Topping L30 II or A50s VS standby/off power consumption

[salmo]

Hello Dear ASR!

I have been wondering for some time between these two amplifiers. I'm looking for something decent and small (smaller than Atom AMP ). Both L30 II and A50s are similar in size and I can buy them locally new for exactly the same price. The thing is... I'm a little obsessed with energy efficient and low-power PC builds, GPUs and stuff, I'm even writing this post from a computer that draws about 5W in IDLE.

L30 II use VAC power adapter (huuuge wall wart) it's similar to Atom AMP adapter and in case of atom, it's power supply sips almost 2,5W even without anything connected to it, well it's that kind of design. I'm afraid it will be similar with the power supply from L30 II and well... I don't like it.
On the other hand A50s use DC power supply, according to manual A50s standby at 15VDC/25mA so less than 0,5W and I guess that power supply will not draw more than that.

To both I would connect a DAC with a 2V output, so L30 II is a lot more powerful SE. However, the A50s has also a balanced output, so I would also have a chance to experiment with such cables. Maybe you have some standby/off measurements of your amps or some suggestions for me?

My warmest greetings to all of you!

 

[staticV3]

Perhaps consider using a Topping DX1 instead of a separate DAC and Amp.

No sense in having a super powerful headphone Amp if you don't have the appropriate headphones to make use of all that power.
So stuff like the Hifiman HE6, Susvara, or DCA Aeon/Expanse/Stealth.

 

[Phorize]

Do you have a DAC already. May be an opportunity to ditch the desktop stuff and just use a dongle if the use case permits.

 

[salmo]

Perhaps consider using a Topping DX1 instead of a separate DAC and Amp.

Right, somehow DX1 totally slipped of my mind, that's also nice option. It's like 'oversized dongle', but it does what it's supposed to do and has analog volume control. I didn't opt for the DX3 Pro+ precisely because of the digital volume control and 1dB increments, somehow I do not trust it completely.

Do you have a DAC already. May be an opportunity to ditch the desktop stuff and just use a dongle if the use case permits.

I have FiiO KA13 (so it can also act like a DAC) but looking for something with analog volume control. I don't fully trust the digital volume control, as I have a problem with tinnitus after exposure at higher volume levels.

 

[salmo]

I will give Topping DX1 a chance for now. It's super small compared to Atom AMP! Really - we need more compact constructions like that (without battery and stuff). I use HD560s with EQ and -7,5dB preamp and in low gain my sweet spot volume is exactly at 3 o'clock, so still some headroom left (and we have also high gain switch).

E30 II Lite use exact the same DAC, so I guess I can use DX1 as one if needed. In meantime I tested xDuoo XD-05 Basic. Nice portable device, we can also bypass battery (!) - that's really good for desktop scenarios - but sadly I have problems with 'pops' here and there. DX1 change sample rate without any pauses or weird sounds.

 

[Dunring]

The most efficient stack you could do would be a JDS Atom DAC and either the Drop THX One amplifier or the bigger THX 789 amplifier. All three have a 10-15 minute auto sleep mode. It wakes up when you play something, and in sleep mode basically uses nothing.