Review and Measurements of New Topping D50s DAC

[cochlea]

I currently have a Blusound Node2i and I really like it’s streaming capabilities and ease of use. However, I’m not sure that I’m getting the best sound quality when using it to play my collection of Flac files on my NAS. If I were to add the D50s between the Node2i and my integrated amp, should I expect to hear a difference in sound quality? Thanks.

 

[Kit Carson]

Hi,
is there any chance that an MQA version of the D50s will be released?

 

[Cidious]

Hi,
is there any chance that an MQA version of the D50s will be released?

Ask Topping.

 

[Senegalas]

Anyone tried burson V5I on this? I heard it does make things better

 

[Killingbeans]

I heard it does make things better

I'm afraid to ask, but... better in what way?

 

[Senegalas]

I am tbh torn between D50S and Schiit modius

 

[Senegalas]

I'm afraid to ask, but... better in what way?

Someone mentioned better soundstage presentation and details and warmer.

 

[Killingbeans]

I am tbh torn between D50S and Schiit modius

If you ask me, just grab the one that has the in/outputs you need and the features you desire.

Someone mentioned better soundstage presentation and details and warmer.

So, nothing showing changes in distortion, noise floor or frequency response? It's been said a million times, but I'll say it again; Expectation bias is a powerful thing.

I would take something that someone mentions with that kind of wording with a huge grain of salt

 

[Senegalas]

If you ask me, just grab the one that has the in/outputs you need and the features you desire.



So, nothing showing changes in distortion, noise floor or frequency response? It's been said a million times, but I'll say it again; Expectation bias is a powerful thing.

I would take something that someone mentions with that kind of wording with a huge grain of salt

Probably as I already saw some posts saying that they can't tell difference.
And regarding modius, someone has both and he says that modius has better soundstage and is smoother. "After listening the D50s and The Modius they are very close neither is bad at all but I prefer the Modius over the D50s. I felt that there was more airiness and width to the Modius compared to the D50s. Depth was about the same but I felt I was in a bigger room with the Modius and could separate the individual sounds a little better. The D50s brought a bit more harshness to the GL2000 which is another reason I liked the Modius for the GL2000. The good for the D50s was that it did give me slightly more detail in songs. But yeah I wouldn't spend the extra cash for the D50s over the Modius imho it's not worth the $50 more."

 

[BDWoody]

someone has both and he says

I'll bet someone didn't use any listening controls. In other words, I'd bet a lot of money that 'someone' couldn't pick them apart of he couldn't peek and they were equally loud.

That's the thing... Those descriptions, absent listening controls, aren't worth much.

 

[Senegalas]

"The D50s had a hard digital sound, for lack of better description, that I found harsh. The Modius has a very open, big soundstage with great separation between the instruments. It's purely subjective and I'm sure that there are people who love the D50s. I was impressed with the build quality of the Topping"
That's from another person

 

[BDWoody]

"The D50s had a hard digital sound, for lack of better description, that I found harsh. The Modius has a very open, big soundstage with great separation between the instruments. It's purely subjective and I'm sure that there are people who love the D50s. I was impressed with the build quality of the Topping"
That's from another person

We could do this all day.

We don't need any more quotes from random reviews that have no controls.

They are worthless.

 

[Killingbeans]

That's from another person

Preconceived notions or even just impressions from the design language of the DAC's enclosure can make people hear all kinds of things.

Another important thing is volume. If one of the DACs outputs just slightly more voltage than the other, it can give the illusion of more goodness all around. A/B tests without controls doesn't give much more useful information than a coin toss

 

[Senegalas]

Yeah

 

[LJN]

Q: Do Topping D50s support both bitstream and LPCM input via Coax/Opto? My unit only works with LPCM and I wonder if that is right?

 

[kkeretic]

Q: Do Topping D50s support both bitstream and LPCM input via Coax/Opto? My unit only works with LPCM and I wonder if that is right?

Only DoP DSD64 on coax/optical.

 

[LJN]

Only DoP DSD64 on coax/optical.

Sorry, I dont now what DoP are exactly but I find on the webb: "DoP is a method for transporting DSD audio over USB ports that do not have a DSD driver"
Are DOP same as LPCM?

 

[kkeretic]

Sorry, I dont now what DoP are exactly but I find on the webb: "DoP is a method for transporting DSD audio over USB ports that do not have a DSD driver"
Are DOP same as LPCM?

DoP is actually DSD stream with PCM header. Some (older) dacs do not understand native DSD but understand DSD streams wrapped in PCM headers.

 

[skyfly]

Is D50s discontinued?

 

[kkeretic]

Is D50s discontinued?

I doubt.