Eversolo T8 Digital Transport!

[RichB]

are. you comparing blind - level matched etc. etc.

What mechanism do you suppose can create this difference.

Comparisons are not blind but with instantaneous switching.
When comparing digital inputs on the same DAC, level matching should not be an issue.
If level matching is necessary, then that would prove something.
I will do that over the weekend, when I have more time.

I have a T8 and Pi5 with Pi2AEs. Roon is configured to link the T8, Pi2AES and native Pi5 USB zones.
The D900 can then be instantaneously switched between inputs.
The change in sound stage is quite obvious.

To some extent, all DACs are black boxes, but these Topping DACs seem more so.
The D900 and D90 III discrete also have the option of apply digital processing (PEQ) for some inputs.
This suggests a different data path. The I2S bypassing this function.

For USB, this data is internally clocked.
For AES and I2S the source clock is used at some level.
The I2S cannot using the onboard PEQ, so that is another difference.

The AES input is an outlier; it is very clear but seems to lose some bass.
It is so dramatic that I suspect a phase issue between channels.
I suppose ultimate certainty would make sense if these DACs were tested with actual signals comparing their inputs in stereo mode.

I also have a Shelly Rely controlled ARX XLR switch that I have used to compare different level matched DACs.
It is possible that this is unique to these Topping DACs.

- Rich

 

[antcollinet]

Comparisons are not blind

OK - but you know then that it is not possible to trust the results of those comparisons.

When comparing digital inputs on the same DAC, level matching should not be an issue.

It can be - some dacs use different chips for different input types - it is possible for those chips to output different analogue levels. You would need to test with a voltmeter to ensure that is not the case.

The I2S cannot using the onboard PEQ, so that is another difference.

OK - then if you are using or not using PEQ, then the difference is not coming from the input but from the EQ. You would need to make sure EQ is off for everything if you want to compare differences between Digital interfaces.


None of your clock differences should be making any difference either - unless the DAC has malfunctioning clock recovery.


It all brings us back to the most likely cause being insufficient controls on your listening comparisons. If you are happy with the results anyway - that is fine, and up to you. But they are meaningless for anyone else.

 

[Soniclife]

When comparing digital inputs on the same DAC, level matching should not be an issue.

Any device with EQ might apply a small attenuation to prevent clipping or intersample overs.

 

[pat355]

I don't believe it has been discussed in the previous pages but I read Audiophilestyle's review of the T8 and he was (back in September 2025) very critical of EvoTune and felt like the Room calibration from Eversolo made his system sound worse than without DSP...I wanted to know if this is a concern other owners have faced here at ASR? and if you have or had a Wiim product before, how does EvoTune compare to Wiim's RoomFit calibration? (granted the latter has had quite a few significant improvements throughout 2025).

 

[SoySalsaPicante]

I don't believe it has been discussed in the previous pages but I read Audiophilestyle's review of the T8 and he was (back in September 2025) very critical of EvoTune and felt like the Room calibration from Eversolo made his system sound worse than without DSP...I wanted to know if this is a concern other owners have faced here at ASR? and if you have or had a Wiim product before, how does EvoTune compare to Wiim's RoomFit calibration? (granted the latter has had quite a few significant improvements throughout 2025).

WiiM RoomFit cannot compare to something like DIRAC Live, but it is already a good deal more mature and better performing than EvoTune.

 

[pat355]

WiiM RoomFit cannot compare to something like DIRAC Live, but it is already a good deal more mature and better performing than EvoTune.

that's helpful, thank you.

 

[Breeze98]

I'm completely new to streamers and just wondering if you can connect the real-time audio (eg from the general online video content of a browser, such as Chrome) from a PC to the T8 -> DAC?

Reason I ask is that looking at Eversolo's site, they have a windows driver, but that seems to be only compatible with other Eversolo models that include a DAC and a USB C input, both of which the T8 doesn't have.

Connect and Use Eversolo Streamers with a PC

......

www.eversolo.com

Or is there some other way to somehow integrate a PC's browser's audio in real-time via the network with the T8?

 

[SoySalsaPicante]

I'm completely new to streamers and just wondering if you can connect the real-time audio (eg from the general online video content of a browser, such as Chrome) from a PC to the T8 -> DAC?

Reason I ask is that looking at Eversolo's site, they have a windows driver, but that seems to be only compatible with other Eversolo models that include a DAC and a USB C input, both of which the T8 doesn't have.

Connect and Use Eversolo Streamers with a PC

......

www.eversolo.com

Or is there some other way to somehow integrate a PC's browser's audio in real-time via the network with the T8?

T8 cannot do this unless you find a way to convert your PC's output to UPnP/DLNA and then use UPnP/DLNA over the network to broadcast to the T8 (which has UPnP/DLNA bridge capability).

 

[Breeze98]

T8 cannot do this unless you find a way to convert your PC's output to UPnP/DLNA and then use UPnP/DLNA over the network to broadcast to the T8 (which has UPnP/DLNA bridge capability).

Thanks, I was expecting that to be the answer. Will investigate how best to do that then..Cheers..

 

[seattlerocks]

I bought a T8 and it arrived today, and I'd give it a mixed review so far. I was previously using a wiim, but wanted something closer to an android tablet so that I could change songs and settings without going to my phone so often. Wiim has spotify connect, but you can't easily start songs from the device itself, which is a pain. I don't want to have to track down my phone every time I want to play music. Overall thoughts -

The Good
+ The device itself looks great, they really made a good looking unit and I like it. It definitely looks the part.
+ The UI is also great. It's fast and responsive, the different album art and UV meter settings all look really nice. Doesn't make it sound any better, but it's a good experience and I like watching it.

The Bad
- The screen looks terrible at anything besides dead straight on. Straight on it's fine, but looking at it a few degrees off center, the colors are washed out and dim. Your average cheap cell phone off amazon has a better screen than this.
- The UI is clunky and difficult to use it a lot of places. I know I praised the UI just above this, but it's really hit or miss. Both on the device and on your phone. For example when setting up the device, I had to use a tiny on screen keyboard which was a pain to enter passwords on. You should be able to just use your phone to do all the setup instead. As another example, I just tried to open Spotify through the app, and I'm staring at a black screen in-app which I assume is a bug. It's not a great experience.
- The UI lags when using spotify and switching between songs. Take play/pause as an example - there's no immediate UI state change when you click the play/pause button, leaving you wondering if the click worked while you wait a few seconds. I'd instead expect the UI to update immediately and let you know the click worked, even if the actual music pause took a second. Similar for advancing to the next song. Parts of the UI like the song name update, and then after like 20 seconds the album art will load. Both of these should be better.

The Ugly
* To nobody's surprise, it doesn't sound any different than any of my other transports. We all know this going in, so it's totally fine. No music streamer is going to magically make your music sound better

I'm unsure if I'm going to keep it or not. The screen visual quality is the biggest thing bugging me right now, it really looks like an old TN panel. At ~$1,400 I'd expect more from a device.

 

[madFloyd]

While it does sound better than any other streamer, it's incredibly buggy.

Spotify Connect will fail after 30 minutes or so.
Qobuz Connect will start having dropouts ( but continue playing)
Tidal Connect works fine

 

[SoySalsaPicante]

While it does sound better than any other streamer, it's incredibly buggy.

Spotify Connect will fail after 30 minutes or so.
Qobuz Connect will start having dropouts ( but continue playing)
Tidal Connect works fine

Qobuz itself is having issues due to their conversion to cloud servers. It's affecting every Qobuz user regardless of how they stream Qobuz.

 

[Mnyb]

The AES input is an outlier; it is very clear but seems to lose some bass.

- Rich

It all brings us back to the most likely cause being insufficient controls on your listening comparisons. If you are happy with the results anyway - that is fine, and up to you. But they are meaningless for anyone else.

Yes an experimental error . You ca not "loose bass" on a pure digital input , this can not happen there is no plausible mechanism for this at all . You need DSP path to change the fr response . Faults in digital IO give rise to random errors , you can not attribute "analog language" to this ?

 

[madFloyd]

Qobuz itself is having issues due to their conversion to cloud servers. It's affecting every Qobuz user regardless of how they stream Qobuz.

Good to know that, thank you.

 

[madFloyd]

Yes an experimental error . You ca not "loose bass" on a pure digital input , this can not happen there is no plausible mechanism for this at all . You need DSP path to change the fr response . Faults in digital IO give rise to random errors , you can not attribute "analog language" to this ?

Every digital cable sounds different.

 

[RexrothPigeon]

Every digital cable sounds different.

lmao

 

[Coltr@ne]

I take it for granted that all cables in the world sound the same, so in my opinion what sounds different is between the right and left ear. Imagine how reliable I think your speculations are.

 

[Mnyb]

Every digital cable sounds different.

If they do ( with a broken one ) it would not manifest in an analog way , with more air or less bass or smother midrange or better transient , it's not in the digital domain what's there is information about the music . it would be extraordinary if random errors analyzed and attacked certain parts of the sound is if the cable knew what the information was about ?
You get ticks, clicks and dropouts or noise .

 

[madFloyd]

You guys must believe the earth is flat.

 

[SoySalsaPicante]

You guys must believe the earth is flat.

Not sure if serious or just trolling at this point