[m@zo]

Hi!

I have a Sennheiser HD600 and an Airport Express. I am searching for an amp with DAC (optical in, NOT USB!), so I can listen to my computers Music bitperfect wireless

I would prefer an Amp with built-in DAC, because of portability. Price should not exeed USD 450. Is there a product that matches my needs? Possibly with crossfeed? Sadly, the Corda Aria does not have digital inputs (apart from USB).

Thanks!

 

[m@zo]

No ideas?

 

[tyrion]

Your price limit maybe the problem. If you went to $600 then a Headroom Micro Stack would be an excellent choice.

 

[mrarroyo]

Check out: http://www.firestone-audio.com/ the Cute Beyond at $170 and the Spitfire DAC at $250 would fit your bill. However, I agree with Tyrion that at $600 the Headroom's ofering would be better specially if a repair/service is needed. Good luck.

 

[m@zo]

Thanks for the tips! How portable is the micro-stack? Can the units be attached together? What I dislike about the micro stack is the cable between the units - rather because of aesthetic reasons than audiophil.

May I add, that I live in Germany. I think any service/repair would be a pain in the ass, because of the shipping. Thats why I would like to see a Corda with optical in

The AOS Flute (http://www.aoselectronics.com/) looks like what I want, except for crossfeed. But it`s discontinued.

 

[kristleifur]

Have you tried plugging your headphones directly into the Airport Express?

For kicks, I just tried driving my Grado SR-325s directly with the Airport Express we have here and the output is pretty damn good. Much better than the output of my Powerbook. Punchy, good bass, and definitely powerful enough for Grados; my ears are still ringing from the Clockwork Orange soundtrack at full blast through the AE.

The TI / Burr-Brown PCM2075 chip that handles the audio in the AE units is actually designed to drive headphones directly - it has an amp.

A dissection of the Airport Express:
http://www.vonwentzel.net/ABS/Dissection-Express/

The PCM2075 pages:
http://focus.ti.com/docs/prod/folder...t/pcm2705.html