Topping D50 III Balanced DAC with EQ Review

[ziggurcat]

I don't have the DAC yet, so can't test it myself, but I have been able to run Topping Tune via the Whisky app which is a free implementation of Codeweavers version of Wine, all of these tools allow you to run Windows programs on Mac.
The UI of Topping Tune appears, but it is highly likely that it may not detect the USB device as it is not a native app and is running via Wine.
If you have the device you can give it a try though, I think Codeweavers has a free trial too.

I contacted Topping, and this was the response:

"Dear Sir/Madam

Thank you for contacting TOPPING support. We are happy to assist.
We are currently developing a Mac version of PEQ. Since the development process is quite challenging, it may take some time. We have registered your email, and once the Mac version is completed, we will notify you as soon as possible. ^.^


Best Regards,

service
[email protected]"

I think it's pretty obviously a canned response (probably AI-generated), but it gives some hope at least that Mac users can finally use the PEQ functionality without resorting to virtual machines/virtual PC apps.

 

[dtd]

@dtd I use the D50III/A50III stack and had the DT 1990 Pro until recently and was using EQ on the DAC. Topping Tune is a but clunky but it all works fine, however given that I mainly use the DAC with my PC I did later find that I preferred APO / Peace, because I could configure it to suit the various devices, such as headsets / conference devices for calls etc. It would be great is the D50III did EQ for other inputs but unfortunately it's only for USB, so the EQ feature on the D50III has become somewhat redundant. To use EQ when listening without my PC (or independently of the PC), I picked up a WiiM mini and connected to the DAC over optical and it ticks all the boxes.

So I would summarise by saying that the D50III is a great DAC and worth every penny I paid for it but I wouldn't buy it just for EQ and I doubt you'll hear any audible improvement over your DX3. If your primary or only use is PC/Mac, then I would focus on figuring out what's wrong with your software setup - do a reinstall / reconfigure etc.

Thanks for the insights, it is not necessarily that there is anything wrong in my software setup/config, as it mostly works, and eqMac has ben set up to for example disable EQ on bluetooth devices automatically etc. But I just prefer to keep my mac/pc with as little software as possible, as more software is more prone to bugs, no matter how good the software is And a DAC with built in EQ would mean I could get rid of both APO on Windows and eqMac on osx.

 

[zachary80]

Just so everyone knows, this USB isolator and the Topping HS02 work great with the D50 III.
Both provide enough current for the device.
And both improve SINAD by 3 dB (122 dB without vs 125 dB with).

I was using my D50 original with power from an Apple usb power plug and it seemed to work well.

Should one of these work like the one you have by Topping? I assume there aren't too many comparable chips around and it is about implementation/branding. I'm seeing many variations using an Adum 3166 or 4166 which appear to both be USB2 high speed; not sure what is in the HS02.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807783442083.html

http://aliexpress.us/item/3256808037594640.html

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806739754500.html

The cheaper Adum 3160 appears to only be 12mbps.

 

[johny_2000]

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807783442083.html http://aliexpress.us/item/3256808037594640.html

These two should be fine.

 

[honn]

Can the EQ function of this DAC replace something like REW? And would there be differences in their EQ performance?

 

[staticV3]

Can the EQ function of this DAC replace something like REW? And would there be differences in their EQ performance?

REW cannot perform EQ by itself.
It can only measure systems and calculate EQ parameters.

To perform EQ, an external solution is required like Equalizer APO, miniDSP, ADI-2, or this D50III.

Therefore, the D50III cannot replace REW and cannot be compared to REW as they serve different purposes.

 

[honn]

REW cannot perform EQ by itself.
It can only measure systems and calculate EQ parameters.

To perform EQ, an external solution is required like Equalizer APO, miniDSP, ADI-2, or this D50III.

Therefore, the D50III cannot replace REW and cannot be compared to REW as they serve different purposes.

Understood! Then, will there be any difference in EQ performance between Equalizer APO, miniDSP and the D50III then? I will be taking in-room measurements with the UMIK-1 microphone.

 

[TurtlePaul]

Understood! Then, will there be any difference in EQ performance between Equalizer APO, miniDSP and the D50III then? I will be taking in-room measurements with the UMIK-1 microphone.

Equalizer APO is more powerful because your PC is more powerful.

The advantage of the EQ on the D50 III is that it will work on any USB device: PCs which grant exclusive mode to software or disable audio enhancements which I believe bypasses EQ APO, Mac computers which don’t support EQ APO, videogame consoles which support USB DACs. The EQ will work in all these USB sources.

I was an EQ APO user. It was great on my PC. Now I have a MiniDSP in my living room and a D50 III in my study. With this setup my PC has EQ, the cable box has EQ, the Nintendo Switch has EQ, the Macbook has EQ, etc. With EQ APO only the PC benefitted. MiniDSP is more powerful DSP because it EQs analog, optical and USB inputs, but the D50 III is a better balanced DAC for less than the price of the unbalanced MiniDSP.

 

[honn]

Equalizer APO is more powerful because your PC is more powerful. The advantage of the EQ on the D50 III is that it will work on any USB device: PCs which grant exclusive mode to software or disable audio enhancements which I believe bypasses EQ APO, Mac computers which don’t support EQ APO, videogame consoles which support USB DACs. The EQ will work in all these USB sources.

Ah yes, I am using Macbook Air M2, so EQ APO is out of the question then.

 

[johny_2000]

I will be taking in-room measurements with the UMIK-1 microphone.

After processing the EQs in REW, limit the number of bands to 10.
Save the text result and enter it into TOPPING TUNE. Save it there.
Repeat the measurements in REW with the new EQ to confirm the results, adjust slightly if necessary.

 

[johny_2000]

I recently encountered a weird glitch with the D50 III. I haven't used it for a while, but it was connected in the off state (little dot in the corner) to the PC via a USB isolator. We had a few power outage days this winter, during which it was connected to a sleeping PC. Now, when I wanted to check something on the D50 III, I noticed that the device was not listed as an audio playback device in Windows 10. It kept showing "UNLOCK" after powering on. I did a few power cycles, made sure the USB was connected. Nope, it wasn't there in the device manager. The Topping driver control panel showed the device not connected.

I ended up doing a factory reset on the D50 III, and it showed up in the device list on the PC again. The display changed to "44.1 kHz" and the Topping driver control panel also recognized the device. I then played some music through the D50 III, and had no further issues.

 

[Rednaxela]

Then, will there be any difference in EQ performance between Equalizer APO, miniDSP and the D50III then?

Some EQ performance tests can be found here.

 

[somebodyelse]

Ah yes, I am using Macbook Air M2, so EQ APO is out of the question then.

There's a thread full of software EQ options for different platforms, including several for MacOS.

 

[ziggurcat]

I got my D50 III today, and set it up. So far, so good, but I do have a bit of a technical question:

When I was using the E50 DAC, and connected to my Mac Mini M1 (2020) via USB (as per usual), pressing the volume buttons on my keyboard displayed the volume pop up window with a circle and line through it, which is what I want. With the D50 III, the volume is adjustable when pressing the volume buttons on my keyboard, which is what I don't want.

Is there something I can do to disable the volume control so that when it's pressed on my keyboard, the same pop-up with the circle/line through appears (outside of going into the keyboard settings, and changing it so that the Function keys are only Function keys)? What would cause this difference in functionality?

 

[staticV3]

What would cause this difference in functionality?

One supports UAC2 Hardware volume commands, while the other does not.

Without UAC2 support, macOS will disable the volume control.

Is there something I can do to disable the volume control

Some DACs support switching between UAC1 and UAC2 mode for increased compatibility.

Setting the DAC to UAC1 would disable the macOS volume control.

However, I don't think the D50III has that feature.

 

[JOCoin]

One supports UAC2 Hardware volume commands, while the other does not.

Without UAC2 support, macOS will disable the volume control.


Some DACs support switching between UAC1 and UAC2 mode for increased compatibility.

Setting the DAC to UAC1 would disable the macOS volume control.

However, I don't think the D50III has that feature.

This feature was added via firmware update a while ago.

 

[johny_2000]

Setting the DAC to UAC1 would disable the macOS volume control.

However, I don't think the D50III has that feature.

Yes it does.
Default setting (UAC 2.0):

Manual setting (UAC 1.0):

 

[ziggurcat]

One supports UAC2 Hardware volume commands, while the other does not.

Without UAC2 support, macOS will disable the volume control.


Some DACs support switching between UAC1 and UAC2 mode for increased compatibility.

Setting the DAC to UAC1 would disable the macOS volume control.

However, I don't think the D50III has that feature.

Thanks!

There is, in fact, a thing in the settings menu to switch from UAC2.0 to UAC1.0. I will try that when I get home from work, and let you know if that did the trick.

 

[ziggurcat]

One supports UAC2 Hardware volume commands, while the other does not.

Without UAC2 support, macOS will disable the volume control.


Some DACs support switching between UAC1 and UAC2 mode for increased compatibility.

Setting the DAC to UAC1 would disable the macOS volume control.

However, I don't think the D50III has that feature.

So, I tried changing the mode from UAC2.0 to 1.0 and it did not disable the macOS volume control. It did, though, limit the sample rate down to 96kHz, so back it went to UAC2.0

 

[filipemendes]

Topping EX5 vs D50 III: Is it worth the upgrade?

I'm considering upgrading from a Topping EX5 to the D50 III and wondering if I'll notice any significant difference in sound quality. I've also come across the SMSL DO-400, which seems like an excellent option, though it's much pricier. Would it be a real upgrade compared to the EX5?

Currently, I use the EX5 as a preamp for my Edifier S2000MKIII speakers and my SMSL SP200 amp.

Power isn't my primary concern since my headphones with the highest power demand are the Hifiman Sundara, which I rarely use nowadays. Most of my other headphones, like the Fiio FH9, Fiio FT1, and ATH-M50x, are relatively easy to drive.

Any insights or advice would be greatly appreciated!