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Topping D50 DAC

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Topping D50 DAC

Name: Topping D50 DAC
Brand: Topping
SKU: topping-d50-dac
Price: 165 USD
Availability: OutOfStock
Rating: 4.103448 (29 reviews)

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Product Description

Topping has gained a loyal following for its line of accurate, competitively priced DACs, which includes the DX7 series and the D30. For those looking to pair their DAC with a high-end headphone amplifier, look no further than the Topping D50 Read More

Customer Reviews

4.1

(29 reviews)

(17)

(5)

(3)

(1)

(3)

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freshbakedbread

Nov 20, 2021

Verified Buyer

Topping quality and support is lacking... sounds good but...

First off, I'm not going to write a long review as there are plenty of professional reviews out there like at Audio Science Review. What I am going to ding (and yes, this is my experience as I know there are many Topping fanboys but I'm not one of them) is there quality and support. On the 50, my toggle failed within a week. Drop was great and returned it no problem. I also owned their model 30 that was one of the units that blew up headphones and they refused to replace the unit (not Drop). Sure, this isn't a review for that but you need to know that the company does not support their product even in warranty (or you're sending it back to China). Not a fan of this company. My opinion.

Recommends this product? No

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neilmc

Oct 20, 2019

Verified Buyer

Amended review

PREVIOUS REVIEW: I got my D50 DAC today, downloaded the drivers, connected the USB cord to my laptop, pushed the DAC power button, and... absolutely nothing. DAC did not power up. I went to the Topping D50 driver software link, and a little dialogue box popped up, but it said ‘no device connected.’ I deliberately wanted to hear what it sounded like with just USB-derived power before exploring other options. Could the software not recognize the device because it’s not powered on? I could always take an iPod cubic wall wart and connect it to the power in using the provided USB to barrel plug cable, but first should I be worried that it’s not turning on at all? Thanks! AMENDMENT: I got input from another user website. Although the owner’s manual would lead one to believe that the unit could be powered from the audio signal USB cable, that is not true. The USB to barrel plug cable must also be used. The sound from the D50 is noticeably better than my previous DAC, the Schiit Modi 2. I’ve had limited listening so far, but one live recording in particular had a wider soundstage and the acoustic instruments had a sharper more “real” sound.

(Edited)

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Ollieyoda

Apr 23, 2019

Verified Buyer

originally received a dead on arrival unit. Got an DAC R ERR and DAC L ERR message. Tried updating firmware and drivers but the unit itself was broken. Massdrop quickly sent a replacement unit hat works well.

(Edited)

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Wick

Mar 17, 2019

Verified Buyer

My favorable impression of this DAC is based on my preliminary listening. The unit is not fully burned in, if that makes a difference. I use the Hiby R6 as a transport, and connected to the D50 using its coax connection. From there to a Schiit Magni3 and on to Oppo PM2 headphones. I found the sound quite full and meaty. Bass seemed tightly controlled and not thumpy. Treble was, if anything, a little recessed but certainly present and not fatiguing as it can be with this amp. I'm not thrilled with the joystick controller which is a little twitchy, but for the most part you don't need it. You plug in your source and start listening. The volume ramps up, which is helpful if you have your amp set too high. Otherwise there is nothing to complain about. I will be listening with a different combination of equipment and may well report back in with further impressions.

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zenbert

175

Mar 16, 2019

Verified Buyer

My rating is based on performance to price and comparing with a Nuforce DAC80. The Topping D50 DAC is a well priced performance DAC that provides both 32bit/768KHz and DSD streaming. It is very compact, feels solid like a small brick, supports optical, coax and USB inputs. The only output is RCA which works fine for most amps in the similar class as this device (say < $1K). I read about the measurements from audiosciencereview (https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/review-and-measurements-of-topping-d50-dac.2403/) and was encouraged this would be good with my Beyer A20. After using this combo for a couple of weeks, here's my subjective impressions vs the Nuforce DAC80:

The DAC80 is more neutral and warm sounding
D50 has noticeable better range and punctuates noticeably more on the treble, higher frequency side
D50 is very portable measuring may be 3" x 3" x ~1" which is awesome for vacations if you have a similar size amp
The D50 is noticeably more digital in sound signature

Be curious to hear folks using equalizers with this. I didn't discern much difference between the Chord Mojo and the D50 with BeyerA20--listening casually. I do have a Gustard X22 now, and the Gustard clearly does a better job at extending the resolution (what you hear) while maintaining a neutral overall character. However it is 4-5x the price. The subjective test was done on the same WA22 (Woo) tube amp.

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zenbert

175

Mar 19, 2019

Thanks for the feedback. I think I understand the confusion and is my liberal use of the words. So what I meant by neutral is that the DAC80 seems to have less of the peaks and valleys in the frequency response; that is the D50 sounds more apparent--particularly on the treble side. The warm description is an overall feel to the sound where it is closer to that of a tube--more analog sounding. Hope that make sense and appreciate the call out. Personally I wouldn't invest in a DAC80 now given it's several years old. The fact it's limited to 24bit/192Khz isn't an issue for the formats I'm using and is still good with vocals, jazz, club music, etc.

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dukeincleve

Mar 19, 2019

zenbertThanks for your rapid response. I think I understand what you were getting at, now.

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Skunky

Mar 9, 2019

Verified Buyer

Can't beat it for the money. Sound quality is right up there.

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mrbee70

Mar 28, 2019

Skunky*doesn't say anything negative* *gives it 4 stars*

Sladei

Mar 5, 2019

Verified Buyer

Beats the schiitt ModI version 1 previously using

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Chaba

Feb 18, 2019

Verified Buyer

Sounds just better than my wa7 built in dac. Looks good and never gets hot.

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logic

Jan 19, 2019

Verified Buyer

As usual, other people have said more useful things more eloquently than I could about this unit. See here for a (very long) thread about the technical chops this DAC has: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/review-and-measurements-of-topping-d50-dac.2403/ For my purposes, it's perfect; I paired it with a JDS Labs Atom, and it rests on top perfectly, like they were made to go together (and the weight is appreciated due to how light the Atom is). The tiny footprint tucks nicely into a corner on my nightstand, and along with the Atom, feeds both my headphones and a pair of active speakers. The display is bright and easy to read (it's basically a mini version of the one on it's big brother, the DX7s), and I really appreciate the auto-standby in the bedroom. I usually drive it with my smartphone, which I have a wireless charger for (so I can both charge and play music). The only downside I see is that, due to it's size, you're not getting any balanced connections. For my needs, that was perfect (smaller was better). Also, because of the size, the controls are tiny; my giant meathooks have a hard time working them, but I find I rarely touch the front-panel controls under regular use anyway. I debated getting this, or trying to fashion a case for the Khadas Tone Board, which is a solid performer for significantly less money (in exchange for quite a few features), but in this case the ergonomics/industrial design of the D50 really won me over; I didn't want to deal with some home-grown plasticky thing in my bedroom. For a more invisible permanent installation (something I mounted under a table, behind in a cabinet, etc), I'd probably go with the tone board. tl;dr: the D50 is audibly neutral, reasonably priced (especially here on MD), hefty enough to not slide around under the weight of the attached cables, and the display and overall appearance is great. If you don't need balanced connections and can deal with the itty bitty controls, it's a winner in my book.

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frisbie55

Jan 15, 2019

Verified Buyer

Toggle for volume is poor design. Needs a good power supply. Don’t count on computer for power.

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IanS

Jan 16, 2019

frisbie55What would you suggest as a good PSU. I've been plugging it into a USB socket in my desktop PC. How much effect do +5 V power supplies have with this DAC?

(Edited)