Audiophile in the making?

[dulath]

Yes, I am considering spending more money that I really aught to on aural augmentations to my gaming rig. I purchased an AV710 last summer, unaware that it was THE sound card for entry level audiophiles, so it looks like I’m part-way there. After lurking around the site for awhile, it seems that what I need is a good set of phones and an amp to drive them. I would really like to keep a price tag for a good setup for under $100, though I could be tempted to spend more if a significantly better solution was only dollars more.

One thing I’m particularly curious is about the AV710’s apparently bit-perfect digital out (SPDIF I guess?) option. Are there headphone amps that take SPDIF input directly? Or did what I say just make no sense at all?

I definitely do like listening to music without headphones quite a bit, but for that, I’m quite happy with my re-branded Dell (Samsung OEM) 5.1 setup that I snatched from a Woot. They put out a throaty bass and all-around good mid and highs, and they definitely have their own amplification, but could I improve the sound out of them by using the same amp as I would for the phones? Or is there a different method?

A lot of questions from the clueless guy, I know. All help is greatly appreciated.

*Edit* As a reference, the phones I currently have are Labtec LT-820s. They have a surprisingly powerful bass/lowend, but are otherwise mostly muddy all around.

 

[Tachikoma]

Headphones/amps will need an analogue output to function. The digital out usually goes to an external DAC (ie: microDAC, or the DAC inside an AV receiver)

With $100, you could go for... a cmoy + grado SR60 I think. It really depends on where you live and whats available to you.

Edit: Oh yeah, I forgot. Welcome to head-fi, and sorry bout your wallet.

Stay here a little while longer and you'll find yourself spending well more than $100 on "aural augmentations"

 

[dulath]

I understand that the SR60 is somewhat uncomfortable? Also, how does one "get" a Cmoy without building it ones self?

 

[james902]

just post a wtb: cmoy or such in the sale forums

 

[jet_dee]

EvilFire Cmoy

Try this guy, I like the above model particularly.

Also, some amps will take an spdif signal, but that's down to having a DAC built in, because external dac's are better all round than what you'd find on a sound card.

And SR60 uncomfortable? My head is a little thinner than some, so maybe I'm not affected, but the SR60's are like two pillows on my ears. I used to have a sony headphone, whenever I put that on now I get horrible ear pains after just five minutes.

If you really want to test comfort yourself, find a hi-fi store that sells headphones you'd like to buy, and try them out there before you make your decision.

also, one of the head-fi sponsors, headroom, make a wide range of amps (some with built in dacs), for reasonable money.

 

[fjf]

DAC= digital to analog converter. It is the thing that converts the stream of bytes from your av710 and converts it into an analog current that your amp can amplify and your headphone can transform into sound. Just in case you did'nt know. Your av710 has a decent dac and you can listen to it if you amplify it.

Regards.

 

[dulath]

I figured that these "192KHz Wolfson DACs" that everyone talks about would be good enough for an entry-level phile, so I guess I just need an amp and good headphones. Thanks for all the suggestions.

 

[Tyll Hertsens]

With $100, you could go for... a cmoy + grado SR60 I think.

This is damn good advice.

 

[saturnine]

There is a nice cmoy available here for cheap:
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?...highlight=cmoy
Excellent builder and a great guy.

Or, if you want a thin amp with crossfeed (a necessity IMO

), the Headroom Airhead/Bithead is awesome with Grados. IMO.

 

[dulath]

Hmm, looks like I can get an SR60 for $70 shipped priority mail (sound-room.com). Good price? I'll look into what that X86inside fellow is selling. I'll be sure to tell him that saturnine refered me =). Also, I'm hoping to talk with the Evilfire CMoy guy to see if he can produce a less-flashy cheaper CMoy for PC sound duty - The stuff he has now is REALLY sexy, but I only listen to music around the ol PC.

*Edit* Dammit, the $40 CMoy just sold =)

 

[saturnine]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dulath *Edit* Dammit, the $40 CMoy just sold =)

Contact him, he could probably build you another for around the same price.

 

[dulath]

Hmm. Are these comparable in quality and output to the CMoys that the Evilfire guy makes and that you can make from the original tutorial? I'm asking this because I've seen pictures of both and the circuitry on x86inside's amp looks much different.

 

[saturnine]

IMO, X86 (MisterX) is one of the most knowledgeable builders out there, and he does some awesome work. He built my PPA, with steps & diamond buffers, and has been the most helpful person I've ever dealed with. His work is top notch, and he is there to help if things go wrong. Ask MisterX why his Cmoy is different, he may just have things laid out differently to fit a certain case...

I've never heard of Evilfire, but personally I don't like the mint-tin casings. They dent too easy if you use them with a portable

 

[AdamWill]

To answer the question everyone missed from the original, no, you don't want to try driving your speakers from a headphone amp. Think for a second about how much power is needed to drive a pair of headphones, compared to how much is needed to drive a pair of speakers. Hint: how would it sound if you cut your headphones in two, put one in each corner of the room, sat ten feet away and used them as speakers?