I’m listening to both units for about a month now and I feel like I know them very good at this point. I wish I had a Topping A50 as well, that would be a much nicer comparison to make, alas I don’t have it anymore, so I’m comparing it with SH-9, that is very close to it price wise. That said, the D50s has a more sparkly top end. It dissects and outlays the details very well. It has more shine and energy versus the Mojo’s more grounded and intimate presentation. It’s also quieter and does a more obvious job of pulling apart the music. You’re able to hear the individual nuances – and even more details in the low-end. The Topping D50s is precisely outlined, speedy, clean-shaven, and atmospheric. For what it’s worth, I do enjoy the D50s for large orchestral and live acoustic performances. So if you value transparency and clarity over warmth – the D50s may work well for you. D50s comes with a much-needed remote control, especially for us speaker-philes this is a very welcomed addition. If Electromod is the appointed distributor for Topping in the UK, should it not honour the warranty that comes with all Topping products, rather than just the ones it sources? I didn’t find any of the 10 headphones I have here at the pad (including the K240M 600 Ohm Austrian model) hard to drive, so turn that frown upside down buster!

Moving on to desktop headphones, both units are very capable of driving harder loads, but of course SH-9 was a higher output of 6W in 16 Ohms, meaning that it didn’t have issues driving headphones like Audeze LCD-4 and Hifiman Arya, which sounded great on A50S, but not spectacular. In its defense, A50S has a vaguely different tonality and instead on focusing on absolute linearity, it adds a pinch more bass and midrange making bright sources and headphones a lot more manageable. There are plenty of detail-oriented sources nowadays that are putting treble presence above anything else and A50S should work much nicer with such kinds of sources. With dynamic headphones that don’t require that much power to be moved, I wouldn’t be surprised if people would prefer the A50S in detriment of a more powerful SH-9. Beyerdynamics, most Sennheisers and all Grados should perform better on A50S and most planar-magnetics should perform better on SH-9. Both are made by Topping, as usual the build quality of both is really top notch, both are CNC milled and beautifully crafted. Both are actually having the same Bluetooth capabilities so another plus for D50s. In bass terms, the bass guitar offered greater focus while the bass notes from the piano had weight and mass and gave the song a new sense of gravitas. SONCOZ COMPARISON Topping is not alone is offering a selection of user-selectable “filters” and it’s also not alone in keeping them ‘on’ no matter what. You’re unable to switch these things off. digital filters programed on the hardware level directly in the DAC chip, the user manual will show the exact changes those will apply to the frequency response, most of them will be altering the top octaveIf you have no choice in the matter and you don’t with the D50s, then you need to run through them to make sure you like what you hear. It is a pleasure to see Topping continue to deliver well-engineered audio products without exception. Using proper measurements allows them to verify and refine the design before we get our hands on. The obvious reason is that the A50/D50s is horribly overpriced. I’d absolutely never under any circumstance fork over that much for an amp and DAC.

Disclaimer: Topping D50S was sent to us as a review unit in exchange for our honest opinion. We thank team Apos Audio for this opportunity!I then turned to Mercy Mercy Me for Marvin Gaye, sent to the D50s via Bluetooth and was pleasantly surprised at just how good this stream sounded.

In sound terms I liked the performance a lot. Again, for the overall price and for the amount of facilities on offer. Mid-bass performance is not elevated, like how some other units are doing in this price range. It is super linear but defined and clear sounding. There were multiple times when I spotted bass layers that hit me like waves on a shore, nothing to complain here. FIL 5 (Linear phase fast roll-off filter) – A “fatter sound” vs #3. It’s a clearer version of FIL 3. It’s not as warm but presents more depth and defogs more of the music. The little one has a decent soundstage size on its own but it’s important to know that soundstaging capabilities are influenced directly by the source that is connected to it. HydraVox DAC that I’m using with it, is among the widest and deepest sounding source I’ve tried so far and it shouldn’t be a surprise experiencing a bigger void space between each and every note even on its SE output. Connect it to a forward sounding source and this chapter would feel completely different.Aside from inaccuracy in tone, the D50s comes off a tad too lean and icy for my tastes. I prefer a richer more fleshed-out sound. There’s still a bit of “digital haze,” especially in the midrange, that just doesn’t sit well for my ears. There’s a balance between purity and realism – and the D50s tilts more towards the former. The Zen DAC is a bit of a USB specialist and it shows here. The D50s struggled to keep up with the Zen’s inherent clarity and midrange insight. The Zen also created 3D image around the stereo image that added depth to the soundstage. Instrumental separation – that sense of space sitting in between each instrument – was more pronounced via the Zen too. The secondary percussion including bells were notable in being well behaved and disciplined while the rather shy rhythm guitar took a fuller part than usual in the mix, adding richness and complexity. CONCLUSION The new-found air and space around the midrange also enhanced the clarity giving the midrange an organic feel to the muted trumpet. Any piece of hi-fi equipment features ‘filters’, in that case. You can build a pair of speakers to sound neutral, bright or warm. The parts and design are a form of ‘filtering’ on those terms.

FIL 7 (Corrected min. phase fast roll-off filter) – This sounds like FIL 6 with more smoothness and a more nose-pinched sound. As you know, I’m all about the subjective. I believe measurements are great for repeatability and finding problem areas. But I’ve realized the important attributes that translate into the better enjoyment of music simply can’t be measured. However, if better measurements give you better peace of mind, all the power to you. FIL 3 (Min. phase fast roll-off filter) – Has more weight than #1 and #2. Not as clear and quiet as the previous two filters but has more warmth and rhymic drive. There’s a little bit of grain but dynamic and presents more accurate timbre That doesn’t mean, of course, that if you have a Topping D50s running it in for 24 hours or more will cure the problem. It also doesn’t rule out the problem springing up again later. I’m not saying that this is a cure, let me emphasise that.

Double ES9038Q2M

Treble is extended to the sub-sonic area; everything is outlined and revealing. The usual suspects like cymbal crashes and double drums carried a lot of energy, sounded clear with a sharp outline. Treble wasn’t clinical or bright or something like that, just extended yet never harsh on the ears. D50s is a DAC with adjustable volume, so it can serve as “DAC + Pre-amplifier” to connect to a power amplifier or active speaker and use D50s to control volume.