[ParadigmLost]

Hello guys and gals,
 
I've got a quick question that I'm hoping that someone can help me with.
 
First off, let me say that I know essentially nothing about portable headphone amps. I know a good bit about car audio, so I am familiar with how amps work, amp classes, ohm loads, wattage, speaker efficiency, etc, but as far as what brands make decent portable amps, DAC's, what to look for and such, consider me a newbie. I think I had a little Fiio amp about 6 or 7 years ago, and I do recall it making a difference in the SQ coming from my old UM2's at the time, but ever since that one broke, I've been doing without.
 
So, I'm trying to find out some info in order to purchase an amp before I leave for a business trip/vacation in about 12 days. I'm going be on several long flights and layovers so I want to enjoy my music during that time.
 
I'll be amping my iPhone 6 Plus and I will mostly use Westone W60's, but I also have a set of Westone UM3x's that I use as my "active" set. 
 
I'm also looking within the next 6 months or so, get a pair of JH-16's or JH Roxanne's, so it would be great if the amp would be compatible with them, as well.
 
I'm trying to keep the price low ( for this first amp ) -- maybe under $200?
 
Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have read through a number of threads and reviews, and for the most part, they are informative, but I just don't feel any closer to making a decision about a purchase.
 
Thank you! Have a good one!
 
W

 

[NeObliviscaris]

If you're gonna be upgrading your equipment to high end items so soon don't limit yourself to cheap amps. If I was in your position I'd look at something from Ray Samuels Audio (Predator possibly) or HeadAmp (Pico).

 

[ParadigmLost]

Hey NeObliviscaris,
 
Not so much that I'm limiting myself as the fact that I am going to be taking 4 trips within the next 4 months ( first of which is in a week ) that will all require lots of flying time, airport layover time, and lots of down time. My IEM's will definitely be getting a good bit of use in the upcoming months, so I just want to get something of good quality ( but affordable ) for the time being, and then maybe early next year when I get my JHAudios, I can also upgrade on the amp, as well.
 
I just recently got my Westone W60's and absolutely love them, but I've been hearing quite frequently that I'm not getting the full potential out of them without a decent amp.
 
Right now, I'm not really looking for anything more than something that I can turn on, plug in between my iPhone and my Westones and get good clean, and well powered, signal through.
 
Thanks!
 
W

 

[Enigma87]

My vote goes to the JDS C5D, great amp/dac for the price and also works perfectly with my customized westone um3x. The 720 also sounds awesome but..$$$ xDD

 

[alexshulgin]

Hello i got myself fiio e 12 diy amp , and i was realy dissapointed ,i pair it with fiio x3 and shure se 215,also i own a pair of ath es10 but both shure and ath sounded awful with the amp out of the box,you have any ideas how to make it sound better???because with e 12 diy there is no bass and overall sound quality sounds poor.i wanted it to bring much more detailed bass and the overall quality ,instead it just got louder and bad sounding((((
Thank you very much for your attention!

 

[ParadigmLost]

OK, after some searching and reading some reviews, I think I've narrowed it down to two or three contenders.
 
I like the looks of these and from what I'm reading, overall, most folks are happy with the performance of these.
 
I'm trying to choose between the:
 
Aune B1 -- $139 - $169
 
Fiio E17 Alpen -- $198
 
or
 
OPPO HA-2 -- $299
 
So, my major question is......I've heard nothing but incredible praise regarding the Oppo, so is the Oppo actually worth the extra $100-$150, or would I likely be getting just as good of quality for my current needs out of the B1 or E17?
 
Thanks for any help!

 

[Ivabign]

  OK, after some searching and reading some reviews, I think I've narrowed it down to two or three contenders.
 
I like the looks of these and from what I'm reading, overall, most folks are happy with the performance of these.
 
I'm trying to choose between the:
 
Aune B1 -- $139 - $169
 
Fiio E17 Alpen -- $198
 
or
 
OPPO HA-2 -- $299
 
So, my major question is......I've heard nothing but incredible praise regarding the Oppo, so is the Oppo actually worth the extra $100-$150, or would I likely be getting just as good of quality for my current needs out of the B1 or E17?
 
Thanks for any help!

If you are thinking of amping your phone, the OPPO HA-2 is a great way to go - from the IEMs you mention you cannot go wrong. Is it worth the extra $$? In my opinion yes - some things may depend on what kind of signature you prefer - the OPPO uses the Sabre DAC so it is more neutral than warm - in addition it has a good amount of power as well and does not need any weird Apple CCK BS to hook it direct - it can even charge the iPhone. Lastly, it is a brilliant piece of kit - it is assembled as nice as the iPhone - no rough edges - classy as hell. But the bottom line is that it sounds good - very good. And I have a couple of amps...

 

[HAWKEYE7]

Howdy,
I'm pretty new to the higher end audio equipment world myself. I recently purchased a pair of Shure 535 IEM's and was using my Nokia 1020 phone to power them. I liked the sound but I could tell something was missing. After reading several reviews and article here in the forums I purchased the JDSLABS cMoyBB v2.03 Headphone Amplifier. It was relatively inexpensive at $75.00/ea. I was amazed at the difference the amp made! Everything was crystal clear and distinct. all the tiny notes that I thought I should be hearing with IEM's like this were not right there on the sound stage and vibrant. The amp has a bass boost toggle that adds a nice boost to the lower ranges, but also seems to take the crispness off all the notes regardless of range. I experimented with the setting and decided that for normal use I like the boost off. I did like the added power in the bass on some songs so I may make up some bass heavy playlists to take advantage of this feature.
Overall I love this amp and the improvement it has made to my music listening. Highly recommended.
HE7

 

[crashtest33]

For the money you're talking about the Oppo Ha2 is the only real option for you.
The main problem is the Dac in the iPhone and the Oppo will replace that too. Defo worth the extra cash. Us Apple users are up against it I'm afraid

 

[cho8]

I'm fairly new to this pastime too but have been hearing for quite a number of years ;p

I've also been looking for a portable dac/amp recently and the only one I found which i could hear a difference with was a venturecraft vantam which unfortunately is only available in Asia. Personally, I don't think my ears are good enough to notice any significant difference in additional equipment and I run an OPPO PM1 through a Hugo using an iPod as source but only notice any difference in listening when using 'lower end' ear/headphones. On the go I have an iPhone 6 plus connected to a set of Noble K10's with the recent addition of some Linum BaX cables which have made a slight difference compared to the standard cable. Looking forward to the Super BaX coming out as I genuinely noticed a difference in soundstage going through the Nobles.

Unfortunately you don't have much time, otherwise it would be better to go and try all the various recommendations as we all do hear differently. Maybe invest in some CIEM's if you're looking to spend some money

 

[Watagump]

IMHO, if you are really going to be upgrading to high end IEM's like you say. I would do that first, then decide if you really need an amp.