This Chinese Integrated Amplifier is EMBARRASSINGLY GOOD. 

One mistake made: You do not need to long press the power button to enable the preamp options. The long press is for turning the amp on and off. Thanks all!

I have come across your channel and enjoy it very much. Like music your evaluation are clear concise not muddy by hype. I just ran across the video that said you are doing this full time. Great you can tell your love and passion for what you do. I have been listening to music since age of 5 and am now 70. Like all equipment my ears are not quite as good as they use to be. This got me to thinking in all of you tube I have never come across the most important point the receiver (the listeners ears). I though you might enjoy the humor in that someone has a million-dollar system but can only hear 10 dollars’ worth. Thanks again for your efforts.

Thank you for addressing the anti-Chinese bias when it comes to equipment. It's absolute nonsense.

Your review of this amp solidifies my respect for your other reviews, Sir. I own this amplifier. Your findings match mine exactly. I believe this integrated amplifier is as good as one can get for the price and considerably well above. The match between its slightly cool presentation and the very slightly warm presentation of my Sonus Faber Minima Amator II speakers I find to be a satisfying combination. I also have the Chinese brand SMSL M400 DAC which is the best I've had in my system. It totally blows away the DAC in the Oppo UDP-205 universal audiophile disc player I was using previously and at only a third of the price. The Oppo is now only used as a video disc player and CD transport. I find the quality to price ratio of the current Chinese brand audiophile gear astounding. This sets a high bar for other high-end audio manufacturers which can only benefit the consumer. Keep up the good work, Sir. And thank you for the inclusion of Danny's videos. It's an excellent addition to your channel.

I demand to see a review of some Kinki Schiit sometime in the near future

Hi Ron, where do you put this in the scheme of things against Hegel’s H390 you reviewed and others etc if you can or are prepared to say. Cheers Simon

Kinki Is the founders wife's name.Actually a common name there...

Thank you for another honest and straight up review Ron. You are a joy to watch. This is a no BS channel! Keep on truckin'. Happy holidays and God bless.

Thank you for calling out the BS on non-American made Hi-Fi, especially when it comes from China. It needed to be said.

Back in the seventies in the UK all of my brothers mates where slagging off his Japanese Yamaha motorbike whilst driving their British Nortons BSA's etc ... fast forward literally to 2020, and take a look at those brands now. Great review by the way.

Would love to see a review of their monoblocks e b-7 & their preamp p-27. :) A little over 6gs for monoblocks and a dedicated preamp is a great value. Especially considering there are quite a few upper end integrated amplifier in that same price range.

Home theater bypass is a must for those with hybrid HT\AUDIO systems, really helps when setting up your system

The inside of this amp is impressive! Truly dual mono and what a beautiful assembly.

I think these serious chinese companies would have a lot to gain by showing off their labs, interviews with their workers and going through the components etc. Most of the time, you cannot really take a company to heart unless you have a name and a face of someone in the company, and hear "his story" of why the company was founded and what its goals are. The philosophy behind the company. Clearly the chinese are moving away from the cheap plastic copys and more towards affordable quality, its a transition period, so I think they would benefit from marketing and showing their craftmanship and what goes into these products, rather than just competing with price.

An Englishman, a Chinese man & an American guy all go into a bar & they had an amiable chat where each one told how they appreciated the better hi-if products from their fellow guy's home-countries. I particularly like the better Chinese products plus they show us the way in sanity-based pricing. I've bought many individual Chinese hi-fi products for myself & family members (easily 2 system's worth + by now) & never been ripped-off or had faulty arrivals & all through the trustworthy "China Hi-Fi" online. This Kinki has a superb damping factor for class-AB. of it's price & before class-D's escalating success of which very many bought in a much averagely higher damping factor (like N-core's 3K+ & ice-power's 2K) i'd seen leading class A & A/B power-amps specifying damping factors of 50 & up, big Yammy p/amps sometimes reached a 600 D.F. & they bragged about it back then, they wouldn't do now. A D.F. of 2000 will, should & ought to control bass drivers & bass panels extremely well ...it's my current issue (pardon unintended pun) & i may want to get kinki

I've been wanting to try this Amp, but the company that sells it tells me there are NO returns. So, there are no places to hear this Amp before buying. If you take a chance and end up not liking this Amp, you are stuck with it. Very bad policy in my opinion. Especially concidering other companies that offer amps at similar cost, offer a return period.

The camera work is very fancy. A complete view all in focus would be appreciated.

Hi! As usual appreciate the videos. If I can make a suggestion? I wonder if you could describe the spatial orientation of the instruments as you hear them on your system. I know you did this in this video but could you have elaborated on whether guitar was left off center or right off center. You could call these your "listening notes" maybe and it would help us viewers see how resolving our system is. Similar to wine or scotch tasting notes, these help us "find" things within the music. Hope you can accommodate this in your next listening room sesson video. Again, appreciate all the work! Cheers!

Not everyday that you see a Chinese amp with those high quality rca plugs at the back.

Good review! Thanks for taking roads not the norm, venturing off into other offerings not heavily lobbied for. I’m sure those that know what I refer to will agree.

I have a SMSL and Foxi audio mini amp from China and theyre awesome. My Mission and Warfedale book shelfs are made from China just like most things.

It's circuit is AFAIK a no compromise copy of a goldmund amp, which is why it's such a great amplifier, of course it also shows how overpriced said Swiss hifi products are. The build quality and components is amazing on these Kinki amps.

What a superb review. If only corporate media reviews of consumer products were as good as this.

The front layout and the underside power switch is surely an homage to Hegel integrated amps, and so too the high damping factor. I wonder if the sound is similar too. The real question is, would you take the EXM1+ over an established brand's integrated amp at the same price?

I never thought I would say this, but the Chinese have been hitting it out of the park with some of these high end offerings! I own a Denafrips dac and couldn't be more pleased.

I tried for almost 4 minutes to watch your video, I felt like I was sitting in the first row at a movie theater and everything was blurry, why?

Really nice! Still not cheap though. Personally, I'd choose second hand or new-with-less- features, for as long as I can trust it in the long term. Would appreciate long term tests of the EX-M1+.

Thanks Ron. This is definitely one to consider. Especially as it's around the same price as other leading hifi company products. Would be interesting to see a shootout with some of those, like the Naim Supernait 3, for one.

Shipping to Canada: $9,999.99. Seems like they aren't really looking to sell internationally.

This was an amazing review. Very detailed and unbiased! This is also very exciting as China is in its infancy stage in building higher quality integrated amps. Considering the hyper competition they have there development will be just as intense. Just look at what they've done with headphone amps and DACs! I'm looking forward to purchasing a Chinese integrated amp in the near future or ideally component system. Too many interests but only finite amount of time and money. :S

I own a Chinese tube amp. The wiring is extremely tidy and well laid out. There are plenty of pictures on the interwebs of the guts of even cheaper amps, and almost invariably the wiring gets a lot of attention. So, one could say the distaste for Chinese made electronics is fading away, and so it should. There are some beautifully made Chinese amplifiers out there. There is some shite as well, and the reviewer noted this....

I am considering getting this amp But after reading all the comments Of people that own this amp,they all seem to mod it with op amps ! Some say to makes it more musical Some say it’s dry sounding Very little comments saying it’s set and forget ? If the op amps are so good Why has kinky them selves not Put them in prior to selling the unit ? Anyone out there that just likes the amp how it’s is ?

For me, it’s still a lot of money

Great review Ron. Some of your colleagues have gone on about the mono blocks and a few other SKU's, so....it would seem the stuff is both well intentioned and well executed. Makes me curious about the dearer stuff in the line.

Thanks for the video. I am gonna receive this exm1+ in couple of days as a power amp to boost up my Elac 403 speakers. Pre amp is Onmia from Audiolab. Hope the exm1+ rocks! \m/

A lot of western brands build stuff in China. It’s not where it’s made, but WHO makes it.

What were the hum functions that you were talking about? Is it unique to the electronics in this amp? I'll have to look into it somewhere.

Emotiva is made in China. Not an issue for me.

OCD hifi guy played this amp on full volume with no audible distortion. That’s impressive.

Cayin is an Audiophile grade Audiosystem brand. A Chinese product but it's very great .

Thanks for the review 😀. Any thoughts on trying different Opamp options? Sounds like it's pretty amazing as is.

I like the throwback to the good 'ol days of NRD in this review ;) The glamour footage and well written prose will never go out of style :)

Great review. It really resonated with me and what I am looking for. I am currently looking at brands like Luxman, Accuphase , ... anything that is a good pure analogue integrated. You mention very musical, non fatiguing and the presence of air in the sound stage. How would this compare to some of the other brands, could it considered given the price difference?

Nice to see u finally reviewing chinese pieces man! Any chance of u taking a look to willsenton? Doge? Cayin? Ming Da?

I appreciate if you get to point, the preachienes at the front end was a turn-off. Thanks for the review.

Ron, Kinki is the owner’s wifes name. Lol

Great review Ron - got to love that volume knob, and the inside of that amp is beautiful😁

Building good and amps/ Integrated Amplifiers is not rocket science. Anyone can do it if they want to. It's simply about the vision/focus of those making it, and the price point they want to be in. Hence, no surprise at all they made a no corners cut higher end product.

Excellent review Dave. I use their monos and pre for my daily driver. I love them!

Excellence is excellence ! It is no the privilege of a genre, a group of people, a so-called race, or whatever nonsense you come up with.... Thanks for this review. I have been reading great things about Kinki Audio. Apparently their DAC is a fantastic piece of gear for its price as well. Bless up ! Keep feeding us with some non-US excellence like this one.

Thanks for the fantastic review. I have Hegel H190 paired with Harbeth M30 speakers and Pontus 2 DAC. In your opinion what will i lose and gain by replacing H190 with Kinki M1+? I am little unhappy with the H190 in low volume listening like lack of power to bring the M30 sing.

Why is saying that this Chinese amp is very good, embarrassing? Most premium smart phones are made in China. The prestigious hifi brand have their products built in China. PS Audio has it’s little Sprout integrated amp manufactured in China. Kinki products are proudly, conceived, designed and manufactured in China and take it from me, they have every right to be mightily proud. Other premium audio manufacturers have a lot to learn from Ivon at Kinki. Simplicity, purity, outstanding build quality and aggressive competitive pricing!

Just picked up the Kinki integrated amp and wanted to ask what your favorite top 3 speaker pairings are. Thanks for your amazingly detailed reviews. You are now my go to audio guy on the Tube. Cheers 🥂

Can you make same for EX-M7? Also heard it is better so a lot of people are interesting...

Love my Kinki studio P7&M7 combo!!

Just ordered one and a set of op amps (1 duals and 4 singles) all’s from Staccato in Poland. I think the hidden talent is the ability to op amp roll; this will be a nice addition. Great reviews, be safe.

Thanks for the video. I would like to know, how does model five work with Kinki EX-M1+? Thank you

The M1+ is my first choice for a second "music only" system I'm getting ready to begin building. I haven't heard it for myself, but I've been following reviews on it since the launch of the original M1. It seems to be a lot of amplifier for the money!

Great review Ron! Love the large display and it seems like a great piece of kit!

Ever since they started making car 1 din,2din...mp4 players,I quit being sarcastic about chinese products.phones included. I bought 500$ 2 din player 7 years ago for my ford,and works perfectly.also,sound is full,doesn' t lack neither bass or mid or even high sounds.now,my yamaha receiver is on it's dying breath,having some issue with it's digital board which costs about 700$,so I thought to take a gamble and buy some chinese cheaper amp. So,thank you for video.

A balanced version would be cool

Another great review, Ron! Looking forward to your full NX-Otica review, as well as the review of your Manley tube amps! 👀

Add the Burson V7 Vivid op-amps and it can compete with just about any amp.

I have KEF LS 50 original speakers is this a match? Thanks.

How important is damping factor?

Another great video Ron.

What speakers do you like with this? Would Klipsch pair with this?

Lets dont forget Some US and German Brands has a Factory and employs Chinese Workforce Technicians and Engineers. Anyone thats has the Courage and Discipline to study physics and Chemistry in Tandem with Electronics will Create a better Device.

That grey cardigan looks like mine

Just wondering how it compares to tube amps? In your opinion that is.....

Do you think it will go well with my Pioneer TAD S1EX speaker ? Thanks for this wonderful review 🙏🏽

This amp is a new front runner for me! Great review

Good review.. Sounds like a good amp. They're not really giving away at 2,900. So it should be as good as you say. Thanks

At first I thought, "those knobs aren't that big," but then I saw your hand. Those are some big ol' knobs.

I am buying this thing! You convinced me. Good video. Well done!! 👍

Kink Studio compete very well with Audio GD components

I remember not so long ago everything coming from Japan was called cheap junk.

Perhaps kinki is Golden Tree. Need to see the Chinese characters to know.

My guess would be that they pronounce it "kin-key"

Awesome review across the board. Details, pacing, content, b-roll, all of it. Nice work. Seems like a super product. Should I sell my Aegir and Freya?

Sounds like these will pair great with the new elacs.

Thank you for keeping everything humane. Equality is being a human being.

Thanks for the informative review.

There was no need to talk so much about Made in China. Everybody knows 'you get what you pay for' applies everywhere. China is the world's manufacturing engine. They have created excellent to extreme facilities. Forget about electronics, China is the world leader in heavy engineering as well whether it is a Tunnel Boring Machine or High Speed Trains and from Metro Coaches to 1100kV UHVDC Transmission lines - just to name a few. Siemens and Hitachi-ABB has helped State Grid Corporation of China in manufacturing UHVDC transformers though. Thank you.

Hey man I don’t know if you’re checking your messages but I’m just curious to know if you had to choose which unit has better detail retrieval clarity and sound dynamics and hearing every little thing and making out every separate sound quality wise which one is better this device or the Yamaha as2200 I just want to hear the best clarity

How it can be compared to another damping champion Hegel, aka h120 or h190 for example? They aso have clean detailed presentation with nice engaging holographic presentation

where the product is made today means a lot less than when it did 30 years ago. a "assembled" label is just that, where the final product is assembled. a lot of "made in USA" really means all parts are made overseas and putting parts in a box happened in the U.S.A. (there are rules about the made in USA means majority of the value of the goods need to happen in the state., but you can workaround that by inflating the labor cost for putting a label, or some other BS things like final QA check cost 40% total product value, or market researching ) similarly, made in China often uses parts that not made in China. made in Mexico probably means 95% of everything, including display, circuit board, screws and even casing, are imported from China. there was a joke that to profit from the so called "patriotism", companies should just leave out the final assembly step and send you the parts for you do the final assembly. so the whatever you buying would be made in wherever the customer perform the final assembly. that said, Monoprice amplifier and speaker? pretty awesome stuff and they are not made in U.S.A. at end of the day, we the consumer cares about best product for the price.

Ron, I know that you own the Gallo Strada 2. I own a pair of Anthony Gallo 3.5 reference speakers, I wonder how this integrated would sound with the Gallos? I'm looking for a nice integrated amp below $3,000.

would like a comparison to the Marantz Model 30. Similar price and functions

the way u say it.... that power button reminds me of g-spot... especially how u turn it "on"

Hello Ron I noticed an old review of yours is this better than the Parasound Hent halo five

I'm super confused by this amp after seeing it on Next Best Thing Studio. This is an integrated amp? You don't need the monoblocks with it?

No review of the Marantz Model 30... You didn't like it?

Not as big as the biggest MF amps. Anthony Michaelson had a thing about big knobs.

Why do the Chinese manufacturers have such weird names ? Besides Kinki Studio there is Sabaj, Hidizs, xduoo, iBasso, simgot, Blon, Khadas. I don't get it.

Nice commentary, but I think you missed one of the biggest red flags I'd immediately be concerned about. The specs say it puts out the same power into 4ohms as 8ohms. Unless they are using an autoformer design like McIntosh, this should be investigated/explained at least.

how would this compare to the Black Ice F35

Would this be too much for my klipsch rp8000s?

Please review the EX-B7 mono blocks as well. Would love to hear your views!😃

Currently trying to decide between this and the Hegel 95/120, so this is a timely review for me. Thank you!