Poll for Topping PA5 owners only please.

[Doodski]

Well, this is disappointing. Found this forum looking for a manual for a TOPPING headphone amp as someone on a piano forum couldn't get it to work. Found that TOPPING amps were highly rated in reviews. Loved the data based reviews here. Looked for a good amp in the several hundred dollar range, selected the PA5 based on the outstanding review. Bought it yesterday night from Apos Audio.

Then I found this thread. I agree with the statements in the last two threads. As @amirm himself pointed out, most new members find this forum due to reviews, as I did. I understand everyone working here is probably insanely busy, but when there's an outstanding, glowing review for a product, and then that product has such a longstanding, not-fixed quality issue affecting such a huge percentage of the products, the review should be amended to state that.

Certainly, I was extremely disappointed to find such a glowing review only to discover AFTER I bought it of major quality issues on the product in question. I could definitely see that forever turning someone off from this site if they find a good review and buy a product and then find out later it's junk for issues not related to sound quality.

I agree. There should be a footnote at the review stating that there have been breakdowns after the review was made. Other Topping product has a note regarding breakdowns so to make one for this one should be a no-brainer.

 

[mrmeng430]

Got my PA5 on October 10. Still plays good. Fingers crossed.

 

[Deleted member 4708]

All (maybe 99%) PA5 units are good at the start. Issue shows up after days/weeks/months. Impossible to encounter in quick performance evaluation

Please share the source of your data...99% ???
Hard to explain how all the samples Amir tests work and pass the tests with flying colors yet when I buy 1 miniDSP SHD it arrives defect. Then I discover it has horrible (anti)customer support.
All these companies (miniDSP/SMSL/Topping) have a history riddled with duds. Another classic example is UMIK2 - a mic that was supposed to be "reference" class.

 

[jseyfert3]

I do have to add after thinking some more, I may have sounded a little harsh. It would certainly be a monumental task to keep up with trying to update reviews later on if a quality issue was discovered, given how many reviews and how much content this site has.

 

[Vladetz]

Please share the source of your data...99% ???
Hard to explain how all the samples Amir tests work and pass the tests with flying colors yet when I buy 1 miniDSP SHD it arrives defect. Then I discover it has horrible (anti)customer support.
All these companies (miniDSP/SMSL/Topping) have a history riddled with duds. Another classic example is UMIK2 - a mic that was supposed to be "reference" class.

It is just my assumption based on messages in the thread

 

[Mowz]

All these companies (miniDSP/SMSL/Topping) have a history riddled with duds. Another classic example is UMIK2 - a mic that was supposed to be "reference" class.

I am having trouble finding anything pointing out problems with this mic but maybe I'm not searching correctly. I have seen this mic recommended time and again and I have recommended it so please point me to what you are referencing. Thanks.

 

[Deleted member 4708]

I am having trouble finding anything pointing out problems with this mic but maybe I'm not searching correctly. I have seen this mic recommended time and again and I have recommended it so please point me to what you are referencing. Thanks.

One example: https://www.minidsp.com/forum/umik-questions/18099-umik-2-measuring-different-from-umik-1
It took miniDSP 2 weeks to acknowledge one problem.
There are other threads on umik2: drivers not working after Windows updates, etc.
Other example: https://www.minidsp.com/forum/umik-questions/19437-umik-2-inconsistant-measurments
Simply no asnwer: https://www.minidsp.com/forum/umik-questions/18109-umik-2-problem

 

[BoredErica]

I bought mine in January 2022. The right channel stopped working in November. Hifigo asks me to send it back to China to fix it. No negotiation possible! It would cost me $130 (I'm in Canada) to send it. It's awful. Reading everyone's comments, I don't know if it's worth it...

The fact that you can return for fix only to have it fail again is actually ludicrous. There ought to be some kind of safeguard against that kind of nightmare scenario happening.

 

[Doodski]

The fact that you can return for fix only to have it fail again is actually ludicrous. There ought to be some kind of safeguard against that kind of nightmare scenario happening.

Is that where you at stuck @?

 

[Canuck57]

Topping Service, where are you?

 

[norcalscott]

I do have to add after thinking some more, I may have sounded a little harsh. It would certainly be a monumental task to keep up with trying to update reviews later on if a quality issue was discovered, given how many reviews and how much content this site has.

I do think in this case that something should be added to the original review about the potential for issues. The vote here is a subsample, but if even 30% of these units have had these issues then people reading the review should be warned about that possibility.

 

[TiredOfWinning]

Aren't we all losing sight of what really matters? The measurements! https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/topping-pa5-review-amplifier.28512/

Quoth Amir:

Conclusions
It is abundantly clear that ton of great engineering has gone into the design of Topping PA5. It breaks all barriers as far as noise and distortion, not only in its own budget/desktop class, but way, way outside of that. If it had double the power, it would obsolete all of them and in a hurry! As it is, I would certainly use it in a desktop or secondary system. And even primary if you are not going to blast the volume with super inefficient speakers.

It is my absolute pleasure to recommend the Topping PA5. The dynamics of stereo amplifier market just changed folks!


All these complaints about 'unit failure' and 'lack of reliability' sound like little more than nitpicking to me. Remember, "a TON of GREAT ENGINEERING has gone into the design of the Topping PA5!"

(^please read the above with your irony sensors activated...

This thread should be merged with the main review?
I searched for Topping PA5 and it showed the main thread for review and if you didn’t look much further, (the crux of a lot of young searchers nowadays) you would think it didn’t have any issues.

Mine hissed so bad on RCAs I had to send back for a refund.
I am not sure if that makes me an owner or not… I certainly tried.
That god I used AMAZON for that

My PA5 has been running since 2022-02-25. As of today, I can find no listing, new or used, for a Topping PA5 on the U.S. site of Amazon. It makes me wonder if vendors for Topping have tacitly voted against the PA5

 

[TiredOfWinning]

This really needs amending...


View attachment 248353

$300 reminder that the product is only so good as it’s support network. Applies to the Topping products and also the reviews that appear on these pages.

 

[Holmz]

You quoted:

• Amir saying is was recommended.
• Mine hissing like a snake fest.
• And powerPop saying Amazon no longer carries them.

What is the point @TiredOfWinning ?

 

[TiredOfWinning]

You quoted:

• Amir saying is was recommended.
• Mine hissing like a snake fest.
• And powerPop saying Amazon no longer carries them.

What is the point @TiredOfWinning ?

Point is that Topping’s ability to support the product is lacking. $300 lesson I learned the hard way.

Amir leaving the recommendation up is just as bad.

PS - mine is intermittent. Worked fine all night. Now as I’m writing this, making a creaking sound like an old door opening out of the right channel. Time to unhook it before it sends something I don’t want down the line.

 

[Holmz]

Point is that Topping’s ability to support the product is lacking.

Yep.
And QC, and transparency.

Amir leaving the recommendation up is just as bad.

Well, I suppose that it would be good for people to know that there are problems on the first page…
(As it would be easy for someone to order one, before getting down to pg50.)

SINAD reigns supreme as an objective metric here.
But lack of product support and many units failing, seems like it is also headed well down the road towards being an objective fact.

PS - mine is intermittent. Worked fine all night. Now as I’m writing this, making a creaking sound like an old door opening out of the right channel. Time to unhook it before it sends something I don’t want down the line.

@TiredOfWinning Luckily mine was bad right outta the box.
It is probably wise for you to bin it before it takes out the speaker.

 

[BoredErica]

Is that where you at stuck @?

Nope. Topping was not confident they found the cause of error and implemented a working fix. They said if the 2nd unit is also faulty they will take 'special action', but I observed others in that boat and I didn't hear about any such action. Since they do seem to have increased warranty period to 2yr, I decided to wait bit longer, hoping in several months Topping will figure it out.

It's been a year and still nothing... But I dunno what to do but wait a bit longer and hope the situation changes. I should email Hifigo to ask what happens if they run out of pa5 and I return it.

 

[Doodski]

Topping was not confident they found the cause of error and implemented a working fix. They said if the 2nd unit is also faulty they will take 'special action', but I observed others in that boat and I didn't hear about any such action.

What odd terms of, "Everything."

Since they do seem to have increased warranty period to 2yr, I decided to wait bit longer

You are a odd duck as the saying goes in that you are extending the terms on your terms but that might come to bite you back.

It's been a year and still nothing... But I dunno what to do but wait a bit longer and hope the situation changes.

If me I would take a refund if available.

I should email Hifigo to ask what happens if they run out of pa5 and I return it

I would be careful of what happens. As you get further out the terms of sale and the previous promises may no longer apply.

 

[BoredErica]

What odd terms of, "Everything."

You are a odd duck as the saying goes in that you are extending the terms on your terms but that might come to bite you back.

If me I would take a refund if available.

I would be careful of what happens. As you get further out the terms of sale and the previous promises may no longer apply.

There's no refund. It's just a matter of returning for a "fix" now or later.

 

[MAB]

There's no refund. It's just a matter of returning for a "fix" now or later.

That's what Shenzhen told me too.
Have you tried a strong email to them? That's what I did (after months of polite exchanges). I didn't use harsh language, but I spelled out my dissatisfaction, and pointed out that they had to accept that this sale was a loss to them, and they needed to just refund me the money... It was a pretty strongly worded email. They refunded me 80%, then I yelled at them again, and they refunded me the remining 20%. I felt like yelling a third time to get my shipping fees back, but decided to not push my luck and just chill.
I don't know if this is helpful, but it seems like you have as much pain over this as any. And they sold defective merchandise, that they know is defective and don't seem to know how to fix! It's just so incoherent.