Audio Technica Bluetooth Headphone Amp AT-PHA50BT BK

[Flint]

Well, I had been looking at getting a Bluetooth headphone amp for a long time and there were a couple of criteria I had which most of the other models on the market failed to offer.

The key features I needed were:

- High Fidelity Output
- Ability to drive all of my headphones
- Small size for greater portability
- Playback battery life of at least 7 hours, preferably 12 hours​

All the models I could find struggled on quality (most were cheap $25 throw away devices) or failed the long battery life requirement.

When I initially started looking in September, 2016, I found the Audio Technical AT-PHA50BT BK. Based on the manufacturer's specs and marketing literature, it offered pretty much everything I wanted, including a 8 hour battery life. I wanted to check it out, but it was only available as an import from Japan and it was an older model and only supported Bluetooth 3.0, not the newer BT 4.0 spec which added some audio specific features and capabilities.

I finally caved and purchased the amp from Amazon (to get the return for refund protection they offer).

Below is my review.

 

[Flint]

I received by Audio Technica AT-PHA50BT BK this morning and took some photos of the unboxing



Given the abundance of Japanese characters on the packaging, I was a little nervous about using this thing, though I could not think of any reason it wouldn't work in the USA.


The industrial design makes it look much bigger in photos than it really is. There are more photos below comparing it to a dime and quarter.



In the box was the amp, a charging cable, a very clever and small clothing clip, the warranty card (with a delivery address in Japan), and the owner's manual, also entirely in Japanese. No English instructions at all.


Above is a photo of the control buttons. There are four total. From left to right they are: Skip Back, Play/Pause, Skip Forward, and Audio Effect Scroll.


Above is the headphone jack, microphone, and volume control.

 

[Flint]

Above is the opposite side from the controls where there is the power slider switch which also has a hold mode to disable all the controls and a micro-USB jack for charging.


Above is the rear of the amp, pretty basic.


And finally, the front of the amp with a dime and quarter for reference on size.

The volume control is easiest used by sliding your thumb or finger over the face of the amp as the knurled side of the knob is on the silver piece above the display in the photo and the end of the knob barely protrudes out the end.

The display shows very little. It is a single color (blue-ish white) Organic LED display. When charging it shows it is charging until it is fully charged and then it shows a full battery icon. When using the amp the display is off unless you take an action, like change the audio effect mode, or control the music via the amp's side buttons. When you turn it on, it plays a "bing" over the headphones if they are plugged in, it then scrolls the brand and model across the screen before showing which mode it is in for a few seconds before turning off the display. (more on the display in my responses below)

Overall, it is easy, extremely light, and simple to learn how to use.

 

[Flint]

Using the amp was easy. I figured out how to turn on the pairing mode (like most Bluetooth devices I held the power button on until it make beeping noises and the display show moving arrows on it) and my phone easily found it and lined up.

Once paired I played music from my phone, which will be the primary source for this amp. Most of my music is in WMA Lossless on my phone, so the audio file quality is very good.

The sound from the amp is VERY good. Like you'd expect from a professional audio company, the sound was clear, clean, accurate and completely noise free. Initially I was using my Audio Technica ATH-M50xMG headphones and was VERY impressed. The controls were surprisingly responsive, the range was very solid for up to about 20 feet, which is likely to be further than I would ever plan on or expect using it. When I switched to my Shure SE846-BL IEMs I was equally impressed with this tiny little amp. Clear, quiet, clear, tight, and accurate. Even with my lower sensitivity old-school 600 Ohm AKG 240DF headphones which my phone cannot effectively drive the amp shown brightly as amazing sounding.

To better describe my impressions of the sound... using all the same terms like: clear, clean, silent, accurate, and so on is nice. But what it really did was disappear. I would happily say it doesn't have a sound, it just drives the headphones and they sound the way they sound with this amp. That is exactly what I seek when hunting for any amp.

So, that's my little review.

Here's the specs off the side of the box:

 

[Zing]

This has me feeling nostalgic for the COF/IG reviews of yore. Well done as usual, Flint. You make me want to buy one of these amps and I don't even own Bluetooth headphones.

Have you put this review on Amazon? You really should consider doing so if you haven't yet.

 

[TKoP]

You make me want to buy one of these amps and I don't even own Bluetooth headphones..

Isn't that the reason to buy this kind of amp? when you have regular headphones and want to connect to a BlueTooth device?

But agree, always appreciate the reviews. And it seems like a pretty decent price given the good amp and BlueTooth connectivity.

 

[Zing]

Isn't that the reason to buy this kind of amp?

Bite your tongue (or would it be finger in this case?)! That's a double whammy! If I buy this amp, I'd then have to buy BT headphones. I don't need BT headphones because my wired UltimateEars IEMs connect perfectly to the headphone jack that exists on my current phone.

 

[Flint]

Thanks!

This amp is to make it so you can use regular wired headphones with a Bluetooth source, like a phone. You do not need Bluetooth headphones.

 

[Flint]

I didn't write about the audio modes because they are all useless. I set it on "flat" for all my testing. I did try out the effects, but they weren't interesting to me as they negatively alter the sound, to me. The effects are flat, acoustic, vocal boost, bass boost, and virtual sound.

While I have very little interest in any seeing other than flat, here's how they sounded to me:

Flat - No processing at all
Acoustic - Wider soundstage (maybe from AM3D special processing?), slight cut in the mid-range, and a slight boost in the treble
Vocal Boost - boosted mid-range, cut treble and bass, a little like the sound of an old fashioned telephone. I imagine this could be good for phone calls in a noisy place
Bass Boost - boosted bass below 60hz, but not too much. Some headphones might benefit from this
Virtual Sound - synthetic spaciousness, kinda like the sound is coming from above and behind you. This appears to be processed using the AM3D tech marketed on the box​

Also, when you start playing audio the display shows what Bluetooth CODEC it is using. With my Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge the CODEC with music is aptX. It also shows the title of the track playing when the track starts.

 

[PaulyT]

Wow that thing is tiny. You're right, the marketing pics make it look a lot bigger. Thanks for the review!

 

[Botch]

...my wired UltimateEars IEMs connect perfectly to the headphone jack that exists on my current phone.

You're sooo 2015.

 

[Flint]

One of the reasons I want a Bluetooth headset, aside from having fewer wires getting tangled up on things, I can use it multiple devices as I need. It can connect to my phone, any of my tablets, or any of my Bluetooth transmitters, if I want. Quite nice.

Also, I am anticipating my next phone not having a jack at all.

 

[lakedmb]

Also, I am anticipating my next phone not having a jack at all.

Coming over to Apple?

 

[Flint]

So, 3 hours to charge from completely dead to fully charged! It plays for 8 hours and charges in 3 hours. That's not bad compared to some other rechargeable devices I've seen. It will also operate while charging, which is really helpful.

 

[Akula]

Cool. I like my little Griffin iTrip Clip, but nobody would confuse it with something like this. I'm glad to see some higher end BT amps are hitting the market. If my Griffin bites it I'll probably upgrade to something like this.

 

[Flint]

Coming over to Apple?

Gad-zooks! NO WAY!

That said, the headphone jack is slowly going away. I am aware of at least 6 relatively common models of phones which don't have them. Add to that all the Bluetooth headphones, earpieces, portable speakers, and receivers built into amps and powered speakers, and I think the writing is on the wall.

 

[Flint]

Cool. I like my little Griffin iTrip Clip, but nobody would confuse it with something like this. I'm glad to see some higher end BT amps are hitting the market. If my Griffin bites it I'll probably upgrade to something like this.

How is the battery life?
Can you categorize the sound quality?

 

[Akula]

How is the battery life?
Can you categorize the sound quality?

I haven't run the battery from full charge down to dead... my use case isn't one where extended life is needed. I think the claimed battery life is 6 hours and I don't doubt it- the most I've run it before recharging was 3-4 hours. As far as sound quality, it's on par with the included lightning adapter on my iPhone. I'm not going to say it sounds tremendous, but I think the limiting factor is more the iPhone itself (which doesn't have much in the way of adjustments one can make to the audio).

 

[Flint]

So I took some time to listen to this amp in a very quiet setting with my extremely sensitive Shure SE846 IEM earphones, and I have to say, this is one of the quietest portable amps I have ever used. I quickly compared it to my Fiio X3 and Fiio Killemanjaro 2 (both of which are simply analog amplifiers, not DACs), and the difference was obvious. Even with a clean source I could hear hiss and some slight RF interference. I tried my Topping VX1 DAC Amp which drives my desktop PC speakers from a USB output fro my PC, and while it was a tad better, there was still audible noise which was had more a grainy pattern to it (if I were to visualize the noise, it was more like the banding from low Gamut TV images versus the white noise from tuning to an unused analog TV channel).

To put it bluntly, aside from my commercial/professional grade audio interfaces, I haven't heard anything this silent in a long time. That's a big deal to me since my main headphone is the super-sensitive Shure IEM which also blocks outside sounds so successfully.

 

[Flint]

I haven't tried using the Audio Technical BT amp to take a phone call, yet, but that is high on my list because it is proving to be one of the best purchased I've made in a long time. Once I fully settle-in with using this thing, I imagine it will be with me all the time.

Since I am home alone quite a bit, I find myself preferring listening to music or the radio on my phone through my IEMs as I move around the house, cooking, doing laundry and other chores, or whatever, rather than playing music over speakers as it is a multistep process to sync my Squeezeboxes to play music or the radio over the speakers in my main rooms. So, I have been putting this thing through the paces.

So far the battery has outlived my demands. I charge it at night on my office desk where I also place my wallet, keys and pocket knife, so the process of maintaining a nightly charge is pretty easy and the amp is small enough I can just carry it in my jeans pocket, or preferably in my jacket, when I grab my stuff in the morning after dressing.

Not bad!

It was Pauly who reminded me about this amp in the thread I had restarted on the loss of a headphone jack. So, thanks Pauly!

I have also tried it paired to my tablet/laptop to listen to music and watch Netflix & YouTube, and that was a very good experience. I can carry it around with me, headphones in my ears, listening to my phone, sit down somewhere and pair it with my tablet and do stuff, like a Skype call, than repair it with my phone to take a phone call or listen to music again. I don't have to touch it once to do the changes as that is done with the source device. I just turn off the Bluetooth on the phone and then pair it with my tablet/laptop. Then I can turn off the Bluetooth on my laptop, turn Bluetooth back on with my phone and away I go. I love how both Android and Windows make it so easy to control the wireless radios from the main UI.

Amazing.