HD650 and O2 without external DAC - bad idea?

[daflyinggriffin]

I recently purchased the Sennheiser HD650s as an upgrade from my vice-grip-like HD280s. To pair with it, I bought an O2 amp from JDS Labs. They both should arrive by the end of the weekend.

My question is, if I cannot hear noise when my headphones are plugged in, am I still better served by pairing my amp with a DAC? I plan to use these headphones on my iPad mini 2 (primary) and Asus G751, and have never had EMI issues with the HD280s in the past (besides an audible "click" when plugging in my devices sometimes).

I have been looking at the ODAC, as well as the HiFiMeDIY Sabre USB DAC ES9023+SA9023 to pair with the amp if necessary. I have heard that double amping may be a concern when only using an AMP. However, to buy the lightning adapter along with it would likely still set me back $80-$180, so I want to only buy the DAC if it will make an appreciable difference.

I am not looking to upgrade my headphones from here, so I want to make sure I'm getting the best value for my dollar. What would you recommend?

 

[buke9]

I recently purchased the Sennheiser HD650s as an upgrade from my vice-grip-like HD280s. To pair with it, I bought an O2 amp from JDS Labs. They both should arrive by the end of the weekend.

My question is, if I cannot hear noise when my headphones are plugged in, am I still better served by pairing my amp with a DAC? I plan to use these headphones on my iPad mini 2 (primary) and Asus G751, and have never had EMI issues with the HD280s in the past (besides an audible "click" when plugging in my devices sometimes).

I have been looking at the ODAC, as well as the HiFiMeDIY Sabre USB DAC ES9023+SA9023 to pair with the amp if necessary. I have heard that double amping may be a concern when only using an AMP. However, to buy the lightning adapter along with it would likely still set me back $80-$180, so I want to only buy the DAC if it will make an appreciable difference.

I am not looking to upgrade my headphones from here, so I want to make sure I'm getting the best value for my dollar. What would you recommend?

I've heard the 650's from a O2 amp and it does a good job. Yes double amping can be a problem if you don't watch what your doing but most of the time it is fine if the source is good enough and the iPad should be fine. Listen to it for a bit then decide if you need a dac.

 

[buke9]

Just so you know the 650's have a decent clamp also. Easier to fix than the 280's as they have metal in the headband. You can stretch them out by pulling the adjustment all the way out and bend on the metal part and only the metal part as the plastic will break or do the same and find a box or multiple books and leave them there for a bit when not in use.

 

[daflyinggriffin]

Just so you know the 650's have a decent clamp also. Easier to fix than the 280's as they have metal in the headband. You can stretch them out by pulling the adjustment all the way out and bend on the metal part and only the metal part as the plastic will break or do the same and find a box or multiple books and leave them there for a bit when not in use.

Thank you! I have loved my pair of HD280s for the ~15 years, but I wanted something a bit more comfortable with a more balanced sound signature to complement them while I'm home alone. I am under the impression that I should turn up my volume on the source device all the way, and then control my volume with the dial on the amp to drive the HD650s without a DAC. Is this true? Also, any other recommendations for getting the best sound out my new equipment?

Thank you so much. I'm just dipping my feet into the audiophile waters, so it's taken me a few days of research to even know what resources to look for, much less sift through all of the contradictory information out there. I'm definitely looking forward to enjoying my finished product though!

 

[buke9]

Not for sure as I haven't done any double amping I have always used the headphone out on a computer or used a dac or recording device. I turn them all up to max for dacs but you might want to take it a little bit slower and see what sounds best. The Asus might have a line out on it and then I would put it all the way up the iPad doesn't have a line out so try it lower and work your way up.

 

[cossix]

Volume control should be done from the amp, everything else should be maxed. And the amp is the important part for the 650, a DAC is just to make it sound a bit cleaner because if your pc sound chip has distortion, the amp will make it more noticeable. The dac is also important for decoding hi res audio. Some integrated chips in phones or tablets can't decode more than 16 bit, 44.1khz. If your integrated dac can do at least that much you should be ok. If you want to take the step up to lossless 24 bit 192khz then you'll need a good external dac

 

[blackrain139]

Are you still able to return it and get the O2+Odac Rev B? That should solve the issue