Topping DX5 Review (DAC & HP Amp)

[RandomEar]

You guys sure that's a OLED? Really doesn't look like one to me from the pictures.

Ist says so in the specs on the ShenzenAudio website.

 

[RandomEar]

Crazy responses. People were begging for oled displays on other devices that did not have it. Topping listened and now they are getting bashed for it. ASR at its finest.
Cant please all the people all the time.
Nice review (Amir) and release (Topping)

I don't think anybody is getting bashed here. OLEDs have advantages like great contrast and they have disadvantages like the tendency to develop burn-in. That tendency is greatly amplified when implemented incorrectly.

If people really were asking for OLED, my guess would be that they were after the advantages of the technology. Heck, my phone has an OLED screen - and it's awesome. But phone and TV manufactureres have about a decade of experience with OLED now and know how to handle the tech. They implement automatic refresh cycles, local dimming, pixel shifting and similar methods to age the pixels uniformly and prevent burn-in. They most likely also use superior panels which are less prone to develop that defect.

Other companies don't have that much experience and don't handle OLED panels that well, yet. And if that is the case with Topping and they could improve this aspect of their products, I think it's 100% fair to point that out.

 

[RHO]

Great performance from this new product. Nothing to complain about in that regard. I even like the aesthetics.
But it's completely uninteresting. We already have plenty very well performing devices from Topping like this. Why do one again whitout anything inovative?
- Where's the PEQ/DSP?
- Or the subwoofer output with adjustable x-over?
- Or the HDMI input with analog audio output and HDMI video pass-through?
- Or ... any new feature we haven't already seen on such device.

 

[ExUnoPlura]

Great performance from this new product. Nothing to complain about in that regard. I even like the aesthetics.
But it's completely uninteresting. We already have plenty very well performing devices from Topping like this. Why do one again whitout anything inovative?
- Where's the PEQ/DSP?
- Or the subwoofer output with adjustable x-over?
- Or the HDMI input with analog audio output and HDMI video pass-through?
- Or ... any new feature we haven't already seen on such device.

I agree: not sure what the market driver is for so many SOTA DAC/HP amps that all seem mostly interchangeable from SMSL, Topping, Loxjie, etc. Perhaps just racing each other to keep up?

 

[MCH]

Great performance from this new product. Nothing to complain about in that regard. I even like the aesthetics.
But it's completely uninteresting. We already have plenty very well performing devices from Topping like this. Why do one again whitout anything inovative?
- Where's the PEQ/DSP?
- Or the subwoofer output with adjustable x-over?
- Or the HDMI input with analog audio output and HDMI video pass-through?
- Or ... any new feature we haven't already seen on such device.

You read my mind. I am even surprised that after 63 messages nobody has yet mentined the F**x word. Topping wake up!!

 

[gerG]

Ah, but it doesn't have an MQA logo in sight. That is an improvement.
I do agree, though. If it had DSP and DEQ I would have one on order already.
I do like the aesthetics. They even rounded the ends of the display to match the housing.
Has anyone found the dimensions? It looks tiny.

 

[Fleuch]

Just wish Topping had used the same XLR connectors for products such as the PA5 amplifier and D10 balanced DAC, rather than the TRS jacks.

Another thought, why include XLR to TRS adapters in the D10 package but not in all?

 

[mightycicadalord]

Is the ESS hump something that ever turned out to be much of a concern? From what I gather it's a small increase in distortion at a certain output level? I know my motu has the hump but I don't know if it's ever been an audible issue.

 

[192kbps]

啊，但它没有看到 MQA 标志。那是一种改进。
不过，我确实同意。如果它有 DSP 和 DEQ，我早就订购了。
我很喜欢美学。他们甚至将显示器的末端弄圆以匹配外壳。
有没有人找到尺寸？它看起来很小。

 

[DonR]

If you leave the display brightness in Auto mode it will turn the display off after 30 seconds of inactivity... according to the user manual.

 

[DrZingo]

Ah, but it doesn't have an MQA logo in sight. That is an improvement.

Regrettably, it does support MQA.

 

[gerG]

Well dang. At least it looks to be a sticker that can be (re)moved.

On the plus side, apparently I can type in Chinese now. Cool! Probably from all of that Tieguanyin that I drink.

 

[gerG]

Has there been a thread to try to get to a consensus of "what we want"? Maybe we could have some input on features. Not sure if it is really feasible, but it might be worth a try. At least the discussion would be illuminating.

 

[Robbo99999]

Another great product from Topping! I do want to play Devil's Advocate on one point though, and that is the ESS Hump. Now a lot of music at certain frequencies is in reality gonna be represented in that -15 to -30 dBFS area (ESS Hump area), even in music that is recorded quite loud and has peaks close to 0dBFS. This is especially true if also using EQ along with the necessary negative preamp. Sure your peaks might be in the bass in most music and might sit above that -15dBFS, but the rest of your music spectrum where you are more sensitive to detecting distortion would be sitting in that -15 to -30 dBFS area......I've just come to this conclusion by sometimes watching the dancing of a Spectrum Analyser (showing dBFS vs frequency) as I listen to music and that -15 to -30 dBFS area is a commonly seen level across the spectrum. So in reality, wouldn't this DAC be behaving on the level of a DX3 Pro most of the time, as you can see the ESS Hump is on the same level as the blue DX3 dotted line:

Am I right, or part way right in my assertions here, or have I missed out some key points or logical steps?



EDIT: on topic of aesthetic (I've just started reading the comments) - I like the look of this product, it looks solid & functional whilst still being kinda sleek.

 

[kencreten]

I read Amir's review and measurements of this Topping device and I talk to myself as I go through, "perfect; basically perfect; basically perfect; way more perfect than human ears are going to tell; excellent."

Then in another review, Amir is calling out a BS $7000 power supply ... a power supply - where the CEO is ... I'll call it, lying about it, and accusing Amir of "not joining the community," resorting to an attack because his product is not what it is claimed to be - period. It boggles the mind.

 

[Saponetto]

Oh... my wallet just started to shake furiously.
I think I'm falling in love with this new look and feel from Topping.

 

[amirm]

Video review added to first post:

 

[dsnyder0cnn]

another DAC tailored for SINAD performance with mediocre china sound.

You're not from around here, are you?

 

[Doodski]

Oh... my wallet just started to shake furiously.
I think I'm falling in love with this new look and feel from Topping.

I like it too... no need for balanced input because it's a AIO DAC AMP and it is generally nice. I fear that OLED display though. Don't want to spend CDN $589.00 and have a dud in 2 years.

 

[Billy Budapest]

Great, another DAC tailored for SINAD performance with mediocre china sound. I bet for less money you can probably get a similar china DAC/amp nowadays. Or even a Shiit.

Mediocre “China” sound? Unless it is doing something really wrong, no modern DAC is going to sound any different than another DAC—no matter what country it is produced in. And if being “tailored for SINAD performance” means being designed for low noise and low distortion, then that’s the goal of high fidelity to the source material.