Topping E30 DAC Review

[JohnYang1997]

Ok thanks. So with the volume on the amp max and no change in volume on the dac there should be no pop? Not that I think I would ever need to be at max.

With the dac volume at max, utilizing the amp’s pot for volume control there would be no pop as well?

Hmm. Use the volume pot on the amp. It attenuates the pop along with the music that's how that works. If the volume on the dac is used, the pop is "essentially at max volume" regardless of the volume settings because the pop happens after the volume control.

 

[JohnYang1997]

The DX3Pro is AK based right? I hooked up my DX3Pro ldac version with the following chain

RPI4B running piCorePlayer 6.0 ----USB----> DX3Pro ----RCA----> Bryston 3B-SST power amp

DX3Pro is in line-out mode, I have the Bryston set to 2V sensitivity. I hear no pops on track changing, muting, track forward, etc.

As for it not happening with a pre-amp, this is ASR, where the consensus is that pre-amps are passé.

2V sensitivity sounds quite low to me. That's the gain is quite low at that settings hence the pop is not amplified as much. You may still hear if you are close to the speakers. But that's just a guess.

 

[Daverz]

2V sensitivity sounds quite low to me. That's the gain is quite low at that settings hence the pop is not amplified as much. You may still hear if you are close to the speakers. But that's just a guess.

OK, I can hear it if I put my ear to the tweeter and toggle the mute button on the D3XPro remote. I can't hear it 2 meters away (Buchardt S400 speakers).

 

[Audiophile.id]

compare to dx3 pro which one sound better?

thanks

 

[Toku]

Okay, this time again, trouble has occurred.
ASR only provides us with static measurement data. The actual product evaluation starts after you get the product.
I don't know how much pop noise was reported, but human judgment is mixed. Previously, there was a post saying that the operation sound of the relay was noisy. But it was a very small sound to me. . .
But from my experience. As you post more and more of the issues you discover, Topping will announce a firmware update.

The biggest problem for me now is whether the ordered E30 arrives safely in Japan. The SMSL DA-8s I ordered from Shenzhenaudio Store went missing at a Chinese airport. It is still unknown after one month.

 

[Daverz]

I tried another test of the DX3Pro by making an album of 1 second silent flac files, playing them back on repeat, and listening with my ear at the tweeter. The result was not what I was expecting: several seconds of hiss interrupted by brief silences. No clicking or popping. The hiss goes away if you turn down the digital volume on the DX3Pro (so is it must have some gain from the line out?).

So I'm expecting the E30 to be fine. I'm assuming it's not that different from the DX3Pro, just no headphone amp or bluetooth. BTW, the reason I'm not using the DX3Pro in my speaker system permanently is that I want to use it for late night TV and squeezebox listening with headphones in another room.

 

[pjug]

If the pops are an AK thing, maybe a dedicated thread is in order? Is this the reason for the pop issue we puzzled over in the PW Link review thread?

 

[simons700]

no is not working. E30 has a automatic standby function. no signal from USB or coax the E30 goes to standby. comes a signal from USB E30 wake up.

o realy?
Thats even better!
Does it work for Toslink as well?
So the way it works is that i can leave it in Standby all day and when a Signal comes from my Chromecast for example it turns it self on automatically?

 

[JohnYang1997]

o realy?
Thats even better!
Does it work for Toslink as well?
So the way it works is that i can leave it in Standby all day and when a Signal comes from my Chromecast for example it turns it self on automatically?

Yes.

 

[JohnYang1997]

If the pops are an AK thing, maybe a dedicated thread is in order? Is this the reason for the pop issue we puzzled over in the PW Link review thread?

It's not just an AK thing. Many delta sigma dacs needs the output to be muted while switching sample rate otherwise a huge pop. Cs4398 also needs such circuit. It's just that it's rare to see cs4398 based DAC around but AK's and people now starting to connect DAC directly to power amp. Hence the issue. The pop sound we hear is already muted. Otherwise it will definitely blow a tweeter.

 

[samsa]

E30 has a automatic standby function. no signal from USB or coax the E30 goes to standby. comes a signal from USB E30 wake up.

At least for USB, that requires a little bit of qualification. Whether there's any data flowing through the USB connection is irrelevant. The E30 goes into standby mode if and only if there's no power to the USB line.

I have mine hooked up to a Raspberry Pi, which stays up 24/7. Consequently, the E30 never goes into standby mode. I can, at the commandline, turn off power to the USB port into which the E30 is plugged. That causes the E30 to go into standby mode (after a minute). Turning the power to the port back on causes the E30 to wake up.

But, no, merely having no music playing has zero effect.

 

[Morpheus85]

And when it wakes up, is it in the state as it was before?

yes

 

[simons700]

Ok so when you have it in Toslink mode it turns off when the light goes out and turns back on again when the light comes back right?
That would be fantastic!

 

[UAN]

Colleagues, please post a photo of the E30 board.

 

[Morpheus85]

This is difficult. The board cannot be completely removed. The display is glued and stuck on the board.

 

[pjug]

It's not just an AK thing. Many delta sigma dacs needs the output to be muted while switching sample rate otherwise a huge pop. Cs4398 also needs such circuit. It's just that it's rare to see cs4398 based DAC around but AK's and people now starting to connect DAC directly to power amp. Hence the issue. The pop sound we hear is already muted. Otherwise it will definitely blow a tweeter.

With the PW Link the problem is not just with change in sample rate. The worst case I had was with a dropout in my internet streaming service, and when the service resumed I got a nasty pop where I worried about my tweeters. So I wonder if somehow the E30 would handle this better than the internal DAC in the PW Link. I guess I should just buy the E30 and play with it.

 

[UAN]

This is difficult. The board cannot be completely removed. The display is glued and stuck on the board.

Thank you, you can consider the main thing. There are no isolation capacitors in LPF, which is very good.

 

[Morpheus85]

I just see that there is even an Opa1612 installed.

 

[kkeretic]

Yes. Completely.

Hm. I have to admit I haven't heard my D70 to fart once since I put an A50 after it and before the amp. Very interesting.

 

[Pavano]

Hmm. Use the volume pot on the amp. It attenuates the pop along with the music that's how that works. If the volume on the dac is used, the pop is "essentially at max volume" regardless of the volume settings because the pop happens after the volume control.

What’s the use of having a volume control if you can’t/shouldn’t use it if you don’t want to have any pops?
just curious