[dip registered]

Hi,
 
I have an ipod classic 160gb, which is rockboxed. I'm listening to FLACs. My earbuds are the Sennheiser MX980s, and I'm wondering whether I need a portable DAC or not to get the best out of them.
 
On a lot of MX980 reviews, people suggest that 'to get the best out of them' you MUST use an amp or DAC.
 
On the other hand, I have read that if you are happy with the volume level that you can get from your ipod without a DAC, you probably don't need to get a DAC. And to be honest, at about -5 to -2, the volume level out of the ipod is fine for me.
 
With both conflicting pieces of information, I'm not really sure what to do! Should I get a DAC to make the sound better through the MX980s? Or would I not notice a difference? Any thoughts on the matter greatly appreciated. Cheers

 

[cel4145]

On a lot of MX980 reviews, people suggest that 'to get the best out of them' you MUST use an amp or DAC.

I thought the sensitivity on those is 120db? So no. You shouldn't need an amp for those. Well, unless your source device's output impedance is not low enough for 16 ohm headphones. But that's not a problem for the iPod Classic.

Aren't you able to run them on the Classic way louder than your listening volume? (sorry. I don't know what the volume numbers mean). If so, you should be getting lots of headroom for dynamic peaks out of them.

Now could you get a bit of increased clarify/resolution with an expensive dac/amp? Sure. But you could get better gains if you upgrade your IEMs