[yliu]

I want to upgrade my portable rig. First I would like to buy an amp (there is no headphone amp selling in my country,so I decided to get an audio interface), my options would be the M-Audio Fast Track Pro or the Apogee ONE. Which one had a better headphone amp? Can they drive an HD650 or a ER4-S?

 

[qusp]

dejavu, someone asked the exact same question but without specifying the type of headphone. the apogee uses better convertors and is an all round better product IMO, but neither will do a good job of driving those headphones. both are bus powered devices and already have their work cut out with the power available to them, powering a dac, headphone amp plus reasonably hard to drive headphones with 5vdc just isnt realistically an option i'm afraid. for these headphones you should probably add a separate amp as well. they will be powered, but not terribly well

 

[yliu]

Do they at least sound better than driving those headphones directly from my computer's headphone jack? and how much are they better? does it worth to buy the HD 650 for a Apogee One or should I buy something that is easier to drive?

 

[qusp]

oh I assumed you already had those headphones. definitely buy something easier to drive if possible, otherwise you are wasting the potential of the device. they will do a better job than the HP jack, but that isnt saying much

 

[petervii]

Hello there.Just my 2 cents,
I have the apogee one.It's a great product more suitable for the touring musician-music mixer-DAW user.(the internal mic is the best ever!)
I dont have the HD650's , i only have the akg 271 and the shure e5 iem's.Output is way better than my macbook's headphone out,but the terrific DAC does not justify the price tag by itself. Qusp is right, the apogee cannot properly drive my headphones.Maybe something like the ibasso D2 is more suitable for you.(You could buy it online) 

 

[keezzzz]

The One drives my Yuin PK-1 and my Ultimate ears UE700 and my Grado and the Ultrasone Pro 650 easy,
Very good sound, great device !!