Topping D70 PRO & A70 PRO Review - The Dynamite Duo

My written review can be found here: soundnews.net/reviews/sources...
Get the D70 PRO: bit.ly/D70PRO
Get the A70 PRO: bit.ly/A70_PRO
Get them as a stack: bit.ly/A70_D70
Timestamps:
00:00 - Intro
00:48 - Build
02:14 - Controls
03:07 - Under their Hoods
06:10 - Sound Impressions
08:40 - Resolution & Transparency
10:13 - Noise Floor
11:26 - Power Output
14:13 - Dynamics & Transients
16:43 - Soundstage & Imaging
18:20 - Bass
19:11 - Midrange
19:58 - Treble
20:39 - My Conclusions
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Desktop headphones I’m using:
🎧 Hifiman Susvara: bit.ly/3a39pm2
🎧 Hifiman HE1000SE: bit.ly/3gwkXRW
🎧 Hifiman Arya Stealth: bit.ly/3HORBss
🎧 Audeze LCD-5: bit.ly/3nb5KbD
🎧 Audeze LCD-4: bit.ly/35LFYAK
🎧 Kennerton Rognir: bit.ly/3zD1IxT
🎧 Meze Elite: bit.ly/3RPojys
🎧 Erzetich Phobos V2021: bit.ly/3HMWBhf
🎧 Sennheiser HD800S: amzn.to/3T5FX2J
🎧 Sendy Peacock: bit.ly/3EyZxQf
🎧 Apos Caspian: bit.ly/3nab1QO
Wireless headphones I’m using:
🎧 Sennheiser Momentum 4: amzn.to/3CodrCc
🎧 Sony WH1000XM5: amzn.to/3RUfQKu
🎧 Apple AirPods Max: amzn.to/3rGHQqr
IEMs I’m using:
👂 7Hz Timeless: bit.ly/3q7RNgm
👂 Meze Rai Penta: bit.ly/3j2EhVa
👂 FiiO FH9: bit.ly/3zSWka5
👂 FiiO FH7S: bit.ly/3fYOgi9
👂 FiiO FD7: bit.ly/3nEqw4h
Loudspeakers I’m using:
🔊 KEF Reference 3: amzn.to/3qZKbMm
🔊 Natural Sound NS17: bit.ly/2TuUXx3
🔊 Sound Of Eden Crescendo UNO: bit.ly/3f5jO1X
Integrated/Power Amps I’m using:
💪 Chord Electronics Ultima 5: amzn.to/3CLWVxi
💪 Burson Timekeeper 3X GT: amzn.to/3Ext5hm
💪 Benchmark AHB2: amzn.to/37jcR9M
💪 Topping LA90: bit.ly/3SPThbj
Best DACs I tried so far (in no particular order):
🥇 Gustard R26 Discrete: bit.ly/3TemlZP
🥇 Gustard X26 PRO: bit.ly/2ORB7Ko
🥇 Chord Electronics DAVE: amzn.to/3Tbs2aY
🥇 Denafrips Terminator Plus: bit.ly/3rLr35m
🥇 Rockna Wavelight: bit.ly/3hD33xl
🥇 Audiobyte HydraVox: bit.ly/2VXJjZM
🥇 Musician Aquarius: bit.ly/2U9qwwT
🥇 Matrix Audio Element X2: bit.ly/3Eryerb
🥇 Matrix Audio X-Sabre 3: bit.ly/34oBFyG
🥇 SMSL VMV D2: bit.ly/3q9lIF7
Best Mid-Fi DACs:
🥈 Gustard X18: bit.ly/3CMcJ2W
🥈 Gold Note DS-10 Plus: bit.ly/3f7pYie
🥈 Topping D90SE: bit.ly/3gC5FcO
🥈 Musician Pegasus: bit.ly/2OvCOgn
🥈 Matrix Mini-i Pro 3: bit.ly/3t97FkN
🥈 SMSL SU-10: bit.ly/3Eq9jEm
🥈 SMSL VMV D1SE: bit.ly/3nbaTjT
🥈 SMSL M500 MKIII: bit.ly/3yvztl8
🥈 Soncoz SGD1: bit.ly/36IUQ5r
Best Entry-Level DACs:
🥉 Gustard X16: bit.ly/3SQr6ZL
🥉 Topping D30 PRO: bit.ly/3taPWcE
🥉 Topping E50: bit.ly/3q9e6CE
🥉 Topping D10S: bit.ly/3r1hWNh
🥉 SMSL DO200 MKII: bit.ly/3elkZO4
🥉 SMSL SU-9N: bit.ly/32U7qj3
🥉 Soncoz LA-QXD1: bit.ly/3gf8ONt
Best DAC + Headphone Amp combos:
🎶 Burson Conductor 3X GT: amzn.to/2xcfSKx
🎶 FiiO K9 PRO: bit.ly/3ejKRd3
🎶 Topping DX7 PRO+: bit.ly/3rH6siH
🎶 xDuoo XA-10: bit.ly/39UsS7K
Best Headphone amps:
💣Trafomatic Primavera: bit.ly/3Co8wAZ
💣Trafomatic Head2: bit.ly/3VdNrC1
💣Enleum AMP-23R: bit.ly/3CV2QQN
💣Ferrum OOR + Hypsos: bit.ly/3tbjNSn
💣Burson Soloist 3X GT: bit.ly/3q7nrus
💣Flux Lab Acoustics Volot: bit.ly/3fJegep
💣Benchmark HPA4: bit.ly/2xb6hn5
💣Sparkos Labs Aries: bit.ly/2xcOps1
💣SMSL SP400: bit.ly/3sAUEO2
💣Topping A90 Discrete: bit.ly/2YBwCnZ
💣Singxer SA-1: bit.ly/3eI6aCC
Best USB Dongles & Bluetooth DAC/Amps & Portable DAC/Amps:
📱 Chord Mojo2: amzn.to/3fWXYkM
📱 FiiO BTR7: bit.ly/3fJUhij
📱 Shanling UA5: bit.ly/3yuksQR
📱 xDuoo Poke II: bit.ly/3CIewWO
📱 Topping G5: bit.ly/3Evjs2p
Best DAPs:
🎵 FiiO M17: bit.ly/34pgo84
🎵 FiiO M11 Plus: bit.ly/3Ew0l8K
🎵 Shanling M9: bit.ly/3r4swDh
🎵 Shanling M7: bit.ly/3I9rldH
🎵 Shanling M6 Ultra: bit.ly/3RXGsKQ
🎵 Hiby RS6: bit.ly/3t9mUKw
🎵 Hiby RS5 MKII: bit.ly/3KSqiyE
🎵 Hiby RS2: bit.ly/3EgakPb
These are my honest opinions in different categories. Some of them are affiliated links that help me manage this KZbin channel at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
#topping #amp #dac

[@portnaluinge]

I’ve owned an A70 Pro for a few weeks now and it’s a hugely impressive little thing. It’s not just the sound, which I absolutely cannot criticise, but the whole ownership experience is a joy. It’s such a well thought out product and beautifully made. I don’t own (or need) the DAC, but can heartily recommend the amp. Good review BTW.

[@nicktan4530]

They sound the same for sure than any other measurement based amp and dac. But the determine factor of this price point is mainly asthetics and features.

[@johnratcliffe6438]

How does ot compare to much more expensive desktop amps like Bliss KTE or Hypsos and Oor?

[@FitLabb]

Been waiting for this review and it was pretty much as expected. Glad this DAC and Amp are as good as they look. Just saw they’re on sale at some retailers now too which is an extra bonus!

[@nhennessy6434]

I got an A70 Pro last month. I use it with my OG HD 800s and my OG LCD X (soon to be returned for update to 2021 runing), and its just absurdly powerful. I use it in conjunction with an A16 Realizer which provides binauralized 24 channel emulations of real speakers in real rooms. In my case that's 24 channel emulations of Dutch & Dutch 8Cs and my LS 50 Metas with dual SVS SB 2000s. All that DSP processing in the Realizer eats up a ton of digital headroom, and that where this thing is so amazing b/c it allows me to add that headroom on the back end. Can't even tell you how loud it can make the LCD Xs play, but I can't take the volume past -35 on high gain. Keep the volume at around -15 for the HD 800s which helps immensely with explosions and the like. Yes, it's completely transparent, and because of its added power proved to be a step up from my THX AAA 789 which is saying something.

[@pertsonvelts1699]

Very useful information, thank you for sharing!

[@juliancrun]

Thank you very much for the video, I have the A70Pro and I am very happy with it. A very accurate description.

[@Soundnews]

My pleasure

[@mikelanier5617]

Just received my EverSolo DMP-A6 I ordered after watching your review and hearing your thoughts. I will be using it as a digital transport connected to my Gustard R26 R2R Dac. Really excited to hear the pairing and my old eyes love the color display for album art and bitrate too. Thanks for all your work 👍

[@Soundnews]

Thanks for watching and enjoy your new toy ;)

[@mikelanier5617]

Much appreciated! Got it up and running last night and stayed awake until 4AM 😳 Sounds absolutely fantastic and very happy. Enjoy the weekend. I know I will👍

[@Soundnews]

@@mikelanier5617 so glad about you, keep rocking, mate!

[@reptidan]

Sounds like a great combo! Enjoy!

[@johnsoriano3812]

This is great, Sandu!! Thank you

[@Soundnews]

My pleasure

[@Nuevo_El_Nagual]

Can you compare A70 Pro vs Oor?

[@iScorpio1971]

Very detailed reviews! guess we're getting to a Zenith as of late, most have been Golden Awards... What about pairing Topping's D70 Velvet, or their lower-end AK4493S E30II with the A70 Pro, instead of the suggested A70 stack?

[@slsmaster274]

Hi Sandu, I currently have a D30 Pro/A30 Pro for use with my Focal Utopia. I find the transients to be a little lacking in punch, what whould you reccomend I upgrade first? DAC or AMP? I opt for the A70 Pro as an AMP. With the DAC I am unsure, D70 Pro or Eversolo Z8. Could you recommend a combination?

[@keithjohnson2863]

I had an original Topping A90 that I took out of my audio chain because I prefered the headphone output on the integrated amp that it was feeding, a Keces E40. The A90 sounded sterile compared to the Keces. And the A90 did add anything as a preamp. I've been on the lookout for a replacement. Burson doesn't have a dedicated HPA/preamp in my price range. I wonder if the A70 Pro is what I'm looking for. My current DAC is the Ladder Schuman. I also have the original Topping D90.

[@agoniz9271]

Hi Nice review 👍 Do you think A70 Pro is an upgrade in comparison with L70...i have L70 and i wonder... Thanks

[@christianblais3350]

Would it be a sonically significant improvement (in timbre, resolution or else) to migrate from my actual SMSL D1SE DAC / SMSL SP400 Amp to a Topping D70 Pro DAC / Topping A70 Pro Amp? (or just a waiste of money...) Congrats for your very detailed reviews BTW!

[@RocketLauncherwithInfiniteAmmo]

This amp sounds AMAZING! Does it really have a truly quiet noise floor for IEM’s? Because that is currently what I am looking for, but with something to power big planars also, and so you have made this sound ideal-should I just get one?

[@Soundnews]

As I have mentioned, it's DEAD silent with all my IEMs (~8 pairs or so)

[@RocketLauncherwithInfiniteAmmo]

@@Soundnews alright, next question, and I know this might be a difficult one, but is this as good or better than that Singxer SA-1 amp? Given that it’s more expensive, it sounds like this topping is a cheaper, better buy. Any input much appreciated!

[@tomas_m]

Does the amp have headphone output selector (3.5|4.4|XLR or at least just SE|BA) with volume memory? I want to have 2 headphones connected all the time and just toggle between them without fiddling with volume.

[@Soundnews]

Yes and Yes, you can select an individual output and they all have volume memory

[@giorgosapo4508]

First of all congratulations for the excellent review Sandu 👏Topping absolutely killed it with the A70 Pro! Did you try it with the Gustard R26? I have my A70 Pro incoming and I can't wait to try that stack, I am sure that it will be even wider/deeper and punchier💪

[@Soundnews]

I did try it with a few DACs, including with two R2R ones and it worked even better with them. You're in for a surprise

[@giorgosapo4508]

@@Soundnews Ow buddy I am super excited now!!!!! 😁thank you

[@Flavius7]

As my colleagues would say...if it's got VU-meters I'll buy it! Looks nice, probably sounds clean and transparent as most Topping releases do, great time to get a beginner set-up (or at least midrange one)! Probably the best match for Topping in case you want to try streaming also is the Eversolo? Why? Well...VU-METERS, remember?

[@nicktan4530]

Not probably. Sound 100% the same. Buy mostly for asthetics.

[@felixwijaya111]

How does a70 pro compared against singxer sa-1 and d70 pro compared to smsl vmv d1se?

[@aurallychallenged]

Hi Sandu great review as always and i read your very thorough written review as well. In it you mentioned you use the A70 pro as a pre-amp into the Soncoz SGP1 power amp. Do you intend to review the Soncoz?

[@Soundnews]

SGP1 is currently the nicest power amp I have tried in the ~$1000 price bracket, I intend to make a video review for it next week. It's better than the LA90D and I find it on the same level with the AHB2 ($3000)

[@aurallychallenged]

@@Soundnews Thanks Sandu for the speed of your reply. I really look forward to it's review as virtually no one has reviewed it yet.

[@ssdemon96]

I currently have my e50 l50 stack amp and dac and was wondering if this is a good upgrade. I want a balanced amp and dac so that i can take advantage of my headphones. The current topping setup is good but i want to go all out for sound. I have a sundara but i plan on upgrading to a more expensive planar magnetic headphone.

[@mejias4682]

HI, THANKS FOR THE VIDEO, I WOULD HAVE TO SAY, WHY IS IT THAT KNOW ONE ACTUALLY SPEAKS ABOUT THE REAR SPEAKER OUTPUT, ARE THEY AS GOOD AS THE HEADPHONE OUTPUTS CAN THE REAR OUTPUTS BE USED AS A AMP, WITH OUT HAVING TO BUY A AMP . I HAVE A SET OF ADAM 10''SUBWOOFER WITH 2 8'' MONITORS , PLEASE EXPLAIN THANKS

[@hermannschmidt9788]

I am missing the comparison to your old workhorse, the Benchmark HPA4.

[@Soundnews]

Well, the HPA4 is no longer with me for more than a year...and honestly, I don't miss it much.

[@Josecunyat]

How this combo compares to the DX9? They have similar pricing... (50% headphone - 50% active monitors - but more important the delivery on headphones). Because this can be used as pre-amp for active monitors, right?

[@PTGDAEMON]

Hi, Sandu! On your web-site you said Aune S17 pro is thicker and more full-bodied amp. Is it fast and detailed enough to handle progressive metal genres?

[@Soundnews]

Hey, yep, S17 Pro is amazing with rock and metal! It's currently my favorite amp below $1K.

[@PTGDAEMON]

@Soundnews thanks! Did you try it with SMSL SU-10 DAC and low impedance planars? Work well together? Most old Aune amps work the best with 300-600 Ohm load, but struggle with low impedance

[@cheveyo2403]

will there be a review of the aune s17 pro? and do you happen to know how it compares to the S9C? (there seems to be no dedicated DAC in the lineup)

[@charlesurias]

What do you think would drive my HE6SE V2 (similar difficulty as Susvara) headphones better, the A70 Pro or the S17 Pro?

[@Soundnews]

@@charlesurias S17 PRO would be my choice, thanks to its warmer tone & timbre.

[@cloudvsSephirof]

Worth upgrading to D70 pro from, topping e50?

[@Bhatakti_Hawas]

Plz make a video on A90D & D90LE stack

[@Soundnews]

Hi, you have them both right here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gGecaWiLecSSZ68 and kzbin.info/www/bejne/aXvUaoSlpbF0hKM

[@reptidan]

It is a great time to be into audio ❤️

[@phrankdatank]

Wonder how this combo compares to the Fiio K9 Pro ESS?

[@DigitalDave65]

Better from a sound perspective. I have the K9 Pro ESS and what I ended up doing was buying this and using this AMP via XLR with the FiiO. Damn...sounds perfect to me.

[@tomas_m]

Now the big question is - buy this, or is A90 Pro coming soon?

[@Soundnews]

Besides their flagship DX9 all in one unit, I'm not aware of an A90 PRO, but who knows, maybe it's already in development.

[@final3119]

I keep hearing people telling me I need $3k headphone amps to drive some used Susvara's I am considering. When I look at the stats of these $3k amps, they all have less power. I straight up don't understand how amps work if that's really the case. Is it just old, boomer dudes trying to gatekeep because amps have never been this powerful and affordable before, or is there some other thing like voltage that is different that means 2W at 60ohm from a more expensive amp isn't as good as 6W from the A70 Pro? I hear the Topping LA90 is a good pairing for the Sussys. Have you tried that?

[@AVICK_22]

Which is the best amp for Susvara? Thanks!

[@Soundnews]

From the ones I tried: Trafomatic Primavera (tube amp) and the Enleum AMP-23R (solid state). You have reviews for both of them in video and written form.

[@AVICK_22]

@@Soundnews Hi mam, thanks so much! I was reading again your written review about Susvara, and was looking at Volot and Ferrum couple, will search those 2 too. Wondering if A70pro worth it in terms of sound quality... Edited: Those 2 looks great but too expensive right now!!! Crazy and beautiful, like WA23 LUNA...

[@giovannirizzotti3923]

Hi Sandu, thank you for the awesome review! I was wondering if, with the A70 pro, I'd be able to use the xlr out in a passive way, without powering on the amplifier. I already do something similar with unbalanced RCA, with a Topping E30 and a Topping L50 (which have passive passthrough RCA). This allow me to connect E30 to L50, than L50 to my studio monitor and, once I power on the L50, I can just hear the sound from the headphone output. Hope this makes sense.

[@Mastermnd1]

Please help me make my mind. This stack, or an RME ADI2?

[@Soundnews]

Can't play with your money, sorry mate. Pick the one/ones that suit your needs.

[@Mastermnd1]

@@Soundnews thank you for your great videos and taking the time to answer. Based on everything I've seen on youtube I'm leaning towards this stack, but it's hard because I have no way to compare it to anything and I will be buying blindly over the mail

[@Mastermnd1]

I've had the Topping stack for a couple of weeks now. While I can't A/B with the RME or anything else of the same league, I'm very happy with my purchase. It sounds great, works great, and I just hope they last for a long time.

[@aceofspades6667]

Looks like a step in the right direction

[@IHearEverythingDude]

The stack it's better than those "highend" 10k stacks.

[@mattrismatt]

11:55 Hilarious!

[@johnsonadekunle7675]

Why did Resolve shave his head😅

[@mmorales508]

I really don’t understand Topping’s lineup, these are not their flagships?! Btw how much power does that thing produce again!?!?!?! 👀👀👀👀

[@Soundnews]

In some ways, these are their newest flagships, even if the cost says otherwise. Their true flagship unit however, will be revealed in about two months from now.

[@indrakumarc73]

@@Soundnews i was about to order A70pro, but can wait for another flagship🙂

[@Soundnews]

@@indrakumarc73 Their flagship DX9 will be a DAC & Headphone amp and its price will sit below ~$2K. If you need just an amp, A70 PRO seems like a better deal.

[@indrakumarc73]

@@Soundnews Thanks Sandu, ordered from Amazon:-), hope it has warm sound signature?

[@InDueTime25]

Why does the A90 discrete cost more money. What am I missing?