AD5 DIY Headphone Amp is a headphone amplifier and USB Type-C digital to analogue converter (DAC) kit. It’s been designed for hands-on learning and real-world audio performance, assembled by you.

With pre-soldered SMD components and step-by-step instructions for the amp, it’s accessible to many skill levels, without sacrificing depth. Whether you’re building your first electronics project or brushing up your skills, AD5 is here to help you learn, solder, and enjoy your music like never before.

Build, Learn, Listen

Many DIY electronics projects lack detailed instructions, learning opportunities, and, in the end, leave you with a mediocre finished product. AD5 is different because it’s way more than just an empty PCB with a bag of parts. Each kit will ship with high quality instructions that give you a chance to hone your skills, assembly jigs and trays to keep you organised, all designed around a simple workflow that won’t overwhelm you. Plus, open source files will help you maintain the device you built.

After you complete assembly you’ll have a superb headphone amp and DAC which you can enjoy for many years to come. Thanks to its powerful design, AD5 is able to drive headphones from 33 ohm impedance (at ~430 mW) up to 600 ohm (at ~50 mW). That means your favorite headphones, like the AKG 7xx series, Hifiman He-350, Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro, and Sennheiser HD6xx and even the latest Head(amame) 3D printed headphones should all be compatible!

If you love to build DIY masterpieces, enjoy learning new skills, have a developing passion of audio, or would like to explore any of these avenues in greater detail then this project was designed for you.

Features & Specifications

Hardware

MCU: STM32F411CEU6
DAC: PCM5102A
Amplifier ICs: NJM2068DD, NJM4556AD

Size & Weight

• Approx. 125 x 125 x 40 mm, (5 x 5 x 1.5 in)
• 160-330 g depending on enclosure

Connectivity

• Input: USB Type-C
• Audio Jack - 3.5 mm or 6.35 mm
• Power: 5 V, 3 A

Open Source

The hardware for AD5 will follow the Open Community License (OCL) created by Prusa Research in 2025. Upon delivery of kits to backers we will publish the following items:

• Bill of materials for PCB components
• Enclosure STEP and/or STL as appropriate
• STLs for assembly jigs
• PCB schematic
• Simplified STEP geometry of the AD5 mainboard
This should provide adequate information to allow for customization, modification, and most importantly, upholds your right-to-repair.

The firmware for AD5 will be released under the GPL 3.0 license. Upon delivery of the funded campaign, we will publish the firmware for the device. Distribution of the above files and data will either by via GitHub or our own website page, and will be available to everyone.

Interested in This Project?

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