Topping E2x2 Audio Interface Review

[AnalogSteph]

In sound design it's commonplace to record at 192k and then reduce the sample rate 2x or 4x to slow down without interpolation. This makes ultrasounds totally audible.

Fair enough, but 75 kHz / 4 still is 18.75 kHz. Few people beyond their teens can hear much of anything up there. Just nuke it with a notch filter of moderate Q, using the spectrogram to fine-tune the parameters, and nobody will be the wiser. (I would keep an eye on how stable the frequency is over time.) There's precious little left in terms of actual signal up there anyway.

 

[pier25]

Did you try different cables, microphones, USB inputs, power supply (if you use any).

I used the exact same everything with my Motu M4 which didn't produce this tone. I was meticulous as I was trying to hear differences between the preamps.

As mentioned above, the only thing I didn't test at the time was trying to figure out if the tone was captured by the microphone or it was an internal issue of the unit.

Maybe unrelated but the Topping E8x8 released later doesn't record up to 192k anymore, only to 96k.

Fair enough, but 75 kHz / 4 still is 18.75 kHz.

True but nothing stops you to pitch down the sample even further with interpolation. See this video where I lower the ticking of a clock 8x (3 octaves).

I agree this is a niche issue that 99.999% of users won't bump into. For recording music, podcasts, etc I would rarely go higher than 48k.

 

[M_Audio]

I don't know if this has been shared before, but this non-OTG, standard model works on my cell phone. Apple Music and YouTube don't recognize the E2x2, but USB Audio Player Pro recognized the device and works without any problems. The only advantage of the OTG model is that the Android driver is already defined; in my use case, there's no need to pay an extra 35 euros.

 

[staticV3]

The only advantage of the OTG model is that the Android driver is already defined

The OTG also adds SPDIF output and more addressable channels in your DAW.

 

[Pow1]

I’m not sure if this has been asked before but does anyome know if the volume for the aux output on the otg version is controlled by the monitor knob?

 

[Eldus]

I’m not sure if this has been asked before but does anyome know if the volume for the aux output on the otg version is controlled by the monitor knob?

I asked Topping this question regarding the 4x4. They said the monitor volume does not and can not affect the aux out volume.

 

[dlovesmusic]

Hi everyone, received the E2x2 today. A silly question - does it make sense to use topping e2x2 as adc to measure another dac sinad, linearity, thdn….. say in rew?

 

[Pow1]

Hi everyone, received the E2x2 today. A silly question - does it make sense to use topping e2x2 as adc to measure another dac sinad, linearity, thdn….. say in rew?

It can be done but it also depends on the dac and your intentions for the measurements. If it’s a really well performing dac and you want to accurately characterize its performance, then you may be limited by the topping ADC.

But if your goal is just to check if a device is transparent enough, then the 110dB SINAD of this ADC should be good enough for that.

 

[dlovesmusic]

It can be done but it also depends on the dac and your intentions for the measurements. If it’s a really well performing dac and you want to accurately characterize its performance, then you may be limited by the topping ADC.

But if your goal is just to check if a device is transparent enough, then the 110dB SINAD of this ADC should be good enough for that.

Thanks my main use of the e2x2 is with a condense mic in for room measurement for rew and audiolense. Just figure the adc is transparent enough to play with some measurement of external DACs

 

[staticV3]

Thanks my main use of the e2x2 is with a condense mic in for room measurement for rew and audiolense. Just figure the adc is transparent enough to play with some measurement of external DACs

Plenty good enough for acoustic measurements, as well as for electrical measurements (considering audibility threshold).

Only when chasing record-breaking SINAD numbers for fun, will the E2x2 ADC be the bottleneck.

 

[dlovesmusic]

On this topic, can someone please refer me to some tutorial on getting things started to explore taking some measurements of external dacs with REW?

Cheers

 

[Victorr_]

can someone please refer me to some tutorial

So here it is

Room Measurement Tutorial for Dummies Part 1

There are few more things transformative in audio than learning how room acoustics works. You never look at any system the same again. Like moving from film photography to digital, measurements give you instant feedback on what your system is doing. Even if you choose to not make any changes...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[dlovesmusic]

So here it is

Room Measurement Tutorial for Dummies Part 1

There are few more things transformative in audio than learning how room acoustics works. You never look at any system the same again. Like moving from film photography to digital, measurements give you instant feedback on what your system is doing. Even if you choose to not make any changes...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Thanks. I am quite familiar with using the interface and a condenser mic for taking room measurement with REW and audiolense. Was hoping for a tutorial for measurement of an external dac.

Cheers

 

[dlovesmusic]

The topping e2x2 is rock solid for taking measurements of room!!!

Took measurements in audiolense last night with no hiccups, no glitches. Managed to get to excellent dynamics input without blowing my tweeters!!!

Time alignment all locked in no delays the entire night. Much better consistency compared to using a umik-1!!! At least in audiolense, umik-1 can be quite unstable - measured left and right channel time alignment can be off by 0.02 or 0.04 ms either to the L or R channel each time, even tho the mic is set stable on a tripod. And sometimes audiolense would return with “input” error and I have to take sweep measurements again and again. I have tried Artpro usb ii interface with the same condenser mic, that’s better than the umik but still can’t compare with the E2x2 in stability, consistency

 

[Pow1]

Thanks. I am quite familiar with using the interface and a condenser mic for taking room measurement with REW and audiolense. Was hoping for a tutorial for measurement of an external dac.

Cheers

This thread might help you: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...rment-of-gear-with-rew-and-scarlet-2i2.65275/

 

[Pow1]

The topping e2x2 is rock solid for taking measurements of room!!!

Took measurements in audiolense last night with no hiccups, no glitches. Managed to get to excellent dynamics input without blowing my tweeters!!!

Time alignment all locked in no delays the entire night. Much better consistency compared to using a umik-1!!! At least in audiolense, umik-1 can be quite unstable - measured left and right channel time alignment can be off by 0.02 or 0.04 ms either to the L or R channel each time, even tho the mic is set stable on a tripod. And sometimes audiolense would return with “input” error and I have to take sweep measurements again and again. I have tried Artpro usb ii interface with the same condenser mic, that’s better than the umik but still can’t compare with the E2x2 in stability, consistency

That's really cool tbh. I've read that measurement mics like the umik1 have limited dynamic range, though they are perfectly fine for speaker measurements.

another difference is that mics for vocals usually don't have a flat frequency response unlike measurement mics. So that may be something worth considering if you're trying to get an accurate FR. For timing measurements it seems like they should be fine.

 

[dlovesmusic]

That's really cool tbh. I've read that measurement mics like the umik1 have limited dynamic range, though they are perfectly fine for speaker measurements.

another difference is that mics for vocals usually don't have a flat frequency response unlike measurement mics. So that may be something worth considering if you're trying to get an accurate FR. For timing measurements it seems like they should be fine.

Thanks. I am using the Sonarworks Sound ID reference mic that is individually calibrated for measurement use. It works great for taking room measurements.

SoundID Reference Measurement Microphone | without Software

Product description An omnidirectional measurement microphone with an individual calibration profile. Every microphone has been measured by Sonarworks acousticians against an ANSI-certified measurement microphone. This means perfect accuracy within the audible range and freedom from...

store.sonarworks.com

 

[ObjectiveSubjectivist]

I have a question regarding

The OTG also adds SPDIF output and more addressable channels in your DAW.

I'm looking for some audio interface (will be doing headphone measurements) and I came across your comment.

If I understand correctly with SPDIF output I could use this interface to pass through signal from phono preamp to any DAC, right?
My use case would be LP player -> phono preamp -> topping e2x2 otg -> spdif -> dac (basically acting as a preamp) -> power amplifier ->.....
Is my thinking correct?

 

[dlovesmusic]

I have a question regarding

I'm looking for some audio interface (will be doing headphone measurements) and I came across your comment.

If I understand correctly with SPDIF output I could use this interface to pass through signal from phono preamp to any DAC, right?
My use case would be LP player -> phono preamp -> topping e2x2 otg -> spdif -> dac (basically acting as a preamp) -> power amplifier ->.....
Is my thinking correct?

Well the E2X2 has a dac built in so I don’t think you need an external dac. You can simply connect phono pre to E2x2 line in then E2x2 line out to a power amp

 

[ObjectiveSubjectivist]

Well the E2X2 has a dac built in so I don’t think you need an external dac. You can simply connect phono pre to E2x2 line in then E2x2 line out to a power amp

Yup, but no remote control

My use case is basically trying to replace preamp... as I don't have any, because my main usage of my 2.0 setup is streaming with dac directly connected to power amplifiers.
But from time to time I want to use my old lp player and some records.