Ever consider an AV receiver? Good sound quality, tons of connectivity, can be had pretty cheap depending on what you get and what you're looking at, and will power low/medium impedance headphones with ease along with a decent set of speakers as well.   Not a common suggestion around here...

Quote: I agree with this. The non-HD X-Fi Titanium is a good, cheap card. I used to have one (X-Fi Titanium Pro Fatal1ty actually) paired with my JVC HA-RX900's and it was a nice combo.   However, I just went through the exercise of trying MANY different sound cards with my RX900's, the...

Amp gets things louder and it does seem to fill out better. Either way I like the docking capability and the other inputs were nifty, especially for comparing my onboard laptop audio and LG G2x headphone out to the E17 via the AUX toggle switch. The phone and E17 sounded similar, but the onboard...

Quote: Lol very true. I've been bitten by "the upgrade bug" more than once and in more than one hobby. Though, I must say I am leaps and bounds further than when I first started here. I'm like a kid on Christmas again lol. I can't wait to get the E9K set up with the E17 and DT990's and be...

Just ordered the E9K, will be here tomorrow.   This has been a long and confusing road, more so than any other hobby I've dabbled in. But I think it's all coming together, and will be worth it in the end. And this is all still "entry level" stuff lol. I'm hoping after I get this E9K maybe I...

Oops, double post.

Quote: Thanks for the tip on the E9, I didn't realize the E17 wouldn't work with it. Too bad, as it's $20 cheaper, but from reading it seems they fixed some quirks with the original anyway with the E9K. I'm still going back and forth between the E9K and O2. I've priced it out, and the...

Got the DT990 pro 250. Out of the box, the bass was disappointing (compared to the DT770 pro 80). It seemed less controlled, loose and boomy, not nearly as punchy, tight and detailed as the DT770 pro/80, and didn't seem to extend as well. I had already returned the DT770, so I didn't have them...

Well, I decided to go with the E17 for now. I figured I'd get a good portable DAC with a decent amp first, and then if I need more I can get an amp later on. Since the E17 itself is portable, I figured I'd go with a desktop amp, like the Fiio E9 or build an O2. I plan on listening more at home...

Actually I think I'm going to build an O2 diy style. Probably won't cost much more than the PA2V2 and will be much more fun than just opening a box. How does it stack up to the PA2V2, and does it pair nicely with the DT990 Pro/250? (Judging by everyone else's impressions, I think I know the...

Quote: Thanks, I'll look into those. Based on reviews, I'm leaning more towards the E11 vs the PA2V2...which would you recommend? The other 2 are a bit more than I want to spend. For that kind of money, I'd rather save up a bit more and get something like the ODAC + O2 combo and leave the...

Quote: Actually, it looks like they accepted my offer! Just sent payment, so I'm getting the DT990 Pro/250 for $159 shipped. Better headphones for $60 less, can't beat that! Unfortunately the estimated arrival date is next Tuesday, so I have a ways to go (another thing I hate about...

Well, I stopped by Guitar Center last night to see what I could demo. There were only two pair that he could let me try out since the boxes weren't sealed, the DT 770 Pro/80 and the HD280pro. I tried the DT 770 Pro/80 first and...omg I had no idea what I was missing. They are SOOOOO much better...

Quote: Assuming I want to decrease my budget to the $100-150 price range rather than $200, what would you recommend then from the above?

Quote: Off topic and out of curiosity, why is the USB 3.0 controller surprising?   On the drivers, I did download the latest drivers for both DACs and loaded them up. All 3 drivers were running at the same time and both DACs were plugged in at the same time, and I was switching...

Quote: Unfortunately I sold the gaming rig a few months back, and the X-FI HD and U3 have both been returned to Microcenter. Probably acted a little prematurely, but I'm really considering the E7 or E17 over either of them anyway.   Yeah, I guess you could describe my listening tastes...

Quote: My headphones are JVC HA-RX900 (basic mods as per this thread). I'm running FLAC though Foobar2000 w/ wasapi/asio from my laptop. My laptop has IDT onboard audio, and I've tried the Xonar U3 and X-Fi HD along with HDMI out from the laptop through Foobar2000 w/ wasapi to a Denon...

I hooked up my RX900's to my Denon AVR-1712's headphone out, and played some FLAC from Foobar2000 via WASAPI over HDMI from my laptop to the AVR. I want to say the quality was a little bit better but it was hard to tell. As for volume, man this receiver can get loud! The headphones were...

Quote: Yeah, I'm wondering if this onboard DAC is just unusually good? I mean in other forms of audio such as car audio and home theater, I can tell the difference between speakers, receivers, amps, etc. so I know my ear is sensitive enough for the hobby. I'm wondering if it's just the...

Well I went to Microcenter and out of pure curiosity wound up with both the Asus Xonar U3 and the Creative X-FI HD USB. I brought my laptop and RX900's with me so I could test them out before I left the parking lot. I plugged in the Xonar U3 first and....no difference. Sounded just about...

Quote: Thanks for the input, but both are way more than I want to pay for this, especially for $60 headphones.

Quote: That is exactly the response/comparison I wanted. Thanks for your input. I will probably go with the X-Fi HD then. I really do like what the E17 has to offer, but I just can't see myself spending that much on it at this time (I've spent enough on this laptop as it is lol). Plus...

Quote: Thanks for the input. While I do a little bit of light gaming, most of what I am concerned with is music and video performance. Gaming features are a nice perk, but they are not the center of what I am trying to achieve. I used to have an X-Fi Titanium Pro card in my gaming PC, but...

Quote: That E17 looks nice, but it sure is pricey. Is it a big improvement over the U3 or X-Fi HD? I would like to stay in the $50-80 price range if possible. I really liked the U3 but all I can find it compared to is the X-Fi Go, not the HD. Of course, if the Fiio dac/amp is leaps and...

I have a pair of JVC HA-RX900 and an HP Probook 4530s. I am running Windows 8 64-bit and OS X Mountain Lion. I am tired of the crappy onboard audio and want to get something better. Being a non-gaming laptop, I mostly listen to music and watch the occasional movie or TV show. I do play a few...