[John Massaria]

Cheaper DAC's are getting better and better, perhaps the D90 MQA follow on will meet your budget requirements.

Actually the recently released D50S is a newer less costly DAC, have you checked that one out?

TOPPING D90 vs TOPPING D50s Comparison Chart
https://apos.audio/blogs/news/topping-d90-vs-topping-d50s-comparison-chart

APOS is having a sale with the D50s+A50s+P50 bundled for $549.99:
https://apos.audio/collections/apos...s-topping-50s-ensemble?variant=32494814429258

And, the A50s is a new headphone AMP with some of the A90 charm


How many hours had you run the "Whammy" and how many hours did you let the new A90 run before giving up the comparison?

This is important as it's not a fair comparison until you let both reach their optimal sound, and out of the box the A90 was very nice, but didn't meet the same enjoyment factor as my FiiO M15 - which had been running constantly for a couple of months.

After a similar time of burn-in the A90 is now my favorite AMP for daily listening. I do enjoy the M15 often, but for daily use the A90 is the one that draws my ears in every time.

I'm happy you like your DIY amp, but next time you give a comparison review please don't give up on the new unit so quickly, please give it a chance to get the same break-in time needed for optimal sound, as the AMP with the "home team" advantage already has.

@Biskwit
Gustard shipped out at least one updated A18 (reported, linked below) with Optical digital input and MQA added, but no official word of announcement has come out that I've seen yet:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...-this-gustard-a18-from-apos.16612/post-537000

The review link you shared is for the previous version, without Optical input or MQA capability.

Honestly I Hear you- take no offense- I like the A90 but compared to the Pass it’s not the same class. To clarify -My PASS was professionally built and I did not DIY myself- but that’s not the point- I had the A90 running everyday for 25 days - playing music breaking in cables and new headphones day and night- I did several headphone reviews and a four cable shootout review all done with the A90 right here on head fi - the last day 26 I brought it and my Pass over to my buds house where we tested three headphones and two different DACs - that’s when I decided to return it without question the whammy is better in every way musically with the dual opa627 class a operation- I have no regrets. Here are some reviews I just did https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/authors/john-massaria.530686/
My friend has all VAC Statement amps and Perfect 8 The Force Speakers with 8 individual subs that together retail at over $500,000- he has a $40,000 DAC - and his one of three record players is the walker audio with stand, the other a Rockport Technologies with that insane stand. The actual owners/ceos of perfect 8, vac and walker audio and stealth audio all stayed at his home because he is gear crazy and knowledgeable- he has over 6 different systems at his 15,000 square ft home- yea he’s got a ton of experience with gear- me I got beer budget with champagne tastes - that’s why I got the A90 and The WHAMMY- THE WHAMMY won out - I encourage you to read my cable review I did with A90 https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/capistranocables-xlr-cables.24634/reviews

 

[Terriero]

Thats incredible, @hmscott. I saw that thread and it seems that it was a mistake of the company that sent the unit from China, because the MQA version will be more expensive (that's what APOs told to him).

Can't wait to order A18 + A90... I hope will be my christmas personal gift The only thing that worries me is how will be the sound of my HD 800 compare to my current Asus Xonar Essence One. I hope it will be better and in the future I plan to buy a Flux labs AMP.

 

[hmscott]

Thanks for response mate! Not enough funds for d90! Aha might buy one soon though but a cheaper dac. Maybe smsl su8

Honestly I Hear you- take no offense- I like the A90 but compared to the Pass it’s not the same class. To clarify -My PASS was professionally built and I did not DIY myself- but that’s not the point- I had the A90 running everyday for 25 days - playing music breaking in cables and new headphones day and night- I did several headphone reviews and a four cable shootout review all done with the A90 right here on head fi - the last day 26 I brought it and my Pass over to my buds house where we tested three headphones and two different DACs - that’s when I decided to return it without question the whammy is better in every way musically with the dual opa627 class a operation- I have no regrets. Here are some reviews I just did https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/authors/john-massaria.530686/
My friend has all VAC Statement amps and perfect 8 Speakers that retail at over $500,000- he has a $40,000 DAC - and his one of three record players is the walker audio with stand, the other a Rockport Technologies with that insane stand. The actual owners/ceos of perfect 8, vac and walker audio and stealth audio all stayed at his home because he is gear crazy and knowledgeable- he has over 6 different systems at his 15,000 square ft home- yea he’s got a ton of experience with gear- me I got beer budget with champagne tastes - that’s why I got the A90 and The WHAMMY- THE WHAMMY won out - I encourage you to read my cable review I did with A90 https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/capistranocables-xlr-cables.24634/reviews

I appreciate the additional details, and of course personal taste and equipment pairings do come into play - and for some music I prefer the FiiO M15 over the A90, so I do know what you are referring to, no AMP is perfect for all situations.

I'm glad you did have the A90 for as long as you did and kept it running all that time, 25 days should be enough to get through the initial break-in - but it does get better over the new few months too, of course not many dealers can provide a 90 day return period

I'd be interested in finding out who I can get to build the same AMP - needs a new name too - the Whammy sounds like a good candidate for me too. If you could DM me the dealer that provided the building services I'd appreciate it.

Thanks again for the details

 

[John Massaria]

I appreciate the additional details, and of course personal taste and equipment pairings do come into play - and for some music I prefer the FiiO M15 over the A90, so I do know what you are referring to, no AMP is perfect for all situations.

I'm glad you did have the A90 for as long as you did and kept it running all that time, 25 days should be enough to get through the initial break-in - but it does get better over the new few months too, of course not many dealers can provide a 90 day return period

I'd be interested in finding out who I can get to build the same AMP - needs a new name too - the Whammy sounds like a good candidate for me too. If you could DM me the dealer that provided the building services I'd appreciate it.

Thanks again for the details

I just sent a pm to you-

 

[newtophones07]

I wound up returning the A90 back to apos after extensive listening. My Pass Class A Whammy which for me and a friend both thought the Pass is much more musical and detailed and has gobs of dynamics the A90 doesn’t- the a90 being full featured but lacking a bit of everyday enjoyment- i also wound up getting the Ray Samuels Apache class a dual mono amp which sounds beyond words but emotional is one of them... but all in all the a90 is a great no noise no fuss amp with tons of inputs and outputs

Where did you order the Pass Class A Whammy from, or did you DIY it yourself?

 

[John Massaria]

Where did you order the Pass Class A Whammy from, or did you DIY it yourself?

No the Ampbuilder on Etsy did it for me - and the dual opa627 with three other opas to test- he also did my Bottlehead crack build w/sb

 

[hmscott]

Thats incredible, @hmscott. I saw that thread and it seems that it was a mistake of the company that sent the unit from China, because the MQA version will be more expensive (that's what APOs told to him).

Can't wait to order A18 + A90... I hope will be my Christmas personal gift The only thing that worries me is how will be the sound of my HD 800 compare to my current Asus Xonar Essence One. I hope it will be better and in the future I plan to buy a Flux labs AMP.

Yes, it was an unannounced upgrade of the A18 he ordered. Gustard had been expected to make an upgrade to the A22 (add MQA), and the A18 absence of the Optical interface as noted by many was apparently more important - and while Gustard were updating the A18 they completed the upgrade by adding MQA.

Gustard also makes more models in the MiniDesktop stack besides the A18, and Gustard might be upgrading those too, perhaps one of those will be an updated headphone amp.

 

[newtophones07]

No the Ampbuilder on Etsy did it for me - and the dual opa627 with three other opas to test- he also did my Bottlehead crack build w/sb

Cool I will check that person out. I cant solder well enough to complete an entire amp lol

Is this the seller?

https://www.etsy.com/listing/780640...f=sr_gallery-1-2&organic_search_click=1&frs=1

 

[John Massaria]

Cool I will check that person out. I cant solder well enough to complete an entire amp lol

Is this the seller?

https://www.etsy.com/listing/780640...f=sr_gallery-1-2&organic_search_click=1&frs=1

yes - we probably shouldnt hi-jack the topping A90 thread- there are lots of reviews on that build btw- but make sure try and get dual OPA627bp

 

[hmscott]

yes - we probably shouldnt hi-jack the topping A90 thread- there are lots of reviews on that build btw- but make sure try and get dual OPA627bp

Not a problem, we all like to hear comparisons to other competitive products in the same class as discussed in a thread, and in case anyone is interested in learning more about the Whammy, here's a couple of threads here on head-fi:
https://www.head-fi.org/search/2558552/?q=whammy+amp&o=relevance

This looks like the main thread:

PASS DIY Headphone Amp - WHAMMY
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/pass-diy-headphone-amp-whammy.877569/

 

[Superpong]

Does anyone listen to the combo m400+A90 and feel that it better matches than D90+A90? I feel like m400+A90 is very much more musical. I don't know how to describe in technical terms, but overall sound is very pleasing and better draw me into the music.

 

[makatech]

Does anyone listen to the combo m400+A90 and feel that it better matches than D90+A90? I feel like m400+A90 is very much more musical. I don't know how to describe in technical terms, but overall sound is very pleasing and better draw me into the music.

Interesting, you have been able to do an a & b comparison between D90 and m400 together with A90 and you like m400 more?

It's a tough competition in this "range" though:

SMSL SU-9 (ESS SABRE9038Pro)
D90 (AK4499)
m400 (AK4499)
not to forget the newly updated MQA / optical input version of Gustard A18 (AK4499)

All of these having MQA support and optical inputs with rather similar specs.

For A90 I find it a bit surprising Shiit Magnius haven't been discussed more, $199 vs $499 (A90), a huge difference in price. Shiit Magnius have good measurements if running it balanced. I have the A90 myself though and I like it but before buying it now I would for sure take a deeper look at Magnius first (from a value point of view). Magnius may not be optimal for IEMs though (no negative gain switch I think?).

 

[Superpong]

Interesting, you have been able to do an a & b comparison between D90 and m400 together with A90 and you like m400 more?

It's a tough competition in this "range" though:

SMSL SU-9 (ESS SABRE9038Pro)
D90 (AK4499)
m400 (AK4499)
not to forget the newly updated MQA / optical input version of Gustard A18 (

All of these having MQA support and optical inputs with rather similar specs.

For A90 I find it a bit surprising Shiit Magnius haven't been discusssed more, $199 vs $499 (A90), a huge difference in price. Shiit Magnius have good measurements if running it balanced. I have the A90 myself though and I like it but before buying it now I would for sure take a deeper look at Magnius first (from a value point of view).

I never tried SU9 and Gustard. However I do like both D90+A90 and m400+A90. Both sets are outstanding, and I too cannot decide yet, but I just feel like the m400+A90 better draws me into each song I play. My setup are iPad mini4 running Neutron app+Oyaide USB V2+Ventere D-fi XLR cable, and Focal Clear.

 

[makatech]

I never tried SU9 and Gustard. However I do like both D90+A90 and m400+A90. Both sets are outstanding, and I too cannot decide yet, but I just feel like the m400+A90 better draws me into each song I play. My setup are iPad mini4 running Neutron app+Oyaide USB V2+Ventere D-fi XLR cable, and Focal Clear.

Interesting, personally I am interested/curious in Gustard A18 but I would like some more information and reviews first. Gustard A18 also having the AK4499 DAC chip, MQA, optical input (new version) etc but for a much lower price.

Question is perhaps when we will start seeing lower prices for m400 and D90.

 

[blackdragon87]

I've had my A90 for a week now and thought I'd post some impressions.

Build: I think the appeal of something like the A90 is not really its build quality and aesthetics. But I wanted to post some comments because I see a fair few posters saying the build quality is great. IMO it’s not. It’s very average. The case is metal, but it’s the most plastic-y metal I’ve ever seen. It’s destroyed by Schiit amps. So bear that in mind if build and aesthetics matter to you.

The volume knob is pretty bad too. The A90 knob is only marginally better than the SP200 knob, if at all. The turn is loose and imprecise and it feels cheap. Again the Schiit knobs destroy it.

Sound quality: I personally find it much easier and more useful to discuss SQ relative to comparable amps, so...

A90 v SP200

I half expected this comparison to be very close. I really wanted something with pre-outs and so any SQ improvement was going to be a bonus. But the A90 is significantly better in every way. Better detail retrieval, imaging, sound stage, balance. Tonally they’re broadly similar, although the SP200 has a honky mid/upper bass bloat I hadn’t really noticed until putting it against the A90. The A90 is flatter, more neutral. I think the price difference is justified by the performance of the two.

A90 v Jotunheim

This is a tricky comparison because these two are polar opposites. The A90 is balanced, flat, airy and laid back. The Jot is dynamic, meaty, aggressive and intimate. The Jot is more mid forward, the A90 is dead flat. In technical terms, I think the A90 is probably the better amp. It has better detail retrieval, separation, 3-D, sound stage and balance. But it is very slightly cold/clinical/digital sounding. The Jot has a beautiful rich and natural timbre to it that I prefer to the A90. The slight coldness of the A90 make it slightly less forgiving than the Jot and it can sound a touch splashy on some recordings. I do want to make it clear though that these negatives are very, very slight. Because these amps are so different, AB-ing them exaggerates these qualities. But I think it’s worth pointing them out because if you’re particularly sensitive to them it could matter to you.

I’m keeping both the Jot and A90. My Jot has the MB card and I use it in the bedroom. If I could only keep one, it would be the A90. But there is a magic to the Jot I’d miss. An amp that combined the a90s technical performance with the Jot’s timbre would be my end game I suspect it exists but is a level up in price range

thanks for this. considering getting a a90 next. also own a multibit jot and a bifrost 2 for dac