Oppo 205 and 105D vs Topping D90 and Topping Dx7 Pro

[rococoxxx]

Friends audiophiles and I decided to have some fun comparing blind and level matched Oppo 205, Oppo 105D (modded with a linear PSU), Topping Dx7 Pro and Topping D90 DACs. I have to admit that the test did not qualify as a truly double-blind one since the person switching the inputs knew what which source was playing but we took enough care to level match all sources before the comparison as they did vary and that proved critical to the overall subjective preference of the listeners. The DACs were connected to the Oppo's via Co-Axial input, which while not ideal, allowed for an easier real-time switching between inputs.

To cut a long story short, in every comparison we made the Oppo's were subjectively prefered as the better sounding sources. They were found to be more resolving with better-separed mids and vocals (especially the vocals) and were easily and unmistakably identifiable from the sound of each Topping DAC. Between the two Topping DACs, D90 won the listeners subjective preference and we all agreed that they did sound different.

What we found really interesting and far more challenging was the comparison between the two Oppo's. The modded Oppo 105D measured 0.6dB louder than the stock Oppo 205. So, if both Oppos were played at their 100 volume setting, the Oppo 105D was liked better. Conversely, if Oppo 105D was set at volume 99, then the 205 would come on top as the subjectively preferred source. It has to be pointed out that both Oppo's sounded to our ears so similar that the only way to tell them apart was by their relative loudness.

My initial expectation (and hope) was that the Toppings would beat both Oppo's due to their much better measured performance, however, that was not the case subjectively. I've owned Topping D30 / D50 / D70 / Dx7 Pro and D90 as well as Chord Qutest DACs for periods of time. I found all these DACs sounding different with Chord Qutest being closest to the sound of my Oppo 105D but no DAC managed to tempt me as an upgrade to my listening experience even though subjectively I really wanted this to be the case.

I am opening this thread in order to share my experience with other Oppo 105 / 105D / 205 owners who had the chance to compare them to a top-end Topping DAC in order to validate my impressions.

Please share.

PS I have a Gustard A-18 coming so will share my impression from this DAC too.

 

[BDWoody]

Thank you for the report! Always nice when people at least try to implement some basic controls!

How did you level match, and how was the switching performed?

If going through that trouble, why not make the switcher blind?

What were the lengths of music samples you were switching between?

 

[rococoxxx]

Level matching was achieved using Sound Meter App on a smartphone. One minute from the same song was measured 3 times for each source and the levels were adjusted until a difference of less than 0.3 dB was achieved. The average loudness over 60" was taken as reference for the level measured.

Samples were well-known audiophile tracks in FLAC format 30 to 60" in length.

 

[sahihe]

Thank you for running the test and capturing your impressions!

Excellent choice of DACs. I've personally been interested in running a comparison between my Topping dx7 pro and the D90 (don't yet own) to test if I can hear a diff between ESS and AKM based DACs that everyone talks about. Great to see these included.

Given that all of the DACs are in the top band of SINAD results, I'm intrigued that the differences could be heard easily and there was consistent preference for some DACs over others.

Just as a data point, a buddy and I did a comparison between my Dx7 pro and his old Peachtree DAC, both connected to my macmini and being simultaneously fed the same stream from roon and connected to a T+A analog preamp going into a T+A amplifier. Luckily the levels (measured with SPL meter at listening position) were very close, so we didn't need to adjust the vol control when switching between the preamp inputs. No matter what music we listened to and how long we listened, we could not tell them apart, which was a bit of a let down since Dx7 was cream of the latest crop of DACs, while the Peachtree was a couple of generations older.

I will be following the thread with great interest to hear more about your comparison and others.

 

[Buster Chestnut]

I’ve performed a similar comparison (Oppo 105 v D90) and found I like the D90 better when using a computer audio server as the source. However, I preferred the Oppo 105 SACD playback to the DSD64 file playback of the same tracks using either USB in on the DACs.

In each case, the preference was small and in an uncontrolled environment. I wouldn’t pick one over the other based on these listening preferences alone.

 

[win]

I envy your ears. I could not tell the difference between my new D90 vs. my El Dac II, and not even vs. my original ODAC.

Indeed, the only reason I got the D90 was because when I introduced an active crossover into my chain, I needed to mentally convince myself that if I introduce an additional A/D/A conversion, I need to ensure the upstream converted analog signal is as accurate as possible.

I still can't hear ADA encode/decodes, even after a dozen pass throughs!