The unit is available from my APOS Audio affiliate link here: apos.audio/products/topping-d70pro-octo-dac?sca_ref=7308241.j5jMh2ymfF. If you wish to join the channel and become a member please click here: www.youtube.com/@OldGuyHifi/membership
Thanks Ed! You are really banging out the videos ! It's getting exciting with all the new affordable audio technology out there. I just got the zd3 so I'm just going to upgrade it and stick with it for awhile. I like the sound of it out of the box. Thanks 👍
The ZD3 is a very good unit. Resist the urge to change gear my friend. Listen to the ZD3 for at least 4-6 months and you will figure out if it is the one. I did like it. Thank you and Happy Holidays.
Thanks Ed. I appreciate your knowledge, experience, enthusiasm and approach to "breaking down" the gear you're listening to. In the short time you've been doing your thing on TH-cam you have earned my trust and respect. Well done sir.
Awesome review Ed. The Octo is one of my favorites. But I just pulled the trigger on an SMSL D0200 Pro. I'll have my review on that one in a few days if you care to watch.
There are a number of reviews on this one and in the aggregate it is a decent DAC based on the reviews. I would suggest you might consider reviewing the new 1-Bit Topping D90 III Discrete That is worth some attention and there is a 900 with an even deeper 1-Bit implementation coming out of the Topping pipeline 1-Bit like R2R is an old-school DAC implementation iiWi found that the Topping 1-Bit and Cyan 2 were the best DACs he has heard up to $2k The Topping 1-Bit is a nice digital pre-amplifier to boot Merry Christmas
Ed, question about source used for testing - but first - I love your reviews, a lot of knowledge and expertise comes through without any irritating sheen; your content is presented in a very useful way and your voice and presentation style are warm and engaging. Now my question: In reviewing DACs, you talk about the albums and tracks that you use, but I'm wondering how the tracks are getting to the DAC - i.e. what equipment is directly connected to the DAC you are evaluating? One reviewer type inclusion you might consider is for a given DAC, "how is the balance of detail (or irritants) vs listening fatigue for you personally?"
Jim, In all of my reviews where I link to an album on Tidal, the music is streamed from a Windows PC running Audirvana which is a bit perfect streaming platform akin to Roon. It allows me to access all my music on Tidal, Qobuz and my personal collection of 68,546 FLAC files on over 7124 albums as well as my 500 SACD rips. The DACs are fed via USB. If I refer to "digital glare," "glare" or an "exciting midrange" then that may be an indication of potential fatigue. I will generally mention if something is fatiguing or not. I am very sensitive to overly bright and strident sonic signatures. For a lot of audio enthusiasts a "spicy" or "energetic" sound can be perceived as detail or "air." Everybody has there own tastes. My run towards the warmer sound signature. I hope this answers your questions. Thank you and Happy Holidays.
Really liked this review. I don’t currently have the spare dollars to upgrade from my smsl su-1. I really liked your approach to the review and like to keep up with current product trends. Subscribed!
Hi Ed, nice review as always. As usual, Topping has release half a dozen dacs after this 70 Octo. Hopefully, you'll get to review the new Topping Centauris r2r dac. Thanks.
Thank you for introducing the Hybrid Multi-Bit/Delta-Sigma DAC; it is interesting. I would like to take a listen one day and observe how it evolves. I just noticed that TOPPING has the Centaurus a Fully-balanced R2R DAC. ASR gave it a good review, but still they do not fully endorse it: "While I would not buy or use an R2R DAC, I am still going to recommend the Topping Centaurus for those who want an R2R technology."
I'm currently in the process of choosing between the Audiolab M-DAC Plus and this Topping D70 pro for my audio setup, and I've come across your reviews which have been incredibly insightful. Could you please share your thoughts on these two options? Sound quality and character differences between the two. Any notable strengths or weaknesses you've observed with each. Your expertise would be invaluable in helping me make an informed decision.
Hi Ed, I'm waiting for the future Topping Byte DAC (256 DACs) to play my 32bit 384KHz recordings! Joking aside, you didn't explain OCTO. I believe there are 8 DACs because 4 are used for each balanced output. Why 4? If each DAC's noise is uncorrelated there is a SNR advantage (10*log(N), dB) with multple DACs ('N' is the number of DACs). Even more so with balanced (N=8) vs single-ended (N=4). Cheers!
The over sampling is the same, it's SNR Topping is trying to improve so the OCTO looks good in any ASR type review! For example, the Topping E30 ii has 3dB better SNR than the E30 ii Lite, two DACs vs one. Can you hear the difference? Not in the real world. Multi-bit (not multi DAC) enables reduced over sampling. Jitter is multiplicative noise & if uncorrelated also benefits.
I've tried other dacs with Burr-Brown, AKM, and ESS chips. They all did the job. But this Octo has the best channel separation and natural sound, with good dynamics, for my system. Don't need anything more.
I've had a NAD C-540 with the legendary BB PCM1704 sigma-delta DACs that sounded wonderful. A Panasonic CD player with sh*tty sigma-delta DACs, it was used a couple of times then dumped. An Onkyo with Woolfson DACs that just sounded OK & finally a Panasonic DVDA player with 24bit sigma-delta DACs that sounds close to the C-540. How do you define 'natural sound'? For me, vocals should be full & expressive NOT thin & lacking body. That distinction is easy for the human ear to hear, much more so than instruments or wot not.
@@trevorbartram5473 Getting the balance in the chain is what matters. A very revealing dac can be ameliorated by downstream components that provide weight and dynamics. Vice versa. My Octo runs through a Denafrips Hestia preamp into a class D power amp that uses the ICEPOWER 300 AS module. Dali speakers. Very natural sounding with that 'flesh on the bones' character. Classical music is excellent with this setup. Leonard Cohen and other male vocalists, just great.
Thank you for your informations . Strange , i have a a DAC with 8 Chips Phillips 1543 and no oversampling mod, it's the most analogic and musical 🎼🎶i have ever listened , and i 'll stay with it .....😀
some have said this dac falls apart when complex music is played through it. described as lack of dynamics with complex audio and the soundstage closes in. did you find this at all?
No. That's curious. I thought it sound clean & dynamic. I played a lot of large scale classical through it without issue. Thx for tuning in & Happy Holidays.
I purchased this DAC a few weeks ago to test it out. I have also not found issues with it falling apart with complex music. On one of the two reviews which mentioned this, I believe he may have had an issue with the unit he received. On the other review, I definitely detected a strong bias against the brand. This review (OldGuyHiFi) matches my own findings so far, and two other very positive reviews on TH-cam, which I have viewed. This seems to be a good DAC for the price.
It is good at $599. It is better than almost any ESS Sabre DAC in this price range. It is not a giant killer. It is a good unit at a fair price. Spend more and you will do better.
If it interests you to do this I'd like to hear more on music you found that you really liked, artists, albums, for classical it might be conductor, orchestra, performance, quality of pressing with LPs.. I liked hearing about today's artists. Maybe you could have one day a week, or one a month, where you discuss it. Just yesterday I was playing music from various artists for one of my Senior Helpers and she must have liked them because she wrote every one down on her phone. (for those of you who might be interested - Sierra Ferrell, Sierra and/or Chase Eagleson (my intro to them was their cover of a Gregory Alan Isakov song), Gregory Alan Isakov, Mandolin Orange aka Watchhouse. MO is the couple, Watchhouse is their band) and finally Norwegian singer, Aurora. (Runaway, Bowie's Life on Mars, Half the World Away). An LP I dug out of the collection, Telarc record of Stravinsky's 'Firebird Suite'. I have the original pressing, which supposedly sounds the best. It really impresses on my system which is Fosi V3, SMSL SU-1, Schiit Mani phono preamp, Rega P1 Eco with the AT-VM95EN cartridge and Infinity P-163 speakers which on close out cost me $70 for the pair. (Stereophile gave them a thumbs up. Back in the '80s I had a really good system PS Audio, AR turntable, Linn arm, Spica speakers - and the one I have now sounds better.
Mike, AES/EBU is really just a SPDIF connection. It was originally design for use in studios to deliver SPDIF signal over a longer distance and with a single cable rather than several. You can use it but it be the same as using a SPDIF coax or Toslink connection. Happy Holidays.
I am not dumping my J2S in favor of this DAC. I like DACs that don't sound like traditional Delta-Sigma units. That eliminates most common ESS DACs. I like to see stuff that moves the needle in favor of sound quality not just a lower price. The eight chip layout of this DAC is intriguing. It is different and bucking the popular market trends. I think Geno Geshelli's DACs are completely unique in their design and I think sound signature. He is doing his own thing and I believe the results speak for them selves. Thank you. BTW, Happy Holidays.
The unit is available from my APOS Audio affiliate link here: apos.audio/products/topping-d70pro-octo-dac?sca_ref=7308241.j5jMh2ymfF. If you wish to join the channel and become a member please click here: www.youtube.com/@OldGuyHifi/membership
Thanks, Ed, for showing us the Topping and the new chipset. Free and Bad Company were great bands.
Thanks Ed! You are really banging out the videos ! It's getting exciting with all the new affordable audio technology out there. I just got the zd3 so I'm just going to upgrade it and stick with it for awhile. I like the sound of it out of the box. Thanks 👍
The ZD3 is a very good unit. Resist the urge to change gear my friend. Listen to the ZD3 for at least 4-6 months and you will figure out if it is the one. I did like it. Thank you and Happy Holidays.
@OldGuyHifi Thanks Ed , I will and happy holidays to you too my friend.
Thanks Ed. I appreciate your knowledge, experience, enthusiasm and approach to "breaking down" the gear you're listening to. In the short time you've been doing your thing on TH-cam you have earned my trust and respect. Well done sir.
I appreciate that! Happy Holidays.
Forget about the dac's review. The albums' insights are amazing!
Thank you so much. Happy Holidays.
Dac tech is moving at break neck speed. Guess we should buckle up. Thanks for covering it Ed.
Awesome review Ed. The Octo is one of my favorites. But I just pulled the trigger on an SMSL D0200 Pro. I'll have my review on that one in a few days if you care to watch.
I have the D400 Pro here now. You know I loves me some AKM chips! Thx.
There are a number of reviews on this one and in the aggregate it is a decent DAC based on the reviews.
I would suggest you might consider reviewing the new 1-Bit Topping D90 III Discrete
That is worth some attention and there is a 900 with an even deeper 1-Bit implementation coming out of the Topping pipeline
1-Bit like R2R is an old-school DAC implementation
iiWi found that the Topping 1-Bit and Cyan 2 were the best DACs he has heard up to $2k
The Topping 1-Bit is a nice digital pre-amplifier to boot
Merry Christmas
Thank you. Happy Holidays.
Wow Ed, you really have a lot of Hi Fi knowledge. It's hard to keep up with you! You explain it so well though. Merry Christmas!
Thank you Mike. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year my friend.
Ed, question about source used for testing - but first - I love your reviews, a lot of knowledge and expertise comes through without any irritating sheen; your content is presented in a very useful way and your voice and presentation style are warm and engaging. Now my question: In reviewing DACs, you talk about the albums and tracks that you use, but I'm wondering how the tracks are getting to the DAC - i.e. what equipment is directly connected to the DAC you are evaluating? One reviewer type inclusion you might consider is for a given DAC, "how is the balance of detail (or irritants) vs listening fatigue for you personally?"
Jim, In all of my reviews where I link to an album on Tidal, the music is streamed from a Windows PC running Audirvana which is a bit perfect streaming platform akin to Roon. It allows me to access all my music on Tidal, Qobuz and my personal collection of 68,546 FLAC files on over 7124 albums as well as my 500 SACD rips. The DACs are fed via USB. If I refer to "digital glare," "glare" or an "exciting midrange" then that may be an indication of potential fatigue. I will generally mention if something is fatiguing or not. I am very sensitive to overly bright and strident sonic signatures. For a lot of audio enthusiasts a "spicy" or "energetic" sound can be perceived as detail or "air." Everybody has there own tastes. My run towards the warmer sound signature. I hope this answers your questions. Thank you and Happy Holidays.
Really liked this review. I don’t currently have the spare dollars to upgrade from my smsl su-1. I really liked your approach to the review and like to keep up with current product trends. Subscribed!
Glad you enjoyed it! Happy Holidays.
Hi Ed, nice review as always. As usual, Topping has release half a dozen dacs after this 70 Octo. Hopefully, you'll get to review the new Topping Centauris r2r dac. Thanks.
Maybe. Happy Holidays.
Thank you for introducing the Hybrid Multi-Bit/Delta-Sigma DAC; it is interesting. I would like to take a listen one day and observe how it evolves. I just noticed that TOPPING has the Centaurus a Fully-balanced R2R DAC. ASR gave it a good review, but still they do not fully endorse it: "While I would not buy or use an R2R DAC, I am still going to recommend the Topping Centaurus for those who want an R2R technology."
Thanks for sharing!
Nice, thank you so much!
Thank you for the opportunity. Maybe I could review the Topping Centauris R2R DAC next? Thanks again and Happy Holidays.
I'm currently in the process of choosing between the Audiolab M-DAC Plus and this Topping D70 pro for my audio setup, and I've come across your reviews which have been incredibly insightful.
Could you please share your thoughts on these two options?
Sound quality and character differences between the two.
Any notable strengths or weaknesses you've observed with each.
Your expertise would be invaluable in helping me make an informed decision.
12.1K Subscribers WOW!
Hi Ed, I'm waiting for the future Topping Byte DAC (256 DACs) to play my 32bit 384KHz recordings! Joking aside, you didn't explain OCTO. I believe there are 8 DACs because 4 are used for each balanced output. Why 4? If each DAC's noise is uncorrelated there is a SNR advantage (10*log(N), dB) with multple DACs ('N' is the number of DACs). Even more so with balanced (N=8) vs single-ended (N=4). Cheers!
4 per channel means less over sampling and better jitter and timing issues. Good comment. Thx. Happy Holidays.
The over sampling is the same, it's SNR Topping is trying to improve so the OCTO looks good in any ASR type review! For example, the Topping E30 ii has 3dB better SNR than the E30 ii Lite, two DACs vs one. Can you hear the difference? Not in the real world. Multi-bit (not multi DAC) enables reduced over sampling. Jitter is multiplicative noise & if uncorrelated also benefits.
I've tried other dacs with Burr-Brown, AKM, and ESS chips. They all did the job.
But this Octo has the best channel separation and natural sound, with good dynamics, for my system. Don't need anything more.
It is a very nice piece. Thanks for tuning in. Happy Holidays.
I've had a NAD C-540 with the legendary BB PCM1704 sigma-delta DACs that sounded wonderful. A Panasonic CD player with sh*tty sigma-delta DACs, it was used a couple of times then dumped. An Onkyo with Woolfson DACs that just sounded OK & finally a Panasonic DVDA player with 24bit sigma-delta DACs that sounds close to the C-540. How do you define 'natural sound'? For me, vocals should be full & expressive NOT thin & lacking body. That distinction is easy for the human ear to hear, much more so than instruments or wot not.
@@trevorbartram5473 Getting the balance in the chain is what matters. A very revealing dac can be ameliorated by downstream components that provide weight and dynamics. Vice versa.
My Octo runs through a Denafrips Hestia preamp into a class D power amp that uses the ICEPOWER 300 AS module. Dali speakers. Very natural sounding with that 'flesh on the bones' character. Classical music is excellent with this setup. Leonard Cohen and other male vocalists, just great.
@@trevorbartram5473 Thank you for tuning and sharing your observations. Happy Holidays
Thank you for your informations . Strange , i have a a DAC with 8 Chips Phillips 1543 and no oversampling mod, it's the most analogic and musical 🎼🎶i have ever listened , and i 'll stay with it .....😀
Thanks for sharing
some have said this dac falls apart when complex music is played through it. described as lack of dynamics with complex audio and the soundstage closes in. did you find this at all?
No. That's curious. I thought it sound clean & dynamic. I played a lot of large scale classical through it without issue. Thx for tuning in & Happy Holidays.
I purchased this DAC a few weeks ago to test it out. I have also not found issues with it falling apart with complex music. On one of the two reviews which mentioned this, I believe he may have had an issue with the unit he received. On the other review, I definitely detected a strong bias against the brand. This review (OldGuyHiFi) matches my own findings so far, and two other very positive reviews on TH-cam, which I have viewed. This seems to be a good DAC for the price.
Actually, three other positive reviews besides this review that may be found on TH-cam. Apologies for the error.
Topping just released a R2R DAC. Wonder how that compares.
I wonder too. I have requested a review sample. 🤞
How do you compare this to the Denifrips DAC or other DAC's in the $700-1,200 price range
It is good at $599. It is better than almost any ESS Sabre DAC in this price range. It is not a giant killer. It is a good unit at a fair price. Spend more and you will do better.
If it interests you to do this I'd like to hear more on music you found that you really liked, artists, albums, for classical it might be conductor, orchestra, performance, quality of pressing with LPs.. I liked hearing about today's artists. Maybe you could have one day a week, or one a month, where you discuss it. Just yesterday I was playing music from various artists for one of my Senior Helpers and she must have liked them because she wrote every one down on her phone. (for those of you who might be interested - Sierra Ferrell, Sierra and/or Chase Eagleson (my intro to them was their cover of a Gregory Alan Isakov song), Gregory Alan Isakov, Mandolin Orange aka Watchhouse. MO is the couple, Watchhouse is their band) and finally Norwegian singer, Aurora. (Runaway, Bowie's Life on Mars, Half the World Away).
An LP I dug out of the collection, Telarc record of Stravinsky's 'Firebird Suite'. I have the original pressing, which supposedly sounds the best. It really impresses on my system which is Fosi V3, SMSL SU-1, Schiit Mani phono preamp, Rega P1 Eco with the AT-VM95EN cartridge and Infinity P-163 speakers which on close out cost me $70 for the pair. (Stereophile gave them a thumbs up. Back in the '80s I had a really good system PS Audio, AR turntable, Linn arm, Spica speakers - and the one I have now sounds better.
Thank you. Happy Holidays.
Ed, can u tell me what the AES input is for. I have it as well as balanced input on my Advance Paris amp
Mike, AES/EBU is really just a SPDIF connection. It was originally design for use in studios to deliver SPDIF signal over a longer distance and with a single cable rather than several. You can use it but it be the same as using a SPDIF coax or Toslink connection. Happy Holidays.
@ thanks Ed. Love your channel!
Under $1000, I know the Schitt BiFrost 2/64 for $800 is up near the top.
Videos like these make me question if a J2S 4499 is better or same Plainfield as competitor DACs.
I am not dumping my J2S in favor of this DAC. I like DACs that don't sound like traditional Delta-Sigma units. That eliminates most common ESS DACs. I like to see stuff that moves the needle in favor of sound quality not just a lower price. The eight chip layout of this DAC is intriguing. It is different and bucking the popular market trends. I think Geno Geshelli's DACs are completely unique in their design and I think sound signature. He is doing his own thing and I believe the results speak for them selves. Thank you. BTW, Happy Holidays.
❤
Seriously Dac are like are engine now... 4 stroke is not good enough, they made a V8 of dac,,guess next year we see 16
Good observation. Happy Holidays.