[wushuliu]

I've avoided budget DACs the past couple years. Just couldn't keep up with the six month turnaround cycle of the same chips using the same opamps from the same China-direct companies who have been more fixated on their relationship with measurements and measurement purveyors than sonics.

That may be changing.

[Unfortunately I am still stuck with headphones only, my 2-channel setup still out of commission. So take my review with this caveat.]

My diy Soekris 1021 is a frankenstein of wires and batteries. It's getting a little cranky and my DIY itch has mellowed. I figured I'd better get a proper retail option. I ordered my favorite cheap DAC, the Sabaj Da3, to have as a baseline. Sure it's a little muddy in bass but unlike so many of the budget DACs it's highs are more reserved and the bass is full and warm (for me, YMMV).

I watched review after review of gear on Youtube to catch up on the last year or so. Mainly more of the same: company name followed by alphanumeric. D50, D90, E30, Law and Order: SU-9, on and on. I even gave one of these measurement drone clones a try - the Loxjie D30. No not last year's Loxjie D30 with the AKM, THIS year's $250 D30 with the ESS chip thanks to the fire* (see below). What a snooze. Yes it was resolving, yes the micro details, yes it was anointed by the measurement pontiff. And you know what? It still sucked. Objectively(!) it sounded "good" but dozing off in the middle of a critical listening session is not a great sign. To it's credit the bass was improved over the previous generation of Chi-fi l'd heard. There's definitely been a step towards a more natural presentation but ultimately the Loxjie was more of the same. I went back to the DA3. I considered calling it a day.

But I noticed something. Right around the last few months across the board reviewers were commenting on a change in sonics from some of these companies. That some of these dacs were actually starting *sound* as well as they measured. One of the newer ones to be singled out was the Topping E50. So I gave it one more go.

So the E50:





At first glance there's nothing special about it. It has the now ubiquitous ESS ES9068as, OPA1612 opamps, XMOS 216, etc. etc. Build quality is fine. It comes in different colors. Has balanced outputs as well as rca. The balanced are 1/4in so not the most convenient. I hooked it up to my PC/ Foobar/Jplay setup, patched it to my Asgard 3 and my HD6XXs. I prepared myself for a detailed, 'resolving' presentation and extended treble with a dry delivery i.e. the typical Chi-fi sound. That is not what I got. The E50 gave me a slap on the a$$ and said what's up! It's got bounce. It's dynamic. Percussive punch. This was not the ESS I knew (and love when it's done right), but I liked it. A lot. The treble was controlled and clean, mids clear. Bass wasn't the fullest but enough to have some kick. Separation was very good, as was staging. It has the ESS neutrality and clarity that I really like, but without the dryness so many of the budget implementations exhibit. Heart's 'Silver Wheels' retains in-the-studio transparency. You can hear her breath as she picks away, but there is still smoothness at the edges at each pluck of the string. The Egg's 'The Fat Boy Goes To the Cinema' is a fun but brutal track when it comes to high frequencies. The E50 however never lets the cymbals shatter across my eardrums, which is quite a feat with that track.

An interesting feature of the E50 is that it comes with a USB cable to power a separate 5v power DC input. So you can use a spare phone charger, your computer, or even a battery pack for power. I swapped back and forth between PC and a 5v battery pack. Yes, the presentation was audibly cleaner and the way to go if possible. However, the E50 still sounded great powered via PC (USB 3.1) and I didn't feel the need to stop everything and be battery-only which I found surprising.

Is it the most resolving? No. Is it analog/R2R smooth? No. But so what. Schiit's Modi Multibit is nice but I'd take the E50 over it any day. Is it a keeper? Not sure. At the Black Friday price of $228, most definitely but at current $300incl. tax it comes close to a Sabaj I'm also trying out right now and I really really like Sabaj gear when it comes to sonics. But in the meantime the E50 makes me bop my head and keep on keepin' on and that's all right. The important thing is there are signs of sonic life emerging in moribund sectors of this market. Hopefully the E50 is just the beginning. Definitely worth checking out.

More DAC stuff to come. These posts take too long to write. But it's an interesting time.

[*Some important context: The AKM fire last year has effectively put them out of production. This in turn has forced companies to scramble for replacement options and re-design their gear. The beneficiary of this is none other than ESS. Their Sabre chips are showing up everywhere now. A notable example being Schiit. Thankfully ESS has evidently made their datasheets and design tools more accessible - no more NDAs and cryptic communications (Jason Stoddard of Schiit has an informative post about some of this on his head-fi thread).]

[jonbee]

I bought one as a fill in dac/preamp while my #1 is in the shop, but I'm very impressed by the sound and features. I'm powering it with a 3 amp phone charger and it is quite nice. After my main dac comes back I'll keep this one. It's silly good for the $, currently about $150.

[wushuliu]

I bought one as a fill in dac/preamp while my #1 is in the shop, but I'm very impressed by the sound and features. I'm powering it with a 3 amp phone charger and it is quite nice. After my main dac comes back I'll keep this one. It's silly good for the $, currently about $150.

Sure you don't mean the E30? The E50 is $270...

[Digi-G]

I've got the Topping E30 Dac, that uses the AK4493 chip.  I got it about 6 months ago for US$150 based upon the many glowing reviews.  It sounds really good to me but I don't have anything to compare it to, except the DAC in my 10 year old Oppo player.

Thanks for the E50 review!

Has anyone compared the E30 and E50?

[jonbee]

Sure you don't mean the E30? The E50 is $270...

You are correct. I have the E30.

[wushuliu]

I've got the Topping E30 Dac, that uses the AK4493 chip.  I got it about 6 months ago for US$150 based upon the many glowing reviews.  It sounds really good to me but I don't have anything to compare it to, except the DAC in my 10 year old Oppo player.

Thanks for the E50 review!

Has anyone compared the E30 and E50?

The reviews I've seen indicate it's a step up from the E30, but some people do prefer the AKM 'Velvet Sound' so YMMV.

[jonbee]

I wish it had just a little more input flexibility, maybe one more digital coax and an analog in. That would be a giant killer, albeit for more $.

[wushuliu]

I wish it had just a little more input flexibility, maybe one more digital coax and an analog in. That would be a giant killer, albeit for more $.

Why an additional coax?

[genjamon]

Is the Sabaj D5 the one you're currently evaluating?

[wushuliu]

Is the Sabaj D5 the one you're currently evaluating?

No, it's the new A20D. I've already heard the D5. I think I did a post on it about a year and a half ago. I liked it a lot. I'm impressed with the A20D so far.

[Letitroll98]

I also have the E30 with the AKM chip and see no reason to change, it's a lovely unit.  I'm convinced that it must be run on a battery to reach it's full potential, I have a very robust phone charger battery pack, 12000mAh, 5V/2.1A.  Sometimes I've forgotten to take it off the charge and I sit there wondering what's wrong with the system, until it hits, oh, the battery.  Anyway, I'm very interested in your new comparisons.

[mjosef]

I am currently auditioning the E50 DAC, can't say I'm blown away by the sonics, in comparison to my 8-9 year old EE miniMax DAC, I am failing to discern an 'improvement' or difference. Power supply is a 2A Amazon FireTablet module. I just got an after market 8A SMPS power supply, and after a couple days I can't say I'm hearing a benefit from the 'bigger' ps.
Using TosLink input and either Bal. out or SE out, output level matched...sounds the same. My next trial will be with the Coaxial input.

[wushuliu]

I am currently auditioning the E50 DAC, can't say I'm blown away by the sonics, in comparison to my 8-9 year old EE miniMax DAC, I am failing to discern an 'improvement' or difference. Power supply is a 2A Amazon FireTablet module. I just got an after market 8A SMPS power supply, and after a couple days I can't say I'm hearing a benefit from the 'bigger' ps.
Using TosLink input and either Bal. out or SE out, output level matched...sounds the same. My next trial will be with the Coaxial input.

? I wouldn't expect it to be better than a well-regarded niche DAC with a custom tube output stage, Alps pot, and poly caps that was considered a bargain when it came out:



If the E50 sounds the same for $270 I'd say that's impressive.

I would recommend trying a battery supply, not a beefier SMPS. The E50 only uses 200mA or so.

[genjamon]

Indeed. The E50 is tempting me largely since I could use one of my extra Uptone LPS 1.2 power supplies for it, which I assume might take it to another level of performance.

Then again, I’d really value the Bluetooth capability of that Sarah A20d, and could still power it with the variable output from an old HDPlex linear power supply I have sitting around. But the cost of the Sabaj is a bit higher, and I’m very curious to hear your impressions of that unit in comparison.

[wushuliu]

Just to give some perspective, the cheapest tube DAC I could find like the MiniMax today is the Musical Paradise MP-D2 which starts at $1050:



The MiniMax would be a similar cost today.

[wushuliu]

FYI, new post added in the 'DAC for Peanuts' thread.