[nicolasete]

Lately i have retaken my old intention of buying a pair of Beyerdynamic DT150, and since most people seem to agree that they need a dac/amp, a doubt popped in my mind:
 
 
 
What are the advantages/tradeoffs/point of buying a cheaper pair of 600ohm headphones for 150 bucks and having to spend some extra, say 250 bucks in a dac/amp for a total of 400, instead of buying a pair of better, lower impedance 400 bucks headphones that don't require additional hardware?
 
 
What about the same question when impedance is not a factor? (for instance when both headphones have the same impedance, is it better to spend 200€ in the headphones and 200 in a dac or just 400 in a arguably double-quality headphone?

 

[Thommohawk]

Your audio is only ever going to be as good as the weakest link in the chain. So if you do buy a $400 headphone of 'double quality' you won't be getting the best out of them if you don't upgrade your DAC or amp to match it. 

Now sure it's not going to sound bad, above a certain price point you can expect a certain level of quality, but you are always always always better off matching your dac and amp to the price of your headphones or as close as what your comfy with rather than just buying an uber headphone and leaving the rest of the rig as is. Especially if your current DAC and amp are merely 'decent' money if you even have a proper DAC and amp in the first place. 

I strongly recommend a balanced system of equal ish proportion money wise between DAC headphones and amplifier rather than 1 super expensive headphone that you will not get the best out of anyhow without upgrading the rest of your rig. Even if it means you get a 'lesser' headphone you'll still get much better audio if your rig is driving it to it's potential and the balance is right for you. 
 
And nor do you have to spend silly money either in 99.999% of cases.

 

[Zojokkeli]

I'd say go for the more expensive headphones and get amp and dac later when you have extra money.

 

[Head Injury]

  Your audio is only ever going to be as good as the weakest link in the chain. So if you do buy a $400 headphone of 'double quality' you won't be getting the best out of them if you don't upgrade your DAC or amp to match it. 

Now sure it's not going to sound bad, above a certain price point you can expect a certain level of quality, but you are always always always better off matching your dac and amp to the price of your headphones or as close as what your comfy with rather than just buying an uber headphone and leaving the rest of the rig as is. Especially if your current DAC and amp are merely 'decent' money if you even have a proper DAC and amp in the first place. 

I strongly recommend a balanced system of equal ish proportion money wise between DAC headphones and amplifier rather than 1 super expensive headphone that you will not get the best out of anyhow without upgrading the rest of your rig. Even if it means you get a 'lesser' headphone you'll still get much better audio if your rig is driving it to it's potential and the balance is right for you. 
 
And nor do you have to spend silly money either in 99.999% of cases.

Price doesn't always buy quality with amps and DACs. Matching the headphones with equally priced amps and DACs is a good way to waste money, and get worse performance in many cases.
 
Even cheap amps and DACs can perform transparently. Pick a headphone you want that's within your budget, then find the cheapest amp that works with your headphones and performs transparently, then find the cheapest DAC with the features you need that performs transparently, then make any other changes you need with a free digital EQ. This is the best bang for your buck, with no weakest link.
 
Unfortunately full specs are rarely released for commercial amps and DACs. Audiophiles are too busy worrying about the price than the true performance of their upstream equipment.
 
I tried the "balanced" approach, or close to it, with my last system. Bought $250 worth of FOTM gear to power a $350 Grado. I would have gained MUCH more performance from a $600 headphone driven straight out of my Clip+ or my X-Fi soundcard. Now I'm doing what makes sense. I've run a $995 headphone out of a $170 soundcard for 3 years. This was a far better investment, and I haven't thought of spending more money for performance since. The Objective2 was just a vain cosmetic choice (I wanted a fancy box on my desk).
 
Always prioritize the headphones. The transducers are what actually makes a difference.