TOPPING D50s Reviews Compendium

Compendium updated February 16th, 2021

Out with the old and in with the new. The TOPPING D50s in an update on the D50, boasting Bluetooth support, a remote control, and all-around better performance.

We’ve compiled reviews from across the web for your reference. What you’ll find here are the TLDR versions of the full reviews (which you can access with the provided links). We’ll continue updating this compendium as reviews come in. 

 

From ZReviews' review of the TOPPING D50s, first published on April 5th, 2020: 

“You’re absolutely going to be satisfied with how it sounds.” 

 

From Audio Science Reviews' review of the TOPPING D50s, first published on June 27th, 2019:

"Let's fire up the dashboard to see what we have here:

"Nice! Highest level distortion in the "bad" channel (FFT top right) is at -120 dB which is a few dB better than the best our hearing can do. Clock accuracy is right on the money with that 1.00000 kHz reading.

"THD+N and hence SINAD (signal over noise and distortion) have improved by a few dB over D50. Given the small difference in SINAD between our top DACs, this moves the D50s good few notches towards the top of the class:

"...One of our favorite DACs has grown up and become even better. The D50s solidly eliminates the ESS IMD hump, adds the much needed remote control and Bluetooth without a premium in pricing. It makes great pairing with such headphone amplifiers at JDS Labs Atom being roughly equal in size and looks.

"It is a pleasure to see Topping continue to deliver well-engineered audio products without exception. Using proper measurements allows them to verify and refine the design before we get our hands on.

Needless to say, I am happy to recommend the Topping D50s."

 

From Audio Bacon's review of the TOPPING D50s, first published on December 24th, 2019:

“Although not a good fit for me, the Topping D50s DAC does offer a ton of value at only $250. If you’re looking to upgrade the sound from the built-in DACs in your laptops or integrated devices, the D50s is definitely worth a listen. In particular, it presents a very wide soundstage with imaging and layering capabilities to match. It also has a knack for clarity and transparency. Just make sure to power it with a battery.

“For the money, I have no complaints. However, if you prefer a warmer, smoother, and more euphonic presentation (as I do) – you may want to look elsewhere. The lesson? Measurements won’t tell you whether you’ll enjoy a piece of HiFi equipment. The only thing that makes sense is to trust your own ears.”

 

From SoundNews' review of the TOPPING D50s, first published on November 10th, 2019:

“The jump from Topping D50 to D50S seems like a massive one: better SNR, better cross-talk numbers, dual DAC configuration and the best Bluetooth receiver with widest codec support is the cherry on top.

“Performance wise it sounded like a mature, serious and very expensive device. In terms of technicalities it has everything I’d want: it sounds detailed, extended in the sub-bass and upper-treble, sounds linear without any drops in the FR, sounds extra fast and kicks hard when needed, can be also smooth and gentle with older recordings. Lacks brightness and it’s not clinical even with a THX AAA amp.

“This is an amazing achievement for Topping, if you really don’t need an internal headphone amp, some additional digital inputs or the balanced XLR output then D50S at $250 is without a doubt an amazing value!”

 

From iiWireview's review of the TOPPING D50s, first published on December 13th, 2019:

“As you may have already guessed, I really like Topping D50s. It’s a whole package the way its predecessor D50 never was, and it can justify its own price the way D50 never could. It is a clear step up in sound quality from models costing around 100 bucks no matter how great they are. If you don’t mind the upfront type of sound and if the rest of your system justify such purchase, Topping D50s has my recommendation.”