OH MY GOD (ext dac vs. macbook)

Well I know even with an expensive sound card I "needed" an external DAC anyways because I had ground loop issues and noise from the computer which ruined the music and made expensive headphones moot...

You don't have to spend big bucks, but I would say an outboard DAC/amp combo would do you good if you really want a high end sound.

Audio GD NFB-12 is cheap and is a nice little combo unit... so is the FUN... cheap way to see for yourself it is worth it.

Well you will still be amping the line out of your MBP... I would try that first and see what the sound is like because it will be different than the built in amplifier. If you are a skeptic I highly suggest you listen to some stuff yourself first... like find an integrated amp with a headphone jack and use it to amp your MBP vs the built in amp... see what you think etc. Only you can decide if it is worth it... and also just because lots of stuff in audio is a total rip off does not mean all things are. So being skeptical is good, but overly is bad too.

Personally I think if you have high end headphones it never hurts to feed them quality stuff, and quality doesn't necessarily mean high $$ stuff... just well though out stuff. A starter unit like the Audio GD units I mentioned would be a great place to start and would increase SQ if anything will. Worst comes to worst they are easy to sell and not very expensive... not to mention they are extremely well designed.

If you are like me at all you will enjoy a DAC being able to get great audio from any digital source be it a laptop, console, CDP etc. there is also a convenience factor don't forget.

Computers are commercial workstations. They are built to do a lot of things adequately but nothing extremely well. Audio is listening to the power supply recreate the signal. Power supplies in computers are noisy, environment is dirty in electro energies, mechanical energies, heat, etc.

An external dac is designed specifically for that task. The more you investigate, you'll see power supplies outside the dac unit, cleaner signal chains,etc.

i own a mbp 13" and i often use the internal dac.I don't like it but it is just sooo much easier than plugging a usb dac each time and having to deal with disconnects and additional cables.That being said i have the apogee one and have used many top notch dacs over the years in studios and so ,and i have to say this.The dac is probably the least influential part of your chain to the final sound reaching your ears.

I think it all depends on which headphones you will be using.

If you have or plan to buy detailed akg's or triple fi's then at some point in the future the s/n ratio and the overall quality of the dac is going to be bothering you.

BUT i would not amp the HO of my macbook.maybe my iphone.

So if i were you i would

1.Try many headphones from friends and see if a signature suits your needs

2.Then find an amp and see how it affects the headphones you already have

3.Then plug your bose or whatever you have in an external sound card like the ones used for recording(which usually have nice clean dacs)and see if the difference it makes is enough to justify a dac purchase.
 

Just an opinion

I recently had started a topic about onboard DAC after getting a new Dell XPS and I was shocked how far onboard audio had come over the years.  My onboard DAC is a-ok and I will not hook up the external card I had been previously using.  I have no ground loop issues, no hiss, no issues, and use FLAC files, good IEMs and some Sennheiser PX100s.  You may not need to buy anything if you can't hear any problems with onboard audio.  Try your headphones, some music you are picky about and see if it works.  Better than dropping $$$ on any other equipment if the default setup with your Mac can please you.