First foray into the world of headphone amps! Little help much appreciated

[NervousE]

Thanks in advance for any help and advice that can be offered here!
Firstly, I'm kinda new to the world of high (or even mid!) end audio. I use my PC for pretty much all audio playback (flac on foobar2000), dvds, blu-ray etc and have a nice rig in the living room.
I've been hankering after some 'proper' audio equipment for a while now, and my first purchase in this area was a set of Denon AHD2000 headphones. These completely blew me away, even though they are towards the bottom end of Denons higher quality cans... until then I was using a samsung surround sound kit linked to my D2X xonar soundcard via optical sp/dif. Sound quality is decent, but the cans really put it to shame.
I've been floating around these forums for a while now and I'm reckoning the best way to next upgrade is a decent DAC/AMP combo, as the headphones are plugged directly into the 3.5mm jack socket on the soundcard. And there i'm stuck.
I originally was looking at the AUNE amp on ebay, but now i've opened the whole can of worms that is the "decently priced DAC/AMP" market and I can't make up my mind! There are loads to choose from and I've been over the reviews etc on here but i'm still on a shortlist of about 8! There are relatively very few bad reviews (singlepower being the major one).
I didn't want to spend a great deal at first but if I can get something that'll satisfy me for a while then I can save up for better cans or something.
Top of the shortlist is the Beresford TC-7520 or the Caiman, which seem to offer everything I need for a good price, and the reviews are pretty positive. I like the Corda Cantate.2 also, and if this had an optical input i'd probably be sold... Also been looking into Matrix mini-i, AUNE, O1/Octavart, and Maverick tubemagic D1.
I do like the idea of being able to roll the opamps and custom-tailor the sound, although being a bit wet behind the ears here I might be in over my head with that... Also apologies if I'm chewing over old ground here, but I have been researching for ages now and i'd be grateful for any advice! thanks again.

 

[PetiePal]

I am also in the same boat as you. I have a pair of Sennheiser HD595s and HD600s and I am in desperate need of an amp. My range is 200-400$ although I'd like to hit the middle sweet spot of $300 if possible.

The Audio Tube Magic D1 looks very enticing and was also on my list. I would use my headphones at my desk the most and from my PC as well but I'd want it to have multiple inputs like the Tube Magic so I could hook my gaming systems, TV or an iPod into them. Eventually I figure all of it will move to my "Man Cave" and be routed through a nice receiver and good surround sound system. (I use a 5.1 Logitech system for now, but that's mainly just for the computer in the future)

 

[rosgr63]

I have the TC-7520 and I am happy with it.

You might want to have a look at the Audio-GD FUN н¨ÍøÒ³ 1

slim.a has written an excellent review about it, you might want to read it first http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f5/rev...preamp-468522/

Good Luck

 

[NervousE]

hmm the FUN does look rather interesting... looks like massive scope for playing around with it at any rate... I've just been eyeing up the Music Hall DAC25.2 Digital to Analog Converter... o_O! Would need a seperate headamp for that tho correct? I Think I need to get saving... For now tho, still leaning towards the Beresford...

 

[rosgr63]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NervousE /img/forum/go_quote.gif hmm the FUN does look rather interesting... looks like massive scope for playing around with it at any rate... I've just been eyeing up the Music Hall DAC25.2 Digital to Analog Converter... o_O! Would need a seperate headamp for that tho correct? I Think I need to get saving... For now tho, still leaning towards the Beresford...

The FUN has a headphone output.

 

[drandall]

i have the HD600 and after looking at a variety of tube and SS amps ended up going with the little dot mkIII. i've been very pleased with how it pairs up with the senns and at less than $200, it's bargain priced. best of all, the $100 you save can go towards rolling your first set of tubes to customize the sound to your liking.

had i gone solid state, i probably would have gone with the meier corda swing, which looks nice as well.





Quote:

Originally Posted by PetiePal /img/forum/go_quote.gif I am also in the same boat as you. I have a pair of Sennheiser HD595s and HD600s and I am in desperate need of an amp. My range is 200-400$ although I'd like to hit the middle sweet spot of $300 if possible. The Audio Tube Magic D1 looks very enticing and was also on my list. I would use my headphones at my desk the most and from my PC as well but I'd want it to have multiple inputs like the Tube Magic so I could hook my gaming systems, TV or an iPod into them. Eventually I figure all of it will move to my "Man Cave" and be routed through a nice receiver and good surround sound system. (I use a 5.1 Logitech system for now, but that's mainly just for the computer in the future)

 

[NervousE]

Looking further into things I'm pretty impressed by how the Styleaudio Topaz is fareing, although the amp is held to be unspectacular. I have also have been looking at the Hifiman EF2 which is a fair whack cheaper but then the DAC inside is unexciting! I also could get an Ibasso D10 (very well received) for over £100 less than the styleaudio...
I'd lean towards the styleaudio even disregarding the higher price, as I could purchase a better AMP later on, but I was wondering if for similar cash (£315) I could get something better? There is so much stuff to choose from! Its very exciting but kinda scary too... Like the first time I tried pesto... I guess I don't mind shelling out more cash if the end product is going to keep me entertained for a long time! This is what credit cards are for, right?

 

[imademymark]

if you're based in the uk, you should look for at the dac magic, and maybe a graham slee since the import taxes can be quite significant.

if you want a dac i'd really recommend the keces (and i would be more wary about the beresford reviews if i were you, or at least read up on the history of the product). i use the keces da151 (usb dac) with a gilmore lite and the RS-1s and i really like the set up (except maybe the RS-1s which get slightly uncomfortable after about 2 hours

).

keces has a dac amp combo that is quite decently priced as well, although i must say i have not tried it yet.

 

[the search never ends]

OP....please, stop and see if meets are anywhere near your home. Considering you are new to this, and the sonic signature of your current cans, do yourself a big favor and listen to some gear. I am happy you like your cans. Keep in mind though, that all three of Denon's D series have a strong sonic signature. You would be well served to listen to the gear at a meet. It will be a patience thing for sure, but it will open your ears to a vast array of fine equipment.

 

[NervousE]

Cheers, I do think a meet would be a fantastic idea, although being fairly new to this I'm not quite sure if there are meets near me. I'm in the north east of england... Local dealers seem to have either low end or extreme high end stuff and neither appeals really (to my ears or my wallet respectively), I was hoping to find some good middle ground. A local audio dealer has said they can get hold of the Fubar IV plus for around £310, but that is buy only, not for a trial.
I was reckoning that since i'm new, I need to just find something, buy it, and go from there. Anything I get is going to be a good improvement on my soundcard... But, yes, I should find a meet I guess. Any ideas where to start looking for them?
Keces DA-152 does look rather enticing! Another one for the ever growing "shortlist"....

 

[googleborg]

wow, no don't get the Fubar IV plus for so much money, whoa...steady on mate

to improve on a integrated sound card takes very little, and for what a new fubar costs you could buy a storming integrated amp like a NAD 370/355/320bee(the list is long) and a little dac second hand that retains completely it's resale value! and you could get real hi-fi sound from speakers with it too.

unless space is at a premium, if you want to drive headphones well the last thing you actually need or want is a headphone amp, oddly enough ;P perhaps not the advice you wanted. for £300+ you can get a dacmagic and a quality integrated you can sell for what they cost, or buy a boutique headphone amplifier/dac combo that will lose value significantly as the market for them all is totally flooded.

 

[NervousE]

Quote:

Originally Posted by googleborg /img/forum/go_quote.gif wow, no don't get the Fubar IV plus for so much money, whoa...steady on mate to improve on a integrated sound card takes very little, and for what a new fubar costs you could buy a storming integrated amp like a NAD 370/355/320bee(the list is long) and a little dac second hand that retains completely it's resale value! and you could get real hi-fi sound from speakers with it too. unless space is at a premium, if you want to drive headphones well the last thing you actually need or want is a headphone amp, oddly enough ;P perhaps not the advice you wanted. for £300+ you can get a dacmagic and a quality integrated you can sell for what they cost, or buy a boutique headphone amplifier/dac combo that will lose value significantly as the market for them all is totally flooded.

Its not really that space is at a premium, but since I live in a flat with a neighbour below I wanted a headphone solution so I'm not tempted to crank the volume and drive the poor guy insane. Plus, I work nights so my sleep patterns are pretty odd, and very often I'm at home, awake all night and listening to music. Hence the headphone direction. So would you reccommend a DACmagic plus seperate headamp? Or that I just spend less and get a cheaper intro level DAC/amp combi eg Hifiman EF2?