[crossidmary]

Hello,
I am new here (insert cheers and applause).
I am seeking advice on portable headphone amp/dac. As my in ear monitors get better, my source gets weaker. I use an iPhone 5 as a source and am completely ignorant as to how to boost the quality of the output. Is there such a thing as a "plug and play" amp/dac or... will I need to invest in many cables and adapters?
Thanks for any input...
Please be gentle, this is a new venture for me and I really am clueless in this area.

 

[SteveHiFi]

Is there such a thing as a "plug and play" amp/dac or... will I need to invest in many cables and adapters?

You will need to pay tribute to the Apple God to get something acting as a high quality DAC - a Fostex HPP1 or Cypherlabs Theorem 720 for example.
 
Much cheaper is to use a portable amp and get the signal from the line-out (oops, lightning socket, stop right there).
 
The most cost-effective solution is to get a dedicated player in my opinion, for example the Fiio X3 is £160 and the forthcoming X1 is £100 I'm told. Much better.

 

[crossidmary]

Thanks for the reply. I am looking for a portable unit, and for simplicity's sake the iPhone will have to do as it's my "all-in-one" device. This will be primarily used at work where I have 4-5 hours per night to listen to music (lucky me)
I have read about a few amp/dac combos that I think will work:
Sony PHA-1
Fostex HP-P1
Go Dap X
Anyone have experience with these?
I'm just entering the world of high-end headphones and am currently using Sony XBA4 and Audiofly AF-78.
Heck, I'd even like some advice on the next 'phones I should get