[crossidmary]

Greetings -
I'm a new convert to over-ears. Yup, I drank the kool-aid. Picked up some HD 598 and my source is iPhone 6.
The sound is incredible as is but I can't help but thinking more could be had by amplifying. Firstly, is this correct? Will an amp make a notable difference? Secondly, being a newbie - I'm not even sure how it works. Does an amp just give you a boost or does it by necessity have to override the internal DAC? Either way is fine as long as it's simple to connect. The amp will primarily be used at home so portability is not an issue. Please direct, particularly if you have experience with this pairing (iPhone 6/HD598).
I'm afraid I'm already an addict.
P.S. my other 'phones are Etymotic hf3.
Will they also benefit from amping?
Much thanks,
Regards,
Todd

 

[cel4145]

A DAC is a digital to analog converter.

An amp amplifies an analog audio signal.

So if you hook an amp to your phone, no. It can't override the DAC. The only way to do that is to connect a DAC/amp.

An amp will really only help a lot if you are running your headphones at or near maximum perceived volume (not dial numbers) with your phone.

Look into the Fiio A3. It would easily drive the HD598.

 

[buke9]

Greetings -
I'm a new convert to over-ears. Yup, I drank the kool-aid. Picked up some HD 598 and my source is iPhone 6.
The sound is incredible as is but I can't help but thinking more could be had by amplifying. Firstly, is this correct? Will an amp make a notable difference? Secondly, being a newbie - I'm not even sure how it works. Does an amp just give you a boost or does it by necessity have to override the internal DAC? Either way is fine as long as it's simple to connect. The amp will primarily be used at home so portability is not an issue. Please direct, particularly if you have experience with this pairing (iPhone 6/HD598).
I'm afraid I'm already an addict.
P.S. my other 'phones are Etymotic hf3.
Will they also benefit from amping?
Much thanks,
Regards,
Todd

It will not overide the Dac. The thing is do they sound good to you? A amp most likely won't help on sound quality it is only needed if your source won't drive them . If you have to turn the volume up to max to get a reasonable sound level out of them than a amp might help.

 

[crossidmary]

Appreciate that. I was just looking at that one. From what I've read it appears to have a DAC inside (unless I read the review wrong). I'll look a little deeper.
Cheers!

 

[cel4145]

Appreciate that. I was just looking at that one. From what I've read it appears to have a DAC inside (unless I read the review wrong). I'll look a little deeper.
Cheers!

The Fiio A3 does not have a DAC. It is just a headphone amp.

The iPhone 6 has very good audio as it, even if the built in headphone amp is not quite powerful enough for you. The iPhone 6 measures even better when connected to an external amp. So don't worry about getting a DAC/amp. The A3 will work great

 

[cel4145]

Oh, and see how the prices work for you at Penon Audio: http://penonaudio.com/FiiO-E11K. They are an international vendor that is a favorite among Head-Fi members.