Topping DX5II Balanced DAC and Headphone Amp Review

[Timbo2]

I'm a bit a fringe use case, but I use my DX5II on an Nvidia Shield TV. I upgraded to Firmware 2.39. I now have problems with data dropouts on USB while using an Nvidia Shield TV as the source.

You can tell the device is dropping and reconnecting because you will get a mouse pointer cursor that pops up when the device reconnects. On the prior firmware you only saw this cursor once when you first turned the DX5 II on.

I reverted the firmware to 2.31 and the problem has gone away.

(I also had the problem another poster here had where the unzipped version of the 2.31 didn't want to update the DX5II. Which is odd because I had no troubles the when I updated the first time with this version. I wound up using the built in unzipper in Win 7 and that worked.)

I've reached out to Topping, but since this is fringe use I'm not expecting a quick resolution.

 

[ziggurcat]

(I also had the problem another poster here had where the unzipped version of the 2.31 didn't want to update the DX5II ... )

I'm fairly certain that was narrowed down to the software that was being used to unzip the file.

I would double check a different USB cable even though the one you've been using has been fine up until now. Earlier on, my DX5 II kept disconnecting from my Mac, and replacing the cable solved that.

They're also generally good with resolving things regardless of the use case. A lot of the issues I have reported to them only happened under the very specific use conditions I had at the time (Mac connected to a DDC via USB then out from that to the DX5 II via toslink -- this was to negate the data streaming pop issue).

 

[Timbo2]

I'm fairly certain that was narrowed down to the software that was being used to unzip the file.

I would double check a different USB cable even though the one you've been using has been fine up until now. Earlier on, my DX5 II kept disconnecting from my Mac, and replacing the cable solved that.

They're also generally good with resolving things regardless of the use case. A lot of the issues I have reported to them only happened under the very specific use conditions I had at the time (Mac connected to a DDC via USB then out from that to the DX5 II via toslink -- this was to negate the data streaming pop issue).

It’s an active cable and I don’t have a replacement. It worked before the update and works fine again after revering back.

But if Topping comes back to me I’ll mention that as well. I’d forgotten that when I wrote them.

 

[mishachakir]

Wow, this is so much better than Topping.Tune...

View attachment 549682

View attachment 549683

...and I just power cycled my DX5 II and all my PEQ settings are still there! This has never worked with Topping.Tune, i've always suspected that Topping.Tune was misreporting the local PEQ forcing me to redeploy all of them anytime I wanted to tweak something or even just launch Topping.Tune.

On my computer, the sound—and even the level of detail—differs significantly between the web app and listening via the Toppingtyne device. The web app sounds much better, although changing the pEQ settings causes my device to reboot...

 

[Berwhale]

On my computer, the sound—and even the level of detail—differs significantly between the web app and listening via the Toppingtyne device. The web app sounds much better, although changing the pEQ settings causes my device to reboot...

The PEQ settings I have applied for my iLoud MTMs and Sennheiser HD 660 S are exactly the same for both Topping.Tune and Topping.Home. There is no audible difference and I would not expect there to be (so it's absolutely possible that my expectation bias is fooling me into not hearing a difference )

If applying PEQ configuration in either Home or Tune is causing the DX5 II to reboot, then something is very wrong.

 

[Mario1969]

After updating to 2.39, Topping Tune doesn't work properly, it doesn't save the settings, it deletes the existing ones, so for now I'm left with the Web Control application, which works fine, although AUTO EQ is not perfect.

 

[Timbo2]

After updating to 2.39, Topping Tune doesn't work properly, it doesn't save the settings, it deletes the existing ones, so for now I'm left with the Web Control application, which works fine, although AUTO EQ is not perfect.

See this is the Topping we all love!

 

[ziggurcat]

See this is the Topping we all love!

It's possible that they're phasing out Topping Tune. They did end up figuring out what was causing my target/source FRs to disappear after updating Topping Tune, but they haven't released a new version with the fix yet.

After updating to 2.39, Topping Tune doesn't work properly, it doesn't save the settings, it deletes the existing ones, so for now I'm left with the Web Control application, which works fine, although AUTO EQ is not perfect.

Did your Target/Source FR imports disappear by any chance? If so, that's an issue I reported to them last month that they are now aware of, and will probably be fixed in v1.17 if they decide to keep Topping Tune going. With the Home web app now being a thing, they could even ditch TT altogether. *shrugs*

 

[Mario1969]

It's possible that they're phasing out Topping Tune. They did end up figuring out what was causing my target/source FRs to disappear after updating Topping Tune, but they haven't released a new version with the fix yet.



Did your Target/Source FR imports disappear by any chance? If so, that's an issue I reported to them last month that they are now aware of, and will probably be fixed in v1.17 if they decide to keep Topping Tune going. With the Home web app now being a thing, they could even ditch TT altogether. *shrugs*

Honestly, don't know.. I'm not running Topping Tune at the moment because it will mess up my settings again. I'll wait for the new version and if it doesn't come, I'll remove it completely.

 

[Berwhale]

It's possible that they're phasing out Topping Tune.

I'm very happy that Home is working now, but that needs an internet connection and a website to support it. It would be a shame if the native Windows app died, although I suppose the Android/iOS versions are likely to hang around for longer.

 

[LiviuTM]

I'm very happy that Home is working now, but that needs an internet connection and a website to support it. It would be a shame if the native Windows app died, although I suppose the Android/iOS versions are likely to hang around for longer.

I like Topping Tune, had no problems so far. To be fair, my setup is not that complicated. Anyway, having a local app is always desired, in my opinion.
On top of requiring an internet connection and a website, Topping Home requires Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge because it uses the WebHID API, which Firefox or its derivatives do not support.

 

[ziggurcat]

I had a heck of a time with the Home web app the other night. The site was fine, but then I opened up Topping Tune, and that's when the fun began.

All of the PEQ profiles disappeared in Topping Tune, but one stayed present when I re-opened the web app, but then it took me a while to find my PEQ files on my computer, so I had imported a few that weren't correct, and in that time of importing/deleting, those profiles didn't show up in either the web app or TT, but were still on the device somehow. The web app wouldn't sync with the device (it kept giving some error), and so I ended up having to do a factory reset, choosing the option to not keep the current PEQ profiles.

I have no idea, yet, how to reproduce any of that with 100% accuracy. If I can, I will definitely report it to Topping once I have.

I did also notice a bit of a discrepancy between the filtered graphs on the web vs. TT -- a spike shows up in the web app at about 16.6kHz for my TruthEar Hexas, and no such spike shows up in TT at that frequency (it is one of the PEQ filter frequencies, so it's not an errant spike).

 

[LiviuTM]

I had a heck of a time with the Home web app the other night. The site was fine, but then I opened up Topping Tune, and that's when the fun began.

All of the PEQ profiles disappeared in Topping Tune, but one stayed present when I re-opened the web app, but then it took me a while to find my PEQ files on my computer, so I had imported a few that weren't correct, and in that time of importing/deleting, those profiles didn't show up in either the web app or TT, but were still on the device somehow. The web app wouldn't sync with the device (it kept giving some error), and so I ended up having to do a factory reset, choosing the option to not keep the current PEQ profiles.

I have no idea, yet, how to reproduce any of that with 100% accuracy. If I can, I will definitely report it to Topping once I have.

I did also notice a bit of a discrepancy between the filtered graphs on the web vs. TT -- a spike shows up in the web app at about 16.6kHz for my TruthEar Hexas, and no such spike shows up in TT at that frequency (it is one of the PEQ filter frequencies, so it's not an errant spike).

Wow, that really sucks.. That's a serious conflict between Topping Tune and Topping Home. Looks like for the time being is advisable to stick to one or the other and avoid using both. Now I'm glad Topping Home does not work with Firefox

 

[ziggurcat]

Wow, that really sucks.. That's a serious conflict between Topping Tune and Topping Home. Looks like for the time being is advisable to stick to one or the other and avoid using both. Now I'm glad Topping Home does not work with Firefox

It was easy enough to recover once I did the factory reset, so it wasn't as bad as you might think. But yeah, it's not a good idea to use both at this time.

 

[uniken]

Well like some other posters in this thread, my DX5II also died after 7 months. It made a pop sound while playing and there is no longer any output. I have never used the 4.4mm output jack.

I bought from Shenzhenaudio so contacted them about the warranty. After going back and forward many times with them giving me "helpful" suggestions (unplug all cables, try different inputs and outputs, factory reset, firmware upgrade etc) they then insisted I make a video showing the lack of output. After viewing the video, they wanted me to send it back to China for "further investigation".

I posted it back at the cost of $60 and it has now been stuck in customs in Shenzhen for about 3 weeks. I am getting sick of no sound so I am going to buy a iFi NEO iDSD 2 to replace it instead of waiting any longer.

From my story and others, it seems these units are not particularly reliable. If you are thinking of buying one I suggest a local supplier for ease of warranty. If you have had yours for 7 months, cross your fingers!

 

[Mutex]

Well like some other posters in this thread, my DX5II also died after 7 months.

That really sucks.

I am getting sick of no sound so I am going to buy a iFi NEO iDSD 2 to replace it instead of waiting any longer.

OK, but that's a hefty price tag for another device that has only 1-year warranty, don't you think?

 

[ziggurcat]

It was easy enough to recover once I did the factory reset, so it wasn't as bad as you might think. But yeah, it's not a good idea to use both at this time.

I did e-mail Topping about this, and they responded the other day with the following:

"Thank you for documenting this interaction between the Home Web Control Center, TOPPING Tune V1.16, and the DX5 II. Currently, there may be some incompatibility issues between the Web EQ configuration and the Topping Tune configuration. Therefore, we currently recommend configuring only on the Web platform. We will improve this in the future. Thank you for your feedback!"

 

[ziggurcat]

Well like some other posters in this thread, my DX5II also died after 7 months. It made a pop sound while playing and there is no longer any output. I have never used the 4.4mm output jack.

That really sucks, sorry to hear that.

However:

1. The failure wouldn't have been caused by the 4.4mm headphone output.
2. There isn't an inherent reliability issue with this device. Hardware failure is simply a thing that happens. No company is immune from this, and you could easily apply your experience to virtually any other electronic device on the market.

Hopefully the iFi NEO iDSD 2 works out better for you!

 

[Berwhale]

Well like some other posters in this thread, my DX5II also died after 7 months. It made a pop sound while playing and there is no longer any output. I have never used the 4.4mm output jack.

I bought from Shenzhenaudio so contacted them about the warranty. After going back and forward many times with them giving me "helpful" suggestions (unplug all cables, try different inputs and outputs, factory reset, firmware upgrade etc) they then insisted I make a video showing the lack of output. After viewing the video, they wanted me to send it back to China for "further investigation".

I posted it back at the cost of $60 and it has now been stuck in customs in Shenzhen for about 3 weeks. I am getting sick of no sound so I am going to buy a iFi NEO iDSD 2 to replace it instead of waiting any longer.

From my story and others, it seems these units are not particularly reliable. If you are thinking of buying one I suggest a local supplier for ease of warranty. If you have had yours for 7 months, cross your fingers!

I've been using my DX5 II for over 12 months. The Topping EX5 I purchased in August 2021 from HiFiGo still works fine as does the Topping A50s & P50 I purchased from Shenzhen Audio store on Amazon UK (September 2020) and the Topping D50s I purchased from Shenzhen Audio's store on AliExpress (August 2019)

I did buy an non-Topping device once, an SMSL Sanskrit 10th DAC from Amazon UK (Ocotober 2019), but that died soon after purchase and went back for a full refund.

I completely agree with your comment regarding local purchase and support. I would not have purchased any of the above directly from China if I could not afford to write off a failed device. My understanding is that the Chinese government make it extremely difficult to re-import stuff back into China so any type of warranty claim is likely to be extremely painful, if not pointless.

 

[Mutex]

I completely agree with your comment regarding local purchase and support. I would not have purchased any of the above directly from China if I could not afford to write off a failed device. My understanding is that the Chinese government make it extremely difficult to re-import stuff back into China so any type of warranty claim is likely to be extremely painful, if not pointless.

I must say, this approach from Topping to ask customers to ship things back to China feels like a deliberate move to discourage warranty claims.

They could easily enter a support agreement with a US and a European electronic repair shop to provide regional support for customers. Depending on sales volumes, other regions could be considered as well.

So many small electronic repair shops function as official regional partners for different brands. The only sense I can make out of Topping not having regional partners, is that this is a deliberate move.