Amp for Senn 598

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewbieAudie 
Just recently received my pair of Sennheiser 598s. Currently testing on my laptop, straight out of the jack.  Was planning on buying an amp for them, but don't know where to start.  Budget is ~$80-100 max, and must be small/portable enough to stuff into my backpack without killing my back.  Durability important critieria as well.  And of course, it must drive my 598s pedal to the medal. 

Any recommendations?

Fiio E6, E7, E9, E10 and E11.

You'd probably want a DAC as well since you're using a laptop. E10 seems to be the best choice. E7 if you plan on using it with a MP3 player as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewbieAudie 

That's...quite alot of choices.  Are you implying they're more or less interchangeable for powering the 598?

 

 

Fiio E9 is far and away the most powerful.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewbieAudie 
That's...quite alot of choices.  Are you implying they're more or less interchangeable for powering the 598?

The Sennheiser HD-598 is 50-Ohms.

Most Fiios are rated up to 300-Ohms, the E9 600-Ohms.

So any of them easily power the HD-598.

Some models are bigger then others, some more portable then others.

All are headphone amplifiers, some also come with a DAC connections.

Some have longer battery life then others.

Price range is $25 to $200

Just depends what appeals to you.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewbieAudie 

So...if it has an amp and a DAC on board, will that improve the sound I'll be getting? 

 

Which amp would be the best bang per buck out of the FiiOs posted?

I think the Fiio E10.  They are only about $80 and apparently have better sound than the E7/E9 combo which is around $180.  However the E10 isn't portable.  The E7 is portable and the E9 has more juice from the amp.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewbieAudie 
So...if it has an amp and a DAC on board, will that improve the sound I'll be getting? 

Which amp would be the best bang per buck out of the FiiOs posted?

Can't access the Fiio webpage right now...weird

The E7 and E10 come with DACs

A DAC, Digital to Analog Converter, changes digital (zeros & ones) to analog (wave)

Computers have internal electrical noise, which can affect an analog signal, but not digital one.

So you run a USB cable from the computer to the headphone amplifier/DAC, (digital signal).

Converting the signal to analog outside the computer means less signal interference.

The Fiio might even have better DACs then the computer.

E10 is a newer design, I think the E7 has a long battery life.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ztreb185 
I think the Fiio E10.  They are only about $80 and apparently have better sound than the E7/E9 combo which is around $180.  However the E10 isn't portable.  The E7 is portable and the E9 has more juice from the amp.

I believe the E10 is semi-portable and is powered by any USB port, like on his laptop.

E7 for mp3

If you get the E7, the DAC section can only be used when you hook it up to your laptop via USB. When using the E7 with your mp3 player, you're only utilising the amp section. It depends on the mp3 player tbh. Some mp3 players go loud enough without another external amp hooked up to it. If I were you, I'd get the E10. It's portable, but cannot be used with an mp3 player since it gets it's power from your laptop's USB jack. 

The E9 is a desktop amp. You have to plug it in to a wall socket. If you're going that route, you might want to look into Maverick D1 and some Little Dot hybrid/tube amps. 

The E7 and E10 plug right in with USB and, for most computers, should just start working plug-and-play. You might have to fiddle with it a little bit if there's an issue, but it'd be no more difficult than opening the Sound menu under Control Panel, right clicking the Fiio audio device, and setting it. 

The Fiio E9/E5/E6 would just connect via lineout/headphone out to whatever your audio source was directly. The Fiio E5 and E6 also come with USB chargers that only charge and do nothing else. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewbieAudie 

Are all the E# amps USB connected? How easy to use are they? Any one in particular that's easier/harder to install on a laptop? I'm looking for one that's "plug it and forget it" rather than "plug it and adjust the hell out of it".

 

 

Again much thanks for the responses.

I would say, not necessary to get an amp for 598s.