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Topping G5 Review (Portable DAC & HP Amp)

Rate this DAC & HP Amp

  • 1. Poor (headless panther)

    Votes: 12 3.1%
  • 2. Not terrible (postman panther)

    Votes: 19 5.0%
  • 3. Fine (happy panther)

    Votes: 76 19.9%
  • 4. Great (golfing panther)

    Votes: 274 71.9%

  • Total voters
    381
Hi
I just performed a quick measurement on mine
Set for 15.5 ohm load, USB source

11 o'clock on medium gain gives me approx 40 mVrms (1kHz)
That gives me a whopping 99dB SNR
(In line with what I measured for L30 II at 50mV)

For same 40mV output on Low gain, I get the exact same 99dB SNR.

This is to be expected, given G5 specs for preamp:

View attachment 378746

Noise level is given as identical for Low and Mid gain.
(L and M specs figures are identical for L30 II, by the way)
(those figures should translate into SNR > 100dB at 40mV - I measured 99dB)

So the answer to you question is "NO"
Oh, thank you very much!

Shoot, does that mean that I'm listening at loudness levels around 90 dB @ 1 kHz? That's... A bit scary. I hope it's just me misinterpreting the data due to a lack of understanding. I know I have some hearing loss, but I was hoping it's not that bad

Could you tell why one should look at the specs for preamp/LINE IN section instead of those from USB IN section?



No need to bother yourself if that requires lengthy explanation, you've already done so much to help!

Thank you.
 

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thank you very much!
You're welcome.
You had a fair question.
Shoot, does that mean that I'm listening at loudness levels around 90 dB @ 1 kHz?
Well, that's a peak value approximation for "around 11 o'clock".
The music will average lower, of course.
Could you tell why one should look at the specs for preamp/LINE IN section instead of those from USB IN section?
That's a good question.
I don't have the answer.
I just measured.

The specs SNR figures for the DAC are 3.5dB appart.
Which is less than the difference between the 2 measurements methods for the preamp noise.

Let me think about this.
 
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OK, so I gave it a second thought - and more measurements (all with 15.8 Ohm load)

1. Measured Noise is actually slightly better for 40mV in M gain than in L gain (attenuation through the volume knob)
We speak 0.5dB, so nothing significant. But that's the fact.


2. Dynamic range - Un-weighted - AES 17 method (so with a -60dB 997Hz signal 20Hz-20kHz, volume knob at max), we get

1720075767905.png


For Med and Low, that's noise at 1.44uVrms and 0.78uVrms respectively
So the <1.5uVrms and <1uVrms are correct (especially A-weighted, like in the specs, since my measurements are un-weighted)


3. Analysis

1720074563775.png


So, given measured Max level at 0dBFS, I can compute the at.tenuation for 40mV
If I deduct it from the measured DR figure, that gives us an expected SNR at that level.
The Low gain should have a better SNR than Medium gain. We speak several dBs.

I measured with digital attenuation (lowering the level from the measurement software, with volume knob at max) and I get SNR figures pretty close to expected (0.18dB lower, which is not relevant).

Then, that doesn't match with measured SNR when DAC is fed by a full scale signal and level is attenuated with the volume knob.
We see higher figures than with digital attenuation for both gains, and Medium gain actually outperforms slightly Low gain.

So the bottom line is:
The volume knob (analog) attenuation is more efficient than the digital attenuation by a margin of several dBs.
This better efficiency allows to keep more of the higher dynamic range of the Medium gain, which gives a small (but non significant) edge, in your use case, to Medium gain over Lower gain.
Even if the later, at same DAC-output level, has less noise.

That was fun . :)
Thanks.
 
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But for all practical purposes, these are probably irrelevant differences, correct?
Well, @Jean-Paul Petrosyan 's question was :
"Is there any drawback to use Mid gain vs Low gain ?"
(and he specified he listened at a volume around 11 o'clock on Mid gain)

So this is answering his question.
And explaining why, while the specs say there should be a difference there is none.

10.6dB difference in noise between digital attenuation vs analog attenuation may do a difference, maybe.
 
Well, @Jean-Paul Petrosyan 's question was :
"Is there any drawback to use Mid gain vs Low gain ?"
(and he specified he listened at a volume around 11 o'clock on Mid gain)

So this is answering his question.
And explaining why, while the specs say there should be a difference there is none.

10.6dB difference in noise between digital attenuation vs analog attenuation may do a difference, maybe.

Huge thank you, that's very interesting information and much more that I could ever hope for!

Glad to know it was an interesting experience for you as well.

Indeed, that doesn't seem like something that I should ever be able to perceive in actual listening, even if doing so attentively and in a quiet environment.

Moreso, the thing about digital versus analog attention (while I'm not 100% I interpreted that correctly) reminded me that I do, in fact, listen with 4 dB negative gain applied to compensate for EQ and try to prevent clipping.

If I understand it right, that means that the actual difference in my case might be even smaller or in favor of Low Gain even.

And that I'm listening at around ~86 dB peak, which feels a tiny bit less scary than 90 dB. Though still concerning, especially with reviewers listening at around 77 dB and lower (68 dB in case of Crinacle, if memory serves me right?).

Thank you once again!
 
If both the phone and USB accessory follow the USB-C specifications, then an OTG cable is no longer required. Any C->C cable will do the job.
Hi, sorry but are you sure of that ?
My Android (2022) with USB C seems not working with my SMSL DO100.. both gos an USB C port and I tried with multitple USB C cables :eek:
 
Could you tell why one should look at the specs for preamp/LINE IN section instead of those from USB IN section?
Because the LINE IN is analog, therefore affected by voltage level; while USB is a data connection, most of the times used to go through a DAC, whick will, then, produce an analog signal, of which you might check the specs for using it through your LINE IN...
 
Hi, sorry but are you sure of that ?
My Android (2022) with USB C seems not working with my SMSL DO100.. both gos an USB C port and I tried with multitple USB C cables :eek:
Likely an incomplete USB-C implementation on the DO100.

It happens a lot with Chinese Hi-Fi equipment.

One workaround is to use a USB-C OTG adapter along with a regular USB->A to C cable:
image_1024.jpeg rusb2ac1mb.main.jpg

You can also find special OTG C-C cables online. These are usually directional, so often come with arrows painted on the USB plugs:
 
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Likely an incomplete USB-C implementation on the DO100.

It happens a lot with Chinese Hi-Fi equipment.

One workaround is to use a USB-C OTG adapter along with a regular USB->A to C cable:
View attachment 380143 View attachment 380142

You can also find special OTG C-C cables online. These are usually directional, so often come with arrows painted on the USB plugs:

OMG that explains everything... many thanks!
 
I have had this for about 9 months now and its been excellent. If anything I would not mind it being a little bigger to allow for a bigger battery.
 
Features I would love to have:

1. Volume lock feature
2. Battery life meter (25-50-75-100 would be fine)
3. Longer battery life per charge. I think at its current size making it a little thicker to add battery life would not effect its portability. Perhaps I am wrong to say this but it would not effect me. I usually carry this in my back pack and use it when seated somewhere.
 
Ok ... after a couple months with the G5, been using and enjoying it quite a bit with my IEM collection, actually prefering it over most of my other DACs some erratic behaviour started ... sometimes (every other day) a relay would suddenly start to rapidly switch when I stop a track or turn off the G5. Turning the unit off doesn't help (in the latter case the G5 has already been turned off anyway) the relay keeps oscillating and can only be stopped by hooking up the device to an USB charger. I already contacted Topping and they asked me to send them a video documenting this issue. Browsing the web for similar user experiences I found another guy describing exactly the same issue with his unit.
So yeah, still on the road without the G5, waiting to get back home to do the video and hear from Topping what to do next, looks like I l'll have to ship them the unit and have it fixed by them (out of warranty).
I'll report back.
 
Ok ... after a couple months with the G5, been using and enjoying it quite a bit with my IEM collection, actually prefering it over most of my other DACs some erratic behaviour started ... sometimes (every other day) a relay would suddenly start to rapidly switch when I stop a track or turn off the G5. Turning the unit off doesn't help (in the latter case the G5 has already been turned off anyway) the relay keeps oscillating and can only be stopped by hooking up the device to an USB charger. I already contacted Topping and they asked me to send them a video documenting this issue. Browsing the web for similar user experiences I found another guy describing exactly the same issue with his unit.
So yeah, still on the road without the G5, waiting to get back home to do the video and hear from Topping what to do next, looks like I l'll have to ship them the unit and have it fixed by them (out of warranty).
I'll report back.
That is a shame, it seems there are a decent number of hardware issues with this device over time.
 
That is a shame, it seems there are a decent number of hardware issues with this device over time.
Yep, a pity. When I did a google search for above issue I've learned about other rather common probs of the G5, battery issues, sudden deaths, and some more folks mentioning channel imbalances, especially at lower volume settings due to what looks like they used a less than acceptable stereo potentiometer for the job.
Again, waiting to get back home to start the return procedure and to hopefully get the G5 properly fixed, soundwise it's definitely 'endgame' for my ageing ears.
 
Yep, a pity. When I did a google search for above issue I've learned about other rather common probs of the G5, battery issues, sudden deaths, and some more folks mentioning channel imbalances, especially at lower volume settings due to what looks like they used a less than acceptable stereo potentiometer for the job.
Again, waiting to get back home to start the return procedure and to hopefully get the G5 properly fixed, soundwise it's definitely 'endgame' for my ageing ears.
I agree that soundwise it is pretty much "end game" if only it could be that way in reliability.
 
owning the g5 since its release, i did some comparison to my other gear, like dx3 pro+, xd05 pro, k11 r2r, ibasso DC elite etc. and honestly i like the neutral linear response of the g5 best. if it would have the level of sepeartion, layering and stage depth of the xduoo, it would be my favorite. i know its all different tiers and usecases, but for the price, size and usability its one of my best buys
 
That is a shame, it seems there are a decent number of hardware issues with this device over time.
Yes, I have this fault but only when usb switch is on, with BT it doesn't occur.
 
owning the g5 since its release, i did some comparison to my other gear, like dx3 pro+, xd05 pro, k11 r2r, ibasso DC elite etc. and honestly i like the neutral linear response of the g5 best. if it would have the level of sepeartion, layering and stage depth of the xduoo, it would be my favorite. i know its all different tiers and usecases, but for the price, size and usability its one of my best buys

No issues in USB mode so far, or anyone else (if I may ask) ?
If not, there's at least some hope that they can finally fix the haywire relay in my G5 ... again, just loving the sound of that combo.
 
Hi everyone,
I’ve been following this forum for a long time and really appreciate the incredible work done by Amirm and the community here. I’ve just decided to register so I could share my experience with Topping products, hoping it might be helpful to others.
While I’m convinced of Topping’s good audio quality, I’m incredibly frustrated by their lack of durability.
I’ve purchased several Topping devices, including the G5, L50, E50, and PA5. Unfortunately, my G5 broke outside of warranty due to an electrostatic discharge that traveled through my headphones to the DAC while I was removing a sweater. I find it inexcusable that a company at this level, in this day and age, does not design its devices to be robust against electrostatic discharge.
The PA5, which I had sent for warranty repair once due to noise in one channel, started having the same issue with loud noise in one channel again shortly after the warranty expired.
Most frustrating of all, when my G5 broke, I decided to use my L50, which had been unused for some time, only to discover that it, too, was defective. The LED blinks, but the unit doesn’t emit any sound.
Based on my experience, I strongly advise against purchasing Topping products. In my case, it’s been a complete waste of money.
 
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