[Beginningatdawn]

Okay,
 
So I currently own the Senn Momentum Over-ear Version. It's nice with my iPhone 5S, but I feel at times it's lacking in bass and volume depending on the genre, track, etc. I'm also planning to pick-up the RHA MA750i really soon for a pretty good price. My question is, if I'm doing my listening via an iPhone 5S/iPad Air, am I going to get any noticeable sound quality improvement by using an amp or DAC or amp/DAC combo with either of these cans? I realize the first advice I'm going to get is to upgrade my headphones, but I'm a college student strapped for cash and am just wondering if I can see any noticeable or marked improvement with an amp/DAC. I'd be willing to consider a Fiio X1/X3 or an equivalent player if it meant I could forgo getting amp/DAC because to hook up an amp or DAC to my lightning port requires the lightning to 30 pin adapter, which is a good $35 spent on top of an LOD and Amp/DAC. Sorry if this is long, or repetitive, I'm a little tired right now 

. If anyone could give me advice that would be great. Price range is capped at about $100(About $150-$200 for a portable player w/o an additional amp).

 

[Beginningatdawn]

BUMP

 

[cel4145]

just wondering if I can see any noticeable or marked improvement with an amp/DAC.

Noticeable is relative to the listener's evaluation.

FiiO X3 could be a good choice for you. It's a nice player

 

[Beginningatdawn]

Noticeable is relative to the listener's evaluation.

FiiO X3 could be a good choice for you. It's a nice player

What I mean by noticeable is, that, will a FiiO X3 sound better than my iPhone 5S considering both of them would be w/o an external amp.

 

[cel4145]

What I mean by noticeable is, that, will a FiiO X3 sound better than my iPhone 5S considering both of them would be w/o an external amp.

Only you can decide that. The X3 is a better piece of audio hardware. Whether it results in a significant sound improvement is a personal judgment.

One thing I can say is that the X3 has a stronger headphone amp. So, if you like to listen to your headphones loud--and especially if you are adding EQ boost--such that the amp on the 5S is reaching it's limits, you will get better dynamics with the X3.

 

[Head Injury]

  What I mean by noticeable is, that, will a FiiO X3 sound better than my iPhone 5S considering both of them would be w/o an external amp.

No, and neither will an amp help much. The iPhone has a pretty clean output (review here), and should be able to generate about 800 mV at 22 ohms, enough for 120 dB or more with the Momentum! It has about 5 ohm output impedance which is arguably its biggest problem, and you may get extra distortion in the bass but no audible frequency response changes.
 
If you're lacking bass on certain tracks, it's probably the result of the mastering on that track and nothing to do with your source or amplification. That the Momentum sounds very different on certain tracks is a good thing, it means its own colorations aren't getting in the way. You'd be better served by a good EQ app than changes in gear.

 

[cel4145]

No, and neither will an amp help much. The iPhone has a pretty clean output (review here), and should be able to generate about 800 mV at 22 ohms, enough for 120 dB or more with the Momentum! It has about 5 ohm output impedance which is arguably its biggest problem, and you may get extra distortion in the bass but no audible frequency response changes.

I didn't realize it has that powerful of a headphone amp. 120 db of output is more than enough for good dynamics at loud volumes

 

[headfiguy2014]

stereophile magazine says for 2014 the audioquest  dragonfly v1.2 usb dac is the best entry level one. dacs give headphones a better balance of bass treble and etc.

 

[Beginningatdawn]

 
No, and neither will an amp help much. The iPhone has a pretty clean output (review here), and should be able to generate about 800 mV at 22 ohms, enough for 120 dB or more with the Momentum! It has about 5 ohm output impedance which is arguably its biggest problem, and you may get extra distortion in the bass but no audible frequency response changes.
 
If you're lacking bass on certain tracks, it's probably the result of the mastering on that track and nothing to do with your source or amplification. That the Momentum sounds very different on certain tracks is a good thing, it means its own colorations aren't getting in the way. You'd be better served by a good EQ app than changes in gear.

Any EQ apps you can recommend? There's quite a bit in the app store.

 

[Head Injury]

I didn't realize it has that powerful of a headphone amp. 120 db of output is more than enough for good dynamics at loud volumes

1 Vrms max output is pretty darn good for a phone, second only to the HTC One M8 I think. It's not that much compared to a desktop system of course, but the Momentum is very sensitive so it doesn't matter.
 
I can only guess that it will maintain 800 mV at 22 ohms, but the only voltage loss at 32 ohms is from the output impedance so I'm assuming it's fine.
 

  Any EQ apps you can recommend? There's quite a bit in the app store.

Unfortunately I don't have an iPhone, or any Apple products, or a smartphone. I'm not qualified to help

 
Free is always better, if that's possible.
 

  stereophile magazine says for 2014 the audioquest  dragonfly v1.2 usb dac is the best entry level one. dacs give headphones a better balance of bass treble and etc.

If there's one thing DACs don't do, it's change the balance of bass and treble. Almost all of them are ruler flat from 20 to 20 kHz, and the DAC won't even be able to color the sound through impedance mismatches like an amp can. What does, irrefutably, change the balance of bass and treble is an equalizer, since that's exactly what it's designed to do

 

[ProtegeManiac]

  What I mean by noticeable is, that, will a FiiO X3 sound better than my iPhone 5S considering both of them would be w/o an external amp.

 

If you're going to use IEMs it might not be audible to you at or near the volume limits, considering IEMs don't really need a lot of power, hence mainstream devices don't have enough distortion yet at the point where they're too loud already. However if you're having trouble with the relative lack of steps in the volume attenuation of general purpose devices barring the volume slider on Windows (no matter how clumsy it is), then a DAP will be a lot better, especially the low-gain X1.

 

[money4me247]

 
No, and neither will an amp help much. The iPhone has a pretty clean output (review here), and should be able to generate about 800 mV at 22 ohms, enough for 120 dB or more with the Momentum! It has about 5 ohm output impedance which is arguably its biggest problem, and you may get extra distortion in the bass but no audible frequency response changes.
 
If you're lacking bass on certain tracks, it's probably the result of the mastering on that track and nothing to do with your source or amplification. That the Momentum sounds very different on certain tracks is a good thing, it means its own colorations aren't getting in the way. You'd be better served by a good EQ app than changes in gear.

+1. Yea, I think if you want more bass specifically, EQ is the best way to go. It is also free. Amping primarily increases the volume, though some amps have a bass boost switch for specific boost in that frequency response. You can achieve similar results for free with an EQ app on your iPhone.
 
I owned the Momentum Over-Ears and they were quite neutral. Bass was not over-emphasized though a bit more bass than neutral. You may be used to bass-heavier headphones. Give it a week or so with the Momentums Over-Ears without EQ and see if your brain adjusts to the new sound signature. If not, just EQ. Otherwise, if you are still in your return window, you can consider switching headphones as that will have a much bigger impact on sound quality and bass than adding an amp/dac.