Topping A30Pro Review (Balanced Headphone Amp)

[abhishek]

@epidimik
My arya V2 requires high gain above 12 o'clock for new recording, for older recordings above 1 o'clock gives punchy experience,

 

[phoenixsong]

Ultra new into the HIFI game, don't eat me alive lol.

HIFIMAN Arya Stealth
Topping D30 Pro
Topping A30 Pro
-Balanced XLR between the two, 6.35mm out.

What gain setting / volume position does this become dangerous to the ear?

The sound at high gain / volume at 10/11oclock on the Arya's is breathtaking and nothing like I've ever experienced before, but I also don't wanna go deaf in a week lol. Is there any recommendations not to exceed a certain gain/volume level besides "when it hurts"? Sorry for basic af question, been lurking here for awhile now, any guidance would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Taking frequent breaks for your ears helps a lot as well

 

[Disconnect]

My D30 Pro - A30 Pro setup under my work table. With a lot of airflow to keep it fresh. Joining forces to feed my beloved Hifiman Sundara. I decided to put the fan in intake mode (pushing air towards the A30 Pro).

 

[abhishek]

@Disconnect
I'm using my DIYed amd stock cpu fan converted to usb A 5v adapter powered spinning below 1000rpm to suck the hot air from the holes and it cooled amp chassis instantly,
Blowing air into to the holes results in dust accumulation. So i preferred suction method.

 

[Lupin]

My D30 Pro - A30 Pro setup under my work table. With a lot of airflow to keep it fresh. Joining forces to feed my beloved Hifiman Sundara. I decided to put the fan in intake mode (pushing air towards the A30 Pro).

View attachment 211831View attachment 211832View attachment 211833

Nice setup
It will accumulate dust in the A30Pro ofc but who cares, it runs cool.

I see you also have an Audio-GD NFB with fan mounted on it(?). Did you mod/cut the top plate? At least my Audio-GD unit doesn't have any ventilation holes in the chassis so putting a fan on it won't do much.

 

[Disconnect]

Nice setup
It will accumulate dust in the A30Pro ofc but who cares, it runs cool.

Yes, dust can be accumulated, although the fan (Artic F9 Silent) is separated 1cm from the top of the box, so it doesn't inject air directly into the holes but distributes it all over the box surface. I tried the fan both in exhaust and intake modes and intake mode was better in lowering temperatures. But, yes, dust can be an issue. I will see it in a few weeks.

I see you also have an Audio-GD NFB with fan mounted on it(?). Did you mod/cut the top plate? At least my Audio-GD unit doesn't have any ventilation holes in the chassis so putting a fan on it won't do much.

My NFB-11 is from 2014. I bought directly to Audio-GD China. It has some vents on the top of the box. No mods or cuts were needed:

So I just attached an Artic F8 Silent fan on top of the vents (in exhaust mode, taking air out of the box). This lowered the temperature of the box dramatically.

The fan is attached with electrical tape, so it's not beautiful, but being behind my table, I don't see it much.

 

[raif71]

Yes, dust can be accumulated, although the fan (Artic F9 Silent) is separated 1cm from the top of the box, so it doesn't inject air directly into the holes but distributes it all over the box surface. I tried the fan both in exhaust and intake modes and intake mode was better in lowering temperatures. But, yes, dust can be an issue. I will see it in a few weeks.

View attachment 211956



My NFB-11 is from 2014. I bought directly to Audio-GD China. It has some vents on the top of the box. No mods or cuts were needed:

View attachment 211948

So I just attached an Artic F8 Silent fan on top of the vents (in exhaust mode, taking air out of the box). This lowered the temperature of the box dramatically.

View attachment 211957

View attachment 211955

The fan is attached with electrical tape, so it's not beautiful, but being behind my table, I don't see it much.

I have the audio-gd r2r-11. Looks kinda the same front panel to me

 

[Lupin]

Yes, dust can be accumulated, although the fan (Artic F9 Silent) is separated 1cm from the top of the box, so it doesn't inject air directly into the holes but distributes it all over the box surface. I tried the fan both in exhaust and intake modes and intake mode was better in lowering temperatures. But, yes, dust can be an issue. I will see it in a few weeks.

View attachment 211956



My NFB-11 is from 2014. I bought directly to Audio-GD China. It has some vents on the top of the box. No mods or cuts were needed:

View attachment 211948

So I just attached an Artic F8 Silent fan on top of the vents (in exhaust mode, taking air out of the box). This lowered the temperature of the box dramatically.

View attachment 211957

View attachment 211955

The fan is attached with electrical tape, so it's not beautiful, but being behind my table, I don't see it much.

Aaah, I have the newer NFB-11.38 that doesn't have any holes in the top plate.
But now it makes sense with the added pictures.

 

[Waterunderthebridge]

Im torn between the a30pro / d30pro vs the l50 / e50 stack. Will it make any difference used with hifiman arya? As far as I'm aware, even a dx3 pro+ will be able to drive them power wise, right?

Thing is I'd also love to be able to use my IEM's (shure se846), but the L50 lacks a 3.5mm headphone out, so basically it comes down to whether it's worth to pay 200€ for a minijack

Any suggestions?

 

[abhishek]

Im torn between the a30pro / d30pro vs the l50 / e50 stack. Will it make any difference used with hifiman arya? As far as I'm aware, even a dx3 pro+ will be able to drive them power wise, right?

Thing is I'd also love to be able to use my IEM's (shure se846), but the L50 lacks a 3.5mm headphone out, so basically it comes down to whether it's worth to pay 200€ for a minijack

Any suggestions?

For arya v2 A30 pro provides more headroom if you are into EQ(bass), l50 is enough if u are not into EQ.
For stealth arya go for l50

 

[Waterunderthebridge]

For arya v2 A30 pro provides more headroom if you are into EQ(bass), l50 is enough if u are not into EQ.
For stealth arya go for l50

Yeah stealth arya.

Seriously you think the V2 won't be enough on L50? Wow. They must be freaking hard to drive.

I prefer the a30 pro to be fair, but then i'll end up paying 370€ for the d30 dac, which I consider a little bit overboard

 

[Veri]

I prefer the a30 pro to be fair, but then i'll end up paying 370€ for the d30 dac, which I consider a little bit overboard

How about A30 Pro + cheaper DAC? For example the new SMSL D-6, has TRS outputs so you can use a simple TRS cable to connect both.

 

[Waterunderthebridge]

How about A30 Pro + cheaper DAC? For example the new SMSL D-6, has TRS outputs so you can use a simple TRS cable to connect both.

The smsl d6 looks amazing. Ill check the dimensions, if it kinda fits with the a30 pro size wise as a stack, im getting it. Thanks

 

[abhishek]

@Waterunderthebridge

For A30 pro, d10b DAC 5V usb c powered is headache less set-up compared to external ac powered D30 pro DAC, it consumes only 5 v 0.25A current from my samsung m30s 6000mAh.

 

[wacomme]

I'm loving my L50 + SMSL DO100 combo. However, the max I'm driving right now are Sundara headphones. My averaging listening level is around 15-20 (out of 100). This is with EQ. I was thinking I'd need the A30 Pro, but the L50 is working for me just fine. Thus, I don't have any worries about heat from the amp - and the L50 stats are stellar.

 

[Phoney]

Im torn between the a30pro / d30pro vs the l50 / e50 stack. Will it make any difference used with hifiman arya? As far as I'm aware, even a dx3 pro+ will be able to drive them power wise, right?

Thing is I'd also love to be able to use my IEM's (shure se846), but the L50 lacks a 3.5mm headphone out, so basically it comes down to whether it's worth to pay 200€ for a minijack

Any suggestions?

I drive Arya v2 with -3,3db gain at low gain using 50-60% on the volume knob. You don't really need this much power

 

[Waterunderthebridge]

Thank you all for the replies, one last question - and im sorry - it might sound stupid, im competely noob. If I connect the dac with the amp with a balanced cable (so XLR in the case of the a30 / d30 combo), do the headphones also need to be connected with balanced? Basically what I'm asking is, if the input on the amplifier is balanced, does the output (headphone out) need to be connected with balance, or will it work with SE as well?

 

[usern]

Thank you all for the replies, one last question - and im sorry - it might sound stupid, im competely noob. If I connect the dac with the amp with a balanced cable (so XLR in the case of the a30 / d30 combo), do the headphones also need to be connected with balanced? Basically what I'm asking is, if the input on the amplifier is balanced, does the output (headphone out) need to be connected with balance, or will it work with SE as well?

No matter what input you select on A30pro, all headphone outputs work.

Difference between XLR in and RCA in is that with RCA you cannot go as loud as XLR on headphone outputs.

 

[Waterunderthebridge]

No matter what input you select on A30pro, all headphone outputs work.

Difference between XLR in and RCA in is that with RCA you cannot go as loud as XLR on headphone outputs.

Great, thank you, so if I keep my stock headphone cable (which is 6.3mm), there won't be any difference.

 

[Waterunderthebridge]

I went for a30pro / d30 pro after all. Really wanted the l50/e50, it seems to have way better value, but id always feel like im leaving something on the table (even though that most likely is not the case).