I got my A30 pro today and it's ... interesting.
- It gets warm, like .... warm. A90's case barely does. Good thing they drilled some holes in the chassis right ?
- Fits well on top of my RME ADI-2 DAC with some space at the sides (but depth is spot on).
- There is no difference between balanced and unbalanced from what i can hear.
- Medium gain compared to the A90 is lower. I drive my Focals at around 10AM on the A90, with the A30 pro it's around 13h
- The gain levels are quite substantial -/+14dB ... Which plays very well for IEM's and very hard to drive cans... but for stuff in the middle not so much. -- For example i get my A90 on low gain and can play around on the pot with the focals and i do get very good sound levels. Now i switch to the A30pro and on low gain its anemic. You really need to push medium gain over 12 o'clock to get them singing.
It's a minor gripe for me, but the gain swings should have been a bit more gradual i think.
The size is great, honestly. I wish all topping products were this small. The amplification quality is the same as the A90 - did an A/B and i can't tell them apart.
Since i don't need the preamp function of the A90 - the A30 Pro will be replacing it and slightly decluttering my desk.
For those who wonder how it actually looks
View attachment 121048