[Sasiniri431]

I am a current hd558 user 
 
and I play games and listen music 24/7
 
Can anyone suggest good amp for HD558? 

 

[NA Blur]

I am trying to save you some money so please understand that is where I am coming from in this post.
 
I do not think you need an amp for the HD558.  A DAC is only going to clean up the signal for you.
 
Do you use them for PC or console gaming?  What do you think / feel is missing from your current setup in terms of sound?
 
What are you current gripes about the headphones?  I know from my adventures with the HD558 they are bass lean and tend to be somewhat one dimensional sounding.  I did like them for movies.
 
I went to the HD600 and then the HD650, but did not fully understand their power and sold them off.  You may want to look into another headphone starting with something inexpensive like the Philips Cityscape Downtown.
 
Take a look at the measurements first:
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/PhilipsCityscapeDowntown.pdf
 
The measurements and with my gear the sound is amazing for the price!  They are on on-ear headphone and some find them uncomfortable if worn over glasses so please take that into consideration.
 
Here is Tyll's review:
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/philips-citiscape-downtown

 

[dharan]

For HD558's an amp and DAC are only going to make very marginal differences. Once you upgrade your can, then a DAC and amp will be more justifiable in price to upgrade ratio. On the other hand, if you have even a decent pair of speakers, I do notice an amp and DAC do make a difference.

 

[NA Blur]

You could try to mod them a bit:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/615531/is-the-sennheiser-hd-558-mod-worth-it/30
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-kJ7sN16qw

 

[Rhamnetin]

Yeah you don't desperately need an amp and/or DAC for the HD 558.  Since you mentioned games, you might want to consider getting a sound card such as a (used) Creative Sound Blaster Z, or better yet a used ASUS Xonar Essence ST/STX or a used Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD.  Any of these will give you some improvement, in addition to things like virtual surround if you care about that for games.  At the same time a sound card is also an inexpensive amp/DAC solution, so you can save up money for better headphones if you'd like.

 

[PurpleAngel]

  I am a current HD558 user 
and I play games and listen music 24/7
Can anyone suggest good amp for HD558? 

 
Have you removed the black rubber tape from inside the cups of the HD558s.
The tape covers about 40% of the air holes, removing the tape should make the HD558s sound somewhat more like the HD598s.
 
What is the make and model of your motherboard?
A low cost way of trying to improve the audio quality with PC gaming.
Asus Xonar DG ($18-$28) or DGX ($28-$38) sound card, should improve audio quality (at least a little) over lower costing motherboard's on-board audio.
The Creative Labs Sound Blaster Z sound card ($85 at Walmart) offer a better DAC and more powerful headphone amplifier, then the DG/DGX.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Creative-Labs-Sound-Blaster-Z-PCI-E-Sound-Card/22663860
 
You might be able to get a use Asus Xonar Essence STX sound card (used off eBay, $130?)
Better DAC and headphone amplifier, then the SB-Z.
 
For something more simple and external, check out the new FiiO E10K USB DAC/Amp ($75)
May not provide headphone surround sound for gaming, but should improve audio quality.

 

[SSSN]

A Fiio E10 would be perfect. It's cheap, has quite some power, a clean DAC and low output impedance. It's also plug n' play, so no driver trouble. The physical volume control is nice too.