Audma's Brioso PHPA1 is a £4,400 portable amplifier with soundstage controls
Named best portable DAC and amp at CanJam London 2026, the Brioso PHPA1 pairs an AKM flagship converter with Stage and Angle controls that reshape the stereo image.
Audma took the best portable DAC and amplifier award at CanJam London 2026 with the Brioso PHPA1, at roughly £4,400. It uses an AKM AK4499EXEQ converter with an AK4191 digital filter, accepts USB-C digital and both balanced and unbalanced analogue inputs, and runs about five hours on battery. Its distinguishing feature is a pair of controls Audma calls Stage and Angle, driven by proprietary circuitry it names ELISA, which adjust the presentation of the stereo image.
Controls that reposition the stereo image are crossfeed or spatial processing by another name, and they are entirely measurable: what they do to channel separation and to phase between the ears can be plotted. That makes this a more testable claim than most, and £4,400 for a five-hour portable makes it one worth testing.
Announcement sources
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This is an announcement, not a verdict. Specifications come from the manufacturer and nothing here is measured until a unit reaches the rig. For tested portable amps, see Portable AMPs reviews. Back to all new releases.