[alb23]

Hello everyone,
 
I've read this forum for a while and see here a lot of knowledgeable people willing to help so I'd like to ask you for advice.
 
I'd like to spend about $250 (maybe a little more if that would make a noticeable difference) but don't know if I should buy just headphones or also an amp (or even DAC).
 
My source would be a laptop with build-in sound card (with line out and S/P-DIF). I'll be listening indoors, so the headphones do not have to be portable. I'll prefer open headphones as they generally should sound better than closed ones with the same price.
 
I listen mostly to electronic music(drum&bass), rock, a little bit of jazz and acoustic stuff, but I'm open to any genre.
 
 
What headphones or headphones/amp combo would you recommend?
 
 
Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks…  Albert

 

[kboe]

welcome to HeadFi and sorry about your wallet!
 
I would highly recommend the uDAC and the DT990s-880s-770s.  They have wonderful synergy together and the experience for the price hard to beat.  It may be a little above your budget though.
 
To bring the price down, you could buy used here of the forums, or consider a less expensive headphone.
 
A good choice would be Grados.  The SR80 or 125 would be great as well.

 

[gsilver]

This may be treason on this form, but I'd recommend going headphones first, and looking into a cheap used home theater receiver to act as a dac/amp. You can always get a 'Head-Fi Approved' dac/amp later, and the headphones are by far the most important thing in any setup.
 
Personally, I used a receiver before getting a dedicated headphone amp, and while the dedicated amp is better, an old receiver is a heck of a lot more economical, and it never disappointed me.

 

[ktsai1283]

Welcome to Head-Fi!
 
Agreed with gsilver.  Spend your money on headphones first, as those are the most important in the sense that the basic sound signature is determined by the headphones.  Amps might change/improve/worsen little things here and there, but they're not going to completely transform a headphone you dislike into one you love.
 
Spend some time with your new headphones, get a feel for its basic characteristics in terms of sound, keep participating in the forums and it'll help you sort things out in terms of how well your headphones perform and deciding what they do well and what they don't do well.
 
Your ears and your enjoyment are the only things that matter, so determine if the things your headphones don't do well bother you all that much.   If they do, start researching amps and others' experiences with specific amps that were matched to the same headphones you have (ideally).  From the treasure trove of information on this site, try to determine if buying an amp will help with the problems you currently have with your headphones (all amps are obviously not the same, and some "synergize" with particular headphones better than others).  Depending on your budget, you might even decide that instead of an amp, you would prefer to branch out and experience other headphones first.
 
Most importantly, ask questions if you need to--the members on this forum are very friendly and helpful.
 
Good luck!
 
Quote:

This may be treason on this form, but I'd recommend going headphones first, and looking into a cheap used home theater receiver to act as a dac/amp. You can always get a 'Head-Fi Approved' dac/amp later, and the headphones are by far the most important thing in any setup.
 
Personally, I used a receiver before getting a dedicated headphone amp, and while the dedicated amp is better, an old receiver is a heck of a lot more economical, and it never disappointed me.

 

[TheMiddleSky]

get a dac+amp combo (like uDac or Fiio E7), and spent the rest money for headphone.
 
For $150 you can get many good cans like Alessandro MS1i, ATH M50, Beyerdynamic DT440, etc

 

[alb23]

Thanks for a friendly welcome
 
So the question is, if the DAC and amp on my laptop's sound card are so bad that they need to be replaced by something like uDAC.
 
BTW I have Realtek HD ALC663 sound card. Here are its specifications:
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:QsUY6QOXS10J:www.realtek.com.tw/products/productsView.aspx%3FLangid%3D1%26PNid%3D24%26PFid%3D37%26Level%3D5%26Conn%3D4%26ProdID%3D165&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=firefox-a (Hardware Features are listed in the middle of the page)
 
How does the Realtek sound card compare to the uDAC?

 

[Jack C]

I agree with everyone regarding putting the emphasis on a good pair of headphones first. They will dictate the majority of how much quality you get out of your system. An outboard DAC is strongly recommended. Also, regardless of the built-in solution's chipset, the ultimate audio quality you get out of it depends on how well the sound circuit is designed and how well it is isolated from the noise generated from the rest of the system. This is where most computer designs fail to meet the requirements of those looking for high fidelity audio.
 
Jack

 

[alb23]

Hello,

is it a good idea to buy the headphones first and see how they perform with my Realtek sound card? Almost everybody in this thread recommends also an amp, so shouldn't I buy one right away? How do I find out if my sound card is crappy and needs to be replaced by external DAC/amp?

Thanks...

 

[1Time]

Welcome to Head-Fi. 
 
Good questions. Nothing wrong with first buying headphones for use with your current sound card to see if you then want to spend more money on additional equipment. But the catch is - if you spend too much of your budget on the headphones, you won't have enough money to buy the additional equipment.
 
If I were spending $250+, I'd want a decent source / DAC and additional amplification - with practically any headphones that I would buy. For me now that's a B-stock Prodigy HD2 sound card ~$70 > used x-head amp ~$80 > headphones.  
 
I tend to prefer closed or semi-closed headphones that have sound stage with rock and electronic drum / bass music. It's a matter of preference, however I suggest making sound stage your priority - and not whether the headphones are open or closed. Generally speaking - closed headphones carry more bass punch than open headphones, and that's something I really like with that kind of music.
 
This is not to suggest that closed headphones are better than open - or the other way around. Rather, it's a matter of preference. You may very well be extremely pleased with open headphones - regardless of sound stage.
 
Quote:

 is it a good idea to buy the headphones first and see how they perform with my Realtek sound card? Almost everybody in this thread recommends also an amp, so shouldn't I buy one right away? How do I find out if my sound card is crappy and needs to be replaced by external DAC/amp?