Topping L30 II Review (Headphone Amp)

[notabenem]

You list options, which is good, you've started to do your homework.

I'd love to know your headphone/s and source/s, existing setup (if any).

Going separate opens up some possibilities but it also adds more mess with more cables, especially power cables which need to run to a powerstrip.
The little DX3+ Pro is pretty neat for desk decluttering: nice LCD display, one remote etc...
Also the volume button, which is important to me, is really cheap on the L30 II, it feel it may fall apart on day one. DX3+ is better *BUT* it is not continuous, it has "clicks". Some people are bothered with it, some don't. I feel the DX3+ Pro construction is slightly better than the L30 II.

Headphone is a Sennheiser HD599. Main audio source is a laptop / youtube / spotify.

 

[pongpaktech]

M gain full see in review: "unity gain dashboard of 2 volts in/2 volts out which required using medium gain".

So if I switch it to high will there be a possibility I damage an amp (in this case a denon AVR) from a line level input that's above 2v?

 

[solderdude]

Very, very unlikely to cause damage. You could clip the output (when the volume is fully open) or the input (when poorly designed) but damage... no.. well maybe to your speakers when they blast full power and clipped. When the volume control is set low that is no problem though.
When you clip the input of the AVR and keep the volume low you might hear distortion in peaks of the music.

 

[bitonio]

Headphone is a Sennheiser HD599. Main audio source is a laptop / youtube / spotify.

They are rated 100.95 dB/mW and 50 ohms, I don't think you'll have any issue with the DX3 Pro, unless you push to hazardous volume.
The only thing that would prevent me to pick the DX3 is its volume knob. Have you considered alternatives to Topping?

 

[Garrincha]

measuring good don't mean sounding good, there's a JDS atoms used to be very hyped

so, enlighten us, what else is there to consider, lush holographic sound?

 

[notabenem]

They are rated 100.95 dB/mW and 50 ohms, I don't think you'll have any issue with the DX3 Pro, unless you push to hazardous volume.
The only thing that would prevent me to pick the DX3 is its volume knob. Have you considered alternatives to Topping?

Brand is not a limitation.
Wait a minute! 100.95dB / mW? So at 32mW they give... >115dB? Meaning i could never operate the amp in the region it is the cleanest, because at that point it would be very very loud? Unless I go for the L30II, that is, giving me -100dB SNR at 50mW?

 

[oscar_dziki]

Nice (from youtube). That's almost full scale 28 Hz.
View attachment 224635

I got to play it on my kappas 9.2i. they should play 28 in a room

 

[oscar_dziki]

In the manual of the Adi 2 pro I found some interesting information on the subject.
From this I found many more arguments for the digital volume control.
Owners of an E30 II / L30 II combination have it good, because they have the choice:
digital or analog

View attachment 225328View attachment 225329

All this talking about additional thd and noise is nonsense, as Amir just measured both of them and they are super duper low regardless of the potentiometer.

 

[AnalogSteph]

50 mV
-100dB? How?

Good question.

 

[jasonhanjk]

All this talking about additional thd and noise is nonsense, as Amir just measured both of them and they are super duper low regardless of the potentiometer.

Using pot will add noise. Amir measurements are base on max volume so that the series resistance are at it's lowest.

 

[StratsoundFan]

I just did an A/B comparison between Behringer ha400 which I paid 20 bucks for, and this amp, and I must say I am quite disappointed. My Behringer has sligthly more power ie. is louder, when Topping is set at M, not to mention the L setting which at least with my headphones is unusable. At H, Topping is maybe only slightly louder. Distortion wise, I can not hear any significant difference. I was expecting more for such a big difference in price. Also, Topping gets very hot, very fast. People say it is normal, but it will most certainly have an effect on durability, long-term. I will most probably be sending this unit back.

 

[StratsoundFan]

For the sake of reference, I was playing electric guitar through headpones, just to be clear. I am no audiophile, or anything like it. I was playing thorugh Auident id4 mk ii, using the heaphone out. I will try to connect the amp to line outputs when I get the cables, and see it that makes any difference, but I doubt it.

 

[TK750]

For the sake of reference, I was playing electric guitar through headpones, just to be clear. I am no audiophile, or anything like it. I was playing thorugh Auident id4 mk ii, using the heaphone out. I will try to connect the amp to line outputs when I get the cables, and see it that makes any difference, but I doubt it.

Problem is likely to do with using the headphone out of the Audient, as the max power of the Behringer is 40mw at 100 Ohms. It probably isn't giving the 2V to the Topping (I'm guessing you are using a 1/4 inch to split RCA cable or something similar). There isn't a measurement here for power at 100 Ohms but at 300 Ohms it is 594mw and at 32 Ohms it is 3.4W (3400mw) so to say it is significantly more powerful would be an understatement.

Also if you are doing what I expect you are going to do and use 1/4in TRS to RCA cables for the line out note you are going from balanced to unbalanced there which should be fine but there are a few different ways of doing it: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...unbalanced-rca-conflicting-information.35859/

 

[StratsoundFan]

I am aware that the specs look impresive on paper. It is the reason I bought Topping in the first place. But in reality, i get the same amount of loudness, for lack of a better word, when the volume knob on Behringer is set somewhere between 2 and 3 o' clock, as opposed to Topping at 2 o' clock, and this is with the gain knob at H. On paper, the difference should be much more pronounced. The amp does sound nice when listening to music casually, but I bought it becuase of the specs, and I don't think I'm getting that. I've tried both headphone outputs on the Audient, 6.5 mm to RCA, and 3.5 mm to RCA. Both amps were tested under exactly the same conditions, I set the output level on Audient at around -8 db.
EDIT: headphones are Beyerdynamic dt-990 pro 250 ohms

 

[StratsoundFan]

FWIW, in terms of sheer power/loudness, the headphone out on my Axe fx ii, which is a guitar processor, leaves both of these amps in the dust. I seriously never go past 12 o' clock on that amp when using Beyer dt-990 pro. Most of the time I have the volume knob between 9 and 11 o' clock depending on the preset. It's that powerful.

 

[tlr125]

I was playing thorugh Auident id4 mk ii

i had that crap with 22ohm output on headphone jack, sold instantly, Motu M2 is a waaaaaaaaaaayyy better device
p.s.: i had several amps with different power, and volume knob was always at the same level, but the sound quality and low-freq wasn't the same, L30II shines with "hard to drive" headphones, but there is not much profit while using dynamic headphones below 250ohm, actually good sound card is enough for them (like Creative AE-5 for example)

 

[TK750]

@StratsoundFan

Sorry I don't mean to be rude but it doesn't seem like you paid any attention to what I was saying so I'll reiterate it in a more simple way:
We are not talking about spec, the first post in this thread is literally the measured performance. You are either using the device incorrectly or it is broken, feed it 2V via RCA and you will be giving yourself hearing damage in no time. When used/functioning correctly there is absolutely zero chance any of the devices you have mentioned will come near the volume of the Topping (please note I am making no claims about perceived quality/clarity, simply volume).

 

[StratsoundFan]

@TK750 , there is no way I'm using device incorrectly ( within the boundaries of my own setup, of course). I mean, powering and connecting a headphone amp to an audio interface is not really a rocket science. Regarding feeding it 2V via RCA, what do you mean by that? How do I do it with my setup!?

 

[Vini darko]

Hi if I read these specs rightly 2V out of the interface should be with the volume set to -18db assuming your usb sorce is at full volume.

 

[Nonya]

How do i make the stack portable or can someone recommend a power supply where i can place this in my fanny pack for walks to compete with the kilobuck cayin c9?