[ferday]

Man now I'm back to square one. I'm pretty sure if I'm spending this much money I want an amp. And the only suggestion I saw was the 99 dollar external amp. I think for that price I would be better off getting a 150~ dollar dedicated dac yeah?

For $200 you get into a magni/modi for DAC/amp, and will rival the quality of nearly anything out there. Or for $130 you get into a fiio e17 which is DAC/amp and will drive a HUGE range of cans just fine...just saying, for $130 (e17) and $130 (athm50) you have a stellar introductory setup, or $250 for the dt770's/m100's and a stellar mid-fi setup, and upgrade able down the line

 

[Helltech]

You don't really have to worry about an amp for the m100...
Just buy the headphones. They are plenty efficient on their own. I would recommend picking up a nice desktop amp and DAC sometime down the line... It will improve the sound of the m100 and open things up if you decide to sell them off and upgrade your headphones

Oh alright, is there an open ear headphone of equal quality?

 

[asgiov]

Oh alright, is there an open ear headphone of equal quality?

When you say of "equal Quality" that is really subjective. Pretty much every headphone is a little different.
Closed will generally always have better bass extension. The Sennheiser Momentums outperform even the HD 650/800 when it comes to low-end performance.

Unless you are talking about Open or closed (Doesn't matter) Planar Magnetic Headphones... those will have the best Bass performance period... especially the Audeze LCD 2/3 and Stax SR-009 (Both Open, Both incredible Bass Extension). This is generally due to the flat, thin, large diaphram used as a driver... which provides several times more surface area to produce sound than conventional Dynamic Driver headphones.

The advantages of an open-back design are a much more open, and natural sound-stage... They will sound much less congested than "closed" headphones.
The highs will sound much more sparkly and airy without actually becoming brighter in their sound signature. Voices will sound more realistic. It all has to do with the acoustics of the headphones.

So as far as "equal quality".....
At the same price point, I cannot think of a single "open" headphone, personally, that would have the same kind of low-end performance as the M-100 or Momentum. But there are plenty of good options if you are willing to sacrifice the low-end performance for an improvements in other areas of sound.
For instance, you can get the Sennheiser HD 650s, which still have a nice low-end (Not as good as the Momentum), and will generally destroy both of those headphones in every other regard. They can be had for about $350 fairly easily.
They will also require a decent amp too.

 

[DrSheep]

If you get a low impedance headphone like the M-100, there is really no need for an amp.  So $300 will be fine.

 

[Helltech]

When you say of "equal Quality" that is really subjective. Pretty much every headphone is a little different.
Closed will generally always have better bass extension. The Sennheiser Momentums outperform even the HD 650/800 when it comes to low-end performance.

Unless you are talking about Open or closed (Doesn't matter) Planar Magnetic Headphones... those will have the best Bass performance period... especially the Audeze LCD 2/3 and Stax SR-009 (Both Open, Both incredible Bass Extension). This is generally due to the flat, thin, large diaphram used as a driver... which provides several times more surface area to produce sound than conventional Dynamic Driver headphones.

The advantages of an open-back design are a much more open, and natural sound-stage... They will sound much less congested than "closed" headphones.
The highs will sound much more sparkly and airy without actually becoming brighter in their sound signature. Voices will sound more realistic. It all has to do with the acoustics of the headphones.

So as far as "equal quality".....
At the same price point, I cannot think of a single "open" headphone, personally, that would have the same kind of low-end performance as the M-100 or Momentum. But there are plenty of good options if you are willing to sacrifice the low-end performance for an improvements in other areas of sound.
For instance, you can get the Sennheiser HD 650s, which still have a nice low-end (Not as good as the Momentum), and will generally destroy both of those headphones in every other regard. They can be had for about $350 fairly easily.
They will also require a decent amp too.

RIght I just meant equal quality in build, not something overpriced.

For $200 you get into a magni/modi for DAC/amp, and will rival the quality of nearly anything out there. Or for $130 you get into a fiio e17 which is DAC/amp and will drive a HUGE range of cans just fine...just saying, for $130 (e17) and $130 (athm50) you have a stellar introductory setup, or $250 for the dt770's/m100's and a stellar mid-fi setup, and upgrade able down the line

I've been really looking into the 770s and 990s quite a bit, they seem like a good price, they are gorgeous as well.

Just not sure what to combine them with, I know I don't NEED a DAC/Amp, but just having one plus the idea of a control panel is nice. I have no idea how I would hook this up to my Creative X-Fi.

http://www.amazon.com/Schiit-SCH-07-Magni-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00CICPMA6/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1374326958&sr=1-1&keywords=Magni+AMp

 

[Helltech]

Double post sorry.

 

[ferday]

Quote:

RIght I just meant equal quality in build, not something overpriced.
I've been really looking into the 770s and 990s quite a bit, they seem like a good price, they are gorgeous as well.

Just not sure what to combine them with, I know I don't NEED a DAC/Amp, but just having one plus the idea of a control panel is nice. I have no idea how I would hook this up to my Creative X-Fi.

http://www.amazon.com/Schiit-SCH-07-Magni-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00CICPMA6/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1374326958&sr=1-1&keywords=Magni+AMp

get a fiio E17.  hook USB cable to computer.  plug headphones into Fiio.  all sounds from computer now go through e17 into headphones.
 
pretty simple setup!  my e17 will run my HE400 planars all the way down to my IEM's, with good treble/bass adjustments and a clean DAC that sounds good on several different computers i've tried.  for what you need NOW, i don't think you need a magni or the extra expense of the magni/modi combo....although it's very nice LOL

 

[Helltech]

get a fiio E17.  hook USB cable to computer.  plug headphones into Fiio.  all sounds from computer now go through e17 into headphones.

pretty simple setup!  my e17 will run my HE400 planars all the way down to my IEM's, with good treble/bass adjustments and a clean DAC that sounds good on several different computers i've tried.  for what you need NOW, i don't think you need a magni or the extra expense of the magni/modi combo....although it's very nice LOL

Ok so one last dumb question, since I have a soundcard wouldn't a magni be a better option than an e17?

 

[ferday]

Quote:

Ok so one last dumb question, since I have a soundcard wouldn't a magni be a better option than an e17?

not a dumb question, just no answer...in what way do you mean better?
 
the e17 is a DAC/amp, so you have both of those things in a small cheap package, and it works well.  for the price, the magni is a stunning amp (but only an amp), it looks good and has a lot of power. it all depends on what you want/need....just a DAC or just an amp or both
 
personally i find a DAC is very important, just doesn't matter what kind of DAC IMO.  all of my computer sources are very noisy.  
 
if i was in your spot, i'd buy a fiio e17 and whatever headphones are in your budget that you like.  it's a great DAC and the amp section will drive 95% of the cans out there.  

 

[Helltech]

not a dumb question, just no answer...in what way do you mean better?

the e17 is a DAC/amp, so you have both of those things in a small cheap package, and it works well.  for the price, the magni is a stunning amp (but only an amp), it looks good and has a lot of power. it all depends on what you want/need....just a DAC or just an amp or both

personally i find a DAC is very important, just doesn't matter what kind of DAC IMO.  all of my computer sources are very noisy.  

if i was in your spot, i'd buy a fiio e17 and whatever headphones are in your budget that you like.  it's a great DAC and the amp section will drive 95% of the cans out there.  

Yeah that is what I was thinking that a DAC was important but other users in this thread have said otherwise (since I have a soundcard already) so. =/ I meant better as in cost effective I guess. Slightly cheaper while really only "needing" the amp portion of the e17. The only thing I don't like about the e17 is it lays flat, I kind of wish it was more of a "control center" that I can sit on my desk.

So I'm thinking of getting the Beyerdynamic AMS-DT-990-Pro 250 Ohm as my headset. They are open which I want, and suppsoed to have good bass. They are 164 dollars compared to the 32 Ohm version which is 261. So I figure that with what ever I get for an amp or dac solution that should be good enough for the 250 Ohm version and offset the cost of the 32 Ohm one?

 

[ScaryFatKidGT]

Quote:

550 is way over budget for me mate. I don't really want to spend over 400 if I don't have to and only have 500 to spend at max.

 
Quote:

For $200 you get into a magni/modi for DAC/amp, and will rival the quality of nearly anything out there. Or for $130 you get into a fiio e17 which is DAC/amp and will drive a HUGE range of cans just fine...just saying, for $130 (e17) and $130 (athm50) you have a stellar introductory setup, or $250 for the dt770's/m100's and a stellar mid-fi setup, and upgrade able down the line

The headphone are more important than the amp when on a budget
Quote:

Oh alright, is there an open ear headphone of equal quality?

Grado's, HD558 or 598's
Quote:

Yeah that is what I was thinking that a DAC was important but other users in this thread have said otherwise (since I have a soundcard already) so. =/ I meant better as in cost effective I guess. Slightly cheaper while really only "needing" the amp portion of the e17. The only thing I don't like about the e17 is it lays flat, I kind of wish it was more of a "control center" that I can sit on my desk.

So I'm thinking of getting the Beyerdynamic AMS-DT-990-Pro 250 Ohm as my headset. They are open which I want, and suppsoed to have good bass. They are 164 dollars compared to the 32 Ohm version which is 261. So I figure that with what ever I get for an amp or dac solution that should be good enough for the 250 Ohm version and offset the cost of the 32 Ohm one?

The DAC makes more of a difference in the sound but not if you have 80 or 250ohm headphones that flat out need an amp, then you need the power either way.
 
If you get beyer's you will need something like the Fiio E17 or E07k to power them from a laptop or portable.
 
Is this going to be purely for your desk top? Look at the Fiio E10 or E07k and E09 combo.
 
Honestly if I were you right now I would get a magni and HD600's, but that is just because I really wanna try them ha.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

So I figure that with what ever I get for an amp or DAC solution that should be good enough for the 250 Ohm version and offset the cost of the 32 Ohm one?

You think like I do.

 

[Helltech]

The headphone are more important than the amp when on a budget
Grado's, HD558 or 598's
The DAC makes more of a difference in the sound but not if you have 80 or 250ohm headphones that flat out need an amp, then you need the power either way.

If you get beyer's you will need something like the Fiio E17 or E07k to power them from a laptop or portable.

Is this going to be purely for your desk top? Look at the Fiio E10 or E07k and E09 combo.

Honestly if I were you right now I would get a magni and HD600's, but that is just because I really wanna try them ha.

The only problem with the 558s and 598s (as much as I do like them and had been learning towards them before more research) was the problem with their "lack" of bass comparatively. If I could get HD600 for 299 I would do that in a heartbeat, lol.

You think like I do.

I mean that is a very big price difference. I really do this they will be what I get. =/ Am I overlooking something? I just don't see the reason to get the lower ohm version just to not have an amp when the lower ohm version is so much more expensive.