Review and Measurements of New Topping D50s DAC

[maxxevv]

If you're willing to spend that kind of money, you could consider the Sabaj D5, which has a stellar DAC and more than decent headphone amp section built in. Sub-US$400/- on sale.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ew-and-measurements-of-sabaj-d5-dac-amp.8337/

 

[thomasjast]

Got my D50s today.

I love it. This + JDS Atom is an amazing combination. No regrets!

 

[Urushi]

If you're willing to spend that kind of money, you could consider the Sabaj D5, which has a stellar DAC and more than decent headphone amp section built in. Sub-US$400/- on sale.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ew-and-measurements-of-sabaj-d5-dac-amp.8337/

What about the SMSL M500? It has a nice form factor. Not sure the amp is as good.

 

[ZeDestructor]

What about the SMSL M500? It has a nice form factor. Not sure the amp is as good.

We're waiting on amir to review it, mostly. Also, the design is a bit controversial, to say the least...

 

[mkawa]

smsl wouldn't be smsl without the quirky designs. it's kind of their calling card.

 

[Urushi]

We're waiting on amir to review it, mostly. Also, the design is a bit controversial, to say the least...

As in the design of the PCB + Electronics or the form factor?

 

[ZeDestructor]

smsl wouldn't be smsl without the quirky designs. it's kind of their calling card.

Isn't that more loxjie?

PS: I personally think the m500 looks pretty cool myself.

As in the design of the PCB + Electronics or the form factor?

The shape and the paintjob. Electronics-wise I'm 99% sure it's 2 PCBs, one handling the inputs and lcd, and the other the dac, with just I2S and power being linked. Nothing particularly funky or controversial there.

 

[mkawa]

user interface and form factor are bizarre, but if it measures as well as advertised, totally forgiveable

 

[AudioJunky]

Got my D50s today.

I love it. This + JDS Atom is an amazing combination. No regrets!

Are you using the Atom as a preamp as well?

About where do you position the Atom volume and D50s volume levels?

I have the same, but didn't like the Atom as a preamp. I was wondering if its better to have the atom high and the dac low, or vice versa, or somewhere in between?

Thanks

 

[thomasjast]

Are you using the Atom as a preamp as well?

About where do you position the Atom volume and D50s volume levels?

I have the same, but didn't like the Atom as a preamp. I was wondering if its better to have the atom high and the dac low, or vice versa, or somewhere in between?

Thanks

Atom is maxed out volume knob at low gain, and D50s is also at 0.00dB. All volume control is done with Windows volume mixer and is generally in the range of 16-30 tops.

I use the Atom as a pre-amp for PC speakers (Harmon Kardon Soundsticks III) and otherwise headphones from the Atom.

I vaaaastly prefer this to the DX3 Pro v1 I had last.

 

[AudioJunky]

Atom is maxed out volume knob at low gain, and D50s is also at 0.00dB. All volume control is done with Windows volume mixer and is generally in the range of 16-30 tops.

I use the Atom as a pre-amp for PC speakers (Harmon Kardon Soundsticks III) and otherwise headphones from the Atom.

I vaaaastly prefer this to the DX3 Pro v1 I had last.

Ahh thanks.

I was afraid to do that with my D10 and Atom as I don't trust windows from resetting the volume randomly one day and either blowing up my speakers or my eardrums.

I even thought about installing something like this https://github.com/troylar/quiet-on-the-set

In the living room I ended up using rca splitters instead of using the atom as a preamp.

I set the atom at 3 o'clock, and using the D50s around -25DB where is about what level I use with my power amp.

I use the D50s remote for volume control.

I am hoping one day the D50s volume doesn't reset to 0DB randomly.

I may try a set of rca attenuators or else I'll be looking for another solution.

 

[daftcombo]

Perhaps there's a reply to my question already in the thread, but how come the multitone test doen't show distortion higher than -110dB whereas the THD+N VS frequency shows bad things at -85dB at 10 kHz? Is it noise rather than distortion there?

 

[daftcombo]

Ahh thanks.

I was afraid to do that with my D10 and Atom as I don't trust windows from resetting the volume randomly one day and either blowing up my speakers or my eardrums.

I even thought about installing something like this https://github.com/troylar/quiet-on-the-set

In the living room I ended up using rca splitters instead of using the atom as a preamp.

I set the atom at 3 o'clock, and using the D50s around -25DB where is about what level I use with my power amp.

I use the D50s remote for volume control.

I am hoping one day the D50s volume doesn't reset to 0DB randomly.

I may try a set of rca attenuators or else I'll be looking for another solution.

What do you mean? You need to adjust the volume of the Atom manually every time to turn it on (it is the same knob). How could that happen? Just leave Windows & D50s at max and adjust volume on the Atom.

 

[porotikos]

woow nice review and this seems like a great dac. i wonder how it would compare to the old and new versions of khadas toneboard. Thank you for all the great reviews

 

[thomasjast]

What do you mean? You need to adjust the volume of the Atom manually every time to turn it on (it is the same knob). How could that happen? Just leave Windows & D50s at max and adjust volume on the Atom.

Correct, you're always starting at zero when you start the Atom. Why not use that instead? Low volume on the Atom has some channel imbalance (verified it myself with loopback), and since I listen quietly, that's the last thing I want.

 

[Berwhale]

What do you mean? You need to adjust the volume of the Atom manually every time to turn it on (it is the same knob). How could that happen? Just leave Windows & D50s at max and adjust volume on the Atom.

Same here - Windows @ Max, D50s @ 0.0dB, Atom @ 11-12 o'clock (low gain). PC Speakers (Altec Lansing ATP3) set to whatever.

 

[daftcombo]

If you really wanna use the remote, max the volume on the D50s, then set the Atom at the max volume you'll want, and decrease the sound with the remote on the D50s. This way you'll never blow your ears nor speakers.

 

[AudioJunky]

What do you mean? You need to adjust the volume of the Atom manually every time to turn it on (it is the same knob). How could that happen? Just leave Windows & D50s at max and adjust volume on the Atom.

With the D50s I have the atom on a switched outlet so I never adjust it. With the D10 I use the knob to turn it off and on in a desktop setup but I never get it past 10 o'clock. I believe I need attenuation between the dac and preamp. My power amps are overpowered and my headphones are audeze lcd-x so not tough to drive.

 

[escalibur]

Drop is active again for $200.

 

[JimB]

Here is a double test: optical input and THD+N vs Frequency:

View attachment 28440

There is an ultrasonic tone at 28 kHz when feeding it 20 K input that is at -80 dB or so, setting that limit.

This behavior is TOPPING my concerns with this DAC, because I don't really understand it. Is there more to say about this 28KHz spike? Is it signal level dependent? Is it input frequency dependent (seems so)? Is it only there with 44.1 KHz source material, or is it there with higher sample rates and DSD? With what filter(s), is it -80 dB with #1? Anything 'modulate' it?