Just got mine today! Ordered from Apos not long after it was listed for sale. It was shipped directly from China.
BUILD:
The sheet metal is pretty thick which is great. Stax SRM-400S metal on the top/side is quite thin in comparison. Jade II amp is like a tank ... which seems excessive for a headphone amp. The size of the EHA5 is ALMOST perfect. It's a bit too tall to fit in a standard 2U rack space, and because of the wider front plate: it's a bit too wide for standard half-rack width. For example: on a standard 19" studio rack shelf: I can sort of fit a Motu MK5 (half-rack-width) next to it - as long as I slide the Motu in from behind but it's a really tight squeeze. I'd suggest for future releases that Topping (and all manufacturers) try to keep in mind standard rack widths & heights. That way consumers can easily stack gear on top of eachother or side by side in standard racks. The SRM-400S/most stax amps are way too long: Even 8 channel speaker amps for actual movie theatres aren't as deep! The SRM-252S is probably 1/5th the volume of even the Topping so that's obviously the most portable/smallest. I guess you do get TWO headphone outputs from the Jade II/Stax SRM-400S amps - which are essentially 2x the size of the EHA5. But how many people in the world are actually going to buy two ES headphones to run from their amp to listen with a friend at the same exact volume as you can't control the 2nd headphone volume separately? So yeah, the dual outputs seems pointless for 99% of users.
The dual TRS/XLR input is nice: the only ES amp I've owned that had that feature. The volume knob is better than the Topping L50 knob. It's similar to the quality of the SRM-400S knob. I don't notice really any difference in volume from left/right at low volumes which is good. (SRM-252S at low volumes is a bit unequal) Jade II knob was the best though as it had indented positions for specific volume levels and felt great.
As far as heat: I've had it on a few hours now and it's not really warm at all. My Motu MK5 is definitely much warmer.
SOUND:
As far as volume: it drives my Stax L300's louder than I'd ever need them to be. I had Jade II headphones before and they took a similar amount of power: so you should be fine with Jade II's also.
I'm not sure if these can take professional level level DAC's (MOTU/LYNX/RME- that pump out over 8V instead of 4V) - If anyone knows for sure: it would be good to know!
I did output full levels from Motu MK5 (8V+) and at the LOW setting on the Topping: it sounded pretty clear without distortion ... but I'd never actually listen that loud.
As far as sound quality: As far as I can remember it sounds as good as the large SRM-400S/Jade II amps I've owned before. I sold my 400S when I saw rumors of this coming out not too long ago - Admittedly I sold the 400S as I was annoyed that I had to have my entire rack stick out from the wall due to how long it was. (Figured It would sound the same/similar - and it seems to)
I do know the SRM-252S didn't have as much bass as the 400S/Jade II amp and was a bit more fatiguing or possibly sibilance/distortion in the high end that could be annoying at loud levels. As far as I can tell - I don't notice any fatigue or distortion or lack of bass the SRM-252S had at louder volumes with the EHA5. Admittedly, the SRM-252S wasn't terrible: I still liked the sound of the 252S + L300 more than all my Planars/Dynamics/IEM's + Topping L50.
RANDOM HEADPHONE COMPARISON: (Some I don't have anymore, but I owned all and compared side by side)
- ALL WITH EQ!!! I used to mix music - so I generally like things that are flat which may not be your preference. (I don't really like NS-10s - Neumann speakers I do like)
AKG K371 VS Aeon Closed X: Aeon Closed X: more detailed and more bass, but might trust the AKG's more for mixing for some reason. I sold the Aeon X's keeping the AKG's as for me they were more comfortable for what I used them for and the Sundaras/all ESL's sound better than both.
Truthear X Crinacle Zero IEM: Sound good for IEM's but I prefer all over-ear headphones best.
Sundara: Sound great. I prefer the new Resolve B&K 5128 EQ with added bass though over Harman EQ. They sound much better than Aeon X closed for mixing.
Sundara VS Jade II/L300: The electrostatics sound better. The Bass sounds better too on ES's over the Sundara or Aeon Closed X. The high end definitely sounds clearer on the ES's and I don't think it's due to a 'lack of bass' aka I EQ it in and sometimes even more
I can't ever seem to EQ the same sound on any Planars to be as clear as the ES's in the high-end though. It's not a night and day difference though - they all sound good. I still suggest Sundara's to all my friends though as for the money you can't go bad.
SUNDARA VS JADE II: Jade II is like a super Sundara.
JADE II vs STAX L300. It's a tossup: With EQ they both sound great. The Jade II's are definitely more comfortable as the rounded shape is better than a rectangle shape that makes it difficult to turn your head, but the cable I was worried about accidentally breaking on the Jades. I think the Stax build would last longer also - considering there's still Lambdas from decades ago that still work. I guess for me they were close enough I just kept the Stax L300's figuring they cost half as much. If they were both the same price or maybe just $100 more, I might go for the Jades for the comfort though.
Raal SR1A vs Stax/Jade II: Raals are the most comfortable as nothing is really on your ears. They only get so loud though before sounding compressed whereas the Jades and Stax just get louder and louder. I'd trust mixing on the ES's more as the low end is more reliable, and simply just getting the exact same angle on the Raals for each ear every time you listen is always another thing that might throw off the EQ you've been using for them.
---
Even though the Sundara/L300/AKG K371/Truthear Zero/Jade II all have pretty consistently high Harman Pref. Score rankings and with EQ should all be quite flat: they definitely don't all sound the same. Overall I prefer ES's consistently the most. The SR1A ribbon I like too (but not their closed-back!)
I have heard Audeze CRBN at a Canjam and thought they sounded great - also the old Dan Clark ES's - I preferred over all of their planar models. I wouldn't mind trying the new Dan Clark Corina headphones also.
Hopefully more companies start making some reasonably priced ES headphones in the future. For example Stax has some crazy expensive headphones, but also the L300's which measure quite flat and are awesome. If some other companies made some $300-800 ES headphones - that would be great even if they still had a 'high-end model' A closed-back ES headphone would be nice too - I've lived in apartments where the Raal SR1A and Jades/Stax headphones could be heard in the next apartment - so I still had to listen to the closed back K371's most of the time anyways which was unfortunate.
BUILD:
The sheet metal is pretty thick which is great. Stax SRM-400S metal on the top/side is quite thin in comparison. Jade II amp is like a tank ... which seems excessive for a headphone amp. The size of the EHA5 is ALMOST perfect. It's a bit too tall to fit in a standard 2U rack space, and because of the wider front plate: it's a bit too wide for standard half-rack width. For example: on a standard 19" studio rack shelf: I can sort of fit a Motu MK5 (half-rack-width) next to it - as long as I slide the Motu in from behind but it's a really tight squeeze. I'd suggest for future releases that Topping (and all manufacturers) try to keep in mind standard rack widths & heights. That way consumers can easily stack gear on top of eachother or side by side in standard racks. The SRM-400S/most stax amps are way too long: Even 8 channel speaker amps for actual movie theatres aren't as deep! The SRM-252S is probably 1/5th the volume of even the Topping so that's obviously the most portable/smallest. I guess you do get TWO headphone outputs from the Jade II/Stax SRM-400S amps - which are essentially 2x the size of the EHA5. But how many people in the world are actually going to buy two ES headphones to run from their amp to listen with a friend at the same exact volume as you can't control the 2nd headphone volume separately? So yeah, the dual outputs seems pointless for 99% of users.
The dual TRS/XLR input is nice: the only ES amp I've owned that had that feature. The volume knob is better than the Topping L50 knob. It's similar to the quality of the SRM-400S knob. I don't notice really any difference in volume from left/right at low volumes which is good. (SRM-252S at low volumes is a bit unequal) Jade II knob was the best though as it had indented positions for specific volume levels and felt great.
As far as heat: I've had it on a few hours now and it's not really warm at all. My Motu MK5 is definitely much warmer.
SOUND:
As far as volume: it drives my Stax L300's louder than I'd ever need them to be. I had Jade II headphones before and they took a similar amount of power: so you should be fine with Jade II's also.
I'm not sure if these can take professional level level DAC's (MOTU/LYNX/RME- that pump out over 8V instead of 4V) - If anyone knows for sure: it would be good to know!
I did output full levels from Motu MK5 (8V+) and at the LOW setting on the Topping: it sounded pretty clear without distortion ... but I'd never actually listen that loud.
As far as sound quality: As far as I can remember it sounds as good as the large SRM-400S/Jade II amps I've owned before. I sold my 400S when I saw rumors of this coming out not too long ago - Admittedly I sold the 400S as I was annoyed that I had to have my entire rack stick out from the wall due to how long it was. (Figured It would sound the same/similar - and it seems to)
I do know the SRM-252S didn't have as much bass as the 400S/Jade II amp and was a bit more fatiguing or possibly sibilance/distortion in the high end that could be annoying at loud levels. As far as I can tell - I don't notice any fatigue or distortion or lack of bass the SRM-252S had at louder volumes with the EHA5. Admittedly, the SRM-252S wasn't terrible: I still liked the sound of the 252S + L300 more than all my Planars/Dynamics/IEM's + Topping L50.
RANDOM HEADPHONE COMPARISON: (Some I don't have anymore, but I owned all and compared side by side)
- ALL WITH EQ!!! I used to mix music - so I generally like things that are flat which may not be your preference. (I don't really like NS-10s - Neumann speakers I do like)
AKG K371 VS Aeon Closed X: Aeon Closed X: more detailed and more bass, but might trust the AKG's more for mixing for some reason. I sold the Aeon X's keeping the AKG's as for me they were more comfortable for what I used them for and the Sundaras/all ESL's sound better than both.
Truthear X Crinacle Zero IEM: Sound good for IEM's but I prefer all over-ear headphones best.
Sundara: Sound great. I prefer the new Resolve B&K 5128 EQ with added bass though over Harman EQ. They sound much better than Aeon X closed for mixing.
Sundara VS Jade II/L300: The electrostatics sound better. The Bass sounds better too on ES's over the Sundara or Aeon Closed X. The high end definitely sounds clearer on the ES's and I don't think it's due to a 'lack of bass' aka I EQ it in and sometimes even more
I can't ever seem to EQ the same sound on any Planars to be as clear as the ES's in the high-end though. It's not a night and day difference though - they all sound good. I still suggest Sundara's to all my friends though as for the money you can't go bad.SUNDARA VS JADE II: Jade II is like a super Sundara.
JADE II vs STAX L300. It's a tossup: With EQ they both sound great. The Jade II's are definitely more comfortable as the rounded shape is better than a rectangle shape that makes it difficult to turn your head, but the cable I was worried about accidentally breaking on the Jades. I think the Stax build would last longer also - considering there's still Lambdas from decades ago that still work. I guess for me they were close enough I just kept the Stax L300's figuring they cost half as much. If they were both the same price or maybe just $100 more, I might go for the Jades for the comfort though.
Raal SR1A vs Stax/Jade II: Raals are the most comfortable as nothing is really on your ears. They only get so loud though before sounding compressed whereas the Jades and Stax just get louder and louder. I'd trust mixing on the ES's more as the low end is more reliable, and simply just getting the exact same angle on the Raals for each ear every time you listen is always another thing that might throw off the EQ you've been using for them.
---
Even though the Sundara/L300/AKG K371/Truthear Zero/Jade II all have pretty consistently high Harman Pref. Score rankings and with EQ should all be quite flat: they definitely don't all sound the same. Overall I prefer ES's consistently the most. The SR1A ribbon I like too (but not their closed-back!)
I have heard Audeze CRBN at a Canjam and thought they sounded great - also the old Dan Clark ES's - I preferred over all of their planar models. I wouldn't mind trying the new Dan Clark Corina headphones also.
Hopefully more companies start making some reasonably priced ES headphones in the future. For example Stax has some crazy expensive headphones, but also the L300's which measure quite flat and are awesome. If some other companies made some $300-800 ES headphones - that would be great even if they still had a 'high-end model' A closed-back ES headphone would be nice too - I've lived in apartments where the Raal SR1A and Jades/Stax headphones could be heard in the next apartment - so I still had to listen to the closed back K371's most of the time anyways which was unfortunate.
Last edited:
no one should ever pay more than $2000 for a estat amp 
