Short answer
Both are desktop amplifiers, $629 against $599.
On raw power they are level: each reaches 100 dB on 567 of the 567 non-electrostatic models here.
| Specification | Lake People G111 Mk II | Topping A90 Discrete |
|---|---|---|
| Power into 32Ω | 1.4 W | 2.0 W |
| Power into 150Ω | 1.4 W | 480 mW |
| Power into 300Ω | 1.1 W | 250 mW |
| Power into 600Ω | 600 mW | 125 mW |
| Output impedance | 0.125 Ω | 0.1 Ω |
| Output noise | 6.9 µV | 0.2 µV |
| Price | $629 | $599 |
| Headphones it reaches 100 dB on out of 567 | 567 | 567 |
| Balanced | Lake People G111 Mk II | Topping A90 Discrete |
|---|---|---|
| Socket | no separate rating | XLR4 + 4.4mm |
| Power into 32Ω | — | 6.7 W |
| Power into 300Ω | — | 1.0 W |
| Output impedance | — | 0.2 Ω |
| Output noise | — | 0.2 µV |
| Headphones it reaches 100 dB on out of 567 | — | 567 |
Only the Topping A90 Discrete has a separate balanced rating from its maker; through it, it reaches 100 dB on 567 of the 567 models here. The Lake People G111 Mk II may still have a balanced socket — its spec sheet simply gives no figure for one, so there is nothing to put beside it.
| Load | Lake People G111 Mk II | Topping A90 Discrete |
|---|---|---|
| 32 Ω | Published | Published |
| 150 Ω | Derived | Derived |
| 300 Ω | Published | Published |
| 600 Ω | Published | Derived |
Both makers publish a power rating. Lake People G111 Mk II publishes at 32 Ω, at 300 Ω and at 600 Ω; Topping A90 Discrete at 32 Ω and at 300 Ω. The other rows are worked out from those.
So the two columns are not equally firm row by row: at 600 Ω only the Lake People G111 Mk II figure is the maker’s own. On those rows the derived number is the one to doubt first.
On power they are interchangeable across this whole database: there is no headphone here that one reaches 100 dB on and the other does not.
116 headphones stay below the audible-hiss threshold on the Topping A90 Discrete but cross it on the Lake People G111 Mk II (64 Audio Aspire 1, 64 Audio Fourte, 64 Audio Nio, 113 more).
567 of the 567 models here reach 100 dB on both.
Headroom is at a 100 dB SPL peak.
The widest gap on the list is the Audio-Technica ATH-R70X: Lake People G111 Mk II has +27 dB of headroom there against +20 dB. 7 dB is about 4.5 times the power, which matters for peaks rather than for how loud the music sits.
Hiss below about 20 dB SPL is inaudible in a quiet room.
| Headphone | Impedance | Needs | Lake People G111 Mk II headroom | Topping A90 Discrete headroom | Lake People G111 Mk II hiss | Topping A90 Discrete hiss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shure SE846 | 9 Ω | 0.04 mW | +40 dB | +47 dB | 31 dB | 0 dB |
| Campfire Audio Andromeda 2020 | 9 Ω | 4.0 mW | +20 dB | +27 dB | 11 dB | -20 dB |
| Audeze LCD-2 Classic | 70 Ω | 0.79 mW | +34 dB | +31 dB | 9 dB | -21 dB |
| Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro (250Ω) | 250 Ω | 0.63 mW | +32 dB | +27 dB | 5 dB | -26 dB |
| HiFiMAN HE400se | 25 Ω | 7.9 mW | +22 dB | +25 dB | 4 dB | -27 dB |
| Audio-Technica ATH-R70X | 470 Ω | 1.6 mW | +27 dB | +20 dB | -2 dB | -33 dB |
| Sennheiser HD 600 | 300 Ω | 6.6 mW | +22 dB | +16 dB | -6 dB | -37 dB |
| HiFiMAN Susvara | 60 Ω | 50 mW | +16 dB | +14 dB | -8 dB | -39 dB |
The Lake People G111 Mk II costs $30 more than the Topping A90 Discrete, and on these three axes the money buys nothing: among the 567 models here there is not one that the Lake People G111 Mk II handles and the Topping A90 Discrete does not — not on power, not on the one-eighth rule, not on hiss. The traffic runs the other way: the cheaper Topping A90 Discrete keeps 116 models below the audible-hiss threshold that the Lake People G111 Mk II does not.
Only published figures count here; blank axes are counted separately.
Each in full: Lake People G111 Mk II and Topping A90 Discrete.