Review and Measurements of Topping DX3Pro DAC and Headphone Amp

[Stein]

OK, I cooked it and cooked it good:

EDIT: this is after a hairdryer on hot setting raised the temps to see if anything fails:

View attachment 21140

As you see temps are now nearly 70 degrees C. The unit operated perfectly and continues to do so as I type this.

We really need some broken units to make progress here.

If you have a broken DX3 Pro and live in US, please contact me and I will purchase it from you.

I have a dead unit for you, but am not in the US

 

[Pavel]

Measurements with various power sources. ADC - EMU-0204.

Stock PSU:

Linear Power:

Meanwell MES30A-4P1J:

 

[finneybear]

I can not find. Can you provide a link to the product?

I bought one here. Several days are already passed, not shipped yet. Probably you should avoid this one

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Wiha-33436-T-Handle-Hex-2-0-X-200mm/252199223300

 

[finneybear]

Измерения с различными источниками питания. АЦП - ЭМУ-0204.

Сила запаса:


Линейная мощность:


Meanwell MES30A-4P1J:

What linear power supply do you use? The included SMPS looks slow and does not have enough output filtering.

 

[Pavel]

What linear power supply do you use?

Torroidal transformer 12V/1.5A+3300uF+LM317

 

[finneybear]

Torroidal transformer 12V/1.5A+3300uF+LM317

I plan to use LT1083 or triple LT3045

 

[y845133y]

[QUOTE =“amirm，post：145340，member：2”]好的，我把它煮熟並煮好了：

編輯：這是在熱設置吹風機後提高溫度，看看是否有任何失敗：

View attachment 21140

如你所見，溫度現在接近70攝氏度。裝置運行完美，並在我輸入時繼續這樣做。

我們真的需要一些破碎的單位來取得進展。

如果你有一個破損的DX3 Pro並住在美國，請聯繫我，我會從你這裡購買。[/引用]
謝謝Am

OK, I cooked it and cooked it good:

EDIT: this is after a hairdryer on hot setting raised the temps to see if anything fails:

View attachment 21140

As you see temps are now nearly 70 degrees C. The unit operated perfectly and continues to do so as I type this.

We really need some broken units to make progress here.

If you have a broken DX3 Pro and live in US, please contact me and I will purchase it from you.

Thank you for Amirm. I think the aluminum capacitor became the heatsink for headphone amp. It is not a good idea.

 

[Cidious]

What linear power supply do you use? The included SMPS looks slow and does not have enough output filtering.

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a1z09.2.0.0.67002e8dlkDxJw&id=520731611524&_u=22esj2rk8d3a

LM317 most likely. I opened it up but couldn't reach the reg. Haven't given it much interest. The shop is always solid on it's products and design. When I connected it the headphone amp got quite a big bump in lower frequencies compared to the original switching supply.
and it has 2 DC ports in the back so I keep both my units connected and can fast switch between them to do listening comparissons.

 

[Cidious]

Measurements with various power sources. ADC - EMU-0204.

Stock PSU:
View attachment 21205

Linear Power:
View attachment 21207

Meanwell MES30A-4P1J:
View attachment 21208

Those measurements tell another story than Amir's earlier measurements between switching brick and linear supply... It clearly does make a difference

 

[Veri]

Those measurements tell something opposite than what Amir measured before. It does make quite a difference between standard switching brick or linear!

-the inherent noise floor of the ADC used is different from amir's one which goes much lower, so you are stuck in part with this ADC's limits.
-0.0009% 0.0008% 0.0007% THD, if you think you can differentiate between those numbers in actual listening you are fooling yourself

It clearly does make a difference

For listening purposes it does not. The standard brick is fine, just like amir said....

 

[kagwind]

Measurements with various power sources. ADC - EMU-0204.

Stock PSU:
View attachment 21205

Linear Power:
View attachment 21207

Meanwell MES30A-4P1J:
View attachment 21208

Since I am completely new in audio science world (actually I am learning from amir's reviews), this may be a noob question.
Should I compare these figures with Amir's Line Out figure on page 1?
Since I only use Headphone Out, maybe I won't get an audible improvement if I use a Meanwell adapter? (Apparently this has been answered by Veri already, haha)

 

[Veri]

Since I am completely new in audio science world (actually I am learning from amir's reviews), this may be a noob question.
Should I compare these figures with Amir's Line Out figure on page 1?
Since I only use Headphone Out, maybe I won't get an audible improvement if I use a Meanwell adapter? (Apparently this has been answered by Veri already, haha)

The Meanwell is cheap enough to try, but I think the "definite improvement in the lower end" is total placebo.

The measured differences are -120/-130dBr, and 0.0001%THD down. It's ridiculous claiming to hear a definite improvement..

 

[noel_fs]

The Meanwell is cheap enough to try, but I think the "definite improvement in the lower end" is total placebo.

The measured differences are -120/-130dBr, and 0.0001%THD down. It's ridiculous claiming to hear a definite improvement..

It might not be placebo, its not the same the thd as music playing and with current spikes that bass makes.

 

[Veri]

It might not be placebo, its not the same the thd as music playing and with current spikes that bass makes.

@amirm should try the $20 meanwell and do a listening test lol

On the other hand he has more important things to do I'm sure...

 

[noel_fs]

@amirm should try the $20 meanwell and do a listening test lol

On the other hand he has more important things to do I'm sure...

I would guess he could be interesting on this since he uses it as daily

 

[Cidious]

I'm tired of people constantly waving off stuff and calling things placebo. I listened between my LPS and switch brick with my Mad Dogs and 600 ohm tesla driver headphones.. I can tell you there is a big improvement in lower end with LPS! My Mad Dogs are power hungry and the 600ohms too. Obviously that might limit the standard switching brick. I didn't hear the same improvement for the lower end when using DAC only. but for the headphone amp it surely did.

Just because I can't shuv some measurements in your face about it doesn't automatically mean it's not true.. this forum is corrupted by blind staring on measurements while it's just a fact that measurements don't tell the whole story and are often incomplete related to the full listening experience. On the other hand listening is subjective, I totally agree with that. But it's just sad to live within this small world of just measurements and refusing to look any further anymore.. small world!

 

[Veri]

I'm tired of people constantly waving off stuff and calling things placebo. I listened between my LPS and switch brick with my Mad Dogs and 600 ohm tesla driver headphones.. I can tell you there is a big improvement in lower end with LPS! My Mad Dogs are power hungry and the 600ohms too. Obviously that might limit the standard switching brick. I didn't hear the same improvement for the lower end when using DAC only. but for the headphone amp it surely did.

Just because I can't shuv some measurements in your face about it doesn't automatically mean it's not true.. this forum is corrupted by blind staring on measurements while it's just a fact that measurements don't tell the whole story and are often incomplete related to the full listening experience. On the other hand listening is subjective, I totally agree with that. But it's just sad to live within this small world of just measurements and refusing to look any further anymore.. small world!

This sounds quite simply like your third party supply allows for a steadier/beefier amperage to the headphone amp. You are driving a notoriously bad load of a headphone after all !

 

[Cidious]

This sounds quite simply like your third party supply allows for a steadier/beefier amperage to the headphone amp. You are driving a notoriously bad load of a headphone after all !

Yes it does. So an improvement definitely there.

 

[Stonetown]

I'm tired of people constantly waving off stuff and calling things placebo. I listened between my LPS and switch brick with my Mad Dogs and 600 ohm tesla driver headphones.. I can tell you there is a big improvement in lower end with LPS! My Mad Dogs are power hungry and the 600ohms too. Obviously that might limit the standard switching brick. I didn't hear the same improvement for the lower end when using DAC only. but for the headphone amp it surely did.

Just because I can't shuv some measurements in your face about it doesn't automatically mean it's not true.. this forum is corrupted by blind staring on measurements while it's just a fact that measurements don't tell the whole story and are often incomplete related to the full listening experience. On the other hand listening is subjective, I totally agree with that. But it's just sad to live within this small world of just measurements and refusing to look any further anymore.. small world!

NO! You and others are filling this forum with believes (bullshit) from the subjective fooling of yourself. The biggest problem is that you mix lies with truths so for a non-expert it is impossible to know. Come back when you have done a true A/B blindtest. I never ever believe anyone who has not doing blind-tests and no-one never ever should believe them.

We who have participated in blind testing of different audio stuff have learned to know ourselves, by first thinking that we could hear differents but suddenly when doing the A/B blind tests, we realized how our brains fooled ourselves. So please beware us of spreading your own fooling hear in this forum.

I know you are honestly thinking that you can hear, but please learn to know yourselves better, and this is done by true blind testing and with repeated tests so you can see statistical proof of what you really hear.

My tip is, that you for example with the 2 units you are comparing, in an A/B-test, connect exactly same looking output cables so you cannot se any differences between them. Twist them, so you cannot se which is connected to what unit, and connect to the two inputs of your A/B switching device or pre amplifier. The devices under test shall be feed with the same source and so you get exact the same volume levels in your ears. Then start switching between them and try to hear which is better or different. Then check what unit you selected "as better" and note it. Then disconnect and mix cables again and connect and repeat this at least 5 times to know that you got a statistical reliable result and didn't judge right by chance.

Yes I know that people with no self criticism will not accept this, because they think they have gold ears, and have put themselves on a high pedestal.
Thank you,
Cheers /Per

 

[Stonetown]

But with this said I mean not that we don't want good stuff with parameters well beyond of what our ears can hear. Of course it feels good to know we have big margins, and hopefully no influence of the audio transport in the chain all the way from the artist to our ears.
So keep up measuring!
Cheers /Per