[Acorns]

After plugging my headphones into my living room's Denon AVR-1713 speaker system I was relieved to find that the Sonys were producing warmer and more listenable sound to music. Previously I found them too harsh and analytical leaving them feeling fatiguing. Since then I've been looking into buying an amp (or amp/DAC) for my desktop within a budget of $70-160. I don't mind spending a bit more in order to future-proof for the years onward when I upgrade my headphones. Also, I've heard that tube amps are great for producing warmer sound so this sounds like what I'm looking for.
 
I'm quite new to all of this so I greatly appreciate any suggestions.

 

[Me x3]

  After plugging my headphones into my living room's Denon AVR-1713 speaker system I was relieved to find that the Sonys were producing warmer and more listenable sound to music. Previously I found them too harsh and analytical leaving them feeling fatiguing. Since then I've been looking into buying an amp (or amp/DAC) for my desktop within a budget of $70-160. I don't mind spending a bit more in order to future-proof for the years onward when I upgrade my headphones. Also, I've heard that tube amps are great for producing warmer sound so this sounds like what I'm looking for.
 
I'm quite new to all of this so I greatly appreciate any suggestions.

You should consider Fiio E10 as a not bright solid state DAC/Amp with low output impedance.
Since your headphones have a pretty low impedance you won't get the best sound quality pairing it with a high output impedance amp like most tube amps or receivers output. I've tried my low impedance MDR-1R, Fidelio L1, and Yamaha HPH-200 with the headphone out on my A-S500 integrated amplifier and I know what you mean by warmer sound, but you won't get warm and controlled/precise sound this way, you get the extra warmth at the expense of overall sound quality.
 
If you like warm sound, you could read about Logitech UE6000 which are highly regarded headphones, specially in passive mode, and you can find them on Amazon for 99 dollars right now (originally 199 dollars). You can probably get the Fiio E10 in the near future for 75 dollars and there you have a very nice warm sounding rig.
 
If you are sticking with your Sonys, you could read about Schiit Vali (119 dollars), but again I'm not sure how your low impedance, very sensitive headphones will work with a powerful tube amp like the Vali.
 
Best Luck!

 

[PurpleAngel]

  After plugging my headphones into my living room's Denon AVR-1713 speaker system I was relieved to find that the Sonys were producing warmer and more listenable sound to music. Previously I found them too harsh and analytical leaving them feeling fatiguing. Since then I've been looking into buying an amp (or amp/DAC) for my desktop within a budget of $70-160. I don't mind spending a bit more in order to future-proof for the years onward when I upgrade my headphones. Also, I've heard that tube amps are great for producing warmer sound so this sounds like what I'm looking for.
 
I'm quite new to all of this so I greatly appreciate any suggestions.

 
Creative Labs Sound Blaster Z sound card ($60-$80) or the FiiO E10K USB-DAC-Amp ($75) would be about as much as you would want to spend for the MDR-7056.
E10K might offer a slight advantage in audio quality, the SB-Z comes with headphone surround sound, for games and movies.
Otherwise any more cash spent for audio improvements might be better spent upgrading from the MDR-7506s

 

[Acorns]

Hmm... yes, that makes sense not to spend more than necessary for the Sonys as they're quite functional on their own. In that case, I think that I'll definitely look at the FiiO E10 as an affordable option that would pair well with the headphones. Buying a new sound card might also be what I'm after in order to improve overall performance so that is also something I'll consider.
 
As for other headphones, the Logitech UE6000 sound like a steal that so I'll also have a look and see whether it's worth changing to them or something similar.
 
 
Thanks for all of the feedback. This narrows things down a lot for someone like me who's new to everything.