[restevezes]

Hi all,

I have been lurking for the last two weeks and this is one of my first messages here

I am far far away of being a true purist audiophile, but I always liked music gadgets, and I recently become interested in seriously moving into the hi-fi world. I found this site and I found it extremely useful with plenty of knowledgeable people. Learn a lot about many topics, and started to realize the importance of some things like headphone amps, DACs, etc

Like many here, what was an initial search for some nice 30$ headphones turned into a quest for something that I never heard, 10x more expensive than my original budget and with the feeling it was just an entry level. Doh!

So far I adquired some Head Direct RE-2 IEMs with a protable preamp for commute use, now looking for 100$ full sized cans (although surprised to see the popular RX700 for 30$ that everybody seem to love so much), and definitely considering some additional components like a good sound car, DAC and full size preamp.

However, I am getting lost with the "non headphone part" of the site. I tried to find basic FAQs for speakers, DAC, and how everything is related but found nothing. Is there anytihng at all? I really don't know how I should configure my home playback system, annd basic concepts if I really need a DAC or not, etc

My ideal concept was to run everything from my desktop computer via USB to an external card (something like this) on my desk, and have there the speakers and headphones connected, and switch between them as desired.

My estimated budget is $300 for everything, and so far I considered this

Head - Direct RE2 plus a Fiio 5 preamp 50$ for street use. Already bought
JVC RX700 50$ full size cans. I know they are entry level but at that price I can just really start with them and then move to something better if needed)

That leaves me 200$ for the rest of the system

For the speakers, I wanted something smaller than the standard bookshelf size, not to big, that I could put on my desk but powerful enough for my 550 sq studio, with ocassional parties or dinners. Considering this, I was thinking on

Swan M10 I really like the style, and reviews are positive
Swan D1080MkII Are they superior to the M10?
Audioengine 2 Good reviews, nice design
Klipsch promedia 2.1 If I can find them...

All of these are in the 125$, so I have around 75-100$ left for an external device. wbere I could plug and easily operate everything. Ideally could be an all in one device, DAC, preamp for phones... I am completely lost on this. Does a such a device like this exists? I am aware of my budget limitations so anything with reasonable quality and connectivity would work. Any suggestions?

Does all of these make sense?
I know how egocentric looks to be a newbie and ask in a new forum for your recommendations, but I would really appreciate your recommendations, or if you could point me to some FAQs where I could find and understand more basics about soundcards, etc... the better

Thanks for your time !

 

[paddo]

Check out the "Computer Audio" section. A few of your questions might be answered in there.

 

[jung]

Quote:

Originally Posted by restevezes /img/forum/go_quote.gif My ideal concept was to run everything from my desktop computer via USB to an external card (something like this) on my desk, and have there the speakers and headphones connected, and switch between them as desired.

E-MU 0404 USB =TRS=> Wharfedale 8.2 Active