Amp suggestions for AKG k702?

First, there is an amplifier in the Xonar.  It is built onto the card.

Second, output is not measured by impedance, or Ohms.  It is measured in Watts (W), or, in the case of a lot of headphone amps, milliwatts (mW).

AKG makes somewhat inefficient, difficult-to-drive headphones.  You can find the efficiency of the headphones by looking at the listed sensitivity, measured in Decibels (dB).

There are more detailed ways to look at this, but you have to consider the output impedance of the amplifier with the impedance of the headphones.  That tells you how efficiently power transfers from the amplifier to the headphones.

The impedance of the headphones tells you little about how hard they are to drive - you need more information.  It's like trying to figure out how fast a car will go from 0-60MPH by only knowing the horsepower.  Horsepower is part of it, but you also need to know the torque, gearing, vehicle weight, vehicle shape, road conditions, and a bunch of other factors.

Once you know how efficient the power transfers (it changes, depending on the impedance match), then you can figure out how much of the output power (mW) gets across to the headphones.

From there, you can use the amount of power that gets through to calculate how loud (dB) the headphones will get.

It's complicated and there's more to this, but that's a quick overview of what's happening.

As for your question, I'd only drive the K-702 with a quality desktop amplifier or an old receiver, if you want to save money.  AKGs are tough to drive, so I wouldn't use a soundcard or portable amp.

K well I cannot offer you the technical advice UE can.

What I can offer you is experience in dealing with both an asus Xonar STX and the AKG 702.

Will it drive them and give you an enjoyable experience? Yes, if you like the K70X to begin with. The STX as a source, just like most xonar cards was actually very good. 

The amp leaves something (lots) to be desired, but as far as bang for buck goes, your combo is pretty good. Also, if you have never actually listened to a great amp, you might not even me immediately aware something is missing.

Now, if you got a nice amp - the akg can sound that much better in terms of dynamics, impact, and just... believability, but before you run out and spend tons of money, spend time with this set up to see if you want to invest money to improve thisheadphone. Personally, I quickly grew to dislike the AK702 quite a bit, but that is not really relevant other than the fact an amp that suits the K702 is not necessarily going to suit a different headphone.

As far as the amp goes, you would want something with a low output impedance (as close to 0 as  possible) to avoid roll off, and for the amp to be able to deliver lots of current. So, transformer coupled tube amp, or a nice solid state amp.

There's lots of great amps out there, and even more rubbish - so chose wisely. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by PelPix 

Wait a minute..I don't even have the xonar with the included amp.  Of course I need one to drive the cans.

I'm pretty slow today.  Maybe I'm sick.

 

Well, this thread is now for recommending me some amps.  I'll probably need a DAC too.

lmfao.

K start with the model of Xonar you have.

Then, we could help you better.

Amp recommendations for you: WA6, Meier Concerto, B22, M3

Quote:

Originally Posted by PelPix 

I'm laughing too.  I've never been this foggyheaded in my entire life.

The DX.

K, well if I am not mistaken the DX will have a mini TRS out. So, you could use a Mini TRS to RCA cable to use it as a source if you wanted to. So DX output -> plug into amp.

All things considered (like ground loops and pc noise) the DX will be a pretty good source for cheap and allow your PC to be used as a transport which is very convenient. 

A budget for said amp would be good to help people suggest things that are reasonable to you.

P.S. you can change the title of the thread too, might be more effective... :P

i use the ibasso 10 which sounds good wit 702