Topping L30 Headphone Amplifier Review

[frankb]

thank you!

I emailed Jan-14 asking for a refund. I explained my intention of upgrading to a Topping A90. This despite that I purchased the L30 in August. The A90 arrived yesterday. I'm very happy with how they handled the situation.

 

[kkeretic]

I got the A50s today (with a surcharge) as the replacement for my L30 that I really liked. To be honest, can't say at the moment I am enjoying the A50s as much as the L30. Well, probably not a day for music or something... But what I really like is that it runs much much cooler than L30. Think I will get another L30 once this mess clears up. Aside from this unfortunate problem, I think the L30 is a miracle device for the price.

 

[Dr Schweinsgruber]

Don't the Birkenstock sandals isolate you from the floor and therefore add to building up static charge?

Yes, but they also prevent the accumulation of static charge.

 

[kkeretic]

Can you please share how much surcharge you had to pay? Is it the complete difference amount between L30 and A50s? That's the reseller's decision I suppose.

Paid the return postage ~8€ (next day delivery, didn’t want to bother with this, just to sort it out as soon as possible) + ~53€ surcharge. L30 was ~132€ when I had purchased it (with free shipping). So the A50s cost me ~193€. Not bad considering the market situation and taxes in my country.

 

[Canuck57]

I emailed Jan-14 asking for a refund. I explained my intention of upgrading to a Topping A90. This despite that I purchased the L30 in August. The A90 arrived yesterday. I'm very happy with how they handled the situation.

Does SHENZENAUDIO require the L30 to be shipped to them?

 

[Jimbob54]

Does SHENZENAUDIO require the L30 to be shipped to them?

Don't believe so. Picture of the serial number sticker was all they asked me for.

 

[hottyson]

Hello, the l30 topping amp that I bought I think has shorted (I believe, not sure what happened) itself and has shorted (or burned?) the iems that I used with it. My iems do not work at all and get extremely hot. Don't know why this happened randomly out of nowhere. In addition, the amp makes a buzzing sound no matter what you plug into it. I should be glad that my iems are not that expensive, as the amp has rendered them useless. This happened after I took out the power for the amp (the brick out of the wall) and put it back in.

That buzzing sound is the same that my Topping L30 made after it malfunctioned. DO NOT PLUG ANY OTHER HEADPHONES INTO IT! It will burn out their drivers as well!

 

[Canuck57]

Don't believe so. Picture of the serial number sticker was all they asked me for.

thanks!

 

[thomz6]

guys i have a L30 2011, im waiting for my 2012 from ali, but meantime i receive it, can i still use my 2011 with a 300ohm headphones if i never touch the alimentation ? i use it since 20 days and no problem currently

 

[Tim M]

guys i have a L30 2011, im waiting for my 2012 from ali, but meantime i receive it, can i still use my 2011 with a 300ohm headphones if i never touch the alimentation ? i use it since 20 days and no problem currently

What's the "alimentation" in this context?

I'm curious to understand as I too have a unit and I'm waiting for a replacement... is there a way I can safely use it?

 

[thomz6]

What's the "alimentation" in this context?

I'm curious to understand as I too have a unit and I'm waiting for a replacement... is there a way I can safely use it?

i mean if i dont unplug the AC Adapter, this one is never touched

 

[Toku]

guys i have a L30 2011, im waiting for my 2012 from ali, but meantime i receive it, can i still use my 2011 with a 300ohm headphones if i never touch the alimentation ? i use it since 20 days and no problem currently

There should be no problem with normal operation as a headphone amplifier. The problem is that ESD protection is inadequate in environments with strong static electricity. You may need to be careful in an environment where the humidity drops by as much as 10%.

 

[mundee]

So.. has anyone gone the route of destroying it with a hammer? My seller sent visuals of an L30 and a hammer

 

[Tks]

There should be no problem with normal operation as a headphone amplifier. The problem is that ESD protection is inadequate in environments with strong static electricity. You may need to be careful in an environment where the humidity drops by as much as 10%.

Thought I caught corona virus the last few days. The heating in my place has been drying up the air so much, I wake up thinking I slept during the day in a desert. Throat so dry I couldn't believe I survived the night in such conditions lol. Combing hair/beard, INSTANT static electricity to the degree where I had to stop >_< Never thought humidity played THAT much of an effect.

 

[MikeJ]

Can somebody recommend an online store which ships to EU countries and will deliver the proper version, i.e. with the two latest fixes? I plan on ordering this gem soon. Thanks.

 

[Doodski]

Thought I caught corona virus the last few days. The heating in my place has been drying up the air so much, I wake up thinking I slept during the day in a desert. Throat so dry I couldn't believe I survived the night in such conditions lol. Combing hair/beard, INSTANT static electricity to the degree where I had to stop >_< Never thought humidity played THAT much of an effect.

I have central natural gas heat and I go through this often too. Now I close the vents before bed and sleep in about 65F temps and it's much better.

 

[solderdude]

i mean if i dont unplug the AC Adapter, this one is never touched

The transformer is NOT the issue. There seem to be a few wallwarts spreading a strong odor, some seem to get a bit warm.
This is NOT the reason why you should have it replaced.

There is always a (very small) chance it can fail. The chance it can fail dramatically increases when you experience a lot of static 'jolts' in the house.

Can you safely use it ? Nobody can tell you.
From the 10.000 units sold maybe 10 to max. 100 units have failed this way. The other 9900 still work problem free.
When you decide to keep using it, because it worked fine so far, then that is your decision.

The manufacturer says: stop using it, get it replaced. It is the most sensible thing to do.

 

[Upped]

The transformer is NOT the issue. There seem to be a few wallwarts spreading a strong odor, some seem to get a bit warm.
This is NOT the reason why you should have it replaced.

There is always a (very small) chance it can fail. The chance it can fail dramatically increases when you experience a lot of static 'jolts' in the house.

Can you safely use it ? Nobody can tell you.
From the 10.000 units sold maybe 10 to max. 100 units have failed this way. The other 9900 still work problem free.
When you decide to keep using it, because it worked fine so far, then that is your decision.

The manufacturer says: stop using it, get it replaced. It is the most sensible thing to do.

Should I try to get a new wall plug with my replacement l30 then? cause when I first got my l30 the wall plug smelled really bad like a chemical or electrical smell it still does have an odor but I have to put my nose right next to it to smell it now. Just put my nose next to it I think it kinda smells like a black sharpie marker?

 

[solderdude]

The smell comes from lacquer sprayed onto the transformer to prevent an audible hum. To ensure the windings don't 'vibrate/rattle' audibly at the mains frequency.
That stuff smells a bit. Depending on how thick that coating is it may smell for a longer period. How bad it smells is A: personal and B: temperature dependent and C: how long ago it was manufactured .

Over time the smell should get less and less and stops smelling after a certain time. It is annoying but that's all it is. It is not an indication it will fail.

 

[Upped]

Thanks for the info will assume its fine then since my amp worked pretty good other than that.