Hello,
I finally decided to pull the trigger and get something better than onboard audio. I have the JDS Atom AMP arriving next week and I need a DAC to match, originally I thought to go for the Atom DAC however it works out around £35 more expensive than the Topping E30.
They would be stationed on my desk driving mainly IEM’s and sometimes Senneheiser HD599’s.
Is it worth the extra £35 ($45)? other suggestions are also welcome.
Thanks.
This comes down to bang for the buck.
Both DACs have similar and excellent performance measurements with the E30 just edging ahead of the Atom.
The E30 has more input options - USB Coax and Optical, selectable filters, and a remote control.
The E30 supports 32 bit PCM to 768 kHz and DSD512
The Atom supports 32 bit PCM to 384 kHz and no DSD support.
The Atom stacks nicely with it’s amp mate.
If you are not concerned with how it looks, I think the E30 is the better choice.
What @DN77n said - And some of my personal experience observations.
I have an Atom Stack (DAC/amp) and they do look swell together and and sound terrific. On a different desktop I have an Atom amp stacked with an E30. Sonically they are virtually identical, with the E30 having more options to tune if desired using the filters, and also has more inputs.
As far as “stacking” with the E30 and Atom amp - The Atom is a little larger and so the Atom would be on the bottom and the E30 on top. Nothing really wrong with that except accessing the volume knob on the Atom could be a bit awkward for some who have larger hands/fingers - but not a deal breaker by any means. Also, the Atom does get a little warm (by design not a flaw) so, in my OCD world I would prefer to have it stacked on top so it can have more surface area exposed (that’s how I have my Atom staked sorted). Using the E30 in a stack with the Atom, the E30 sits on top, it is not a deal breaker and won’t have any effect on operation. Like I said, its an OCD thing for me.
The E30/Atom make a nice stack but, the orange from E30 display and the soft white LED ring on the Atom volume knob do contrast. Again, just a minor OCD thing for me. The two different materials metal vs. plastic are not as much of an issue, they blend OK - just don’t look made for each other, but they don’t clash either.
Even with all the - what may appear as negatives I’ve mentioned with the aesthetics of E30/Atom stack, it still is a good looking stack in the end. Either way you go you will have one heck of a stack.
Thank you both for your input. I have decided to go for the E30 as I’m not too concerned about aesthetics, and the cheaper option makes more sense for my tight student budget.
Would an acrylic “shelf” help with this issue? It would mean they wouldn’t be directly stacked on eachother.
Again, thanks for all your help.
I would just toss out the Liquid Spark DAC as another option. You get all those inputs–might be cheaper. I just bought one open box for $80.
I can vouch for the Topping E30. I have just bought one as a replacement for my broken DFR. In comparison it sounds more relaxed and wider, with slightly more bass, less intense mids and more open highs which you can also refine the psychoaucustics of with the filters. The only con I can find about it is that it has only one RCA out pair.
A shelf would help sure, and I’ve seen some that look really sharp. I just ended up getting new rubber stick-on feet to put on the bottom of the DAC, and that provided a bigger air gap between the two units. It isn’t that big of an issue, really. It is just something to be aware of.
Congrats on the E30! I’m sure you will be very pleased with it. Pairing that with your Atom amp will make a nice setup, and with the Atom amp having a set of pre-outs you’ll be able to connect a set of powered speakers in the future if you want.
Have fun and enjoy the music!
How did it work out in the end?
Also how did you get the get Topping cheaper than the Atom, even with shipping and VAT I’m calculating it marginally cheaper
I’m very happy with the setup, everything sounds cleaner and the extra juice from the amplifier is very handy.
I’m based in the UK, importing the Atom dac would have cost around £130, whereas the E30 was available on amazon for £95 with prime delivery.
Just curious is the atom amp discrete or op-amp based amplifier ??
To answer your specific question correctly: Neither.
As far as I can tell, the Atom uses Op-Amps to drive Line-Buffers