[goforthepod]

I got a pair of AKG K701, with furutech fp704 6.5mm jack already modded.  I am looking for a good amp that does it justice.
 
I have heard the Matrix M-stage works wonders with the K701, however in one of the other threads I read that if I can get a really powerful amp (1+W @ 62ohm) I can truly bring out the wonders of the K701.  Now, this is the first Audiophile equipment I have, so I am both inexperienced and lacking comparison.  Also, since I will listen to primarily .ape's from my computer, I would prefer an integrated DAC.
 
So aside from the M-stage (which is not really that powerful), I am thinking of the following:
 
Audio gd NFB-12
Yulong D100
 
The latter is a little pricy for me, and I haven't really heard much about them, so if anyone has used it before, please tell me if it is worth it.  For that matter, please also just tell me, is the NFB really much better than the M-stage?
 
Also I will consider set-ups with stand-alone DAC... such as the Schiits (but they are a bit pricy for my budget too, are they worth it?).
 
Oh, I mainly listen to classical (orchestral mostly), that's why I chose the K701 -- mostly for the soundstage, instrument separation and objectivity (also the bass is not really required).

 

[goforthepod]

P.S.  I live in Western Massachusetts in the USA... I wonder if there are gatherings for audiophiles in this area?
 

 

[bowei006]

For you, I would choose a external DAC with an O2, although the NFB would also do fine.
 
Kiteki vouches for the AK4396 on ebay I guess as being a good and well circuited and designed stand alone DAC by the seller. The DAC used in that combo is used in the AudioEngine D1 and is $80
 
Anyway, never tried that DAC but kiteki likes it for the price. I say O2 as I have both the NFB 12.1 and O2. If you listed genres like pop, EDM, dance electronica, hard rock etc. The NFB is better than the O2, for cleaner genres and styles with a cleaner but also smaller but more natural soundstage the O2 wins.
 
The NFB has a bigger but more artificial soundstage while the O2 has a slightly smaller but more natural one. It is also cleaner(cleaner doesn't mean better, it's just the sound signature the O2 produces) the vocals and strings are also cleaner and better on the O2, although I prefer the NFB 12.1 for when I want to listen to music I personally like and I prefer the O2 when listening to audio masterpieces (using the NFB 12.1 as a DAC)
 
A well reviewed sub $100 DAC with the O2 would fit your genre and headphone perfectly as I have the Q701's and also listen to Classical along with many genres under the rising sun!
 
For the kids that want to rock with a more energetic and agressive sound with a soul in the middle. Go NFB 12.1
 
NEver tried the Yulong. I am striclty comparing the NFB 12.1 versus a DAC that my pal Kiteki loves for it's price and the O2 that I have

 

[goforthepod]

I actually been doing some research on the O2+oDAC vs the NFB 12.1, but unfortunately I couldn't find some good numbers comparison between the two.  By looking on the O2 blog I can hardly think of anything that would do better tho.  So could you clarify a little bit on the "artificial"-ness of the NFB 12 soundstage?