[m-i-c-k-e-y]

-> What he said...

 

[AudioQuality777]

Can any of You use an XLR > RCA adapter.
According to what scheme is your adapter XLR> RCA soldered?
Top or bottom of the image?

 

[NA Blur]

The Drop THX 789 is a great amp. I have it paired with the D70, balanced and the combo sounds full, clear and can go as loud as a human can stand with very low distortion. I've also heard good things about the Monoprice 889.

This is also my setup...D90 + Drop THS 789. Paired with headphones like the HE-400i and Aeon Flow Open you have reached end game.

 

[NA Blur]

I have the D70 running through a THX AAA 789 and I thought it was bright initially but after several months of use it has calmed down quite a bit or my ears are getting accustomed to it-I'm not sure which. I am intrigued by the D90 simply because of the newer chips. I admit it- I'm a sucker for new tech. Has anyone tried the D90 with any Focal headphones?

What headphones are you listening to when you feel the setup is bright? All the measurements should enforce the idea that amps and DAC's really don't add much to the frequency response. More likely, the clarity and lack of distortion is leading to the true sound signature of your headphones.

 

[John Massaria]

Can any of You use an XLR > RCA adapter.
According to what scheme is your adapter XLR> RCA soldered?
Top or bottom of the image?

I can tell you I am using the Topping D90 with a
LyxPro Y-Cable 3.5mm Male to 2 RCA Female Stereo Audio Extension Y-Splitter Adapter Cable - 3 Feet for less than $10! https://www.amazon.com/LyxPro-Y-Cable-Extension-Y-Splitter-Adapter/dp/B01MYOCP35
for my powered sub sat Jamo system, and using RCA outs of D90 for my two other amps, one PASS WHAMMY and one Bottlehead Crack +SB. I have zero issues and it sounds amazing.

 

[John Massaria]

What headphones are you listening to when you feel the setup is bright? All the measurements should enforce the idea that amps and DAC's really don't add much to the frequency response. More likely, the clarity and lack of distortion is leading to the true sound signature of your headphones.

I thought the Topping D90 is a bit bright but now I realize it's just a magnifier of music quality, source, wires and amps. I just hooked up my bottlehead crack +sb to HD600 and RCA cables by Stealth Audio Wire (hybrid) and it is so detailed warm and beautiful. Such slam and warmth bliss. I use the Pass WHAMMY for my low impedance headphones and IEMs - both have thier advantages to bringing out the most of the D90. I will say if you find the D90 too bright try using a different USB wire- I did and it made a huge difference. I am using Kimber USB B. I would also try using an all copper wired RCA or XLR wire - make sure there is no tinning or silver plating or mixing of wire for D90 at all. Also power cables- I am using the http://www.signalcable.com/power_cables.html - the Magic Power Cord is the most warm sounding PC I heard without subtracting detail. I have the Digital and video wire by Signal as well and the Magic Power is warmer. I also use TG Audio HSR-I for Bottlehead and ZCable for computer. Wire regardless of opinion - really does tame a system- I don't care what anyone else says - they do make a marked huge difference. Stock USB that came with Topping D90 were better than Monster Cable USB by a long shot, but the Kimber definitely beat the stock USB by a long shot again. Right now listening to Lightning Crashes by LIVE- wow is all I can say on Ultra HD Amazon Tracks.

 

[Interceptor69]

What headphones are you listening to when you feel the setup is bright? All the measurements should enforce the idea that amps and DAC's really don't add much to the frequency response. More likely, the clarity and lack of distortion is leading to the true sound signature of your headphones.

Focal Elex but this was the first quality headphone set-up I'd ever heard so I chalked it up to not being accustomed to such high sound quality. Now it just sounds sublime.

 

[AudioQuality777]

I can tell you I am using the Topping D90 with a
LyxPro Y-Cable 3.5mm Male to 2 RCA Female Stereo Audio Extension Y-Splitter Adapter Cable - 3 Feet for less than $10! https://www.amazon.com/LyxPro-Y-Cable-Extension-Y-Splitter-Adapter/dp/B01MYOCP35
for my powered sub sat Jamo system, and using RCA outs of D90 for my two other amps, one PASS WHAMMY and one Bottlehead Crack +SB. I have zero issues and it sounds amazing.

Thanks. You have a different connector in the cable.I make the connection cable myself.Therefore, it is not the price that matters here, but the necessary desoldering of the wire to the amplifier.The first scenario here is the adaptor I have collected and the result is very good.But maybe the second option is better?

 

[NA Blur]

It's not uncommon for powerful and clean amps to sound bright. They bring out those treble peaks that many headphones have in them.

 

[AudioQuality777]

I read the Internet tips and as a result it turned out that the second option where the 1 and 3 contacts are closed can ruin Your D90.When using an XLR>RCA adapter.CORRECTLY there are two options 1variant. do not short 1 with 3 contacts.3 the contact is empty. 2 option 1 and 3 the contact is closed via a 1 kom resistor!!!

 

[hmscott]

"Contact has been Made"

I'm listening to this playlist of 192khz MQA, with the Windows 10 Tidal app Settings => Speakers (D90 MQA) => Settings Enabled: Use Exclusive Mode, Force Volume, Passthrough MQA:
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/bd51ad45-df8a-4333-8615-d7526b80b70a

Here's the other half of the stack:

I'm using a 4.4mm to XLR Asura Pigtail adapter, right now with a SendyAudio Aiva, with a TinHifi P1, and started with the Sennheiser HD 598cs 3.5mm=>6.35mm adapter.

Sounds great.

 

[Dixter]

Just wonder anyone using iPurifier3 with the DAC?

I put one on it yesterday while I'm burning it in... for me the D90 sounded edgy on the top end when I first started playing it... so I put the iPUrifier3 on it and it did seem to tame it a bit.... will see how the D90 sounds without it in a couple more days of playing..also I think this DAC may need darker sounding headphones... we will know in a couple more days....

 

[theveterans]

This is fake news!
MQA is The end game!
MQA wins you all lose!

Given that no one can't really hear beyond 17 bits on normal volume listening, a 24/48 MQA that can reliably decode to 96KHz through 1st unfold is still pretty good. But MQA can never reach the true fidelity of DXD studio masters

 

[hmscott]

I put one on it yesterday while I'm burning it in... for me the D90 sounded edgy on the top end when I first started playing it... so I put the iPUrifier3 on it and it did seem to tame it a bit.... will see how the D90 sounds without it in a couple more days of playing..also I think this DAC may need darker sounding headphones... we will know in a couple more days....

I've noticed the first 10-15 minutes of the D90 "warming up" can be edgy, but after that it is well behaved. Those USB line cleaners don't do anything useful - they can cause more noise than they remove.

Same goes for the more expensive ones, you can't create valid data out of nothingness. They can make the sound change, but it's a loss of data not an improvement in integrity of the original data.

The original design of the DAC USB will take all of the cleaning of signal into account you will need.

If you don't have a shielded USB cable that would be a better way to spend the $. A short as needed length + shielding will be enough. There's not going to be loss of signal or need for regen in that short of a distance. Give the source a chance to deliver the best data, use a data only cable designed for the purpose. If you use a data + power cable you might pass power noise (PC), so use a cable wired for data only.

The D90 has mellowed out for me even in the short time I've had it running. I'm listening with TinHifi P1's - very bright planer IEM's - and I don't have any fatigue listening for hours, same for the planar SendyAudio Aiva's.

And, I have the D90 set to Filter 4 in the Boot Menu - which delivers more high frequency detail - it could be considered bright, but besides the first 10-15 minutes the D90 isn't too bright on "bright" headphones.

I've found putting the D90 in DAC only mode, disabling BT, turning off RCA, setting the Filter to #4 worked well.

Update: To further clarify where I got the filter settings from:
I've tried all the filters and to me they are all the same enough not to matter which #filter I leave it on.

I started out going by what the one review I found said, because he was deciding which filter to choose by the FFT Spectrum graphs in the D90 manual:

Tips & Tricks
https://www.smsl-topping.com/blog-New-product-2545/Topping-D90-MQA-Review-–-Majestic-Quick-Accurate-11533340.html#Tips
"Lastly, if you check the user manual carefully, the FFT Spectrum will show the measured difference of those 6 digital filters, out of those Filter 3 and Filter 4 have the lowest ringing past 20 kHz, this is why I recommend using filter no.3 for a smoother top end or filter no.4 for more treble presence past 24 kHz."

For now I'll leave the D90 on Filter #4.

 

[Taz777]

I've found putting the D90 in DAC only mode, disabling BT, turning off RCA, setting the Filter to #4 worked well.

This is pretty much my configuration, apart from the use of Filter #6 for me, and the use of I2S rather than USB. The XLR outputs do provide a small improvement to sound quality.