Issue with new Topping A90 Discrete

[Frostbee11]

Hey guys,
Heard a lot of good things about the A90D and wanted to experience it myself so I got it a few days ago from Shenzhen. As I opened it and tried it out I immediately had 2 issues:
1. There is a very noticeable static sound (crackling and popping) on the right side of the headphone/iem that I tried. This sound is persistent regardless of volume, gain, balanced or unbalanced output. It is much more noticeable on my IEM as well and sometime when the popping happen, I was scared that my eardrum might blow up lol. Also, I can confirm that it is not because of my DAC because the static sound is still there even if nothing is connected to the amp, except for the headphone and the power cable. Fyi, Im using a 4.4 balanced for my IEM (Moondrop Variation, stock cable) and the unbalanced for my Hifiman HE1000v1 (also stock cable). I have a couple other headphones and iem to try but at this point I don't think it is my gear issue because I have been using them perfectly fine with other dac/amp.
2. When using the unbalanced output for my headphone, after a few minutes a loud static pop will play and the amp reset to "-5" error. Other people have reported this issue and even Joshua Valour had this issue on his unit. After the first -5, I could reset the amp and test it again, but then the second -5 hit and now I cant reset my amp. I tried turning it off, pulling out the cable, let it rest for several minutes, but when I turned it back on it was still on -5 and I couldn't do anything.
At this point, I am quite certain that my unit had an issue and contacted Shenzhen for an exchange, which they agreed to. But I wanted to post my issue here to ask people who had more experience with the amp about it. Was my unit faulty or did I do something wrong? Also, should I go for exchange or just refund and get another more reliable option?
I only had a few minutes to actually experience the sound before the issue start to pop and I absolutely loved what it can do for my cans so it was such a shame.
I heard JohnYang1997 is an expert on these topics so I would hope to hear from him

 

[Sokel]

I would remove my cans far and away from this for starters,right from the first test.
You know the drill,"if you fool me once it's your fault,if you fool me twice it's mine" .

I'm sure they hadn't such intention but after all the reports and lessons from the previous past one would expect they have learned by now.
Pity.

 

[Frostbee11]

I would remove my cans far and away from this for starters,right from the first test.
You know the drill,"if you fool me once it's your fault,if you fool me twice it's mine" .

I'm sure they hadn't such intention but after all the reports and lessons from the previous past one would expect they have learned by now.
Pity.

So you also think that its the unit's fault? I'm surprised they haven't fully fixed the "-5" error after all this time. I may need to find an alternative after all.

 

[Golf]

So you also think that its the unit's fault? I'm surprised they haven't fully fixed the "-5" error after all this time.

Maybe your’s is a shelf-sleeper that still »features« the -5 thing.

 

[Ze Frog]

If you are under warranty I would get a refund. These are well documented to be very hit or miss. While Topping measure great, they really don't deserve the accolades this place gives because of the quality and customer service in my opinion. It's a shame, they had all the ingredients to be a really formidable company in the Hi-fi realm.

 

[DLS79]

That's either a crib death, or a unit that was damaged during shipping, send it back.

 

[Talisman]

If you are under warranty I would get a refund. These are well documented to be very hit or miss. While Topping measure great, they really don't deserve the accolades this place gives because of the quality and customer service in my opinion. It's a shame, they had all the ingredients to be a really formidable company in the Hi-fi realm.

I guarantee you that even in this environment the enthusiasm for the Topping brand is much more lukewarm since all the problems with their units came to light. Many also on this site avoid purchasing Topping products even if they measure very well.

 

[DLS79]

I guarantee you that even in this environment the enthusiasm for the Topping brand is much more lukewarm since all the problems with their units came to light. Many also on this site avoid purchasing Topping products even if they measure very well.

Lots of members of this site have not had a single issue with topping devices.

 

[Sokel]

I guarantee you that even in this environment the enthusiasm for the Topping brand is much more lukewarm since all the problems with their units came to light. Many also on this site avoid purchasing Topping products even if they measure very well.

100% agree.And even if some of the problems come from resellers recycling the returned devices it's company's responsibility to put them in order.
I think that they don't understand fully the mentality of the market in EU and USA.

Some said that at the offered prices is like they do us a favor,I hope they don't endorse that as a company cause it's very far from truth.

 

[Talisman]

Lots of members of this site have not had a single issue with topping devices.

If you sell 2000 amplifiers and 1 out of 2 has problems, there will surely be a thousand people who have had no problems and who are satisfied with the product, however this is not a good report for that model.

 

[Golf]

If you sell 2000 amplifiers and 1 out of 2 has problems

1 out of 2 is a ratio of 50%, no matter if you look at 20, 2.000 or 200.000 sold units.

 

[Ze Frog]

Lots of members of this site have not had a single issue with topping devices.

Lots of happy customers is all well and good, but a lot of people have been stung as well.

 

[anotherhobby]

Lots of members of this site have not had a single issue with topping devices.

Yes, and I'm one of them. That said, I look at my 2+ year old PA5 that has holes drilled in the top and my paranoia is clear. It's less about actual reliability and more about how the company handles it when it happens. The damage to Topping's brand for how they handled the PA5 mess is very real, and has no doubt cost them far more in lost sales than if they would have just replaced them all, as evidenced by it being brought up constantly everywhere.

 

[DLS79]

If you sell 2000 amplifiers and 1 out of 2 has problems, there will surely be a thousand people who have had no problems and who are satisfied with the product, however this is not a good report for that model.

I can assure you that every electronics manufacture on the planet would be overjoyed with a 0.1% failure rate.

failure rate curves always look something like the below.

crib/infant rate can be any number of things., sometimes its something as simple as a weak solder joint that won't fail until the devise receives a heavy jolt during shipping, or gets dropped by the owner. Some times it's something like a defect inside an IC that will only show up when it's been on and running for 10's of hours.

Lots of manufactures have issues, and don't want to own up to it, for example.

iPhone 6 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Bendgate (chassis bending)​

Shortly after its public release, it was reported the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus chassis was susceptible to bending under pressure, such as when carried tightly in a user's pocket. While such issues are not exclusive to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, the design flaw came to be known among users and the media as "Bendgate".

Apple responded to the bending allegations, stating they had only received nine complaints of bent devices and that the damage occurring due to regular use is "extremely rare." The company maintained the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus went through durability testing to ensure they would stand up to daily use. The company offered to replace phones that were bent if it is determined the bending was unintentional.

In May 2018, as part of a lawsuit against Apple regarding touchscreen failure, it was revealed via internal documents that Apple knew the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus phones were more likely to bend than previous models. According to the court documents, Apple's internal tests found the iPhone 6 was 3.3 times more likely to bend than the iPhone 5s, while the larger iPhone 6 Plus was 7.2 times more likely to bend.

or the note 7's battery exploding issues.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Talisman]

I can assure you that every electronics manufacture on the planet would be overjoyed with a 0.1% failure rate.

failure rate curves always look something like the below.

crib/infant rate can be any number of things., sometimes its something as simple as a weak solder joint that won't fail until the devise receives a heavy jolt during shipping, or gets dropped by the owner. Some times it's something like a defect inside an IC that will only show up when it's been on and running for 10's of hours.


View attachment 361283


Lots of manufactures have issues, and don't want to own up to it, for example.

iPhone 6 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

or the note 7's battery exploding issues.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Ok, but I don't understand what you're getting at.
The failure rates of the pa5 are disastrous, many other Topping headphone amps have had major problems documented in the various threads, we should ignore it because "Others have been naughty too" when there are other companies featured and reviewed that don't seem to show the disastrous Topping reliability report?
Clearly everyone thinks with their own head and uses their money as they believe, I definitely won't buy electronics as if I were playing Russian roulette.

 

[DLS79]

Ok, but I don't understand what you're getting at.
The failure rates of the pa5 are disastrous, many other Topping headphone amps have had major problems documented in the various threads, we should ignore it because "others are brats too" when there are other companies featured and reviewed that don't seem to show the disastrous Topping reliability report?

The Pa5 is the only topping product I've seen have a fundamental issue. Every single product from every manufacture has an expected failure rate, regardless of what consumers think.

I think topping gets dumped on a lot here because its Chinese and not a high end company.

Tell me, what do you think about Ferrari's piss poor engineering of the 458?

Ferrari 458 Italia recalled due to fire hazard

The Ferrari 458 Italia is so hot right now. It's so hot in fact that the company's had to issue a global recall due to the 200mph supercar's propensity to burst into flames.

www.cnet.com

 

[zonk]

I have my doubts about the seriousness of some users of posts here that report the problems with Topping.

Some of these users have less than 10 or 20 postings and have only reported about problems with Topping and nothing else.

It looks to me like these users have an agenda.

 

[Talisman]

I think topping gets dumped on a lot here because its Chinese and not a high end company.

I tell you this bluntly and very sincerely. This is bullshit. Most of the brands on this site are of Chinese origin, and many of them are equally low cost brands, such as Fosi audio or smsl but no one has problems when the products are valid and work well.
Don't bring up alleged racial or market-related reasons which have absolutely nothing to do with Topping's situation

Tell me, what do you think about Ferrari's piss poor engineering of the 458?

This is commonly referred to as Whataboutism, and you showed many examples of it in the previous post too. The fact that other companies may have design or reliability problems in no way excuses Topping for their poor design and for ignoring their responsibilities to the buyers of their defective products and recognized as such by Topping representatives themselves on this site .

 

[terryforsythe]

Tell me, what do you think about Ferrari's piss poor engineering of the 458?

It's funny, but Ferrari always gets a pass because of its status. If an American car brand had even 1/10th of the issues Ferrari has on their cars, people would go nuts.

With Topping, I was aware of their QC issues. I took the risk, first with a MX5, then with two LA90D amplifiers. So far, so good (as I'm knocking on wood).

I will say this, the performance of my LA90D amplifiers is impressive. My 20 year old Adcom GFA-5802 was in perfect working condition when I sold it a couple of months ago (I shed a tear over parting with that). I just hope my LA90D amplifiers can do the same.

 

[Talisman]

I have my doubts about the seriousness of some users of posts here that report the problems with Topping.

Some of these users have less than 10 or 20 postings and have only reported about problems with Topping and nothing else.

It looks to me like these users have an agenda.

This is a conspiracy theory, the very simple truth is that everyone who has had the problem has Googled it, been indexed on that thread and then signed up to share their situation.
The problem with the pa5 was recognized by Topping's own engineer and is a known problem due to the resin potting of some components.