Articles, Reviews and Measurements of Audio Products

Review and Measurements of NuForce STA-200 Power Amp

  • 56,225
  • 152
This is a review and detailed measurements of Optoma/NuForce STA-200 Power Amplifier. It is on kind loan from a member. I see it listed for USD $499 including Prime shipping. Looking elsewhere, it appears to have a list price of $1299.

This is one attractive enclosure that does not usually come in a $500 package:

Optoma NuFroce STA-200 Power Amplifier Review and Measurement.jpg

The finish is slightly textured and looks pretty nice.

Feature wise, there is nothing there but a set of RCA inputs and speakers. The RCA inputs are paired with speaker terminals on each end of the unit so you better have RCA cables that separate that much.

Somewhat out of character is a traditional extruded aluminum heatsink poking out the back. I guess this avoids having to put the heatsink inside and having to vent the enclosure. The heatsink is pretty small though and it was cooking even when testing the unit at just 5 watts/channel. I worry about its ability to run OK at full power for any extended amount of...

Review and Measurements of Topping TP60 and FX Audio FX502SPro Amps

  • 108,444
  • 137
This is a review, measurement and comparison of two speaker amplifiers: Topping TP60 and FX Audio FX502SPro. I purchased both personally. The TP60 retails for USD $199 with free prime shipping but goes on sale frequently on Massdrop where I purchased it for just $135. I bought the FX502SPro for $68 from ebay but I see it listed at $89 right now.

From build quality to size and weight, the Topping TP60 blows away the FX Audio FX502SPro as you see in this picture on my bench:
Topping TP60 and FX Audio FX502SPro Audio Amplifier Review.jpg

The TP60 is probably four times larger. Part of that is due to the fact that it has dual linear power supplies built into it. The FX502SPro on the other hand, comes with a large laptop sized external switching supply that is nearly its own size!

The TP60 has dual inputs whereas the FX502SPro only has one. Rear speaker terminals on the FX502SPro are toy sized whereas the TP60's are much more substantial.

FX Audio rates the FX502SPro at 70 watts per channel...

Review and Measurements of Massdrop THX AAA 789 Amp

  • 498,155
  • 1,637
This is a review and detailed measurements of the just Massdrop THX AAA 789 headphone amplifier. It was drop shipped by request of a kind member for testing. It retails for USD $349.99. The unit had a log gestation period with customers having to wait months to receive the first allotment. The second drop had a ship date of February so if you have not gotten in line, you will be waiting a long time for one. Is the wait worth it? Let's find out.

On the industrial design, Massdrop is using their current design language for their larger desktop audio products which in my opinion is a good thing. While the unit does not have a luxury feel to it, it looks serious and not cheap:

Massdrop THX AAA 789 Headphone Amplifier Review and Measurement.jpg

Very conveniently, there are three headphone jacks in front: 4-pin XLR for balanced headphones, and both 3.5 mm and 1/4 inch for single ended. As usual, please note that the word "balanced" here simply means more potential power, and has nothing to do with...

Review and Measurements of Topping DX3Pro DAC and Headphone Amp

  • 1,376,655
  • 5,037
This is a review and detailed measurements of the brand new, Topping DX3Pro DAC and headphone amplifier. The company kindly sent me a pre-production unit. I usually buy my Topping products unless they are not available in the market as was the case here. The retail price will be $219.99. I expect production to start soon given the high finish of the unit I have.

It is hard to fall in love with budget desktop audio products but there are exceptions and this is one of them. The Topping DX3Pro is darn cute!

Topping DX3Pro DAC and Headphone Amplifier Review and Measurement.jpg

The yellow LED as with the Topping D10 adds a much needed touch of color and uniqueness to the unit. The volume knob adds more to that sauce, making for a small box and you enjoy glancing at on your desk.

Surprising for a small unit, as seen in the picture, you get a remote control and all the functionality in its larger brother, the Topping DX7s. You can select the volume control to apply to line out, headphone out or both...

Review and Measurements of Cavalli Liquid Carbon X

  • 54,717
  • 116
This is a review and detailed measurements of Massdrop's Alex Cavalli Liquid Carbon X headphone amplifier. It is on kind loan from a member. I think the retail price was $299 but since the drop is over, I am not 100% sure. Someone should comment if that was not the case.

The Liquid Carbon X is an attractive headphone amplifier. It manages a luxury feel despite its low cost. Here you see it below the new Topping DX3 Pro dac and headphone amplifier (review to come).

Massdrop Cavalli Liquid Carbon Headphone Amplifier Review and Measurement.jpg


The Liquid Carbon X is covered in semi "rubberized" paint which while feels nice, tend to show any dirt or dust. So keep a rag next to it if you want it to look good.

As you see in the front, it has both balanced and unbalanced connections. Same is the case in the back where there we have both balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA connectors.

Overall, it is a thumbs up on design, look and feel.

For power, it comes with what looks like a laptop switching power supply, producing whopping...

Review and Measurements of Asus STX II PCI Sound Card

  • 90,018
  • 172
This is a review and detailed measurements of Asus STX II PCI Express sound card. It is on kind loan from a member and retails for USD $219 on Amazon including Prime shipping. Full list price is $299.

This is a medium sized PC card which oddly requires external power. You can see it here together with the recently reviewed USB DAC, the Khadas Tone Board:

Asus STX II Sound Card Audio Review and Measurements.jpg


So inch for inch, it better measure a lot better. OK, some of that real estate is dedicated to headphone output and analog input which the Khadas board lacks. Still, with all the space, extra shielding, etc. it better do well. Asus specification shows near state of the art performance specs:

1540002500445.png


If it lives up to these specs, it would rate at tier just below state-of-the-art desktop DACs. Will it get there? Let's measure it and find...

Orchard Audio ApplePi DAC and Volume+Clocker Reivew

  • 20,645
  • 35
I recently reviewed the Orchard Audio ApplePi DAC. In this review I will be testing the optional "Volume+Clocker" which adds hardware volume control and more precision clock. It retails for USD $99.99 plus shipping and is on loan from the company.

Here you see my test sandwich of Raspberry Pi, Volume+Clocker and ApplePi DAC:

Orchard Audio ApplePi DAC plus Volume-Clocker Balanced Review.jpg


You can see the volume control poking out on the side. Unless I missed it, there was no knob for the volume+clocker. This should be supplied as it costs very little and makes for a more professional and complete package.

For completeness, I will be testing the balanced output of the ApplePi DAC. As you can see in the above picture, the ApplePi DAC ships with mini-XLR balanced connectors. Company sent me a couple of XLR adapters which I used for this purpose. They were massive...

Battle of Google Pixel Headphone Dongles

  • 74,442
  • 94
This is a review and detailed measurements of three adapters to give your Pixel phone an analog output to drive headphones. Taking a lead from Apple, Google eliminated the 3.5 mm headphone jack necessitating using these external dongles/DACs+amps to use with headphones. Rumor is that Samsung may also go that way with their next phone. :(

Anyway, I received the original Google Pixel "USB-C to 3.5mm Adapter" months and months ago from a member. I was dreading having to measure it through my phone as that makes the process slow and incomplete. While I was procrastinating on that a member recently loaned me the second generation of that, prompting me to go and measure them. Fortunately I realized that using a simple USB adapter I could connect them to my PC and hence be able to measure them there. The second generation dongle retails for $12 from Google store. I don't know what the original one retailed for but I see it on Amazon for USD $14 with prime shipping.

Meanwhile...

Review and Measurements of JDS Labs EL DAC

  • 61,871
  • 118
This is a review and detailed measurements of JDS Labs EL DAC. It retails for $249 and is kind loan from a reddit member.

The EL DAC uses the same design language/enclosure as their attractive Element DAC and Amp which I reviewed earlier. This being a DAC alone, the big knob is of course eliminated:

JDS Labs EL DAC Review and Measurement.jpg


The momentary switch enables selection of different inputs. I am afraid I could not quite get a hang of how much to push it to advance to the next setting. The color of ring around the switch indicates which input is selected which required more mental effort than this lazy brain wanted to dedicate. Then again if you just use it for USB or whatever, it is not a big deal.

The finish seems to pick some amount of smudges. Not too bad but does require more delicate care to keep it looking good long term. I see that...

Review and Measurements of WesionTEK Khadas Tone Board DAC

  • 695,123
  • 2,257
This is a review and detailed measurements of Khadas Tone Board DAC from WesionTEK. It is on kind loan from the company. The retail price on Amazon is USD $99 including free shipping.

As the name indicates, this is a bare board DAC:

Kodas Tone Board DAC Review and Measurement.jpg

Don't confuse this with Raspberry Pi boards though. This is a complete DAC and doesn't need a host to operate. It is just like any other desktop DAC except that it doesn't come with a case.

The Khadas Tone Board is powered and accessed through the USB port and S/PDIF. For my review, I only tested the USB input.

Output as you see is through a pair of RCA jacks that have a great high-quality look and feel (as does the S/PDIF one). It would be at home in DACs at much higher prices.

WesionTEK sells two versions of this board, one of which mates with their host processor to make a complete networked DAC and player. They were kind enough to send me the host which I will review later.

Let's get into...
Top Bottom