[supbrowawawa]

I think it is time for me to get an desktop amplifier. I don't really know much about amps, but my budget is around $100 and these are the ones that have caught my eye so far:
 
- Fiio e9 (http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-Desktop-Headphone-Amplifier-Dock/dp/B004M172FY/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1324661422&sr=8-7)
 
- Dayton Audio DTA-100a Class-T (http://www.amazon.com/Dayton-DTA-100a-Class-T-Digital-Amplifier/dp/B004JK8BDK/ref=sr_1_32?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1324660055&sr=1-32)
 
- NuForce Icon uDAC-2 (http://www.amazon.com/NuForce-uDAC-2-Black-Headphone-24bit/dp/B003Y5FRNS/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1324660232&sr=1-2)
 
Any other recommendations are more than welcomed.
 
Don't know if this really matters, but what I usually listen to is: electronica, dubstep, house, trance, pop, hip-hop, alternative, punk-pop, and indie.
 
As for headphones, it will be used with my ultrasone HFI-580 and my Sony XB500. As for future headphones, I will be considering purchasing the Ultrasone PRO 900, Denon D2000, and Sony XB1000. As you can probably see, I love me some bass. lol.
 
This will also be used with my Xonar DG sound card, but I think I'm getting a Creative Titanium HD for christmas. =D
 
Oh and I have another question; what exactly does attaching a Fiio e7 on the e9 do? add more power?

 

[mechan]

Get an Asus STX and you can do away with a desktop amp - it will sounds enormously better than any amp in the $100 ballpark.
 
mechan

 

[supbrowawawa]

Foe realz? Should I just do that?

 

[mechan]

For the price (~$200), nothing beats the value of the STX.
 
You get:
- one of, if not -the-, best DAC on the market (the TI PCM1792A)
- a very good headphone amp (the TI TPA6120A2)
- no jitter whatsoever (as the STX is "fed" directly by the PCIe bus, without and USB/SPDIF conversion issues)
- swappable I/C opamps to suit your liking
 
Look around, and you'll see that that kind of stuff you won't even find in most external dac/amps in the $1,000 ballpark.
 
- mechan