Topping NX7 announced

[Veri]

If you look at AliExpress, eBay and Amazon Marketplace it is evident that sales for the NX7 are soft as Charmin. The product is not selling. On AlliExpress NX7 listings show the number of units sold and their extremely low compared to other Topping products. eBay has similar metrics that paint a similar picture of poor sales for the NX7. Amazon also shows very few reviews for the NX7 compared to other Topping products.

It's clear that this product is not selling well. In fact you could deem the NX7 as Dead On Arrival.

This could be th result of a number factors:

1) general weak demand for amp only portables
2) bulkiness
3) overpriced
4) accelerated trend of work from home

Well. I like its performance and look. It's just that I have a Topping NX1s already for when I need a portable amp, I don't currently use 4.4mm so the NX7 is overkill for me.. but I can't really fault anything about it except that it's not dirt cheap

 

[staticV3]

Correct. That is what I'm using for my iPhone or iPad connection.

A2049 and A2155 are Type-C to 3.5mm headphone adapters. A2049 has the full 1Vrms, A2155 is capped to 0.5Vrms:


"Is model A1619 lacking?" sounded to me like you wanted to know if model A1619 was also capped to 0.5Vrms.
That's what confused me. A1619 does not have an analog audio output, so there's nothing there that could be lacking.

 

[staticV3]

How does the Qudelix K5 and the Hidezs S9 Pro, also portable devices, compare to the NX7?

Here you go:


Sources: 5K, S9 Pro, NX7

 

[tifune]

How does the Qudelix K5 and the Hidezs S9 Pro, also portable devices, compare to the NX7? For overall performance, which is most useful? I presume it's the Qudelix K5 since it has PEQ. Now, for portable desktop use, that may change to be the NX7.

They're somewhat different categories. You're correct that, if the Qudelix supplies adequate power for your use case, it's "the best" due to PEQ and other DSP integrations. If you need moer than 4V / 240mW@32 ohms, then of course you have to augment with something else. What headphones do you have?

 

[wacomme]

They're somewhat different categories. You're correct that, if the Qudelix supplies adequate power for your use case, it's "the best" due to PEQ and other DSP integrations. If you need moer than 4V / 240mW@32 ohms, then of course you have to augment with something else. What headphones do you have?

Currently Sundara and 560S, but that could change in the future. This is mainly for my office, but I'm also thinking portable. I currently have the S9 Pro, but may return it within the Amazon return window. The Qudelix is interesting with DSP in that I could make it portable for sports with my Koss KSC75 connected to the Qudelix and bluetooth to my iPhone.

But for non-portable use with my office PC, the NX7 (just a bit more expensive than the S9) might serve me better than the S9.

 

[tifune]

Currently Sundara and 560S, but that could change in the future. This is mainly for my office, but I'm also thinking portable. I currently have the S9 Pro, but may return it within the Amazon return window. The Qudelix is interesting with DSP in that I could make it portable for sports with my Koss KSC75 connected to the Qudelix and bluetooth to my iPhone.

But for non-portable use with my office PC, the NX7 (just a bit more expensive than the S9) might serve me better than the S9.

Well, the S9 and NX7 are a little different as well. The S9 also acts as a DAC, NX7 does not. Qudelix plus NX7 would be ideal for Sundara, although not strictly necessary unless your bass preferences exceed what the Qudelix can give you. Open backs and planars can struggle in that area, put them together (Sundara) and the NX7 may be warranted.

 

[wacomme]

Well, the S9 and NX7 are a little different as well. The S9 also acts as a DAC, NX7 does not. Qudelix plus NX7 would be ideal for Sundara, although not strictly necessary unless your bass preferences exceed what the Qudelix can give you. Open backs and planars can struggle in that area, put them together (Sundara) and the NX7 may be warranted.

Would I be able to use DSP from Qudelix if connected to the NX7 for the amp? Would the amp in the Qudelix be bypassed with connected to the NX7?

 

[tifune]

Would I be able to use DSP from Qudelix if connected to the NX7 for the amp? Would the amp in the Qudelix be bypassed with connected to the NX7?

yes, that's my intended use case. The amp in Qudelix can't really be bypassed in the sense you are probably thinking, there does need to be some output for the NX7 to amplify. I'm not sure it was ever formalized to any degree, but DACs are commonly recognized to output 2V single ended, 4V balanced. Hence my original Q, how do I safely send 4V to a single ended input. All else being equal, properly implemented balanced connections are superior to single-ended . Audibly, I doubt it will matter. I was just trying to use it because it's there.

 

[LearningToSmile]

If you look at AliExpress, eBay and Amazon Marketplace it is evident that sales for the NX7 are soft as Charmin. The product is not selling. On AlliExpress NX7 listings show the number of units sold and their extremely low compared to other Topping products. eBay has similar metrics that paint a similar picture of poor sales for the NX7. Amazon also shows very few reviews for the NX7 compared to other Topping products.

It's clear that this product is not selling well. In fact you could deem the NX7 as Dead On Arrival.

This could be th result of a number factors:

1) general weak demand for amp only portables
2) bulkiness
3) overpriced
4) accelerated trend of work from home

The first reason is most likely key here - most smartphones these days don't even include analog 3.5mm output. This limits the potential consumer base significantly to people who still have a phone with 3.5mm jack or want to run this amp with a dedicated portable media player. Personlly I was hoping for a refresh of the Topping NX4 instead.

 

[Atanasi]

Would I be able to use DSP from Qudelix if connected to the NX7 for the amp? Would the amp in the Qudelix be bypassed with connected to the NX7?

NX7 works well with 5K.
The headphone amp is not bypassed. Chaining amps means 5K's amp stays unloaded. It doesn't harm significantly, in theory the extra amp in the middle adds a bit of distortion.

 

[wacomme]

NX7 works well with 5K.
The headphone amp is not bypassed. Chaining amps means 5K's amp stays unloaded. It doesn't harm significantly, in theory the extra amp in the middle adds a bit of distortion.

What do you mean by the 5K amp stays "unloaded"?

 

[Atanasi]

What do you mean by the 5K amp stays "unloaded"?

Unloaded means "without a load", where the load refers to headphones. The input impedance of an external amp is very high compared to the impedance of headphones. Therefore, very little current is emitted.

 

[wacomme]

The only benefit of the 5K + NX7 compared to just the 5K is additional power - correct?

 

[staticV3]

And longer battery life probably

 

[tifune]

Here you go:
View attachment 208451

Sources: 5K, S9 Pro, NX7

Just curious, where did you find the 4V SE output for the 5K? I know you gave sources, but I don't see that particular spec. In the headphone example spreadsheets, after 2V the rows are labelled 'balanced'. I'm sort in the market for a portable SE device that can do high(er) V for the NX7 as it will take 4V/13V on M/L gain, but I've never actually seen a portable SE device that can output so much. Would be nice if I already owned one and didn't realize it...

 

[staticV3]

I'm confused. The 5K doesn't output more than 2V SE, both according to manufacturer spec, independent testing, and my graph (yellow line).

Edit: if you're looking for a dongle with >2V SE, then take a look at the Apogee Groove or Centrance DACport HD. The former can do 4.6V, the latter 4.1

 

[tifune]

I'm confused. The 5K doesn't output more than 2V SE, both according to manufacturer spec, independent testing, and my graph (yellow line).

Edit: if you're looking for a dongle with >2V SE, then take a look at the Apogee Groove or Centrance DACport HD. The former can do 4.6V, the latter 4.1

Welp, it appears my LASIK may finally be 'wearing off.' After an unreasonable amount of squinting, it seems I was confusing the orange & yellow lines. Regardless, thanks for the recommendations!

 

[juliangst]

Just curious, where did you find the 4V SE output for the 5K? I know you gave sources, but I don't see that particular spec. In the headphone example spreadsheets, after 2V the rows are labelled 'balanced'. I'm sort in the market for a portable SE device that can do high(er) V for the NX7 as it will take 4V/13V on M/L gain, but I've never actually seen a portable SE device that can output so much. Would be nice if I already owned one and didn't realize it...

Same with me. My BTR5 doesn’t even have 2V so I’m looking for a 2V device that‘s small and convenient.

 

[tifune]

Same with me. My BTR5 doesn’t even have 2V so I’m looking for a 2V device that‘s small and convenient.

My confusion not withstanding, the Qudelix really is the best game in town when you add it all up. What are you powering?

 

[juliangst]

My confusion not withstanding, the Qudelix really is the best game in town when you add it all up. What are you powering?

Aeon Noires and they really need that power. My BTR5 works fine but a dongle would be more practical sometimes because I don’t have to charge it and can use it wired. The BTR5 has some problems when using it wired like losing connection