[theBigD]

you should look at the amp section of this website. skylab has great reviews for portable amps. and there is also a review of home amps in that area. i purchased akg 701s several months back. they sounded ok and much better after 300hr burn in. they didn't really sing until i put an amp between my soundcard and headphones. i got the govibe v5s. this is a pretty inexepensive amp under $100. skylab just did a review on ray samuels apache amp a $3000 amp, i lust after it but alas i could never afford it. the creative xfi soundcard is a pretty decent soundcard, and you can mod it pretty afordably to make it a great soundcard. oh by the way welcome to head fi, sorry bout yer wallet!

 

[g_hause]

What drew you to the AKG's? You have picked a headphone that really benefits from an amp. There are alternatives that will get you buy without one, Grados come to mind. Just about any full sized headphone will benefit from an amp but some need the extra boost more than others. What kind of listening are you going to be doing?

I like the portable amp idea too. Cheaper, portable, gets you an idea of how good headphones can sound without a major investment.

Or keep your eyes open for an amp like the Corda Aria, or the head-five, in the for sale forum. These amps have dacs built in. Headroom does this too.

 

[Pennarin]

Where did I get the idea for the AKGs? I had vaguely heard about 5.1 headphones and wanted to know if they were a technological reality yet (or uther crap, as they turned out to be from reviews), and in the process stumbled on the world of hi-fi headphones. AKGs had glowing reviewer and user reviews, compared to other high-end headphones. Plus....they looked sooo good!

What will I be listening to with the headphone setup? Movie DVDs and some music CDs. Oh, and an Xbox 360. I know I won't be doing much with them, it's not like I'll be creating music in my home, but I'm freakin' tired of crappy audio in all the digital devices I ever bought in my life.

Who or what is Skylab? Threads here and there refer to him/it, but I'm missing important contextual info.

I've got nothing against used equipment, so if I can find a good-looking, performance amp/DAC (Aria fits the bill), but at a fraction of the cost of a brand new one...I'll order it with my CC.

As for a sound card, hmmm...the Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio at 70$ seems it'll be able to do the job I'll want it to do. The specs of anything higher in the X-Fi family seems like overkill for what I'll need it for.

 

[wanderman]

so, what is wrong with the xfi again?

 

[Pennarin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wanderman /img/forum/go_quote.gif so, what is wrong with the xfi again?

.......anyone? Bueller?

 

[g_hause]

I see no problem with an x-fi.
I'm just going to step back because I got a little worked up.
You are building a new pc.
You like the idea of high end headphones. AKGs in particular. You have a good eye.
You want to be able to run at least two,your PC, and xbox, sources into these headphones. Is two sources enough or do you want a dvd player and a tv too? Do you forsee wanting to improve those ProMedias?

I had a really pleasant experience with a Music Hall a25.2 integrated amp and my Senn 650s out of its headphone jack. They show up used for ~$300 once in a while and it drove speakers nicely too.

 

[Pennarin]

You needed to step back?

Yes, I want to run a PC (music, movies, very few games) and Xbox with the AKGs. I also would like to run a TV/dvd player as well...since I happen to have those independently of my computer.

I'm sure 5.1/7.1 speakers are marvelous, especialy Klipsch's, but I do not believe I will have access to the necessary room, or will be alone in my flat, in less than a year or two from now, that is if it ever happens in the close future. Right now the Promedia will probably be my best bet to hear non-can sound coming out of the computer.

 

[g_hause]

Right, so not only do you need a headphone amp for the AKGs, you need something that can handle at least three sources. The majority of the headphone amps out there accept one or two sources. The Music Hall I referenced is a two channel integrated amp. I pointed it out to you for two main reasons:
Headphone amps that act as preamps are expensive. An integrated amp can act as a hub for all your sources, and in my experience, give you a headphone out superior to what you would get from a portable headphone amp.
It would let you upgrade your two channel system with speakers if you become of that mind.

 

[Pennarin]

Don't speakers like Promedia have their own built-in amplification? I can pre-amplify them, just like a headphone? Wouldn't their output be outside the range of what's achievable for a can amp?