• Welcome to ASR. There are many reviews of audio hardware and expert members to help answer your questions. Click here to have your audio equipment measured for free!

Topping E2x2 Audio Interface Review

Rate this audio interface

  • 1. Poor (headless panther)

    Votes: 11 3.9%
  • 2. Not terrible (postman panther)

    Votes: 28 9.9%
  • 3. Fine (happy panther)

    Votes: 134 47.5%
  • 4. Great (golfing panther)

    Votes: 109 38.7%

  • Total voters
    282
I would suggest to use a good phono pre-amp and use the line inputs of the interface with the instrument function toggled on if it is unbalanced phono pre-amp.
For a even better setup, a analog volume controller (like a Topping L30 II, it can attenuate or increase the signal if necessary) after the phono would be interesting to keep the signal input around -12 to -8 dBFS and than you normalize to -3 or -1dBFS in a DAW.
 
For that kind of application I'd rather be using something that comes with some RCA line inputs, for example
Tascam US-1x2HR
ESI Amber i1 (...)

Careful there! Shall mean, while I'm not entirely sure, whether that also applies to the Amber i1 (as, unlike Tascam, ESI doesn't provide a block diagram in the user manual), although I'd strongly suspect that, at least the US1x2HR belongs to the models, in case of which the additional RCA inputs are excluded from the hardware input gain control (just like the old Terrasoniq Phase X64 USB). So, if one would like to be able to use the input level/gain controls on the unit, one should rather go for one of the models with (at least) two identical combo XLR/T(R)S mic/line/hi-Z inputs.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini
 
For that kind of application I'd rather be using something that comes with some RCA line inputs, for example: Tascam US-1x2HR; ESI Amber i1
Having XLR inputs is advantageous even with RCA sources, if you have the right cables:
View attachment 433725
I appreciate the alternative equipment suggestions - I'll give them a look. It's true that connectivity would be simpler with an interface that includes RCA inputs. I may be willing to pay a little extra for a component like the E2x2 that has been rigorously tested by a reviewer I trust, like Amir. The high-quality headphone amp in the E2x2 would also be useful to me (and its DAC would be "good enough" for my purposes). I figure the right RCA adapter cable can be found to connect the phono preamp to the Topping interface...
 
Last edited:
So I recently acquired the e2x2 for monitor + headphone setup.

I’m using a HD660s2. On low gain settings , the volume knob is turned to 75% to get enough loudness for me, on high gain settings, it’s around 30%.

However, 660s2 sounds very bright and harsh on the highs for on gain settings. This is very noticeable through sibilant vocals and sharp brass instruments.

I wonder why? Most other amps I have used have very subtle difference when switching gain settings but the E2x2 is quite dramatic.
 
Do you measured the voltage output on both settings if it is the same?

Sibilants get much more noticeable with a little bit more Volume
 
Topping e2x2 vs Motu m2

Hello everyone,

This is my first message on this forum, but I've been visiting it for a long time to get information, so thank you for that.
I own a MOTU M2, and I'm very happy with it since, for the way I use it, I don’t think I needed much more (I only use it for production and mixing, but I never record).
The thing is, I started reading about this interface and decided to buy it just in case I might need its features in the future (on paper, it’s a better product than the MOTU).
So, I’ve been testing it for 3-4 days, and everything works as it should. The device runs very well, and all the good things people say about it are true.

But then came the moment to compare the audio output with the MOTU, and that’s when I started noticing some things.
First, I leveled the output levels, both the main output (the MOTU has more) and the headphone output. Once I did that, I started to notice that in the low end, the sound of the Topping is different and the more information there is, the more noticeable it becomes.


It’s as if the sound is flatter, a bit thinner in that area, which makes the higher bass frequencies stand out a little more. It’s hard to explain, but compared to the MOTU, the MOTU seems to have more information in the low end, more body—it just sounds richer.

It’s not a dramatic difference or something you’d immediately notice on a first listen, but if you do an A/B comparison, the differences become clear. I produce electronic music, and that frequency range is critical for me. I feel like the MOTU gives me more in that area, whereas with the Topping, I feel like I’m losing something.

of course I’m not saying things have to sound like the MOTU, but at this point, I prefer it over the Topping.
So, im going to return it
I really wanted to keep it because it looks excellent and has a lot of possibilities, but for the way I use it, that slight difference in perception makes me have to return it.

I’m probably being a bit drastic because, as I said, it’s not something dramatic, and no one would notice it unless they could compare it with another interface. But since I did compare them, I’m sticking with the MOTU.

That being said, I would still recommend the Topping to anyone thinking about getting it because, beside from that aspect in the low end, I didn’t notice anything strange in the rest of the spectrum. Plus, in other aspects, it offers way more possibilities than the MOTU
 
Topping e2x2 vs Motu m2


It’s not a dramatic difference or something you’d immediately notice on a first listen, but if you do an A/B comparison, the differences become clear. I produce electronic music, and that frequency range is critical for me. I feel like the MOTU gives me more in that area, whereas with the Topping, I feel like I’m losing something.
Thank you for the feedback!

Usually a real blind A/B test, when two devices are connected to the same speaker systems (or headphones), through an adapter on which you can physically instantly switch the signal source, and the two devices have the same volume (not by ear) lead to the fact that the difference is not heard by most of the people.

I don't doubt your ability to hear the difference, I'm just reminding others of the need for more objective comparisons before making a final decision on one device or another.
 
Thank you for the feedback!

Usually a real blind A/B test, when two devices are connected to the same speaker systems (or headphones), through an adapter on which you can physically instantly switch the signal source, and the two devices have the same volume (not by ear) lead to the fact that the difference is not heard by most of the people.

I don't doubt your ability to hear the difference, I'm just reminding others of the need for more objective comparisons before making a final decision on one device or another.
absolutely
let me tell you more:
yesterday i was about to stick with topping, but today i worked on the possibiilty of doing an A/B test and thanks for that, i was able to make a decision. I'm not sure if its the best choice, but at least i had that information that i didn't have yesterday
 
In this thread somewhere I wrote that my computer does not pull TOPPING E2x2 OTG, and very much loads the process of system interrupts, that it is impossible to use the sound card and watch YouTube. I solved my problem, it turned out that my computer is already very old, and it has an old processor. I bought myself a laptop Dell Latitude, which YouTube pulls video in 1080, and it normally pulls sound card TOPPING E2x2 OTG, so I can recommend it, especially during the discounts. And my old computer where not pulled TOPPING E2x2 OTG, does not pull YouTube in 1080, and even in 720 resolution sometimes jerks.

Good card, no desire to get rid of it and sell it.

Found all my links and comments where I complained about TOPPING E2x2.

But everything is fine now, problem solved.



 
Last edited:
Yeah, obviously a C2D E8200 on G41 isn't that much to write home about these days. If you still have use for your old PC, you can spruce it up with a half-decent graphics card. I equipped two similar machines with E8400s on Q45 (but DDR2 memory) with spare Geforce GTX650 and GT610 cards that were gathering dust here, which was quite a noticeable improvement despite their age. A 750Ti would be downright luxury. Also be sure to install the h264ify extension (or one of its derivatives) so that YT playback stands a chance of being hardware-accelerated.
 
This is my first post in this forum, although I am a long term reader. I just wanted to share some experience for those considering a Motu M2/4 or a Topping E2x2.
I originally purchased a Motu M4 that was on sale on amazon, with the goal of recording guitar / voice at home as well as a pre-amp for my studio monitors. I was happy with the Motu m4 until a few months later I started to use my headphones with it (Fostex TH-X00). I noticed that the unit picked quite a bit of electric noise from my desktop, which was not audible through speakers. I tried using it with my battery powered laptop (Macbook pro) but similar issues appeared. Tried a USB isolator but it did not remove the problem. Using high impedance headphones (HD650, 300 Ohm) somewhat made it less audible but still present in quieter passages.

At that point I gave up and assumed something was not properly isolated with my setup (or I got a dude unit). Ordered a Topping E2X2 and I am really impressed. The headphone amp has zero audible background noise, tons of power and overall the unit has similar features than the Motu unit for my use case. I have so far only recorded a few songs and I am very happy with the results. The only annoyance is the mic gain knob, all the gain comes in in the last 1/4 turn of the knob. Usable yes, but less accurate adjustment than with the Motu.

Anyhow, I just wanted to share some experience and, in my case, the E2x2 was the better functioning unit.
 
The software shows that there is a new firmware 1.08, I currently have 1.07.
I click update, it successfully downloads, then the device reconnects 2 times, all 100% pass and... again 1.07 and so on, I tried 5 times.
Any ideas? =\

e2x2 otg

UPD: hmm, after a while the control panel started to show that the current version is 1.08, the latest.
 
Last edited:
I really like the E2x2 but could not get it to work reliably with Android at all no matter which recording app was used (tried them all) or whether in mobile or PC mode. On Ipad Mini 7 (should be same with iphone) it's a dream, solid as a rock and operates flawlessly. I can recommend the Apogee Metarecorder app for total stability, bit perfect capture and low latency real-time monitoring right on the E2x2. Note that I don't run it mobile mode, that causes metarecorder to see the input as mono, running in PC/Desktop mode it works perfectly. The preamps sound really really good with my EM272 based mics, and extremely quiet.

Audio specifications wise it seems to be better than Sonosax SX-M2D2, a £1500 unit with similar function and similar xmos interface (the Sonosax is a lot smaller though).

I tested the AD of the E2x2, feeding it with an SMSL SU-10 and recording through the Ipad mini with Apogee Metarecorder then analysed the resulting wav in RMAA. For a mobile setup it makes me very happy, a proper upgrade in every aspect from the PMD661 I used before:

Screenshot 2025-05-09 101826.png
 
Can anyone tell me if the Topping E2X2 can work with no drivers on Windows 11? Just for audio output. I would use it for guitar recording on my main PC but it would be great if I could plug&play my company laptop when I'm working from hope (no admin rights, no drivers can be installed). Thanks!
 
Can anyone tell me if the Topping E2X2 can work with no drivers on Windows 11?
The E2x2 works plug-and-play, using the generic USB Audio device drivers that come pre installed with Windows 11.

Manual installation of Topping's custom audio driver is optional.
 
The E2x2 works plug-and-play, using the generic USB Audio device drivers that come pre installed with Windows 11.

Manual installation of Topping's custom audio driver is optional.
Thanks for the quick response, much appreciated!
 
I only just learned that there was a OTG variant that has a spdif output. Was originally planning to get something like a Scarlett 8i6 or something but this seems like a potentially better option. Thing is I already have the DL200 and Jotunheim for DAC and headphone amp so those features would be a little bit useless for me most likely unless I wanted to consolidate a bit. I don't think it has enough power for my headphones though (Tungstens).
 
For anyone else using on Linux, (I am using a headless Rpi 4 with Rpi Lite OS), a couple caveats from my setup that might be worth checking:

1) ALSA sees the E2x2 as 6 channels - I had to create a slave device in ~/.asoundrc to record only 2 channels. This works and you get a stereo file. Obviously run arecord -l to find the device for your setup. Mine was hw:3,0, but yours may be different.

Code:
pcm.!e2x2_stereo_in {
    type plug
    slave {
        pcm "hw:3,0"     # Your Topping E2x2 interface
        rate 96000       # The sample rate you want (e.g., 96kHz). Change to your liking.
        channels 6       # The *actual* number of channels your E2x2 provides (its native channels)
    }
    ttable {
        0 { 0 1.0 }      # Map E2x2 input channel 0 (Left) to plug output channel 0
        1 { 1 1.0 }      # Map E2x2 input channel 1 (Right) to plug output channel 1
    }
}

2) Upon measuring the noise floor, I found that upon initial start up with my setup (YMMV) the E2x2/Pi measured around -75db when a sample recording was made. Subsequent recordings after were always around -111 db, UNTIL the system rebooted or the E2x2 was powered off and back on.

To remedy this, you can run a short 1 second recording to /dev/null, then go about your business. If that works, you can set a udev rule (SUBSYSTEM=="sound") to watch for the E2x2 to power on and create a script to fire off that one second short /dev/null recording when it does. Make sure the script file uses all 6 channels since it won't be knowing what you setup in ~/.asoundrc.

Other than these niggles, things are working great!
 
I picked up a Topping E2x2 recently and am unsure if I should return it for an E1x2.

I'm trying to record mono and can't find a setting to enable this. It records from a single microphone as a single channel of stereo sound. I assumed there'd be a toggle for this in the software.

Is there any way to record mono on the E2x2?

1. Open the Topping Professional Control Center
2. In the "Loopback" section, click on the menu under "Loopback 1/2" where it allows you to select what's being looped back, select the IN 1 input.
3. Ensure you maintain the stereo link (shows as clickable label "Link") so it routes the single channel to both left and right channel
4. Press the windows key and type "sound settings" - open the window
5. Navigate to "Input" section and you should be able to select "Loopback 1/2"
6. test in sound recorder

Screenshot 2025-06-30 183227.png
 
Back
Top Bottom