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Topping TP30 initial impressions, warning, and repair impressions
Dec 30, 2010 at 7:35 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 21
RockItToTheMoon

RockItToTheMoon

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About 2 months ago I bought a Topping TP30 off ebay. It's a combo USB DAC, T-Amp, and headphone amp. 
 
It's the first DAC or headphone amp I've bought so I can't compare it to others, but thought I'd post some initial impressions and a funny story.
 
When it arrived I tried it out with my Grado 325. Much to my chagrin, the left side was entirely missing, only to be heard if I torqued the cable to the left. I figured the headphone jack was defective. So, I emailed the seller in Hong Kong to ask him to send me a replacement. He said he'd refund my money if I shipped the amp back to him. 
 
I didn't really want to spend time at the post office, particularly during the holiday season, so figured I'd see if I could just solder in a new jack myself.
 
I opened the amp up, flipped over the board and found, to my surprise, that the factory had forgotten to solder in the headphone jack! With a little bit of force, I could completely remove the jack from the board. That's some nice quality control...
 

 
Just a few minutes of fun with the soldering iron later, it looked like this:

 
Now it works and sounds fine.
 
So, bad QC aside, how does it sound?
Pretty nice. I haven't yet really given it a thorough listen with my SR325 yet, but can say that it sounds quite nice with Etymotic ER6i and Shure SE210. My customs are out for adjustment, so I haven't listened on those yet.
 
The speaker out sounds nice. A little warm, which I like. 
 
I'll post an update when I do some detailed listening with my Grados, but for now, thought I'd share the hilarity of the jack.
 
 
 
 
Jan 23, 2011 at 1:46 AM Post #2 of 21
Just because of you, I opened my tp30 (that I bought to use with my not so cheap HP pc from work with its schiity sound codec chip) and seems all is well soldered. The amp sound good and i must say its sounds a little warm to me... witch i like too :D
 
(Yeah... that Schiit name and use of it is fun :D )
 
PD: i was thinking about changing the right led to an orange or red led... so the volume knob goes from cool and cold blue to a hot and bright red when the volume is at max. 
 
Feb 13, 2011 at 7:37 AM Post #3 of 21
Hi, since i'm interested too in the TP30 as a cheap headpgone amplifier, can you tell how it sounds thru the hp out? I would use a pair of Sennh HD 558 in my bedroom with the notebook (so i need an amp with integrated usb souncard/DAC).
Thanks
 
Jun 25, 2012 at 6:51 AM Post #4 of 21
Have to necro this 16-month old thread - cant believe this little T-amp has attracted so little discussion here. 
 
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13645_3-20058833-47.html
 
I guess there are plenty of USB DAC/amps on ebay for around the hundred USD mark, and this thread didnt start terribly well with the crap quality control issue, but how many of those will also drive (sensitive) speakers ? Nuforce had the Icon a couple of years back, but there is very little out there to assist anyone in choosing between the two. 
 
Personally, I'd be interested in hearing the Topping flagship, the TP60 - more power to drive 'regular' speakers. 
 
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=420848
 
Finally, I'll leave you with a few words from one of the more outspoken characters in audio, Mr Lukasz Fikus, creator of the Lampizator DAC. I never know quite how to take this guy, and some of his website strikes me as being distinctly tongue-in-cheek, but for a tube zealot to speak so highly of such a cheap transistor amp is extroadinary, He is talking about the Trends TA-10,1, one of the first Tripath amps to make a splash in the audio universe. 
 
Tripath chip is a breakthrough in technology. Amplifiers based on it are energy efficient, cold, small and above all - sound as good as the best transistor amps. As good as medium tube amps. I would say that this amp equalled my fully tweaked Music Angel KT88 push pull. For people who appreciate good sound, Tripath is a good news. It has open sound, with lots of information, nuances, great space, pace, rhythm, and power authority. It is easy on the ear the way tubes are - we want to listen and listen without fatigue. Very analog like and natural musical product
 
Aug 9, 2012 at 9:50 PM Post #5 of 21
I've had the Topping TP30 for a while driving my computer speakers (Polk Audio RTi A1) and I've been very happy with this amp. The only thing I wish is that it had a little more power, but overall its almost perfect for what I need it for.
 
Aug 10, 2012 at 12:17 PM Post #6 of 21
Aug 10, 2012 at 1:03 PM Post #7 of 21
Nov 22, 2012 at 12:08 PM Post #13 of 21
wyyam said:
ebay will scam ppl 1 or not?
Click to expand...


You understand that eBay is composed of hundreds of thousands of individual sellers, right? You might get along better if you take the time to write in complete sentences so that we can actually understand your questions. If English is not your first language, that's OK - just do the best you can - but that was completely unintelligible.
 
Dec 10, 2012 at 9:14 AM Post #14 of 21
Hi,
 
I received my TP30 today. My impressions:
 
1. Wow ... really nice made for what it costs.
2. Works with Win 7 64 Pro as DAC (tried the FiiO Alpen 17 before, was not able to make it work with Win7 64)
3. Sound is flawless and powerful enough for my Headphones here (Philips X1 and Sony EX1000 at the moment), so no big thing, both are 32 Ohm types.
4. Check out system configuration, you can push base at 50 Hz / 3 or 6 dB, makes it sound more warm and adds some character to the flat amping :wink:
 
5.  Love this DAC/amp, a absolute nobrainer ... wonderful piece and worth every cent. (bought from ebay (seller: leadme-shop) / takes 4 weeks from HongKong to Europe ... contact was O.K.)
 
Jul 3, 2013 at 11:59 AM Post #15 of 21
Quote:
rockittothemoon said:
About 2 months ago I bought a Topping TP30 off ebay. It's a combo USB DAC, T-Amp, and headphone amp. 
 
It's the first DAC or headphone amp I've bought so I can't compare it to others, but thought I'd post some initial impressions and a funny story.
 
When it arrived I tried it out with my Grado 325. Much to my chagrin, the left side was entirely missing, only to be heard if I torqued the cable to the left. I figured the headphone jack was defective. So, I emailed the seller in Hong Kong to ask him to send me a replacement. He said he'd refund my money if I shipped the amp back to him. 
 
I didn't really want to spend time at the post office, particularly during the holiday season, so figured I'd see if I could just solder in a new jack myself.
 
I opened the amp up, flipped over the board and found, to my surprise, that the factory had forgotten to solder in the headphone jack! With a little bit of force, I could completely remove the jack from the board. That's some nice quality control...
 

 
Just a few minutes of fun with the soldering iron later, it looked like this:

 
Now it works and sounds fine.
 
So, bad QC aside, how does it sound?
Pretty nice. I haven't yet really given it a thorough listen with my SR325 yet, but can say that it sounds quite nice with Etymotic ER6i and Shure SE210. My customs are out for adjustment, so I haven't listened on those yet.
 
The speaker out sounds nice. A little warm, which I like. 
 
I'll post an update when I do some detailed listening with my Grados, but for now, thought I'd share the hilarity of the jack.
 
 
 
Click to expand...

 
Quote:
gatomalaco said:
Just because of you, I opened my tp30 (that I bought to use with my not so cheap HP pc from work with its schiity sound codec chip) and seems all is well soldered. The amp sound good and i must say its sounds a little warm to me... witch i like too :D
 
(Yeah... that Schiit name and use of it is fun :D )
 
PD: i was thinking about changing the right led to an orange or red led... so the volume knob goes from cool and cold blue to a hot and bright red when the volume is at max. 
Click to expand...

 
Quote:
avvalex said:
Hi, since i'm interested too in the TP30 as a cheap headpgone amplifier, can you tell how it sounds thru the hp out? I would use a pair of Sennh HD 558 in my bedroom with the notebook (so i need an amp with integrated usb souncard/DAC).
Thanks
Click to expand...

 
Quote:
estreeter said:
Have to necro this 16-month old thread - cant believe this little T-amp has attracted so little discussion here. 
 
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13645_3-20058833-47.html
 
I guess there are plenty of USB DAC/amps on ebay for around the hundred USD mark, and this thread didnt start terribly well with the crap quality control issue, but how many of those will also drive (sensitive) speakers ? Nuforce had the Icon a couple of years back, but there is very little out there to assist anyone in choosing between the two. 
 
Personally, I'd be interested in hearing the Topping flagship, the TP60 - more power to drive 'regular' speakers. 
 
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=420848
 
Finally, I'll leave you with a few words from one of the more outspoken characters in audio, Mr Lukasz Fikus, creator of the Lampizator DAC. I never know quite how to take this guy, and some of his website strikes me as being distinctly tongue-in-cheek, but for a tube zealot to speak so highly of such a cheap transistor amp is extroadinary, He is talking about the Trends TA-10,1, one of the first Tripath amps to make a splash in the audio universe. 
 
Tripath chip is a breakthrough in technology. Amplifiers based on it are energy efficient, cold, small and above all - sound as good as the best transistor amps. As good as medium tube amps. I would say that this amp equalled my fully tweaked Music Angel KT88 push pull. For people who appreciate good sound, Tripath is a good news. It has open sound, with lots of information, nuances, great space, pace, rhythm, and power authority. It is easy on the ear the way tubes are - we want to listen and listen without fatigue. Very analog like and natural musical product
Click to expand...

 
Quote:
optik said:
I've had the Topping TP30 for a while driving my computer speakers (Polk Audio RTi A1) and I've been very happy with this amp. The only thing I wish is that it had a little more power, but overall its almost perfect for what I need it for.
Click to expand...

 
Quote:
mr.tom said:
Partsexpress has the full line.
 
http://www.parts-express.com/wizards/searchResults.cfm?searchFilter=topping%20amp
Click to expand...

 
Quote:
wje said:
 
Correct.  Also, though, there are some vendors listed via Amazon that offer the Topping products at prices that are a bit more attractive than even Parts Express - depending on the amp / DAC that you're looking for.
Click to expand...

 
Quote:
wyyam said:
sorry out of topic a bit..

where u buy this tp 30?

i oso wanna buy it..

can give me link?
Click to expand...

 
Quote:
airwin said:
Hi,
 
I received my TP30 today. My impressions:
 
1. Wow ... really nice made for what it costs.
2. Works with Win 7 64 Pro as DAC (tried the FiiO Alpen 17 before, was not able to make it work with Win7 64)
3. Sound is flawless and powerful enough for my Headphones here (Philips X1 and Sony EX1000 at the moment), so no big thing, both are 32 Ohm types.
4. Check out system configuration, you can push base at 50 Hz / 3 or 6 dB, makes it sound more warm and adds some character to the flat amping :wink:
 
5.  Love this DAC/amp, a absolute nobrainer ... wonderful piece and worth every cent. (bought from ebay (seller: leadme-shop) / takes 4 weeks from HongKong to Europe ... contact was O.K.)
Click to expand...

 
Sry for bumping an OLD thread..i got a question that i always had in my mind..i got mine tp30 about month ago cause i was attracted to the design/built quality and the cheap price, but one question come to my mind after reading the manual about the tp30, it say that it will cut the amp (tripath ta2024) if you put in ur headphone jack into headphone input.so does it only use the DAC (pcm 2704) inside if you are using headphone instead of speaker? i need someone to clarify this..sry for my bad english i hope u guys undertsand what im asking. xD
 
 
summary from my question:
1) Auto shut off amp chip if headphone is in use?
2) The DAC( pcm2704) inside can be use as Pre DAC with O2(objective 2) amp?
 
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