as a reference for everyone here, i bought the topping L30 (2012### series) believing it will power my hifiman he400i 2020 based on its measured performance. in my experience while it was able to do so in high gain, i am running it at almost full bore with no more headroom left which personally is not my preferred ideal. even worse my L30 began to show signs of clipping at high volume settings which never happens with my easier to drive dynamic driver headphone.
i got an SH9 which is more than adequate for the job running at around 50-60% on high gain. it has an immaculate volume control which more than makes up for its lesser ouput than the topping A30pro counterpart. it is also cheaper by a huge margin on my side of the pond.
lessons learned here:
1. while modern chi-fi gear offers stellar measured performance, as
@amirm always state in his reviews, there will be unique instances when production units may vary or outright perform dismally depending on how lucky you are with the draw!
2. buy more amplifier power than you will ever need and buy it only once so you save more on the get go. while i got the L30 for its low price point, it fell short of my expectations which ultimately pushed me to buy the SH9.
3. while planar magnetics sound amazing, they are innately difficult to drive in my opinion! while the reviews of HE400i state otherwise, i say YMMV...
as a side note, the new topping A30pro unlike other SS HP amps comes with a top plate peppered with vent holes and for good reason i must say! my L30 warms up quite a bit in ambient tropical weather conditions hovering at 30-34degC. while it is warm to the touch, it is getting “too warm” in my opinion. it is also at this state when i experience the clipping episodes. i have always believed that heat in any form is always an enemy of electronics. more so amplifiers since they will generate heat that needs effective dissipation! kudos to topping for doing its job to accomplish this! the SH9 being more powerful than the L30 also generates a decent amount of heat after a few hours run time. sadly SMSL did not provide any venting whether it may be deemed necessary or not. fortunately, it is easy to tear down the SH9. ergo i am running it in “topless“ mode during listening sessions! i unscrewed the top plate and just take it off everytime i use the amp then put it on again like a lid to protect from dust after use. while there may be a method to this madness, i just keep in mind to avoid the potentially hazardous open innards during operation! in this “topless” state you begin appreciate the arrangement of relays and their respective flashing LEDs with every volume change. eye candy so to speak like christmas lights when you ride the remote volume control!
