakers only moderate volume is achieved.

The rest of the review we will talk only about the headphones part of the amplifier as this is my main area.
It worked well with the Mic connected sound was clear and reasonable with no ground noise.
Using it for gaming I could hear the mini details in each level and atmosphere was enjoyable. The imaging was spot on.

Using my planar headphones, they were perfectly powered and sounded great on this amplifier. The Funk is crystal clear and detailed with a open and transparent sound.

Conclusion:
The Burson Funk is a premium product. It's probably the most powerful one I've used in some time. If you have a need for something of this particular nature, go for the Funk you won't be disappointed.

To begin with, happy to be part of the Funk experience review, thanks again to @SS-Audio for letting me listen and test the Funk. I will not delve onto the specs as it has been discussed already in prior reviews so I'll be going direct to my impressions. For the unboxing and contents, check out @d m41n man 's unboxing video as it is comprehensive and covers all the contents.


Build and Package
The Burson Funk comes in a white box with the unit housed in thick foam and its accessories in another white box inside. Like its breathren of the same generation of products, the casing also acts like a heatsink but for most of the testing, it does seem that it does not get hot like other amps. And it does look the combination of classy and rugged, which will fit most workstation aesthetics.


Sound and Connectivity
You'll find the speaker binding posts and stereo inputs at the back. So we hooked it up to some of the most popular bookshelf speakers from Q Acoustics, JBL, and Revel - driving those to loud levels without distorting and maxing out the potentiometer. They also sing with utmost transparency of your music source while giving you a really good stage presentation, being able to pinpoint instrument placements with the vocalist front and center.



With its headphone amp section, it is also reflective of its transparency and is able to power even the most demanding headphones at single-ended (except electrostats probably) Listening to the Hifiman Edition XS, Sennheiser HD650 and Grado SR225e, it drives these headphones with ease without pushing past the potentiometer. The sound output is basically dependent on your sound chain going in, yet it never sounded dry with every setup we tried like a DAC dongle (Dragonfly) or a DAP (Fiio X3 line out). That class A (headamp) and class AB (speakeramp) topology does wonders to its musicality while still being exciting and energetic. Compared to the Toppings and SMSLs that I've heard back then, this outshines most of them as both brands were somewhat leaning to be analytical and digital sounding. Turning that volume knob is really satisfying while getting onto the music at its volume peak. It is to note that despite having a low-gain, always start at low volume levels as this unit gets really loud with IEMs. This may work with earphones but be careful when turning that volume knob. Also, unplug your headphones before turning off and on because it makes a 'pop' sound whenever you turn it off and on.



Conclusion
Just go ahead and buy it especially if you chance upon it discounted. If you happen to own or plan to get a non-powered bookshelf speaker for your desktop and would like to have an all-in-one amp then you've found it. What I love about the Funk is it does what it's supposed to do without the complexities. The Funk just works as it is meant to be, no fuzz. And it performs beyond expectations without needing a balanced output. I did not even mention that you can play around with the opamps to further tune your sound as it is functional in its core package. If it ticks all the boxes of your requirements, then you won't be disappointed.

Shout out to @SS-Audio and Bhavneet of Burson Audio for the experience and for the chance to review the Burson Audio Funk. It was such a pleasure and out of the gate - the Funk lives up to its brand's reputation with its use-case efficiency, premiumness and power. Read on for more details.



Introduction
For those not in the know, Australian-born Burson Audio has been around for quite some time already (around 12 years) providing us with quality hifi products and proprietary technology designed to set them apart from the competition. Their Max Current Power Supply (MCPS) and focus on discrete opamps are such cases that made them a signature and a household brand in the world of head fi. Now, they're back with a sequel to their predecessor amp (Fun) and combined it with their old near-field speaker amp (Bang) and gave birth of sorts to this compact desktop monitoring & near-field listening solution. Trust me when I say that the Funk is the only funky desktop amp you'll ever need.



Packaging
The Burson Funk comes in a brown cardboard box, then unboxing from it is a clean, sleek white box that houses the unit and its accessories. The basic package (which is the version I received) comes with the unit itself, a powerbrick supply, an RCA-RCA audio cable for your sources and a cable that plugs onto standard 2-prong round outlets. On a separate bag is a hex tool for opening the chassis, a headset w/ mic Y-split adapter and a very small fuse in case of future unit failure. I received the stock package which has the default 2 x NE5532 opamps installed separately as head amp and speaker sections but I did get a pair of V6 Classic dual opamps as upgrades.

For a visual unboxing, please check my video here -

Build
Similar to the current portfolio of Burson products, the Funk is housed in an aluminum casing that feels solid and durable which is designed to be a heatsink in itself. It houses a 3W class A head amp and 45W class, AB speaker amp. Opening the amp is easy wherein you unscrew the top 2screws on the front and rear each in order to unveil the insides. In itself, it definitely looks premium and is not that big enough to eat up some real estate on your desktop (just like the Playmate 2) giving yourself some room for your separate DAC. The front has the volume knob as well as which with light indicators for modes, output and gain levels as well as the 6.3mm ans 3.5mm outputs. On the rear, you have the power supply socket as well as the speaker binding posts and aux/RCA inputs. It is important to note however that upon turning it off, it will give a loud pop sound to your headphones so better to remove your headphones before turning off the unit.



Functionality and Sound Performance

The Funk in its stock configuration is transparent sounding in itself while scaling high with its 3W power, capable to drive almost all dynamic and planars single-ended. The class A power gives this set a very musical, smooth, heft, full-bodied sound but still with some obvious transients and graininess. Though it still leaves some room for improvement. Hence, the rolling of opamps with the change to a pair of V6 Classic dual opamps. The V6 Classic dual opamps makes it more musical, expands the soundstage width but also brings an intimate sound signature. Not exactly warm but never harsh or peaky nonetheless. It, also squeezes out some more details than the stock configuration. It does perform in between the stock NE5532's neutrality and the smoothness of the V6 Vivids. It did not had any problems making the HD800, AKG K812, AKG Q701, Hifiman XS, and Sennheiser HD650 sing without distortions. Though adding your DAC and preamp may alter the sound more according to your flavor.

With this information, the same goes for passive desktop bookshelf speakers. If you have tube preamp, then it will alter its signature to that preamp's sound. What's good about having a class AB and class A amp sections is that these are more natural sounding than their class D counterparts by not sounding digital, with that hint of analog flavor. The speaker amp section powers most passive bookshelf speakers, tested to drive the Q Acoustics 3020i and JBL Studio 620 to high volume levels without distorting but clipping does happen at 4 o' clock knob levels.



Conclusion
I'll just go ahead and say it - if you need an all-in-one desktop amp and not having a balanced output is not much of a dealbreaker, then go ahead and get a Burson Funk. You can play around with other elements in your equipment chain to cater your setup to different preferences. At the end of the day, the Funk will power whatever listening gear you might have on your desktop except the most demanding electrostats. Its solid, compact formfactor is a nice plus and is a really good product though it is admittedly not the most price-friendly of amps but it does justify what you pay for. No worries with powering most headphones despite lacking a balanced connection as there is no shortage of power here unless drving some electrostats. The V6 package aeems to be really a good bundle though the Playmate 2 V6 package seems more enticing because of the extra V6 single opamps and remote control for the same additional price. Hats off to Burson Audio for coming up with this 2-in-1 amp. Awesome job!