6/5/2023 0 Comments Ps audio sprout![]() While the music was grungy, the sound on coming out of the PS Audio Sprout100 was anything but. You also get a strong howl from Chris Cornell’s vocals as you often did from Soundgarden at this stage of their career. This track preceded their mainstream 1990s fame and is an early grunge track, so the guitars have a lot of distortion in a way that would eventually become commonplace, but in 1998 it was a bit of a new sound for many hard rock fans. The first track I used to test the PS Audio Sprout 100 was “Beyond the Wheel” by Soundgarden (CD Quality 1440 Kbps) ( buy at Amazon). ![]() ![]() The PS Audio Sprout 100 installed in Andrew Dewhirst’s reference audiophile system Listening to the PS Audio Sprout100… While the Sprout100 comes with a solidly machined metal remote control, the remote itself didn’t work all that well for me. I found that I was pressing the buttons a lot to try and increase the volume and ultimately just started to get up and turn the nob to get to the volume I wanted.This isn’t going to be the end of the world, but it is something you will want to be aware of if you already have digital components, such as a CD transport, you’re looking to use. The only other thing that I felt this integrated amplifier was missing is a coaxial digital in. You get one digital optical in, but some digital components don’t have optical outs.I would have loved to see support for aptX and/or aptX Lossless instead of just the standard SBC. One of the things that stood out to me as missing was the lack of higher-quality codecs for Bluetooth.A side view of the PS Audio Sprout 100 integrated amp Some Things You Might Not Like About the PS Audio Sprout100 The sky is the limit for this type of product, and with it being reasonably priced, you shouldn’t have much trouble selling it or finding it a new home if that is your preferred path. It’s so small that you can move it to another room if you decided to make some upgrades to your system or you can take your time with it and leverage it as a preamp if you want to start with adding power from a separate amp, and then look at a preamp upgrade down the road. If you’re looking for a starter component for your or someone else’s audiophile system, the PS Audio Sprout100 makes a compelling argument for why it should be in first position. Why Should You Care About the PS Audio Sprout100? You can use the PS Audio Sprout100 as an audiophile preamp, if you like. If you find yourself wanting more power, the PS Audio Spout100 has RCA outs so you could connect it to a bigger powerhouse down the road.There is very little that this integrated amplifier can’t do. With support for a subwoofer, a phono stage, and a good mix of wired and wireless connectivity, you likely won’t find yourself needing extra inputs unless your system is unusually large.There’s some very high wife-acceptance-factor calculated here. I mentioned the diminutive size of the PS Audio Sprout100, but it is a sleek looking device as well. This amp is equally happy in a dedicated AV rack as it is hidden somewhere out of the way.The PS Audio Sprout 100 in a product designed to get audiophile sound into younger people’s systems What Makes the PS Audio Sprout100 Integrated Amplifier Special? It also has a subwoofer output, which is increasingly crucial these days. It can be difficult to separate yourself with so much competition in the integrated amplifier space at this price, but PS Audio has certainly made an effort to with their combination of input options and power in such a small form factor. The Sprout100 puts out 100 Watts per channel int 4 ohms and 50 int 8 ohms for loudspeakers, and 500mW into 32-ohm headphones and 125mW ing 300-ohm headphones. In terms of inputs, you get a moving magnet phono stage, a stereo line-level analog RCA in, a stereo analog RCA out, an optical in, a Type-B USB in, and Bluetooth support. Packed into one tiny little package (and I mean tiny) it measures at 6.2 inches wide by 1.9 inches tall and 8.2 inches deep, with weight of just 2.9 pounds. The PS Audio Sprout100 ( buy at Amazon ) is an entry level audiophile integrated amplifier made by the folks at PS Audio. ![]()
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