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I ordered my LA90 Jan. 2023 and it’s worked great since. I accidentally dead shorted the output which immediately shut the amp down but restarted perfectly. I considered upgrading to the Discrete but I think they sound the same. I’ve tried it both single and balanced, balanced seems a bit cleaner. I’m a happy camper. I previously bought the PA5 which is similar but not as refined. It too has worked flawlessly. My Topping headphone amp failed after ten months and was promptly repaired by Shenzhen Audio. I keep hearing about Topping’s reliability issues but I’ve been treated well and I love my LA90.
Bought my first Topping product in 2011. A Topping D2 DAC. I didn't replace it until December of 2020. The leap I made from the D2 to an SMSL M500 was enormous, and I'm still using it.
There's no need to panic when you see a balanced input. Adapter cables are readily available, and it doesn't destroy your fidelity as some fear. You may get a signal that's a bit lower, but it seems they've compensated for that with the gain switch.
TRS to RCA adapters are dirt cheap. I use them with my Focusrite Scarlett audio interface(basically an ADC/DAC)and they haven’t impacted the sound in any way to my ears. Balanced doesn’t provide any real benefit at the lengths most users need. You need to go really long(20’ or so)to make the noise rejection worth it. Also you can single ended INTO any balanced amp without fear of wrecking anything. Splitting the single ended signal is no big deal. The problems come from when you have a balanced source and need to go into single ended amp or preamp. Tying the neutral and ground causes problems for some components.
I agree. Balanced connectors are overrated. You'd be surprised how little it matters anyway since the CMRR falls off with frequency, so by the time it gets to the critical 1-3k region, the CMRR is not enough to make noise inaudible anyway. I only use them if the equipment just doesn't have SE connections.
There are some tube amp designs - not many - that use the balanced input in lieu of a phase splitter. These amps will not work correctly if fed with a single-ended input. Otherwise, you're right, most amps with balanced inputs will work just fine with an SE input, although depending on how the input stage is designed, you might (or might not) lose 6dB of gain.
Balanced and single ended equipment are not compatible. If you are able to use the adaptors, and the component has no way to switch back and forth between both modes of operation, then the equipment you are using isn't balanced to begin with. So, if you want a balanced connection, both pieces have to be balanced in order for you to get it. Having a 3 pin connector, like xlr or trs guarantees nothing. You can put those connectors on single ended components and use 2 of the 3 contact points, however, its the exact same thing as using rca cables. If you want to check if a component is really balanced, or just has xlr/trs connectors, look at the specs for the component in question. You should see 2 sets of specs. One set for balanced, and one for single ended. When you balance a signal, you end up with 6db more output (sometimes 4db) over SE, so there needs to be 2 sets of specs. Also, you'll see pin decagrams and warnings on the type of connections you should avoid, because if you don't know what you're doing, mixing bal and SE gear may damage the components. If anyone doesn't believe me, you can do one of two things. You can argue with me, or you can just look the information up for yourself. Its not hard to find.
XLR inputs give more voltage which gives more gain. XLR is just 2 opposing signals and a ground so you just need to remove one of the 2 and you have single ended, or 1 signal, or RCA.
Great video, thanks. I think I know why it’s XLR only. Because it’s a switching amplifier and uses a switching power supply, There is probably a fair amount of high frequency common mode noise. With RCA jacks this noise would be Introduced across the grounds of the RCA cables and so could be audible. By using differential inputs they can avoid this problem.
If it hasn’t already been mentioned in the thread, perhaps Topping is thinking that this amp pairs well with the PRE90. With or without the extender, the PRE90 allows either single ended or balanced inputs to be routed to balanced XLR output(s).
@@cheapaudioman They have a new product, the 'A90 Discrete', that marries their Pre90 preamp and their A90 headphone amplifier, both which measure extremely well. With that + the LA90 you get a whole speaker/headphone system, with RCA/XLR, making it easier to use any DAC.
The Topping LA90 is worth it. I bought it based off of this video review. I promise this will beat 99% of vintage amplifiers within your price and you'll be hard-pressed to find a more competitively priced amplifier. I compared this to two Marantz MA500u monoblocks, a Crown XLS 2000, and Nelson Pass Amp Camp Amp. Not even close.
Just working with Topping to send back my second PA5 amplifier. They sound fantastic for the price, but not worth it if the life expectancy is a few months.
I use XLR from my CD player to my integrated amp and what a difference. So much cleaner. The player has RCA out as well which I only use for bad recording that need to be tamed with my Loki + I think we’re going to be seeing more equipment using balanced XLR or TRS because the sound is that much better in my opinion. Naw, it is better sounding!
Balanced inputs give two distinct advantages. One is the one everyone talks about, which is noise rejection. Essentially, balanced connections cancel out noise that gets impressed upon the signal while it travels through the cable. But the other advantage is that the signal level used in pro balanced systems (1.25VRMS is the normal level, with 5 to10V being the peak level) is 14dB hotter than the signal level used in common RCA cable systems (where the normal level is only 0.25VRMS with about 1V being the peak level (0.5V and 2V respectively for CD/DVD/Blu Ray players)). Since the signal is 14dB hotter you can use 14dB less gain in the amplifier, and this reduces noise, distortion, etc. There's no technical reason one cannot run a 1.25V signal through RCA cables, except that it would overload the inputs of some devices. That said, in most home stereo systems, the normal RCA cable system used since the 1950's is perfectly fine. If you have really efficient speakers (Klipschorns or similar) and/or a really quiet environment in which to listen, then the much better S/N provided by balanced systems might be of use.
You don't have to defend your use of the Sony SSCS-5s as a reference speaker for your reviews. Yes they are inexpensive. Yes they are of a lower tier of build quality. But they sound amazing, are dynamic, yet refined. AND they do scale well, as you mentioned. That's why I keep coming back to them as I also have Wharfedale Diamond 11.2, Wharfedale D320, D310, Definitve ProMonitor 100, Pinnacle Quantums, AND a 2nd pair of the SSCS-5s (because they are f'n fantastic). Keep up the great work, Randy!!!!!! Just got my A2 yesterday and can't wait to hook it up to my TA-100 and NR1606 (to compare pre-amps). The Sony's will get the first crack at the A2's power.
Designing around balanced inputs allows the source to supply very high voltage in a differential mode (instead of 2V single ended, you can have 2V on the positive signal pin and -2V on the negative signal pin, which is 4V of input, and then the amp itself can be designed for lower gain, which leads to lower quiescent noise. This approach appeals to the ASR crowd who go all agog over the highest SINAD number they have ever measured, but it is using a cheat code to accomplish this.
Corridor digital has a countdown from the start to the end of each ad segment. For some reason I always watch their ads because they respect their viewers enough to do that. I'll watch your ads man. Thanks for the free content. Edit: I love the shirt BTW. 👍👍
Thanks for being Honest and Reliable as a Reviewer, I bought 2 of these Amps a gift to my Brother he was so Surprise how great it was, Performance wise Sonically well design.
Interesting review. I struggle with the price of this one. It's spitting distance in price to products like the Audiolab 6000A or the Yammy AS-801 both seem more functional for the average user. Also have a more "hifi" look to them, if there's such a thing.
Do yourself a favor and go for that Yammi or the Audiolab. Save yourself a whole lot of trouble. The point of xlr, btw, is to bridge longer distances w/o losing sound quality. That’s why we use it in the professional audio branch, during concerts or large events.
I do admit I have not heard this amplifier. However, I just looked at the price $899 ! With the price and the quirky input/outputs, the power brick and the low power output, video says 50 watts and the apos audio add says 40 watts at 8 ohm, if I am reading everything right. Without actually hearing it I could never take a chance and buy one. At right around the $1000 mark I think there are a lot of better choices out there. Who knows, if I heard it I might be happy to throw down my money, but short of that, no.
As a Yammy (and Topping) owner I understand the "hefty" and reassuring feel. Damn! I feel it myself! LOL. But this does not necessarily equate with performance and durability. Yams are excellent for the money but "small and durable" IS possible. Many customers prefer chunky, heavy boxes that "feel" rugged and built to last. Weight and bulk are cheap and easy to add. :-) Performance, warranty and service should be deciding factors, not kilos or pounds.
TRS or XLR. doesn't matter. Just the shape and form factor. Buy a cable with the connection on one end and the TRS on the other. No big deal. It's like USB type A, type B, whatever. Just get a cable with the ends that fit.
How does it compares to Aiyima 07 with sparkos op amp? Curious as you mentioned it is as good as some of $1000 USD amp. Between, thanks for the 20% discount code. I grabbed a pair of B1+.
To the best of my knowledge, you can send an RCA signal to an amp input using a converter cable without issue. Is there some reason why we couldn't do that with this amp?
As a studio-owner were TRS/XLR etc are a big thing / what we use, and where I'd have to dabble with converting them : It shouldn't be a problem. Plugin in a non-balanced cable will just short the 2 "TR"-pins and if designed correctly, won't render any issues. A RCA->Jack converter should work just fine.
It's not just their own stuff that often has balanced in/out, it's most of the pro audio world. I imagine this would be wonderful powering passive monitors on some quality audio interface like an RME ADI-2 Pro FS 2 R you might have in a home studio. Compatibility is a great thing nonetheless, so long as impact to price and performance is negligible. Their E50 DAC and L50 HPA both do balanced and unbalanced with essentially equal performance measurements IIRC, so perhaps your dream will come true with their next power amp...
The measurements are truly impressive on this amp. Amir from Audio Science Review has a complete report. The Topping LA90 has reference level signal to noise and distortion ratio at 120db. WOW, it even beats the $3000 Benchmark amp. I'd like to see a set of more powerful mono block amps with internal power supply.
If topping would just make a power amp like this with 100w 8ohm @ 1%(or .1%)THD, they would do much better on sales. As things are now, you could just get Audiophonics NCore builds for $500 and get way more power than this(150w 8 ohm, 250w 4ohm @ 1%THD)
A separate power supply reduces any noise generated leaking leaking into the amp. Most good amplifier’s need either heavy shielding or separated power. From the noise levels of this amp it’s remote configuration obviously aided. Noise decreases by the square of its distance, hard for shielding to compete.
RME ADI-2 DAC fs. Balanced xlr outs and rca, volume control, super headphone AND ie amp. You can run XLR cables for a s long as you like through your desktop to the amp....
when i DJ'd as a kid all my amps and speaker connections were 1'4" TRS... i had no idea then it was better sound quality.. i just thought it was faster connecting/disconnecting than using RCA's and regular wires/bananas. no wonder those cables were $50 ea.
Are Topping boxing themselves in . Many dacs have both rca and balanced, many customers have rca and it's a big ask to change the lot, maybe some company will come up with a adaptor of some kind, but then it's a daisy chain . I have noticed the mx5 sounds so much better with just rca ..
You can use TRS/XLR to RCA adapters just fine. A 'balanced' input just expects a differential voltage, for single ended one lead is simply 0 V. So you lose a lot of gain from the input and require a higher gain setting in the input buffer. This will probably knock the SINAD down like 6 dB, but whatever.
Great video, Randy. Simply put, this Topping amp is aimed at the high end of the not-so-high-end market; people that are willing to spend a little extra without going nuts on a Hi-Fi component. When you go balanced, you usually go big................
Sponsors help which intern helps me and I wanna see you thrive and continue, gas ain’t cheap and I enjoy these videos immensely . All my audio has some China on it whether it’s from Canada or the US or Japan . This is the way ( mandalorian ) I’ll see you on the patrion soon !
You can just any professional soundcard, like Audient ID14, Focusrite Scarlett Solo etc. all of which are cheap and have XLR outputs and sound great, especially the Audient stuff.
Hi Cheapaudioman, I like your videos, but you should pull this one and issue a revised one. You make numerous assertions regarding difficulty in using the amp that just aren't accurate. Also, keeping buyers in the Topping Ecosphere is marketing, and the value they offer is that of a market disrupter. They are seriously good value. There are plenty of DACs with XLR outputs and preamps built-in. This stuff isn't that hard. You're a music lover and HiFi enthusiast who really nails it for the rank-and-file. Great work and always enjoyable and great edutainment. Thanks!
Using Motu M4 DAC (which is cheap and has TSR outputs) and a Raspberry Pi with CamillaDSP and the Topping P5. This setup allows 2.1 sub with room correction
I’m glad you are getting more sponsors . Gonna help us both . Another great review . I’m not in the market for anything like this but I enjoyed the video as always
I am definitely getting this, looks like there is an updated version. It has a convenient 3 balanced inputs, so I can use this with my ADI 2 DAC FS and UAD audio interface.
An RCA to XLR lead is no problem. Earth and - on XLR are linked and go to earth on RCA. RCA to a mono 1/4 Jack will do the same thing joining the R/S of TRS (-&earth). Does the topology of this amp design require a balanced signal though? - In which case the balanced ins are essential. I think the Schitt topologies require RCA in stereo and balanced in mono mode - L&R sides of the amp being used for the balanced + and - signals in mono mode. This is more of a question as it is skirting the nether regions of my knowledge!
The Topping Pre-90 has two inputs, one pair of XLR one pair of RCAs, and has XLR out. It would pair well with the LA-90 Now why they put three inputs and a volume control on a power amp is beyond me.
It is the case that the conversion of single ended RCA to balanced XLR or Neutrik does require an active mode preamp, which is going to add distortion to the signal. I think I am correct in that Topping and other Chinese comps. do NOT have this type of conversion in their DACS. The PRE90 does have it, bot only for 2 inputs (one of each). Adding at least one single ended input drives the cost significantly while complicating the situation or a power amplifier that also operates as a monoblock. It does looks like the company can't decide what they want from their products. Maybe it has to do with uncertainty on which markets they will compete and against which companies. There is simply no other integrated amp with the characteristics of the LA90
Hi Randy. Very interesting. Ha. Thanks for another great video. It seems like the Topping E50 Dac and this amp would make a great pairing. Do you think it would?
Amazing piece of engineering right there. Kudo's for making an AB amp with such transparency and low distortion...although I think Randy said 10% thd, which isn't correct. Issue with this product, in my opinion, is the low power and the brick power supply. If you are looking for just a perfect measuring transparent amp at this price point the Hypex Ucd, Encore and Purifi amps have waaaay more power for this kinda money. I am very interested in hearing this Topping though, and I will admit I like neutral transparent gear, but I doubt I would keep this or have a use for it with these power ratings. I saw the measurements for this thing, I think it's a great accomplishment, especially if it sounds as good as Randy says...the next step is more power with a built in power supply.
@@lok777 ah ok, I assumed Randy didn't see a decimal or something but what you said makes sense, I probably wasn't paying attention. So a nice little desktop amp but still a little too pricey for a guy like me when considering other options. I would still like to hear it though
Randy gave the specs at both 10% and 1% thd, but why manufacturers even give specs at 10% I have no idea, unless (gasp) they want to pull the wool over the eyes of the uninitiated. I do agree that if I was buying a power amp at this price I would consider going for a Purifi to get the extra juice.
Why no one mention about how topping deal with warranty. Do they have a shipping address in USA for warranty repair and after 1 year repair center.If not , this half baked product fail in a year or after years and you waste 1k for nothing. Do you got affiliated this product? If you so , please mention upfront so that viewers know.
Yeah, some of the stuff coming out of China is really good stuff at crazy excellent prices. I like some of the Cayin offerings. Certainly some most excellent deals to be had on IEM's as well. I've been reading a lot of comments from other about Topping so apparently they are well liked products. I just don't see a need for anything right now. I'm covered on amplifiers (Burson and Woo Audio). No need for another DAC (Emotiva and Burson). I'm pleased with my CD player (Marantz) to the point of not desiring the expense of a transport at this time. Personally I'm all for the Chinese stuff if it's decent sounding and well priced, especially the products that exhibit good build quality such as point to point wiring internally. Today is such a good time to be able to put together a darn good audio system without going into the poor house. Of course you can do that too! LOL
The preamp and balanced thing isn’t a big deal bc Toppings offerings have a lot of balanced connectors at the 90 family level. Paired with the Topping D90SE you get a nice MQA DAC you can plug a usb streamer into for digital audio, and with an RCA on the D90 you could plug a phono stage into with a turntable. D90 has Bluetooth if you wanna stream to it that way too. Could even add the A90 headphone amp. All balanced. Nice little mini stack.
I own this Amplifier and stack it with D90 and A90 (Preamp mode) in my desktop setup for 2 months.I think this stack is pretty much this best desktop kit you can get and to use it for Bookshelf speakers review as it makes it so easy to review the characteristics of each pair of speakers. Recently I also got the Debut pro with S2 ultra (phono), I think they pairs well with A90 and LA90. P.S. phono amp rca outputs to A90 and XLR outputs from A90 to LA90
Topping is subtly trying to build an eco system around its products indirectly, it can be a good or bad thing but I love it. This is what is I personally strive for, measures excellently and sounds freaking great. Both have to go hand in hand, extremists can go play marbles.
Well, if you don't have balanced outputs you can use unbalanced cables with only + signal pin soldered in XLR. Why not? I am not sure though, will it be twice quieter?
I have this amp in a topping stack with a pre-90 and a D90. IMHO the LA-90 is best used in bypass mode with external volume regulation by the pre-90. But even when directly connected to the D90 and using that in preamp mode instead of pure DAC mode, it sounded a lot better than using LA-90 for volume. Put in other words, this amp should almost be bundled with the pre-90 (which is also a phenomenal product), solving some of the problems you mention here.
@@delvalle9256 I think the word that describes it best is "accurate". It doesn't have any color at all, which I think is a good thing. After listening to it for a few months, the tube amps i have tried sound just wrong. I'd liken it to seeing pictures with an instagram filter, and then suddenly switching to seeing them without. The system plays the music you ask it to play, no more, no less.
I discovered Topping a couple years back on audio science review. I picked up the then-new and hard to find D70 DAC and have been hard pressed to replace it. Fantastic build quality. Heck, it has more inputs/outputs than some _far_ pricier brands. Or the excellent Sabaj A20D for that matter (I need that HDMI/i2s though!). And doesn't feel out of place sitting next to my Aurender or BAT amp & preamp. Topping is _so_ into measurements they did a model of their D90 sans MQA, just so it would measure at the top of the heap. Which it does. And stomps expensive DACs from Chord and Denafrips at least on paper. If Topping has a problem, it's too many products (at least DACs). I'm rooting for them.
Hard to compare with Chord or Denafrips as they ( particularly Denafrips ) have different architectures. An R2R ladder DAC will never measure as well as a chip DAC but many people prefer the sound.
If it's a conventional linear class A/B power amp with negative feedback, then once the signal inputs the diff stage it has to be single ended/unbalanced. Unless they use some unconventional circuit like bridge. They may run balanced preamp/volume control and then convert signal to unbalanced, or convert to unbalanced at the/past input selector. At 50W/8ohm, 90W/4ohm that's not a ton of juice, but given the price and published performance, a very good amp within it's limits.
Hey Randy - love your channel and review style. Have you by any chance compared this to the Akitika GT-102 kit amp? I own that amp and love it, but wonder how this compares. Thanks again for all your reviews!
I was confused and had to Google this: "The letters TRS stand for Tip, Ring, and Sleeve, and refer to the parts of the jack plug that the different conductors are connected to. A TRS cable has three conductors vs the two on a standard guitar cable. A guitar cable is a TS, or Tip Sleeve cable."
After watching your video I checked the website for specs because it just didn't sound right. Your distortion figures are when the amp is bridged mode. The distortion level between 5w-40w is almost non existent and the amp doesn't start to distort until after 90watts. Would be nice to see a list of dacs with the right kind of connectors available that would benefit the usage of this amp.
Like you know! You can’t find anything this good for this price and you are being real! TRSand XLR are high quality professional!, everybody (engineer) knows the best! Don’t apologies. There is no better input, radio, music files, and maybe video/audio as an excellent input
Chinese gear "can" be good!! And unbelievable value for money!! I hand on heart believe my Chinese Audreal XA 6950 hybrid amp (@ $2k)would hold its own with 4-5K US and European made amps!!
I'd be curious to hear about how it sounds with other speakers? Something with more bass extension, in particular. And possibly with the Geshelli J2 with balanced connection, using the LA90 as an integrated amp. Okay, even 1% THD is still not great - and certainly 10% is not what one would want to listen to. 50W/ch into 8 ohms and 90W/ch into 4 ohms is completely fine; and given that most people use 1 watt to maybe 16 watts (85dB sensitive speakers are up to ~105dB at 16 watts), then the distortion is probably 0.01% THD or less.
@@cheapaudioman That thought had crossed my mind! The downside for me is I don't have a balanced preamp, and while I could use the Ares II balanced into the LA90 - it lacks a remote. And then I couldn't use my turntable.
@@cheapaudioman Very interestingly, this LA90 amp appears to be using the same Texas Instruments LM3886 output chip as the AkitikA GT-102 Z4 (and the Cambridge Audio AXA35 as well)! And according to the measurements at ASR they are producing almost exactly the same output power - at very low distortion, the ASR measurements show 36W/ch @ 8 ohms and 56W/ch @ 4 ohms. Which is virtually the same as the AkitikA GT-102 Z4. The obvious difference is the GT-102 Z4 is single ended. It uses a 72V 3.5A linear power supply with good current capacity in reserve for peaks. The LA90 uses the external 64V 4A switching power supply. Hmmm ...
I’m waiting for a bridged version with two amplifier modules, double the power, without volume control or input selector, and with an internal power supply. Those feature requests have been communicated to Topping by many people. And obviously, with a lot of attention supplied to QC as that has been a recent issue with Topping products.
@@natefalck5331 It would not be “completely different,” but would incorporate the features I discussed above. These feature requests have been brought to Topping’s attention and I am waiting to see what Topping does.
Did I miss something? Is this a class AB amp? The brick power supply probably was done as a cost saving, but there may be some engineering advantages to separating the power supply. Using on more demanding speakers would be appropriate with an amp of this cost, also pairing and testing with a good preamp (Freya S) would be useful. What are the comparisons with the Vidar and Emotive in terms of sound, useful to know at this price point. Thanks for your assistance
Nothing can touch this amp from a performance level. It's proper engineering. That's why the power supply is separate. I have a couple of amps that do the same, Naim and Cyrus.
I bought a topping DAC years ago when people were first getting excited about them. It died a few months later. I know it is anecdotal but there are a lot of posts online about issues with various products from them. I'd be really nervous about spending this much money if it wasn't being sold by an company that has excellent customer service and a return address in country. I'd bought mine from Parts-Express so they took care of it and I didn't have to pay to ship it to China and wait for a new one.
Good point, they will never back it up that would be honest. And 900 bucks, I got an integrated amp for 70 bucks that I play every day about 8 hours just to break it in very clean sound. It's made in China too. And it's 50w per channel and with my boost it's got great bass. It's probably better than that 900 dollar crash and burn.
I really like the look of it. Did u try any of your Polk reserve speakers Randy ? I know they can handle alot of power and dip below 4 ohm to 3.8 ohm I believe
From Primeaudio.org: "Most average power amps have a THD+N of around 0.0008%. The LA90 takes that all the way down to a THD+N of 0.00007%. Yes, there’s an extra 0 in there!"
Quoting 10% THD at maximum power output is misleading. I know that Topping use that figure and I am blaming them here, not you!). They have to publish max output power to help match the amp to a set of speakers and gives a better idea of how much usable power is available.. For example, so that you don't try to use speakers with a maximum input of, say, 50 watts with an amp putting out 200 watts. What the specs for the LA90 is says is that for 1% THD (not 10%) the LA90 will deliver 50 watts into an 8 ohm load. A better measure of distortion and the most commonly used is the THD +N figure which is a measure of distortion + noise at normal listening levels nominally at 5 watts. The value for the LA90 is 0.00009% which is inaudible and vanishingly low. For comparison the equivalent figure for a Marantz PM6007 is 0.08% (still very acceptable). On that basis the LA90 has the lowest distortion figure for almost any power amp in the world at any price.
$900.00 and very poor standard connectivity and 50 WPC of clean power? No, not for me. There are a lot of integrated amps in that price range from Rotel, Marantz, Yamaha....that offer better looks, plenty of power and standard connections. Not to mention the Cambridge AXA 35 that, at $399.00, is a bargain.
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Randy - those scammers are at it again trying to tell me I won a great gift - not you, correct?
@@Audiomainia2310 i got the same message from telegramme. Wtf?
@@KonradSkowronski All over the place - I reported whomever this is and told Randy.
I ordered my LA90 Jan. 2023 and it’s worked great since. I accidentally dead shorted the output which immediately shut the amp down but restarted perfectly. I considered upgrading to the Discrete but I think they sound the same. I’ve tried it both single and balanced, balanced seems a bit cleaner. I’m a happy camper. I previously bought the PA5 which is similar but not as refined. It too has worked flawlessly. My Topping headphone amp failed after ten months and was promptly repaired by Shenzhen Audio. I keep hearing about Topping’s reliability issues but I’ve been treated well and I love my LA90.
Bought my first Topping product in 2011. A Topping D2 DAC. I didn't replace it until December of 2020. The leap I made from the D2 to an SMSL M500 was enormous, and I'm still using it.
There's no need to panic when you see a balanced input. Adapter cables are readily available, and it doesn't destroy your fidelity as some fear. You may get a signal that's a bit lower, but it seems they've compensated for that with the gain switch.
TRS to RCA adapters are dirt cheap. I use them with my Focusrite Scarlett audio interface(basically an ADC/DAC)and they haven’t impacted the sound in any way to my ears.
Balanced doesn’t provide any real benefit at the lengths most users need. You need to go really long(20’ or so)to make the noise rejection worth it. Also you can single ended INTO any balanced amp without fear of wrecking anything. Splitting the single ended signal is no big deal. The problems come from when you have a balanced source and need to go into single ended amp or preamp. Tying the neutral and ground causes problems for some components.
I agree. Balanced connectors are overrated. You'd be surprised how little it matters anyway since the CMRR falls off with frequency, so by the time it gets to the critical 1-3k region, the CMRR is not enough to make noise inaudible anyway. I only use them if the equipment just doesn't have SE connections.
There are some tube amp designs - not many - that use the balanced input in lieu of a phase splitter. These amps will not work correctly if fed with a single-ended input. Otherwise, you're right, most amps with balanced inputs will work just fine with an SE input, although depending on how the input stage is designed, you might (or might not) lose 6dB of gain.
Balanced and single ended equipment are not compatible. If you are able to use the adaptors, and the component has no way to switch back and forth between both modes of operation, then the equipment you are using isn't balanced to begin with. So, if you want a balanced connection, both pieces have to be balanced in order for you to get it. Having a 3 pin connector, like xlr or trs guarantees nothing. You can put those connectors on single ended components and use 2 of the 3 contact points, however, its the exact same thing as using rca cables.
If you want to check if a component is really balanced, or just has xlr/trs connectors, look at the specs for the component in question. You should see 2 sets of specs. One set for balanced, and one for single ended. When you balance a signal, you end up with 6db more output (sometimes 4db) over SE, so there needs to be 2 sets of specs. Also, you'll see pin decagrams and warnings on the type of connections you should avoid, because if you don't know what you're doing, mixing bal and SE gear may damage the components.
If anyone doesn't believe me, you can do one of two things. You can argue with me, or you can just look the information up for yourself. Its not hard to find.
@@AT-wl9yq Finally someone who knows what its all about!
Just use an adapter, it should be fine, the gain switch would usually then be set to high. I use my tascam LM8ST this way and it sounds superb.
XLR inputs give more voltage which gives more gain. XLR is just 2 opposing signals and a ground so you just need to remove one of the 2 and you have single ended, or 1 signal, or RCA.
Great video, thanks. I think I know why it’s XLR only. Because it’s a switching amplifier and uses a switching power supply, There is probably a fair amount of high frequency common mode noise. With RCA jacks this noise would be Introduced across the grounds of the RCA cables and so could be audible. By using differential inputs they can avoid this problem.
its a class a/b amp not a switching class d amp
If it hasn’t already been mentioned in the thread, perhaps Topping is thinking that this amp pairs well with the PRE90. With or without the extender, the PRE90 allows either single ended or balanced inputs to be routed to balanced XLR output(s).
I got one and I'll eventually pick one of these amps up, maybe this afternoon.
Lol. That makes sense. But until this comment I didn’t even knew that product existed. I’m chuckling as maybe this would have been a different review
@@cheapaudioman They have a new product, the 'A90 Discrete', that marries their Pre90 preamp and their A90 headphone amplifier, both which measure extremely well. With that + the LA90 you get a whole speaker/headphone system, with RCA/XLR, making it easier to use any DAC.
Not only PRE90, A90 and A90D also work the same way. Which is very handy
I have this amp and the pre amp. You won't get better performance.
The Topping LA90 is worth it. I bought it based off of this video review. I promise this will beat 99% of vintage amplifiers within your price and you'll be hard-pressed to find a more competitively priced amplifier. I compared this to two Marantz MA500u monoblocks, a Crown XLS 2000, and Nelson Pass Amp Camp Amp. Not even close.
Just working with Topping to send back my second PA5 amplifier. They sound fantastic for the price, but not worth it if the life expectancy is a few months.
Interesting. Actually one of the trs connections on mine got a little wobbly almost immediately
My PA5 is failing after 3 months of use.
Saw another comment about the PA5.
My PA5 still working after a year. I don’t leave it on though.
@@TheHope12322
Overheates? Why it can't be 'ON' all the time.
I use XLR from my CD player to my integrated amp and what a difference. So much cleaner. The player has RCA out as well which I only use for bad recording that need to be tamed with my Loki +
I think we’re going to be seeing more equipment using balanced XLR or TRS because the sound is that much better in my opinion. Naw, it is better sounding!
Balanced inputs give two distinct advantages. One is the one everyone talks about, which is noise rejection. Essentially, balanced connections cancel out noise that gets impressed upon the signal while it travels through the cable. But the other advantage is that the signal level used in pro balanced systems (1.25VRMS is the normal level, with 5 to10V being the peak level) is 14dB hotter than the signal level used in common RCA cable systems (where the normal level is only 0.25VRMS with about 1V being the peak level (0.5V and 2V respectively for CD/DVD/Blu Ray players)). Since the signal is 14dB hotter you can use 14dB less gain in the amplifier, and this reduces noise, distortion, etc. There's no technical reason one cannot run a 1.25V signal through RCA cables, except that it would overload the inputs of some devices.
That said, in most home stereo systems, the normal RCA cable system used since the 1950's is perfectly fine. If you have really efficient speakers (Klipschorns or similar) and/or a really quiet environment in which to listen, then the much better S/N provided by balanced systems might be of use.
You don't have to defend your use of the Sony SSCS-5s as a reference speaker for your reviews. Yes they are inexpensive. Yes they are of a lower tier of build quality. But they sound amazing, are dynamic, yet refined. AND they do scale well, as you mentioned. That's why I keep coming back to them as I also have Wharfedale Diamond 11.2, Wharfedale D320, D310, Definitve ProMonitor 100, Pinnacle Quantums, AND a 2nd pair of the SSCS-5s (because they are f'n fantastic). Keep up the great work, Randy!!!!!! Just got my A2 yesterday and can't wait to hook it up to my TA-100 and NR1606 (to compare pre-amps). The Sony's will get the first crack at the A2's power.
Designing around balanced inputs allows the source to supply very high voltage in a differential mode (instead of 2V single ended, you can have 2V on the positive signal pin and -2V on the negative signal pin, which is 4V of input, and then the amp itself can be designed for lower gain, which leads to lower quiescent noise. This approach appeals to the ASR crowd who go all agog over the highest SINAD number they have ever measured, but it is using a cheat code to accomplish this.
Corridor digital has a countdown from the start to the end of each ad segment. For some reason I always watch their ads because they respect their viewers enough to do that. I'll watch your ads man. Thanks for the free content.
Edit: I love the shirt BTW. 👍👍
I've got to figure out how to implement one of those. I time stamped it if people want to skip it though.
You can use a adapter from RCA to XLR or TRS.
@@hbg70 He said use something like a Schiit Freya, you can get a RCA to XLR or TRS adapter for cheap on aliexpress.
@@hbg70 Its a very minor inconvenience, but ok.
Thanks for being Honest and Reliable as a Reviewer, I bought 2 of these Amps a gift to my Brother he was so Surprise how great it was, Performance wise Sonically well design.
Interesting review.
I struggle with the price of this one. It's spitting distance in price to products like the Audiolab 6000A or the Yammy AS-801 both seem more functional for the average user. Also have a more "hifi" look to them, if there's such a thing.
Do yourself a favor and go for that Yammi or the Audiolab. Save yourself a whole lot of trouble.
The point of xlr, btw, is to bridge longer distances w/o losing sound quality. That’s why we use it in the professional audio branch, during concerts or large events.
I do admit I have not heard this amplifier. However, I just looked at the price $899 ! With the price and the quirky input/outputs, the power brick and the low power output, video says 50 watts and the apos audio add says 40 watts at 8 ohm, if I am reading everything right. Without actually hearing it I could never take a chance and buy one. At right around the $1000 mark I think there are a lot of better choices out there. Who knows, if I heard it I might be happy to throw down my money, but short of that, no.
As a Yammy (and Topping) owner I understand the "hefty" and reassuring feel. Damn! I feel it myself! LOL. But this does not necessarily equate with performance and durability. Yams are excellent for the money but "small and durable" IS possible. Many customers prefer chunky, heavy boxes that "feel" rugged and built to last. Weight and bulk are cheap and easy to add. :-) Performance, warranty and service should be deciding factors, not kilos or pounds.
TRS or XLR. doesn't matter. Just the shape and form factor. Buy a cable with the connection on one end and the TRS on the other. No big deal.
It's like USB type A, type B, whatever. Just get a cable with the ends that fit.
How does it compares to Aiyima 07 with sparkos op amp? Curious as you mentioned it is as good as some of $1000 USD amp. Between, thanks for the 20% discount code. I grabbed a pair of B1+.
Best amplifier you’ve ever heard. I know this question is ridiculous, but better than your McIntosh?
Yes, it's better. Just check the numbers.
Nice shirt Randy. I'm wearing the same one. Wife got it for me and has the names of all my kids👍
To the best of my knowledge, you can send an RCA signal to an amp input using a converter cable without issue. Is there some reason why we couldn't do that with this amp?
As a studio-owner were TRS/XLR etc are a big thing / what we use, and where I'd have to dabble with converting them : It shouldn't be a problem. Plugin in a non-balanced cable will just short the 2 "TR"-pins and if designed correctly, won't render any issues. A RCA->Jack converter should work just fine.
I have used the RCA - XLR adpators already,no issues, hope that helps
It's not just their own stuff that often has balanced in/out, it's most of the pro audio world. I imagine this would be wonderful powering passive monitors on some quality audio interface like an RME ADI-2 Pro FS 2 R you might have in a home studio.
Compatibility is a great thing nonetheless, so long as impact to price and performance is negligible. Their E50 DAC and L50 HPA both do balanced and unbalanced with essentially equal performance measurements IIRC, so perhaps your dream will come true with their next power amp...
The measurements are truly impressive on this amp. Amir from Audio Science Review has a complete report. The Topping LA90 has reference level signal to noise and distortion ratio at 120db. WOW, it even beats the $3000 Benchmark amp. I'd like to see a set of more powerful mono block amps with internal power supply.
If topping would just make a power amp like this with 100w 8ohm @ 1%(or .1%)THD, they would do much better on sales. As things are now, you could just get Audiophonics NCore builds for $500 and get way more power than this(150w 8 ohm, 250w 4ohm @ 1%THD)
A separate power supply reduces any noise generated leaking leaking into the amp. Most good amplifier’s need either heavy shielding or separated power. From the noise levels of this amp it’s remote configuration obviously aided. Noise decreases by the square of its distance, hard for shielding to compete.
Don't fret over the balanced input thing, you can plug unbalanced cables into these inputs. no loss of quality, just use rca adapters.
RME ADI-2 DAC fs. Balanced xlr outs and rca, volume control, super headphone AND ie amp. You can run XLR cables for a s long as you like through your desktop to the amp....
when i DJ'd as a kid all my amps and speaker connections were 1'4" TRS... i had no idea then it was better sound quality.. i just thought it was faster connecting/disconnecting than using RCA's and regular wires/bananas. no wonder those cables were $50 ea.
Are Topping boxing themselves in .
Many dacs have both rca and balanced, many customers have rca and it's a big ask to change the lot, maybe some company will come up with a adaptor of some kind, but then it's a daisy chain .
I have noticed the mx5 sounds so much better with just rca ..
You can use TRS/XLR to RCA adapters just fine. A 'balanced' input just expects a differential voltage, for single ended one lead is simply 0 V. So you lose a lot of gain from the input and require a higher gain setting in the input buffer. This will probably knock the SINAD down like 6 dB, but whatever.
Sounds like "Great Bang for Your Buck" item. Probably not for everyone, but still good to know what's out there. Thanks Randy! GREAT SHIRT!!!
Great video, Randy. Simply put, this Topping amp is aimed at the high end of the not-so-high-end market; people that are willing to spend a little extra without going nuts on a Hi-Fi component. When you go balanced, you usually go big................
A fully-balanced amp can support any combination of SE or balanced inputs and outputs.
Sponsors help which intern helps me and I wanna see you thrive and continue, gas ain’t cheap and I enjoy these videos immensely . All my audio has some China on it whether it’s from Canada or the US or Japan . This is the way ( mandalorian ) I’ll see you on the patrion soon !
I wonder how this amp would work with Jay Audio Lab's Magico speakers?
Might sound like a million bucks but the lack of single ended connectivity makes me want blow it up with Tannerite.
You can just any professional soundcard, like Audient ID14, Focusrite Scarlett Solo etc. all of which are cheap and have XLR outputs and sound great, especially the Audient stuff.
Hi Cheapaudioman, I like your videos, but you should pull this one and issue a revised one. You make numerous assertions regarding difficulty in using the amp that just aren't accurate. Also, keeping buyers in the Topping Ecosphere is marketing, and the value they offer is that of a market disrupter. They are seriously good value. There are plenty of DACs with XLR outputs and preamps built-in. This stuff isn't that hard. You're a music lover and HiFi enthusiast who really nails it for the rank-and-file. Great work and always enjoyable and great edutainment. Thanks!
Using Motu M4 DAC (which is cheap and has TSR outputs) and a Raspberry Pi with CamillaDSP and the Topping P5. This setup allows 2.1 sub with room correction
Another excellent review.
Love the shirt, good job.
Thanks for being there for us!
I’m glad you are getting more sponsors . Gonna help us both . Another great review . I’m not in the market for anything like this but I enjoyed the video as always
If I had the money, I would get a Monoprice HTP1 and 4 of these for a killer separates surround system.
Chinese manufacturers have gotten very good at making their products seem high quality from a tactile perspective.
Great review, don't worry about the sponsor plug, that's just part of it.
Awesome vid to include surf shark advertising. Keep up the good work. Would love a demo.
My Emotiva TA1 and 160 watt Emotiva A2 Amp combo does the job very well not seeing the value add?
I am definitely getting this, looks like there is an updated version. It has a convenient 3 balanced inputs, so I can use this with my ADI 2 DAC FS and UAD audio interface.
Topping Pre-90 and it's extension dock can deal with the rca inputs, and it sounds very good.
An RCA to XLR lead is no problem. Earth and - on XLR are linked and go to earth on RCA. RCA to a mono 1/4 Jack will do the same thing joining the R/S of TRS (-&earth). Does the topology of this amp design require a balanced signal though? - In which case the balanced ins are essential. I think the Schitt topologies require RCA in stereo and balanced in mono mode - L&R sides of the amp being used for the balanced + and - signals in mono mode. This is more of a question as it is skirting the nether regions of my knowledge!
The Topping Pre-90 has two inputs, one pair of XLR one pair of RCAs, and has XLR out. It would pair well with the LA-90
Now why they put three inputs and a volume control on a power amp is beyond me.
It is the case that the conversion of single ended RCA to balanced XLR or Neutrik does require an active mode preamp, which is going to add distortion to the signal. I think I am correct in that Topping and other Chinese comps. do NOT have this type of conversion in their DACS. The PRE90 does have it, bot only for 2 inputs (one of each). Adding at least one single ended input drives the cost significantly while complicating the situation or a power amplifier that also operates as a monoblock. It does looks like the company can't decide what they want from their products. Maybe it has to do with uncertainty on which markets they will compete and against which companies. There is simply no other integrated amp with the characteristics of the LA90
Hi Randy. Very interesting. Ha. Thanks for another great video. It seems like the Topping E50 Dac and this amp would make a great pairing. Do you think it would?
Or EX5 or DX5. Or SMSL DO100 which has a better more responsive remote
Amazing piece of engineering right there. Kudo's for making an AB amp with such transparency and low distortion...although I think Randy said 10% thd, which isn't correct. Issue with this product, in my opinion, is the low power and the brick power supply. If you are looking for just a perfect measuring transparent amp at this price point the Hypex Ucd, Encore and Purifi amps have waaaay more power for this kinda money. I am very interested in hearing this Topping though, and I will admit I like neutral transparent gear, but I doubt I would keep this or have a use for it with these power ratings. I saw the measurements for this thing, I think it's a great accomplishment, especially if it sounds as good as Randy says...the next step is more power with a built in power supply.
The specs are 10 percent THD at 110 watts............... It is lower at 10-20 watts but still. Just buy an Ncore.
@@lok777 ah ok, I assumed Randy didn't see a decimal or something but what you said makes sense, I probably wasn't paying attention. So a nice little desktop amp but still a little too pricey for a guy like me when considering other options. I would still like to hear it though
Randy gave the specs at both 10% and 1% thd, but why manufacturers even give specs at 10% I have no idea, unless (gasp) they want to pull the wool over the eyes of the uninitiated. I do agree that if I was buying a power amp at this price I would consider going for a Purifi to get the extra juice.
Why no one mention about how topping deal with warranty. Do they have a shipping address in USA for warranty repair and after 1 year repair center.If not , this half baked product fail in a year or after years and you waste 1k for nothing. Do you got affiliated this product? If you so , please mention upfront so that viewers know.
I think at these prices I will choose a multichannel receiver, but thank you for your time and effort to review.
Finally found someone that knows what they’re talking about . Great video .
Lol. Thanks. Many would argue the opposite my friend
Yeah, some of the stuff coming out of China is really good stuff at crazy excellent prices. I like some of the Cayin offerings. Certainly some most excellent deals to be had on IEM's as well. I've been reading a lot of comments from other about Topping so apparently they are well liked products. I just don't see a need for anything right now. I'm covered on amplifiers (Burson and Woo Audio). No need for another DAC (Emotiva and Burson). I'm pleased with my CD player (Marantz) to the point of not desiring the expense of a transport at this time. Personally I'm all for the Chinese stuff if it's decent sounding and well priced, especially the products that exhibit good build quality such as point to point wiring internally. Today is such a good time to be able to put together a darn good audio system without going into the poor house. Of course you can do that too! LOL
Topping has been so good consistently... just banger products at all price ranges
The preamp and balanced thing isn’t a big deal bc Toppings offerings have a lot of balanced connectors at the 90 family level.
Paired with the Topping D90SE you get a nice MQA DAC you can plug a usb streamer into for digital audio, and with an RCA on the D90 you could plug a phono stage into with a turntable. D90 has Bluetooth if you wanna stream to it that way too. Could even add the A90 headphone amp. All balanced. Nice little mini stack.
I own this Amplifier and stack it with D90 and A90 (Preamp mode) in my desktop setup for 2 months.I think this stack is pretty much this best desktop kit you can get and to use it for Bookshelf speakers review as it makes it so easy to review the characteristics of each pair of speakers.
Recently I also got the Debut pro with S2 ultra (phono), I think they pairs well with A90 and LA90.
P.S. phono amp rca outputs to A90 and XLR outputs from A90 to LA90
I'm keen on this one from all the reviews I've read so far. And I quite fancy a decent a/b amp rather than the plethora of D class amps around...
Topping is subtly trying to build an eco system around its products indirectly, it can be a good or bad thing but I love it. This is what is I personally strive for, measures excellently and sounds freaking great. Both have to go hand in hand, extremists can go play marbles.
So long as it's not any more than a cheap set of adapters away I see no problem with it.
Well, if you don't have balanced outputs you can use unbalanced cables with only + signal pin soldered in XLR. Why not? I am not sure though, will it be twice quieter?
I have this amp in a topping stack with a pre-90 and a D90. IMHO the LA-90 is best used in bypass mode with external volume regulation by the pre-90. But even when directly connected to the D90 and using that in preamp mode instead of pure DAC mode, it sounded a lot better than using LA-90 for volume. Put in other words, this amp should almost be bundled with the pre-90 (which is also a phenomenal product), solving some of the problems you mention here.
WHich speakers and did you go dual LA 90. Thanks
@@delvalle9256 I have a single, not dual. it powers my avantgarde trios and REL subs
@@matserdingud thank you
@@matserdingud how’s the sound at least midrange and upper frequencies. i do have dual subs also
@@delvalle9256 I think the word that describes it best is "accurate". It doesn't have any color at all, which I think is a good thing. After listening to it for a few months, the tube amps i have tried sound just wrong. I'd liken it to seeing pictures with an instagram filter, and then suddenly switching to seeing them without. The system plays the music you ask it to play, no more, no less.
2:57 =
110W / 4 ohms / 10% THD (is 10% Total Harmonic Distortion acceptable? seems very high)
90W / 4 ohms / 1%THD
65W / 8 ohms / 10% THD
50 / 8 ohms / 1% THD
I discovered Topping a couple years back on audio science review. I picked up the then-new and hard to find D70 DAC and have been hard pressed to replace it. Fantastic build quality. Heck, it has more inputs/outputs than some _far_ pricier brands. Or the excellent Sabaj A20D for that matter (I need that HDMI/i2s though!). And doesn't feel out of place sitting next to my Aurender or BAT amp & preamp. Topping is _so_ into measurements they did a model of their D90 sans MQA, just so it would measure at the top of the heap. Which it does. And stomps expensive DACs from Chord and Denafrips at least on paper. If Topping has a problem, it's too many products (at least DACs). I'm rooting for them.
Hard to compare with Chord or Denafrips as they ( particularly Denafrips ) have different architectures. An R2R ladder DAC will never measure as well as a chip DAC but many people prefer the sound.
Define many ?
If it's a conventional linear class A/B power amp with negative feedback, then once the signal inputs the diff stage it has to be single ended/unbalanced. Unless they use some unconventional circuit like bridge. They may run balanced preamp/volume control and then convert signal to unbalanced, or convert to unbalanced at the/past input selector. At 50W/8ohm, 90W/4ohm that's not a ton of juice, but given the price and published performance, a very good amp within it's limits.
It's a Class D amp.
Hey Randy - love your channel and review style. Have you by any chance compared this to the Akitika GT-102 kit amp? I own that amp and love it, but wonder how this compares. Thanks again for all your reviews!
"You can't Top a Topping!"... they can thank me later..lol
Great Vid Randy. I'm intrigued
I was confused and had to Google this:
"The letters TRS stand for Tip, Ring, and Sleeve, and refer to the parts of the jack plug that the different conductors are connected to. A TRS cable has three conductors vs the two on a standard guitar cable. A guitar cable is a TS, or Tip Sleeve cable."
After watching your video I checked the website for specs because it just didn't sound right. Your distortion figures are when the amp is bridged mode. The distortion level between 5w-40w is almost non existent and the amp doesn't start to distort until after 90watts. Would be nice to see a list of dacs with the right kind of connectors available that would benefit the usage of this amp.
This channel is a lesson in American capitalism
I’m assuming that’s a passive aggressive insult?
@@cheapaudioman What's your manscaped discount code I'm having trouble ordering
@@davideberhardt1361 I take as many sponsors I can get. I can’t possibly remember them all. There’s so many of them.
Like you know! You can’t find anything this good for this price and you are being real! TRSand XLR are high quality professional!, everybody (engineer) knows the best! Don’t apologies. There is no better input, radio, music files, and maybe video/audio as an excellent input
John, I don't know if you're mad at me or you agree with me.
Chinese gear "can" be good!! And unbelievable value for money!! I hand on heart believe my Chinese Audreal XA 6950 hybrid amp (@ $2k)would hold its own with 4-5K US and European made amps!!
IFI Zen Phono preamp has balanced output (200$)
So what do you recommend I build from scratch? This with what complete system for Spotify source of music?
I'd be curious to hear about how it sounds with other speakers? Something with more bass extension, in particular. And possibly with the Geshelli J2 with balanced connection, using the LA90 as an integrated amp.
Okay, even 1% THD is still not great - and certainly 10% is not what one would want to listen to. 50W/ch into 8 ohms and 90W/ch into 4 ohms is completely fine; and given that most people use 1 watt to maybe 16 watts (85dB sensitive speakers are up to ~105dB at 16 watts), then the distortion is probably 0.01% THD or less.
You should buy one and try it out, Neil.
@@cheapaudioman That thought had crossed my mind! The downside for me is I don't have a balanced preamp, and while I could use the Ares II balanced into the LA90 - it lacks a remote. And then I couldn't use my turntable.
Neil- please go to ASR and look at the noise measurements. And please check out the Topping PRE90 & EXT90.
@@cheapaudioman Very interestingly, this LA90 amp appears to be using the same Texas Instruments LM3886 output chip as the AkitikA GT-102 Z4 (and the Cambridge Audio AXA35 as well)! And according to the measurements at ASR they are producing almost exactly the same output power - at very low distortion, the ASR measurements show 36W/ch @ 8 ohms and 56W/ch @ 4 ohms. Which is virtually the same as the AkitikA GT-102 Z4.
The obvious difference is the GT-102 Z4 is single ended. It uses a 72V 3.5A linear power supply with good current capacity in reserve for peaks.
The LA90 uses the external 64V 4A switching power supply.
Hmmm ...
@@NeilBlanchard yeah. There may need to be a follow up meeting. Very interesting stuff
Hi Randy, great video. How does it compare to Emotiva’s BasX line of amps (BasX A2, for example)?
That would be nice to know but I would never buy it doesn’t pass the smell test at 900 bucks.
so what's the power output at .01% thd? 8 ohms. Give me a break, if this is a 30 watt amp I will be very shocked.
Great videos ! Just bought the surfshark using your code too! Keep up the good work.
I’m waiting for a bridged version with two amplifier modules, double the power, without volume control or input selector, and with an internal power supply. Those feature requests have been communicated to Topping by many people. And obviously, with a lot of attention supplied to QC as that has been a recent issue with Topping products.
So you're just waiting for a completely different product?
@@natefalck5331 It would not be “completely different,” but would incorporate the features I discussed above. These feature requests have been brought to Topping’s attention and I am waiting to see what Topping does.
Love your vids. Question... how do I get that rockin, car audio at home? My friend just bought a 2017 dodge charger. Best sound system I ever heard.
I can't find info on their website. Hopefully, you have the answer. Is that power supply linear or switching?
Did I miss something? Is this a class AB amp? The brick power supply probably was done as a cost saving, but there may be some engineering advantages to separating the power supply. Using on more demanding speakers would be appropriate with an amp of this cost, also pairing and testing with a good preamp (Freya S) would be useful. What are the comparisons with the Vidar and Emotive in terms of sound, useful to know at this price point. Thanks for your assistance
Yeah. AB
@@cheapaudioman AudioScience rates this as the lowest distortion amplifier they have every measured, with 36WPC into 8 and 56WPC into 4.
@@sopasadena1499 Precisely what Topping were aiming for.....🙄
Nothing can touch this amp from a performance level. It's proper engineering. That's why the power supply is separate. I have a couple of amps that do the same, Naim and Cyrus.
Great review CAman👍. I'll stick with my Vidar/Saga combo. It's awesome.
Preamp with xlr is expensive thus this is a bargain combo amp+preamp for what you can't get without forking 2k+.
I bought a topping DAC years ago when people were first getting excited about them. It died a few months later. I know it is anecdotal but there are a lot of posts online about issues with various products from them. I'd be really nervous about spending this much money if it wasn't being sold by an company that has excellent customer service and a return address in country. I'd bought mine from Parts-Express so they took care of it and I didn't have to pay to ship it to China and wait for a new one.
Good point, they will never back it up that would be honest. And 900 bucks, I got an integrated amp for 70 bucks that I play every day about 8 hours just to break it in very clean sound. It's made in China too. And it's 50w per channel and with my boost it's got great bass. It's probably better than that 900 dollar crash and burn.
I really like the look of it. Did u try any of your Polk reserve speakers Randy ? I know they can handle alot of power and dip below 4 ohm to 3.8 ohm I believe
XLR for long runs is better, for short runs is it really better?
I have the desktop A30 Pro and D30 Pro DAC with HIFI Mans and it's amazing.
Bet getting a free one makes it sound wonderful. The Chinese business model relies on this method.
From Primeaudio.org: "Most average power amps have a THD+N of around 0.0008%. The LA90 takes that all the way down to a THD+N of 0.00007%. Yes, there’s an extra 0 in there!"
They can't put RCA and have the same performance :( They know what they're doing. I'd rather opt for ditching RCA :D
I think your speakers and amplifiers need some kind of VPN of their own too.
Imagine the unimaginable possibilities...
Hi audioman, really enjoy your show. Have a question. Have you tried the kh 2210 floor speakers?
Very good review!
Quoting 10% THD at maximum power output is misleading. I know that Topping use that figure and I am blaming them here, not you!). They have to publish max output power to help match the amp to a set of speakers and gives a better idea of how much usable power is available.. For example, so that you don't try to use speakers with a maximum input of, say, 50 watts with an amp putting out 200 watts. What the specs for the LA90 is says is that for 1% THD (not 10%) the LA90 will deliver 50 watts into an 8 ohm load. A better measure of distortion and the most commonly used is the THD +N figure which is a measure of distortion + noise at normal listening levels nominally at 5 watts. The value for the LA90 is 0.00009% which is inaudible and vanishingly low. For comparison the equivalent figure for a Marantz PM6007 is 0.08% (still very acceptable). On that basis the LA90 has the lowest distortion figure for almost any power amp in the world at any price.
Which is pointless for sound quality and is only so Topping perform well on ASR reviews! 😣
You can just use an RCA to XLR cable
$900.00 and very poor standard connectivity and 50 WPC of clean power? No, not for me. There are a lot of integrated amps in that price range from Rotel, Marantz, Yamaha....that offer better looks, plenty of power and standard connections. Not to mention the Cambridge AXA 35 that, at $399.00, is a bargain.