[CyberAthlete]

Now that i'm pretty close to getting my earphones, I've decided between 2 pairs (the Monster Turbine Pro Gold/Copper), I am looking at an amp to get around the $100 mark....
Reading around here and based on what folks have said I've found that for $100 the two mentioned are really good amps. Any others? And where can I find the iBasso since it seems to be sold out everywhere...thanks.

 

[Enanthate]

The T-3 and T-3D replaced the T-4.  They are much better amps then their predecessor and are available from Ibasso's site.  It's a great tiny amp especially for the price.

 

[Kunlun]

Quote:

Now that i'm pretty close to getting my earphones, I've decided between 2 pairs (the Monster Turbine Pro Gold/Copper), I am looking at an amp to get around the $100 mark....
Reading around here and based on what folks have said I've found that for $100 the two mentioned are really good amps. Any others? And where can I find the iBasso since it seems to be sold out everywhere...thanks.

The e11 is coming out, you might want to wait for that.
 
Otherwise, the t3 is better than the t4 and the t3 has a good synergy with the mtpc (and probably the gold as well).
 
 

 

[CyberAthlete]

Perfect! Thanks. What is the difference between the T3 and T3D any way? I used to have the Fiio e5 but lost it. Had issues with hiss on it and don't want that again...so am looking to spend 3x-4x as much as I did on the e5 for hopefully at least 2x-3x better performance. 

 

[JamesMcProgger]

Quote:

Perfect! Thanks. What is the difference between the T3 and T3D any way? I used to have the Fiio e5 but lost it. Had issues with hiss on it and don't want that again...so am looking to spend 3x-4x as much as I did on the e5 for hopefully at least 2x-3x better performance. 

only difference is the volume control, T3 has ALPS potentionemeter and T3D has digital volume control
 
and I agree with Kunlun, fiie's E11 is about to be released and some of use have high hope in it. however E7 is a DAC+AMP so it has an advantage. specially if you are gonna use it with a computer.  

 

[Kunlun]

Quote:

only difference is the volume control, T3 has ALPS potentionemeter and T3D has digital volume control
 
and I agree with Kunlun, fiie's E11 is about to be released and some of use have high hope in it. however E7 is a DAC+AMP so it has an advantage. specially if you are gonna use it with a computer.  

Yes, good point.  The e7 is a dac + amp. You need the dac for use with a computer. The dac doesn't improve the sound of the amp, though. If all you need is an amp, then you might just want to get a straight amp.
The T3 doesn't have a dac and neither will the e11.

 
 

 

[CyberAthlete]

Just looking for an amp for now. Not thinking of ever using a DAC on the PC. If i ever do get really really serious about PC music I'll purchase a new soundcard, receiver and a decent 5.1 setup...
 
but just need an amp to drive my headphones (especially through my PSP and my smartphone). 

 

[h8uthemost]

These were the two amps I was looking at also. I don't need a DAC though. So I guess I should just wait for the E11 and see what everyone's impressions are?
 
Also, is the T3 able to drive most headphones? Say I was going to get the HD600 or 650, would the T3 drive those just fine?
 
Thanks.

 

[Kunlun]

Quote:

These were the two amps I was looking at also. I don't need a DAC though. So I guess I should just wait for the E11 and see what everyone's impressions are?
 
Also, is the T3 able to drive most headphones? Say I was going to get the HD600 or 650, would the T3 drive those just fine?
 
Thanks.

No, you'd want some higher powered (and priced) amps. Probably not the E11 for full sized headphones, but nobody knows yet.
 
The Arrow, ttvj slim, alo rxII will drive headphones and be small enough for real portability. There are also larger "transportable" amps like the uha-120 which drive headphones but really don't fit into trouser pockets with an ipod and are a bit bulky, yet still fairly small and mobile.

 
 

 

[h8uthemost]

Well, I don't have the HD600/650, and will probably be quite a while before I would get either them. I was just wondering if either would be powerful enough to drive them.
 
But...the T3(and I'm guessing E11) should be enough to add a little extra oopmh and sound quality to headphones like Grado SR60, ATH-M50, DT770 32ohm version, and RE0/SE215? I mean, those are pretty low impedance/sensitivity headphones/IEM's, so I'm hoping the iBasso would work just fine with them.
 
Thanks.