Topping E30 DAC Review

[Sharur]

Thank you for the answer! I’m gonna use to watch movies/tvshows as much as playing. And occasionally for music.
Another problem is that here in my country the e30 costs $140 and the g6 +- $340.
And two more questions. How much, in theory, the e30 outperforms the g6? Are we talking about more than 20% of performance or less than 10%?
And with the e30 connected to the tv, do I get worse sound from the ps5 to my headphone?

1. audible difference is likely to be 0. Amir has reviewed both so you can see which one has better specs. No point giving a percent estimate.
2. amir didn't measure the optical performance of the e30 iirc and that's somewhat of a controversy right now

 

[SgtPepper]

Just an update on my e30-to-cd player-via-digital-coax-intermittent-sound-break up-issue mentioned a few pages back.

Managed to buy an E30 made in 2020 (S/N 20xxxx), i.e. before the receiver chip changed from the AKM4118 to CS8416 (S/N 21??xxx)

It's solved the problem. Cd playback is now perfect with no break up issues. Thanks to everyone who's helped.

 

[Robin L]

https://www.amazon.com/Foot-RCA-Cab...s=worlds+best+cable+1ft&qid=1624414561&sr=8-1
or
https://www.amazon.com/0-5-Foot-RCA...s+best+cable+6+inch+rca&qid=1624414576&sr=8-1
both look and feel fantastic

I've got the 6" version. Good terminals, nice and compact:

 

[Thalis]

Here are the super stiff RG6 in my setup with zip ties :

 

[Asma]

I made myself a short cable out of a mogami 2549. It's better than giving money away for high-profile brands like audioquest.

 

[Yog]

Managed to buy an E30 made in 2020 (S/N 20xxxx), i.e. before the receiver chip changed from the AKM4118 to CS8416 (S/N 21??xxx)

Hi Bro/Guys.
Can you please enter the first 4 digits exactly.
I have the opportunity to buy a used one with numbers starting with numbers (S / N: 2009).

BTW
Of course, I am also asking for help from everyone who knows something about this topic.
Is the DAC E30 number that begins with a number (S / N: 2009),
will it be a DAC with AK4118 chip or already with CS8416?

EDIT:
I already got a reply from a very knowledgeable person on the PM.
So I will answer myself.

(S / N: 2009) is fortunately an AK4118 chip!

BTW

I just wanted to add one more information.
I have already bought one new DAC E30 with numbers starting with numbers (S / N: 2104).
Unfortunately, it has a CS8416 chip.

I didn't even notice how I became a collector and a big fan of TOPPING E30 DAC!

 

[Addy]

I made myself a short cable out of a mogami 2549. It's better than giving money away for high-profile brands like audioquest.

What is rca jack you use.

 

[Asma]

What is rca jack you use.

I used REAN / Neutrik NYS352BG

 

[Rottmannash]

https://www.amazon.com/Foot-RCA-Cab...s=worlds+best+cable+1ft&qid=1624414561&sr=8-1
or
https://www.amazon.com/0-5-Foot-RCA...s+best+cable+6+inch+rca&qid=1624414576&sr=8-1
both look and feel fantastic

I have a set of the 1st listed cables between my Node 2i and Freya+. Quality cables.

 

[Sharur]

Some people are saying that the E30 sounds bad because it has FFT spikes to the left of the 1 kHz tone and that a Schiit Modi 3+ is better because of this. I'm wondering how much truth there is to that statement.

 

[despoiler]

Some people are saying that the E30 sounds bad because it has FFT spikes to the left of the 1 kHz tone and that a Schiit Modi 3+ is better because of this. I'm wondering how much truth there is to that statement. View attachment 137421

No truth. -115db the absolute threshold of human hearing. The spikes are below that. Perceptible distortion is far above that. Distortion is very difficult to discern when buried in complex sources like music. No one on this planet is hearing those spikes.

 

[Crimson]

Hello,Am just brought an E30 with the (S/N:2101)
Would love to know if it has an AK4118 or a CS8416?
From what I had read before this thread,it seems to works fine in 44.1PCM from my BW-BR4 bluetooth receiver spdif out,just the volume is a bit low.
Haven't tired it on my laptop on-board spidif out tho

 

[threni]

Some people are saying that the E30 sounds bad because it has FFT spikes to the left of the 1 kHz tone

On this site it's easy to ignore such people by clicking on their avatar, then ignore. Then you'll never have to deal with that or any other nonsense from them ever again.

 

[andrewskaterrr]

So I just got my E30 and listened back and forth between it and my RadioShack DAC, using my AT-M50X with no headphone amp (L30 on it's way). First I want to say that I've been skeptical on if I would hear a difference at all, or if it would be large enough not returning it. So of course, I kept the packaging all nice in case I needed to return it.

WOW! I think the RS DAC has distortion because the E30 sounded less harsh and smoother. The soundstage opened up so much, and imaging was so much better. It went from the music sounding like it was all mashed together, to individual instruments playing. I let my brother try and he thought for sure he wouldn't be able to hear a difference. He said exactly what I did. So glad I bought the E30.

Next I will be seeing if the L30 makes a noticeable difference with all the extra power.

 

[half_dog]

So I just got my E30 and listened back and forth between it and my RadioShack DAC, using my AT-M50X with no headphone amp (L30 on it's way). First I want to say that I've been skeptical on if I would hear a difference at all, or if it would be large enough not returning it. So of course, I kept the packaging all nice in case I needed to return it.

WOW! I think the RS DAC has distortion because the E30 sounded less harsh and smoother. The soundstage opened up so much, and imaging was so much better. It went from the music sounding like it was all mashed together, to individual instruments playing. I let my brother try and he thought for sure he wouldn't be able to hear a difference. He said exactly what I did. So glad I bought the E30.

Next I will be seeing if the L30 makes a noticeable difference with all the extra power.

Wait, are you connecting the headphone straight to the DACs RCA output?

 

[SgtPepper]

Hello,Am just brought an E30 with the (S/N:2101)
Would love to know if it has an AK4118 or a CS8416?
From what I had read before this thread,it seems to works fine in 44.1PCM from my BW-BR4 bluetooth receiver spdif out,just the volume is a bit low.
Haven't tired it on my laptop on-board spidif out tho

Here's what I understand:

The 1st two digits of the serial number are the year of manufacture, So S/N: 20xx... is 2020, SN: 21xx... is 2021

All E30s with S/N beginning 20xx... will have the AK4118.

According to JohnYang, (and he wasn't 100% sure at the time of writing), but

any E30 with a S/N below 2103xx... should have the AK4118, and anything after 2103xx... will have a CS8416.

As I said though, he wasn't sure where the exact S/N cut off was.

I guess the best test is to hook it up to a stand alone cd player via digital coax (not a blu-ray player, dvd player or cd drive in a laptop)

and see if it plays a cd without intermittent sound break up - that was the fault I got with the CS8416. This wouldn't be totally conclusive

as you may still have a CS8416 inside your e30 that works with your cd player, but I think it's a pretty good test without having to take the E30 apart.


-that's what I know. This bit is now a guess:

if the 3rd & 4th digit of the S/N is the month of manufacture, then you might be ok with your S/N 2101 as (if I'm right) that'd be January 2021, and I don't think the change happened until around March (S/N 2103) - that's if my guess about how the S/Ns work is correct.

 

[jevenator]

Not sure if this is the right place but I was just re-arranging my desk and unplugged everything. Plugged in the power to my E30 DAC and Got a "E - d" error message on the screen and ignored it as I was still arranging the desk. A few minutes later I hear a pop and puff of white smoke and a smell out of the E30. I unplugged it. I have no idea if I used the right cable because I have the 15v power supply for the Schiit Magni right next to it so could be I used the more powerful cable it and fried it? Is this warrantable or did I just create a $150 cloud of smoke?

Serial number 200373xxxx and I purchased it a little over a year ago from APOS.

 

[threni]

...I hear a pop and puff of white smoke and a smell out of the E30. I unplugged it. I have no idea if I used the right cable because I have the 15v power supply for the Schiit Magni right next to it so could be I used the more powerful cable it and fried it?

Well, it's kind of an odd question to be asking us - only you will know for sure what you unplugged. But if it turns out what you unplugged was a 15v AC plug rather than a 5v DC one then I think you've found the problem.

 

[jevenator]

Well, it's kind of an odd question to be asking us - only you will know for sure what you unplugged. But if it turns out what you unplugged was a 15v AC plug rather than a 5v DC one then I think you've found the problem.

It's a weird question because I pulled out the power cable instinctively when I saw the white cloud and wasn't looking at the connections and the two cables were side by side. I guess, what I'm asking is if it is possible for the E30 to go haywire if it was the proper connection.

I guess if I need to buy a new DAC, is there a sensible upgrade path or no? I need the pre-amp mode to control my active JBL 305p speakers & I switch it over to regular DAC mode for my headphones. I like the form factor because I can quickly unplug it and bring it over to the living room and power it with a external battery bank and not have to deal with any wall plugs which are hard to reach. Probably the Topping D30 Pro if I want to use balanced connections, right?

 

[yodog]

It’s fried for sure. Warranty won’t help you there. I wish they still sold the D90’s with the AK chips inside. Anyone know if and when we could see flagship AK chips again inside a topping dac?