[tmb821]

It definitely runs more than warm. It's toasty. I've had it for about a month and so far, it doesn't seem to be an issue.

Thanks. I figured it was probably normal.

 

[enomiss]

Thanks. I figured it was probably normal.

It's a feature, keeps your coffee warm!
Personally I've not experienced it getting really warm, and I have the E30 on top of it. The whole package is just nice warm, but not hot at all.

 

[Claypole]

I’ve been considering a desktop headphone amp for a while, but have had my doubts as to whether it would be worth it with my current headphones.

I have an old set Grado SR125i, which are relatively low impedance and sound fine out of my Fiio M6 (with the volume cranked up a bit more than with iems). Would the Grados benefit from an amp like this?

I also have Westone UM Pro 30, which are about 56 ohms, and quite sensitive. I have no problem driving these from anything I plug them into. Some people think because they are so sensitive, they don’t benefit from an amp, whilst I have also read that multiple balanced armatures do benefit from an amp.

The Topping L30 has piqued my interest because it has the -9db low gain setting, which is supposed to suit sensitive/low impedance iems. It also seems to be able to drive much more demanding headphones.

The plan would be to connect the Fiio M6 to the L30 using the line out function. Would this set up improve the sound of my phones, or would it just give me nothing more than an unneeded increase in volume?

 

[bifcake]

I used my IEMs with the L30. The reason I did that was because I needed to amplify them, but because this was the way to listen to my DAC and bypass the sound card and the headphone output from my PC.

 

[Lalerfy]

Has anyone seen a comparison between the L30 and the $149 Zen-Can Amp yet ??
►https://Amazon.com/dp/B08F39N9J1

 

[cel4145]

I purchased my Topping E30 / Topping L30 stack November 10, from Amazon from seller SHENZHENAUDIO. The Topping L30 amplifier amplifier was only $118.99 on sale. However, I had to return my Topping L30 amplifier to Amazon today. It malfunctioned and destroyed the drivers in my Sony headphones. The headphone drivers were making crackling and popping noises on my ears. I unplugged them but too late and now they are fried. This is a darned shame because the Topping L30 made most every headphone sound very good compared to many other $100 amps. The Topping L30 made my Sony MDR-CD780 sound better than any headphone I have ever heard in my life. No other amp has ever done this. I am tempted to get another or possibly try get the Topping A90. This is not the first time I have been burned by buying poorly made Chinese electronics. I once purchased a $500 DAC that only lasted three months. Luckily the Topping E30 DAC still functions and sounds great.

So how can this happen? Didn't you just have the volume too loud?

Over at ASR, people suspect that the amp may be subject to failing from ESD. And the Topping engineer who participates in the L30 measurements thread has not denied that ESD could be killing L30 amps. If Topping knew they were immune to this kind of damage from ESD, I would think that they would say something. But who knows for sure?

Just to be safe, you guys better be careful this winter with your L30s. If you live somewhere that static shock is common, ground yourself by touching a metal part of your desktop computer chassis before touching the L30.

 

[enomiss]

Over at ASR, people suspect that the amp may be subject to failing from ESD. And the Topping engineer who participates in the L30 measurements thread has not denied that ESD could be killing L30 amps. If Topping knew they were immune to this kind of damage from ESD, I would think that they would say something. But who knows for sure?

Just to be safe, you guys better be careful this winter with your L30s. If you live somewhere that static shock is common, ground yourself by touching a metal part of your desktop computer chassis before touching the L30.

How many units have been sold? Thousands at least I guess, and there are like 2 or 3 people who reported this? Bad experiences always find their way to the internet. I guess it's exagerated and those units already had faults in them.

But I'm curious what Topping will report after doing research.

 

[cel4145]

How many units have been sold? Thousands at least I guess, and there are like 2 or 3 people who reported this? Bad experiences always find their way to the internet. I guess it's exagerated and those units already had faults in them.

But I'm curious what Topping will report after doing research.

So far there have been only a few people. But this product was only released in August, and winter has just arrived. EDS causing failure is very common with electronics. Makes good sense to be careful of EDS if one frequently experiences static discharge in their lives during the winter. And don't sit at your computer in wool socks, no shoes, on carpet. lol

 

[Claypole]

If static is an issue where your kit is located, a nice leafy pot plant or two can help.

 

[cel4145]

A regular contributor over at ASR has just confirmed that his L30 took out a pair of Audio Technica W5000.

The static shock to the amp occurred the day before when the user was powering down the amp without headphones plugged in. There was no indication that the amp had failed.

The next day when he powered it on and inserted the headphones, the headphones were damaged. He could smell the damage to the headphones.

Best to take this seriously, guys.

 

[enomiss]

A regular contributor over at ASR has just confirmed that his L30 took out a pair of Audio Technica W5000.

The static shock to the amp occurred the day before when the user was powering down the amp without headphones plugged in. There was no indication that the amp had failed.

The next day when he powered it on and inserted the headphones, the headphones were damaged. He could smell the damage to the headphones.

Best to take this seriously, guys.

Does anyone know what actually happens - in such a case - that damaged the headphones? is the voltage regulator damaged due to EDS and it sends too much voltage? Don't have some headphones protection for this? How to know?

 

[cel4145]

Does anyone know what actually happens - in such a case - that damaged the headphones? is the voltage regulator damaged due to EDS and it sends too much voltage? Don't have some headphones protection for this? How to know?

Check out the L30 review thread at ASR. They have been discussing it.

 

[jimbob54]

Check out the L30 review thread at ASR. They have been discussing it.

That would be me. Just to clarify, its the amp that I could smell. Once I realised it had an issue I disconnected and removed from the rack. Then sniffed it- definite acrid component burn smell- but no fireworks or smoke the night before. But the godawful crackle/ bangs on inserting the headphone jack were nasty. At zero volume by the way. A cheap second pair of headphones did the same - so something in the amp is fried- but it wasnt "dead". I didnt even try to play anything through it. It's my (not illogical) supposition rather than any electrical knowledge I have that the ESD on shut down caused it.

 

[rick88]

I decided to return mine before the return window at Amazon expired. All this talk about the ESD issue has me concered about the overall long-term reliability of the L30. Also I have experienced the occasional crackling/static sound that I have narrowed down to the L30, and the headphone jack is pretty loose as well.

It's disappointing because I really liked the sound, and I had ordered it to replace a Schiit Magni Heresy that I returned the day after it arrived due to the noisy volume control that was/is unacceptable to me.

 

[Heyyoudvd]

Do we know if this is a common thing or if it was just bad luck for one or two people?

I just received my L30 yesterday and I’m not sure whether I should keep it or not.

All electronics have lemons. That’s the nature of producing thousands of something. So the question is whether this is actually a common phenomenon or whether it’s just a couple cases of bad luck that are getting a ton of attention.