[Mystere]

Looking for a good Dac/Amp combo for my K601's that has a pre-amp.  Looking for something that will connect via USB and have Out to powered speakers and cuts the sound to speakers when you plug headphones in.  Possibly something similar to a Nuforce UDAC3 but beefier.  Not sure if the UDAC 3 would drive headphones well or not.  Any recommendations would be appreciated.

 

[genclaymore]

The Aune T1 Mk2 is a good choice and usually goes for $189 on ebay. It has all that you want. I don't think there's any external dac's that will cut sound to the speakers when the headphones are plugged in. At most you may just have to turn the speakers off when you want to use the headphones.

 

[cel4145]

I don't think there's any external dac's that will cut sound to the speakers when the headphones are plugged in. At most you may just have to turn the speakers off when you want to use the headphones.

Actually, it's fairly common that the pre-amp outputs will be cut when the headphones are plugged in. Asgard 2 amp does this. Audio-GD NFB-15 dac/pre-amp/headphone amp does it.

Not sure, though, about he OPs budget range. Check and see if the Audioengine D1 works that way.

I would save my money for the NFB-15 if you want something "beefier." I have the NFB-15 (same headphone amp as NFB-11), and it drives my AKG 612 Pros extremely well, so should work equally well for the K601s.

 

[Tablix]

Get a nice cheap focusrite 2i2 or 2i4 and job done.