Topping G5 Review (Portable DAC & HP Amp)

[Urushi]

Has the G5 been a reliable (and safe) product? It's specs are tempting.

 

[rinderkappajoe]

Anyone can recommend a pouch that can fit the G5, pair of IEMs, a USB cable and nothing more?

Just registered here only to answer this question lol :-D

I received G5 today and can recommend to buy Shanling C3

It is as if it was tailormade exclusively for G5!!

I was using this case for Shanling M6 and love it a lot. Guess I need to buy another one now

https://de.aliexpress.com/item/1005001265546194.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.1.39edef9bQDWR48&algo_pvid=9541f458-6532-4392-a5d4-eaa173f58c7f&algo_exp_id=9541f458-6532-4392-a5d4-eaa173f58c7f-0&pdp_npi=3%40dis%21EUR%2117.11%2117.11%21%21%21%21%21%40212248ba16823348168185536d06d3%2112000015518495073%21sea%21DE%21703592571&curPageLogUid=hpvL8PqycptS

 

[rinderkappajoe]

Oh and btw I already love G5, it´s exactly what i was looking for.

The Synergy with Legend Evo is fantastic and brings the treble to life (especially in high gain) and also tightens the bass for an overall more clear/presice presentation

Highly recommended!

 

[gvl]

I ended up getting this from Amazon, a bit thin to pack a full size USB cable but with smaller or thin cables it works well.

iMangoo Shockproof Carrying Case https://a.co/d/2a0v065

 

[Urushi]

For an HD800s would this be just as good as a Topping L30II E30II stack? It costs just as much but has a smaller foot print and battery.

 

[thanrl]

Does anyone know if @amirm 's "amp SNR @ 50mV" measurements are done on the digital input or the analog input (for the G5 and the dac-amp-combo category in general)?

 

[staticV3]

@thanrl on the G5, it was most likely tested with digital in.
Ditto for DAC+Amp combos in general as the majority of those don't have analog inputs in the first place. Only the FiiO K5/7/9 afaik.

 

[thanrl]

@thanrl on the G5, it was most likely tested with digital in.
Ditto for DAC+Amp combos in general as the majority of those don't have analog inputs in the first place. Only the FiiO K5/7/9 afaik.

Thanks for the info. It is a bit confusing that digital-in and analog-in measurements are on the same graphic. The G5 digital-in should probably be listed with other dac-amp-combos while the analog-in listed with other amps like L30.

Does anyone have experience on G5's amp vs NX7?

 

[Egoquaero]

So I ended up buying the Topping G5 and I’ve found its bluetooth quality to be not that bad at all when paired with an iPhone 14 Pro. It’s just so so convenient. So the only problem now is that I’m listening to the original frequency tuning of the Sennheiser HD800, which is too bright and light for me. Is there an iOS app that fixes this problem like Sonarworks does on my macbook pro? Or do I need just a general parametric eq? (I use Tidal on my iPhone to listen to music)

Hi dears, back to my previous post to which you guys basically said there were no solutions... I dug a bit more and found these apps.

5 Best Equalizer Apps for iPhone & iPad [2023]

You no longer have to limit yourself to Apple’s default equalizer settings. Here’s a list of the top 5 third-party EQ apps to customize your music better on iOS devices.

www.headphonesty.com

And some of them work with Tidal!
So there's no need of a Qudelix 5k in the equation right?
You guys tried any of these apps in iOS?

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

I have read the first 12 pages.
Are the remaining pages still about the roll off?
If yes, this is for me the proof, that we live in a multi-verse. Because in mine, there is no 44.1kHz signal, with which the DAC is fed.
(Not even with 128kbit / mp3 tracks).

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

The G5 has arrived.
I hope he will not sound(ing)

 

[rinderkappajoe]

- If the red light is on how long can you listen until it is empty? 1h?

For me it was 40min in high gain
Probably ~1hr in medium gain

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

As soon as the batteries are not quite full,
and I turn off the device, a relay flips.
Is anyone aware of this problem?
My G5 is 2 days old...

 

[fireboy1968]

A rolloff like that is not remotely high fidelity. -14dB at 20kHz is a bad joke. The pioneers of digital would be rolling in their graves.

But, kill that much HF and your THD will look fabulous....

@amirm How can you give a product with such a brutally bad (and clearly faulty) HF response such high marks? It makes no sense. And that is at 44.1kHz. This is what they claim:

View attachment 224533

What's going on? It's either faulty, your tests are botched, or they are lying with their claims.

 

[fireboy1968]

A rolloff like that is not remotely high fidelity. -14dB at 20kHz is a bad joke. The pioneers of digital would be rolling in their graves.

But, kill that much HF and your THD will look fabulous....

@amirm How can you give a product with such a brutally bad (and clearly faulty) HF response such high marks? It makes no sense. And that is at 44.1kHz. This is what they claim:

View attachment 224533

What's going on? It's either faulty, your tests are botched, or they are lying with their claims.

https://decibelpro.app/blog/sounds-...age of 25,developing age-related hearing loss. After the age of 25, this normal range of up to 20,000 Hz drops. Then, we are able to hear sounds with frequencies between 20 and 14,400 Hz. This happens because of naturally developing age-related hearing loss. So I am enjoying my Topping G5 and you worry about frequencies you cannot even hear. And this is not over 50 like Amir and I. This is 25.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

As soon as the batteries are not quite full,
and I turn off the device, a relay flips.
Is anyone aware of this problem?
My G5 is 2 days old...

Possibly a bug. If I switch while the relay is "working" from USB to aux, and back to USB, everything is ok again.
I'll report to Topping.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

In the meantime it turned out ,that my device was broken. It is not a bug.

 

[mike7877]

Does anyone know how/if the battery comes out?
Asking because I know I'll have mine long term because of its performance, and as long as nothing internal is defective, the battery will be the first to go

Edit: also, how does one clean the transparent tinted window without scratching it? It looks like something a cheap paper towel could scuff up. Microfibre ok? Or will that cause spiderwebbing?

 

[mike7877]

https://decibelpro.app/blog/sounds-only-kids-can-hear/#:~:text=After the age of 25,developing age-related hearing loss. After the age of 25, this normal range of up to 20,000 Hz drops. Then, we are able to hear sounds with frequencies between 20 and 14,400 Hz. This happens because of naturally developing age-related hearing loss. So I am enjoying my Topping G5 and you worry about frequencies you cannot even hear. And this is not over 50 like Amir and I. This is 25.

As a recent owner who can hear about 300Hz of the missing spectrum, it doesn't affect fidelity.

Maybe it's just me, but even when you can hear those really high frequencies, it takes another 5-10dB gain to hear them at the same level as 16-17kHz, so I don't think it plays a big role in the sound, if any

 

[mike7877]

People saying the THD+n measurement isn't accurate because of the filter at 18.1kHz:

Is THD+n not done at 1kHz? What would having a rolloff at 18.1kHz matter?
If there's any effect on the number, I imagine it would be very small because harmonics from 1kHz above 18kHz would be negligible, and the noise above 18kHz would still be present because although the filter is at 18kHz, the measurement is to 22kHz and the filter is on the sigal, not the noise, so all the noise would still be there

Or where am I wrong?