[Sinery]

Hello,

As the title suggests I've got Kef Q300 passive speakers and and Fidelio X2 headphones.
I need a speaker amp, headphone amp, dac or any combination of the 3 for a desk.

I've been scoping the SMSL AD18 as it seems to be crazy value, but I'm unsure of how good the headphone out on it is and how impedance matching with the speakers work.

What do you people suggest?
Looking for value at sub 500 euro.

 

[cossix]

You could always go with the trusty and newly updated Schiit Stack for under 200 quid and then spend the rest on a dedicated speaker amp. I don't see the X2 improving wildly with anything better than the Modi 2/Magni 2, nor would I expect a speaker amp to have a better sounding headphone out than the Schiit Stack. It might take up more room than a single combo unit, but i think this way is the best value

 

[Monsterzero]

Receiver/speaker amps do not mix well with low ohm headphones like the X2.
My desktop set-up goes computer>Audio GD-11>vintage receiver of the month>Focal 905 Aria/headphones

I choose vintage gear as theyre more musical to my ears and have better HP outs than modern gear.

With this config i use the Audio GD R2R-11 as a DAC and amp for low ohm headphones.The receiver handles the speakers and hard to drive headphones.

Chord Mojo is a nice dac/amp that can be used in place of the AGD.Also iFi just announced a Black Label Micro that sounds very nice as well.

 

[Sinery]

You could always go with the trusty and newly updated Schiit Stack for under 200 quid and then spend the rest on a dedicated speaker amp. I don't see the X2 improving wildly with anything better than the Modi 2/Magni 2, nor would I expect a speaker amp to have a better sounding headphone out than the Schiit Stack. It might take up more room than a single combo unit, but i think this way is the best value

As a Swecuck I'm looking at least 300 USD for a Magni 3/Modi.
And then of course I gotta deal with the Schiit heat, unplugging headphones all day to get speaker outs, and add a speaker amp to that.
A lot of compromises and cost for who knows how much better sound.

 

[Sinery]

Been looking at various options and it occurred to me why not have a DAC+Speaker amp combo and a separate DAC/AMP for the headphones?

It seems to be to the obvious option as it is the most versatile and fairly cost effective.
Suppose you've just gotta figure out a clever way to switch between audio outputs on Windows.

 

[cossix]

Been looking at various options and it occurred to me why not have a DAC+Speaker amp combo and a separate DAC/AMP for the headphones?

It seems to be to the obvious option as it is the most versatile and fairly cost effective.
Suppose you've just gotta figure out a clever way to switch between audio outputs on Windows.

That's what I suggested with the Schiit Stack It should work just fine, and you can just click the sound icon in the Taskbar to switch sources

 

[Sinery]

That's what I suggested with the Schiit Stack It should work just fine, and you can just click the sound icon in the Taskbar to switch sources

I thought you meant that I ought to run the magni preouts into a speaker amp.
Hell, I would probably opt for that if the magni had an external headphone switch.