[Panurgic]

Would pairing these two together be a good choice? The minibox is perfect for my price range but I'm very cautious with making purchases. My D2000 is unamped right now. The D2000 was an excellent purchase; would the minibox be as worth it?

 

[mrarroyo]

The MiniBox-E+ is a great sounding amp, some like me who listen at very low volumes would be well served provided the source can put out at least 2 V/rms. Will you be using the combo at home or on the go? What would your source be?

If for home use I believe you would be better served with a home amp. See if you could find an used Millet Max or a Musical Fidelity X-Can V2 which usually sell for well under $250 w/ S&H. A HiFiMAN EF2 would work well also. Good luck.

 

[Panurgic]

This is for home use. I use an HT Omega Claro Plus as I needed to connect them to my speakers for games and movies. I'm also having problems even finding a store that sells new versions of the amps you mentioned let alone people selling their used ones. This is why I want the Minibox E+ as it's cheap (not really) and ready to ship. It's kind of confusing that you say it's a great sounding amp but recommend different amps in the process.

 

[Mad Max]

A Minibox-E+ is best used as a portable amp, a home amp will allow your Denons to perform better. Try the Hifiman.

x2 on it being a great sounding amp, I love mine

 

[Panurgic]

Sorry if I sound annoying, but I really don't like the idea of buying an amp that cost 3 times the price of the actual headphones. What would be the best bang for your buck<$300?

 

[Mad Max]

You lost me. Which amp do you speak of?
At less than three hundred there's a bunch of stuff, you'll have to spend time searching and reading.
You may want to grab a drink and some popcorn, lol.

 

[aegid]

I think he's confusing the EF2 with the HM-801

 

[Panurgic]

The EF2 seems to be usb only. Would that be able to play off of my sound card?

 

[Mad Max]

Bah, that's true. Actually, the EF-2 will replace your soundcard via USB. You just set your output in whatever you use to the "USB DAC" that becomes available upon connecting the EF-2. I think you will like the improved sound from the EF-2 over your soundcard.

Still, you should do a Search above all else on "desktop amp", "budget amp", or whatever specifically catches your attention.

If you can stretch your budget a bit, the Matrix Mini-i seems to be a real good deal going on. Both a good amplifier and an upgrade over your soundcard.

Again, search. Better thorough than sorry/regretful later.

 

[Panurgic]

I've never heard of playing music through a USB. So, I can just plug in either of those two amps into my PC via USB and it will be shown in playback devices on windows? This would actually be more convenient for me since I won't have to remove my speaker wires from the sound card in order to put the headphone cable in.


This is actually pretty frustrating. So many choices I have little experience with and such high prices.

 

[mrarroyo]

Panurgic, the EF2 has two inputs. First there is the USB which allows the EF2 to function as both an external soundcard and a headphone amp. The EF2 also has an RCA input which is switchable in the front panel, when in use it will allow an analog signal to be amplified by the EF2 amp section by-passing the EF2 DAC section.

 

[hairybottle123]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mad Max /img/forum/go_quote.gif A Minibox-E+ is best used as a portable amp, a home amp will allow your Denons to perform better. Try the Hifiman. x2 on it being a great sounding amp, I love mine

this~

 

[Mad Max]

I use the digital output from my soundcard to feed my Audio-gd Compass. I can also just use USB and the Compass serves as an external soundcard that I can select in Playback Devices.

I keep insisting that you use the search function at the top of the page because will find all you need to know using it.
I guess you may not be able to go wrong with the HiFiMAN EF2, but you should do a search on tube maintenance and what not should you choose the EF2. Another nice alternative (and tubeless) is the Zero DAC, but you will need to do a search on who are the trustworthy sellers of this piece of equipment.