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Noob needing help finding an online guide to understanding USB DAC and Headphone AMPS?

post #1 of 3
10/19/11 at 1:24pm
Thread Starter 

Hi can anyone recommend a newbie to a source online where I learn all I needs to know about DAC and Headphone AMP’s. I’m totally lost in world of Audio electronics and I’m desperate to get this project off the ground. I’ve just ordered a pair AKG 701 headphones and a pair of Sennheiser HD 650. I’m not sure which Headphones I will like better but I need to figure what USB DAC and Amp to buy. I’ve read so much product literature and forum reviews I’m going crazy and anyone help me or point me in the right direction.  

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post #2 of 3
10/19/11 at 3:31pm

Try the wikis.

 

DAC Wiki:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audio_converter

 

Amp Wiki:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headphone_amplifier

 

Headphones Wiki:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headphones

 

Another decent link is:

http://www.headphone.com/learning-center/learn-amps-dacs.php

 

In short a DAC ( Digital to Analog Converter ) takes a digital signal like on a CD which is comprised of bits and converts it to an analog voltage signal that your headphones can use.  An amplifier can help clean up this signal, but more importantly simply amplifies it to get a higher voltage.  The more purely this signal is processed the more the headphone will tend to reproduce the original bits stored on the digital media.

 

If I had to guess I would say you are going to like the K701's better because they are less laid back sounding and they are easier to drive.  The HD-650 has problems with its frequency dependant impedance curve.  This dependence often leads to problems properly driving the headphones because of the power needs of the drivers as well as the voltage needs of the voice coils.  There is also mention that the foam inside the HD-650 is "tuned" for optimal listening which many of us find filters the sound a bit.  The HD-650 is much better sounding, at least more fun sounding, than its bigger brother the HD-800.  To me they both suffer from having a veiled sound as if the sound is being played through a pillow before it reaches your ear.  I prefer a much more up front sound like the K701 or even Q701.  In the end I settled for a pair of DT990's ( 250 Ohm ) which sounded up front, but not too much so, and had really great bass extension without drastically compromising the treble.

 

Both the HD-650 and K701 will scale nicely to better gear and are considered really fine headphones.  I hope you enjoy both.

 

Depending upon your budget the CENtrance DACport sports a nice DAC, is USB connected, and has a class A amp inside of it.  It runs $400, but is worth it if you want to end up with a nice piece of equipment and not have to upgrade much later until you really know what you are doing.


Edited by NA Blur - 10/19/11 at 3:33pm
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post #3 of 3
11/3/11 at 1:28pm
Thread Starter 

Hey thanks for the reply I actually sent back the AKG 701 they didn’t sound that great even after 300 hours of burn in. As the for the HD650 I thought they were awesome except they need more base and they fit a little tight my head no matter how I adjusted them.  I’ll try ordering the beyerdynamic today, I was wondering if had any impute for me on DAC and AMPs I’ve done my homework I’m trying to put together a desktop system that will suit my needs, my budget is around $1600.00 I’m considered the products listed below I hoping you might have had experience with any of these units and can steer me in the right direction.   Like any consumer I want to get the best bang for the buck in terms of features and performance. So what will offer me that? Also I have this nagging question should go integrated DAC & AMP or separate?  Should I consider combining different products? Please any help would be much appreciated.

 

Centrance DACmini CX

Centrance DACmini PX

Tube Magic DA & TubeMagic A1

Peachtree Decco2

Benchmark DAC1 PRE

Music Fidelity M1DAC & M1HPA   

BEL Canto E.One

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