Topping D90 Balanced USB DAC Review

[dixter]

Can't read through the whole 65 pages, but in the review the problem of higher distortion at full volume isn't mentioned - unlike the D70. I assume this means the D90 doesn't have the problem?

Also the option to bypass the Amp stage via DAC mode... I never quite understood the notion of people saying to just turn the volume up all the way in Pre Amp mode...

 

[kkeretic]

Also the option to bypass the Amp stage via DAC mode... I never quite understood the notion of people saying to just turn the volume up all the way in Pre Amp mode...

Because D70 sounds the same both in DAC and preamp mode at 0dB attenuation, at least to my (and not just my) ears. Distortion, noise? And technically speaking, how many DACs with real preamp and/or volume control outside of digital domain even are there on the market?

 

[777]

Also the option to bypass the Amp stage via DAC mode... I never quite understood the notion of people saying to just turn the volume up all the way in Pre Amp mode...

Pre-amp section in fact doesn't exist in Topping D90. "Pre-amp" is only the digital volume control in the ak4499eq. Hardware circuits are the same for "Pre-amp" and "pure-DAC". It is just a marketing.

 

[BDWoody]

Also the option to bypass the Amp stage via DAC mode... I never quite understood the notion of people saying to just turn the volume up all the way in Pre Amp mode...

How does that bypass anything? I've never really gotten why it would be an advantage to have it on DAC mode vs preamp at 100% volume. How are they different?

 

[CJH]

Anyone know what changes were made with the latest 4.82 driver update?
CJH

 

[masha112233]

hello everyone

i got the d90 mqa before a week ago and i don't know if this dac related to my problem .

two days ago white playing music , suddenly my amp turn on/off for less of i second due to main electricity spike .
i didnt hear any noise coming from my speakers . yesterday i played again and noticed something is wrong , i saw my two accuton tweeter's dome ceramic blows and broke but tweeter still play music .

my main question , could be the d90 sending a bad signals to my amp caused this problem due to high frequencies or oscillation ?
or the tweeters blow because main electricity fail and over current from my amp ????

this never had before even when had a main electricity spike ???

thanks ..

 

[alexj84nl]

Can't read through the whole 65 pages, but in the review the problem of higher distortion at full volume isn't mentioned - unlike the D70. I assume this means the D90 doesn't have the problem?

I've never seen the manual consisting of 65 pages, wasn't even included in my d90 box? Some has got a link?

 

[Rover]

How does that bypass anything? I've never really gotten why it would be an advantage to have it on DAC mode vs preamp at 100% volume. How are they different?

Ideally, the D90 is used in DAC mode. When the preamp option is enabled, DSD> PCM conversion is enabled. When this option is disabled, the DSD preamp plays in the main mode without conversion!
Volume control is only possible in PCM format.
Ideally, the D90 is used in DAC mode.

 

[DavidBloch406]

I've never seen the manual consisting of 65 pages, wasn't even included in my d90 box? Some has got a link?

I think he means this thread

 

[firedog]

I've never seen the manual consisting of 65 pages, wasn't even included in my d90 box? Some has got a link?

meant the 65 pages here.

 

[AndyLu]

hello everyone

i got the d90 mqa before a week ago and i don't know if this dac related to my problem .

two days ago white playing music , suddenly my amp turn on/off for less of i second due to main electricity spike .
i didnt hear any noise coming from my speakers . yesterday i played again and noticed something is wrong , i saw my two accuton tweeter's dome ceramic blows and broke but tweeter still play music .

my main question , could be the d90 sending a bad signals to my amp caused this problem due to high frequencies or oscillation ?
or the tweeters blow because main electricity fail and over current from my amp ????

this never had before even when had a main electricity spike ???

thanks ..

It is very unlikely that a DAC blows up your speakers. An electricity spike can do nasty things to your equipment. I place my bet on the spike, not on the DAC. You are simply lucky that your equipment never is damaged before because of the spikes.

 

[THAndy]

Ideally, the D90 is used in DAC mode. When the preamp option is enabled, DSD> PCM conversion is enabled. When this option is disabled, the DSD preamp plays in the main mode without conversion!
Volume control is only possible in PCM format.
Ideally, the D90 is used in DAC mode.

When I put the D90 MQA into DAC mode I hear clipping distortion from my amp (Lake People RS-02), even with the amp pre-gain set to -12dB. I have to run the D90 in PRE mode and reduce the output by at least 7 or 8 dB to clean up the sound, plus the reduced pre-gain on the amp, but it still doesn't sound altogether clean.

I tried running the D90's RCA outs into my JDS Labs O2 amp, and that sounded clean. And the RS-02 sounds clean with other sources. Also the D90's RCA outs sound reasonably clean into my Loxjie P20, though the XLR outs sound cleaner. What might cause an incompatibility between the D90 and the RS-02 amp in particular?

And here's something else weird: I tried inserting a passive preamp (QED MA-34) between the D90's RCA outs and the RS-02 amplifier, to see if I could attenuate the signal with a passive volume knob there. But as I turned down the knob there, the audible distortion instantly increased and the sound broke up like it was going through a bitcrusher effect until there was just garbled noise left. What could be going on here? Could it be some kind of impedance mismatch? The RS-02 lists its input impedance as 10kohms.

Edit: I was stupid and had a directional interconnect cable backwards, and it messed up the sound badly.

Edit 2: I have no idea what happened, and can't replicate the effect any more. Something was wrong, detaching and reattaching the interconnects didn't fix it until I reversed the cable, from which I drew a hasty conclusion. But now I can't replicate the problem by any combination or orientation of cables.

 

[rebbiputzmaker]

Hi, received my D90 MQA and enjoying it immensely. I want to see if I can use the I2S input as that was one of my reasons for purchasing the unit. I had previously thought I can use my Pi4 I2S output as input for the DAC, but that appears to be not correct. Therefore, I googled what else I can use and the Singxer SU-6 came up. It’s quite pricey so I wanted to see 1) if others have successfully use with with the D90, 2) can I use DSD512 via I2S from the SU-6 to the D90 and 3) it appears the SU-6 uses the XMOS XU208 while the D90 MQA uses the XU216 chip...as such, will there be an improvement using the SU-6 given the higher spec’ed XU216? I’m thinking the SU-6 will still need to take USB input and convert it to I2S.

Lastly, what happens internally in an USB DAC? Does it convert USB to I2S before processing and it’s just that the SU-6 will do that better or does it skip the I2S step all together? I’m trying to understand why adding a conversion step (eg., adding the SU-6) improves sound quality.

thank you!

I am currently using the Pi2aes I2s into the D90 and it is excellent. I would not hesitate to recommend it and find its superior to USB. Due to the nature of the device it only does up to 192 PCM, but I do not find this a limitation at all. I am using Roon in my system.

 

[Rover]

When I put the D90 MQA into DAC mode I hear clipping distortion from my amp (Lake People RS-02), even with the amp pre-gain set to -12dB. I have to run the D90 in PRE mode and reduce the output by at least 7 or 8 dB to clean up the sound, plus the reduced pre-gain on the amp, but it still doesn't sound altogether clean.

I tried running the D90's RCA outs into my JDS Labs O2 amp, and that sounded clean. And the RS-02 sounds clean with other sources. Also the D90's RCA outs sound reasonably clean into my Loxjie P20, though the XLR outs sound cleaner. What might cause an incompatibility between the D90 and the RS-02 amp in particular?

And here's something else weird: I tried inserting a passive preamp (QED MA-34) between the D90's RCA outs and the RS-02 amplifier, to see if I could attenuate the signal with a passive volume knob there. But as I turned down the knob there, the audible distortion instantly increased and the sound broke up like it was going through a bitcrusher effect until there was just garbled noise left. What could be going on here? Could it be some kind of impedance mismatch? The RS-02 lists its input impedance as 10kohms.

To start, open the manual of your amplifiers .Read the input voltage and impedance.Look at the voltage and impedance on the D90.

 

[dixter]

Anyone know what changes were made with the latest 4.82 driver update?
CJH

can you show a link... I don't seem to find it... Edit: Never mind... I found it... and I'm not sure what changed... here is the link in case others need it...
http://www.tpdz.net/newsinfo/374859.html

 

[THAndy]

To start, open the manual of your amplifiers .Read the input voltage and impedance.Look at the voltage and impedance on the D90.

Thanks. I don't see anything immediately obvious. The input voltage of the RS-02 is given as +21dBu (which this converter says is 8.69V RMS), while the D90 specifies an output voltage over RCA of 2V RMS. So there should be lots of headroom. Input impedance for the RS-02 is 10kohms; output impedance for the D90 is not specified. Does anything jump out here?

EDIT: I think it was my mistake. I had a directional interconnect cable backwards. Turning it around seems to have cleaned up the sound. I can now run the D90 on DAC mode without any pre-gain reduction into the RS-02. Never realized cable direction could make such a difference!

Edit 2: I have no idea what happened. Sorry for wasting people's time. Reversing the interconnect no longer produces the distortion, and reducing the volume on the passive preamp with all cables deliberately backwards no longer gives the horrible bitcrusher effect. Neither does wiring the preamp backwards. Something was very wrong when I started using this combo, disconnecting and reconnecting the cable didn't fix it, then I noticed I had the cable backwards and putting it in the other way round fixed it. But now I can't replicate the effect. It will remain a mystery until it happens again.

Topping D90 MQA:



Lake People HPA RS-02:

 

[jason.voegele]

Hi all, just received my Topping D90 yesterday and I've been listening to it pretty much nonstop today. I'm loving the sound of this DAC stacked with my new Monoprice THX AAA 887 headphone amp and my Aeon 2 Closed headphones from Dan Clark Audio.

I do have one question. The D90 has a voltage selector switch on the bottom of the unit with two available options: 115V and 230V. The product manual has the following information regarding the voltage selector switch:

115V for AC100V-12V 50/60Hz
230V for AC220V-240V 50/60Hz

Please choose the correct voltage before using; the wrong voltage will damage your D90.

I discovered this switch only after using the D90 for quite some time on the default setting of 115V, plugged into my home power outlet. How do I know what the correct setting should be? I don't know what the voltage on my home power outlets are, and I will also be moving the whole rig to my office once that opens up, and I don't know the voltage there either.

 

[Jimbob54]

Hi all, just received my Topping D90 yesterday and I've been listening to it pretty much nonstop today. I'm loving the sound of this DAC stacked with my new Monoprice THX AAA 887 headphone amp and my Aeon 2 Closed headphones from Dan Clark Audio.

I do have one question. The D90 has a voltage selector switch on the bottom of the unit with two available options: 115V and 230V. The product manual has the following information regarding the voltage selector switch:



I discovered this switch only after using the D90 for quite some time on the default setting of 115V, plugged into my home power outlet. How do I know what the correct setting should be? I don't know what the voltage on my home power outlets are, and I will also be moving the whole rig to my office once that opens up, and I don't know the voltage there either.

What country/ state are you? Unless you are somewhere with a very odd method of power distribution I would have thought office and home would be the same voltage.

https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plug-voltage-by-country/

 

[jason.voegele]

What country/ state are you? Unless you are somewhere with a very odd method of power distribution I would have thought office and home would be the same voltage.

https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plug-voltage-by-country/

Thanks for that link. I am in the United States (home is in Kentucky, office is in Ohio) and according to that chart, that would mean 120V, 60Hz.

Given that, I assume that 115V is the correct setting for me.

Thanks!

 

[pacman]

Thanks for that link. I am in the United States (home is in Kentucky, office is in Ohio) and according to that chart, that would mean 120V, 60Hz.

Given that, I assume that 115V is the correct setting for me.

Thanks!

If it were 220V, your D90 would be fried right now.