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Best DAC for Denon D2000s?

post #1 of 7
12/19/10 at 2:58am
Thread Starter 

Hello everyone, I'm new here, and relatively new to high-end headphones and such. I bought myself a set of D2000s for my birthday based on recommendations, and they sound great. However, I've heard that the difference is light and day with a new soundcard or DAC. With Christmas coming up, I figured now would be the time to invest. My onboard sound card just isn't cutting it in some areas. My budget is about 200-300 dollars, and I could be convinced to spend a little outside of my budget with decent enough reasoning. I listen to just about every genre of music in some way or another. I'm not partial to any specific frequency, so I'm not looking for killer bass or anything, just a general improvement. Also, since I don't have a headphone amp right now, a DAC with a decent amp would be perfect.

Thanks very much! :D 


Edited by linkpwns - 12/19/10 at 3:00am
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post #2 of 7
12/19/10 at 3:37am

I don't have a great deal of experience with different dac/amp (and there are so many...) but I currently use a fiio e7/e9 combo to drive my D5000 and it sounds great!

 

According to my coworker (non audiophile), the difference between running my d5000 off her PC and using e7/e9 is night and day. 

 

I also recently paid for an Audio-GD NFB-12 dac/amp (its spec looks great, company has great reputation and I am curious if my ears will notice any difference and how it would sound compared to fiio which many consider pretty low end.)

 

Anyway, fiio e7/e9  is $200 combined from micca store.  The NFB-12 is $245  shipped to my location at its introductory price. 

 

I am expecting the NFB-12 to sound better, but the fiio also has the ability to undoc the e7 and use it as a portable dac/amp (e5 quality amp...) Kind of neat to carry around between your home for docking with e9 and school or work as dac/amp or amp alone.

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post #3 of 7
12/19/10 at 5:38am
Thread Starter 

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikop View Post

I don't have a great deal of experience with different dac/amp (and there are so many...) but I currently use a fiio e7/e9 combo to drive my D5000 and it sounds great!

 

According to my coworker (non audiophile), the difference between running my d5000 off her PC and using e7/e9 is night and day. 

 

I also recently paid for an Audio-GD NFB-12 dac/amp (its spec looks great, company has great reputation and I am curious if my ears will notice any difference and how it would sound compared to fiio which many consider pretty low end.)

 

Anyway, fiio e7/e9  is $200 combined from micca store.  The NFB-12 is $245  shipped to my location at its introductory price. 

 

I am expecting the NFB-12 to sound better, but the fiio also has the ability to undoc the e7 and use it as a portable dac/amp (e5 quality amp...) Kind of neat to carry around between your home for docking with e9 and school or work as dac/amp or amp alone.



Thank you for the recommendation! I have the fiio e5, but I'm not really satisfied with it. I suppose the bass boost is nice, but the improvement isn't incredible. However, it seems like the e7/e9 combination is a completely different beast entirely. I'll add it to my list, thanks a bunch! What improvements does the e9 offer when used in combination with the e7 alone? I'd also be curious about the quality of the NFB-12

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post #4 of 7
12/19/10 at 10:19am

A used Pico

 

The upgrade to a Audio gd unit will show you the difference a DAC can make.

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post #5 of 7
12/20/10 at 12:50pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Happy Camper View Post

A used Pico

 

The upgrade to a Audio gd unit will show you the difference a DAC can make.



But isn't the Pico made by headamp? 

Aren't there Audio gd units in that price range? 

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post #6 of 7
12/21/10 at 11:19am

The ibasso d2+ did NOT pair well with the D2000s in my experience.

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post #7 of 7
12/22/10 at 1:04am

I use a Keces 151.

 

Great sounding DAC and good pickup if you find it 2nd hand.

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