Any good, cheap (~$50-100) AMP/DAC combos with 3.5mm in & out?
Oct 10, 2018 at 7:24 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 6

ninjames

I get people telling me I say dumb things all day.
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Basically looking for something simple to power my wife's Hifiman HE-300s when it's connected to her monitor (used for gaming and computer use, so it's easier to keep plugged into the monitor's 3.5mm jack, and they don't get quite loud enough plugged directly into the TV). I'm assuming this will require an external power supply, but that's fine. Is there anything like this? To be clear, I'm NOT looking for a USB amp/DAC. I also know that the TV almost gets them loud enough, so I don't need anything especially powerful.

Thanks in advance. I've done some searching but it's just pages of results for USB combos for the most part.
 
Oct 10, 2018 at 7:56 PM Post #2 of 6
Basically looking for something simple to power my wife's Hifiman HE-300s when it's connected to her monitor (used for gaming and computer use, so it's easier to keep plugged into the monitor's 3.5mm jack, and they don't get quite loud enough plugged directly into the TV). I'm assuming this will require an external power supply, but that's fine. Is there anything like this? To be clear, I'm NOT looking for a USB amp/DAC. I also know that the TV almost gets them loud enough, so I don't need anything especially powerful.

Thanks in advance. I've done some searching but it's just pages of results for USB combos for the most part.

If you want 3.5mm in and 3.5mm out, you're looking for an amp, not an amp/DAC.

As far as 3.5mm connectors in and out....JDS Labs Objective2?

That's assuming you don't want a portable option. Lots of portable amps would meet your requirements, the trick would be, if you don't want to worry about battery charge, making sure that you go with one that's happy being plugged into USB all the time.

Walnut F1 might work, and that's a heck of a bargain, although with sensitive headphones and IEMs, noise floor will be an issue, especially if it's being charged from a computer.

I'm guessing some of the inexpensive Fiio and Topping portable amps would also work well.
 
Oct 10, 2018 at 8:06 PM Post #3 of 6
Thanks for the suggestion and clarification. I didn't even consider that it doesn't need to be a DAC. And I know I listed $100 as an option but that's like, if I absolutely can't find something for cheaper. Just needs a bit of power with 3.5mm in and out, and whatever it is will be charged via an outlet, not the computer.
 
Oct 10, 2018 at 8:21 PM Post #4 of 6
Fiio A3
1) about $70
2) 3.5 connectors input and output
3) uses the same charger as an android phone
4) plenty of power for your use
5) bass boost feature works really well with some headphones
 
Oct 11, 2018 at 12:22 AM Post #5 of 6
I've used FIio products in the past and they went quite well for me. I'll go with that unless anybody has any suggestions for something even cheaper than that? It's just a very narrow use case, so pinching pennies lol. Will happily buy the A3 if there aren't dependable/good cheaper options.

And thanks!
 

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