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i've no clue where to start

post #1 of 10
1/14/11 at 1:02pm
Thread Starter 

i'm going to continue using my laptop as a primary music source. that's all i know. i've come to this decision today. a while ago my headphone jack broke off while still in my headphone out, so there's still a little part of metal in my headphone-out, and i can't get it out. i've tried everything. my laptop is out of warranty, and i do not wish to bring it in and pay a shitload just to have my headphone/speaker socket replaced.

so now might be as good a time as any to upgrade to a good laptop amplifier/dac. only problem is: i have no clue how or what i'm looking at. so i've chopped up these questions into different parts and anyone crazy enough to answer them all will receive free drugs and/or beer whenever they're in belgium, i promise you.

try and keep everything as cheap as possible when recommending stuff, but keep in mind that i'm not afraid to spend, as long as i know it's quality and my looped electronic soundscapes will sound fucking AWESOME because of said spending.

1/ i have a robust, big oldschool denon amplifier and two rather ace wooden speakers my dad built years ago. but no means to connect them to my laptop after the jack got stuck in the headphone out. so, first of all, how do i continue to listen to my laptop through that denon amplifier and those speakers? do i put something between my laptop and the amplifier? like an usb dac? is a dac useful when using an oldschool amplifier? can you recommend me something here?

2/ so with speakers out of the way, i want to buy a solid, good set of cans for my laptop, and while i'm at it amplify/dac (is this not the same, btw, dac and amplifier? i'm a rookie here) so i don't waste good money on a set of audio-technicas or sennheisers while not using them to their fullest potential. am i right in thinking that the amplifier/inbetween piece i'm buying to hook up my denon amplifier will work for my phones as well? so again the same usb thing should do it, right? or am i completely wrong here?

3/ i have recently purchased an ipod touch, and would like to know if i can amplify this ipod touch in any way? don't need to do this when on the road (last thing i need is something else in my pocket) but for home use. hook up my ipod to speakers or headphones and listen to it amplified, how do i do this? can i hook up my denon oldschool amplifier in any way?

i've looked at the headroom's total bithead and total airhead but can't understand a fucking word they're saying.

so yeah just help me, for the love of god i'm going crazy here, i'm a neurotic and this kind of uncertainty is really unhealthy for me, y'know

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post #2 of 10
1/14/11 at 1:37pm

1. Yes a usb dac, what inputs does your denon amp have??.

2. Yes but depends which 1 you get

3. get a line out dock for the ipod and a portable amp.

 

I recommend the fiio e9/e7 combo, it has rca's out for your denon amp, the e9 is a powerful headphone amp and can easily power any cans, the e7 can also be used as a portable amp for your ipod, or you can plug your ipod into the e9 i recommend a line out dock for ipod, with the ipod plugged into the e9 you can use the rca out for your denon amp. Basically the fiio E9/E7 combo is everything your need, it's cheap to buy and sound excellent it has a very clear netrual sound miles better than any laptop soundcard.

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post #3 of 10
1/14/11 at 1:40pm


 

Quote:
Originally Posted by erwin View Post

i'm going to continue using my laptop as a primary music source. that's all i know. i've come to this decision today. a while ago my headphone jack broke off while still in my headphone out, so there's still a little part of metal in my headphone-out, and i can't get it out. i've tried everything. my laptop is out of warranty, and i do not wish to bring it in and pay a shitload just to have my headphone/speaker socket replaced.

so now might be as good a time as any to upgrade to a good laptop amplifier/dac. only problem is: i have no clue how or what i'm looking at. so i've chopped up these questions into different parts and anyone crazy enough to answer them all will receive free drugs and/or beer whenever they're in belgium, i promise you.

try and keep everything as cheap as possible when recommending stuff, but keep in mind that i'm not afraid to spend, as long as i know it's quality and my looped electronic soundscapes will sound fucking AWESOME because of said spending.

1/ i have a robust, big oldschool denon amplifier and two rather ace wooden speakers my dad built years ago. but no means to connect them to my laptop after the jack got stuck in the headphone out. so, first of all, how do i continue to listen to my laptop through that denon amplifier and those speakers? do i put something between my laptop and the amplifier? like an usb dac? is a dac useful when using an oldschool amplifier? can you recommend me something here?

2/ so with speakers out of the way, i want to buy a solid, good set of cans for my laptop, and while i'm at it amplify/dac (is this not the same, btw, dac and amplifier? i'm a rookie here) so i don't waste good money on a set of audio-technicas or sennheisers while not using them to their fullest potential. am i right in thinking that the amplifier/inbetween piece i'm buying to hook up my denon amplifier will work for my phones as well? so again the same usb thing should do it, right? or am i completely wrong here?

3/ i have recently purchased an ipod touch, and would like to know if i can amplify this ipod touch in any way? don't need to do this when on the road (last thing i need is something else in my pocket) but for home use. hook up my ipod to speakers or headphones and listen to it amplified, how do i do this? can i hook up my denon oldschool amplifier in any way?

i've looked at the headroom's total bithead and total airhead but can't understand a fucking word they're saying.

so yeah just help me, for the love of god i'm going crazy here, i'm a neurotic and this kind of uncertainty is really unhealthy for me, y'know

 

 

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post #4 of 10
1/14/11 at 1:42pm

If you need help I'll be happy to assist you.

Not all of us on here are patient enough.

Especially the ones with experience and knowledge, tend to avoid helping "newer" members.

They only discuss high-end.

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post #5 of 10
1/14/11 at 2:28pm
Thread Starter 

i pm'd this to silence but i guess i can post this in here as well. thanks for the help guys, really appreciate it.

 

sorry for the swearing, by the way, i'm new on here.

 

well i guess main priority is a set of cans and a usb dac and/or amp to turn my laptop into a music station again. right now i'm stranded because of my headphone out. that way i can hook up my denon power amp to my laptop again, and listen to amplified headphones while studying. awesome.

 

what i wanted to ask was if i buy an usb dac and/or amp (isn't there something that'll do both in one device?), if i will be able to hook up both my denon and my headphones? or will i need separate amps for that? the way i see it, rookie style: i'm hooking up an usb dac (which is also an amplifier, or not?) to my laptop, and then hook up my old denon to the usb dac. and my laptop is good to go again, right?

 

the ipod stuff is of lesser priority, as long as i have a good set of cans i can manage those unamplified i guess. ipod-> on the road, unamplified, laptop-> home, amplified.

 

well in terms of money i'm obviously looking for something within limits as i'm a student, but i'd like a bit of quality as well: so let's say as inexpensive as possible keeping in mind i don't want to end up with gear that i'll be disappointed with within a year time.

 

have no idea how much usb dacs cost (and what you pay for quality or entry level stuff), but i guess if you want to know what my financial prowess is then i guess i'm looking for cans of around $100.

 

i'll have a look at the fiio, is it necessary to buy both?

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post #6 of 10
1/14/11 at 2:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by erwin View Post

i pm'd this to silence but i guess i can post this in here as well. thanks for the help guys, really appreciate it.

 

sorry for the swearing, by the way, i'm new on here.

 

well i guess main priority is a set of cans and a usb dac and/or amp to turn my laptop into a music station again. right now i'm stranded because of my headphone out. that way i can hook up my denon power amp to my laptop again, and listen to amplified headphones while studying. awesome.

 

what i wanted to ask was if i buy an usb dac and/or amp (isn't there something that'll do both in one device?), if i will be able to hook up both my denon and my headphones? or will i need separate amps for that? the way i see it, rookie style: i'm hooking up an usb dac (which is also an amplifier, or not?) to my laptop, and then hook up my old denon to the usb dac. and my laptop is good to go again, right?

 

the ipod stuff is of lesser priority, as long as i have a good set of cans i can manage those unamplified i guess. ipod-> on the road, unamplified, laptop-> home, amplified.

 

well in terms of money i'm obviously looking for something within limits as i'm a student, but i'd like a bit of quality as well: so let's say as inexpensive as possible keeping in mind i don't want to end up with gear that i'll be disappointed with within a year time.

 

have no idea how much usb dacs cost (and what you pay for quality or entry level stuff), but i guess if you want to know what my financial prowess is then i guess i'm looking for cans of around $100.

 

i'll have a look at the fiio, is it necessary to buy both?


The E7 would be fine, if you don't need to power 150ohm+ headphones and don't need rca out, The E7/E9 would be best for you because you want to connect to a amplifier so would need the rca out. so would

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post #7 of 10
1/14/11 at 2:46pm

This wouldn't help with the iPod or an external stereo, but... USB headsets like the Micro$oft LifeChat LX-3000 can be considerably better than nothing.  I picked one up on sale, and I was impressed by how comfortable it was to wear, and how not-awful the sound is.  Quite remarkable for the price, considering you get a USB interface thrown in as well.  There's deep bass, since it's an over-the-ear style.  And it's got the mic if you want to chat.  I didn't notice any background electronic noises (like from the harddrive activity), like I experienced using regular headphones with a laptop.  It's a start, though not really expandable.  Unless you feel like chopping the cable and splicing in jacks.

 

 

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post #8 of 10
1/14/11 at 3:11pm

If you want cheaper, then you can get a m-audio audiophile usb secondhand for half the price of the fiio combo you will loose out having a seperate amp though but save a bit of money, the m-audio has a good headphone amp and rca outs. the fiio combo has a more fuller sound and the m-audio has a brighter more open sound thats the only difference between them sound quality wise, both sound really good.

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post #9 of 10
1/14/11 at 5:26pm

erwin - I can totally relate. Here's one of my systems: Mac Mini out to a vintage McIntosh MA6100 integrated amp using the MM's audio line out/headphone minijack.

 

In your situation: google USB DACs. Pick one of many that will be in your price range. I won't tell you that a $75 DAC is better or worse than a $750 DAC. YOU and only YOU must judge that. 

 

Ensure that whatever DAC you buy has analogue R/L outputs so you can connect those to your Denon amp. 

 

You are then in business. 

 

Regarding the iPod Touch:  How about this: Minijack cable to RCA Left/Right to another input in your Denon. 

 

If you completely want to eliminate the Denon from the equation, you will have lots of shopping fun looking at the many, many combination Dac/headphone amps. Set a price range and stick to it. Keep this in mind: an off-shore brand may be priced right, but if you have a problem with it, servicing it will be tough. 

 

I brought in an "off  shore" tube amp to Audio Classics - Binghamton, NY. They took one look at it and said, "sorry at any price." 

 

Good luck and enjoy the music!

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post #10 of 10
1/15/11 at 1:28am

Well, Since u have an Ipod touch.  I would just set up a wifi network.  Have the ipod touch connect to the wifi network.  Airplay the music from you laptop to the ipod touch.  connect the analog out form the Ipod touch to the dennon RCA analog in.  The music should sound Ok.  Remember the streaming music is limited to 16bit 44khz.  which is CD quality.  When u feel the need to upgrade, Buy a DAC. with  2 optical in.  One optical in for the media player, and one for the TV optical out.  Connect the DAC analog out to the Dennon amp and u are set.  please note that most DAc usually dont have a volume attenuators, so your amp should have one or else u have a prob controlling the volume .  

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