[Shub-Niggurath]

Hey guys,
 
I actually posted this other thread the other day but the situation may have changed a bit. You can still refer to the other thread for info on what I do with my headphones, and add PC gaming to the mix, including FPS where positional cues are important.
 
So, I have a few questions about the AKG K712 and my present setup.
 
I currently have 600-ohm DT990s, a Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD and a Schiit Magni (not Magni 2). Thinking of moving the DT990s to my workplace, where all I have is a $30 Logitech VOIP on-ear headset that I don't particularly like due to its being on-ear (aside from it being what it is). The earcups are kind of ratty so I'll also swap them out for new ones.
 
So I'm thinking of buying the K712 for home, figuring they're nice and different from the DT990s.
 
If I take the DT990s to work, I'll need an amp there. I could take the Magni to work and get something new for home, or keep the Magni at home and figure out a different solution for work (and probably end up with another Magni anyway...)
 
But if I'm going to get the K712, do I even need to get a separate amp for them, considering my X-Fi Titanium HD is supposed to be good for headphones up to 300 ohms? Looking at the specs, the K712 don't look very hard to drive, but I don't fully understand those electrical specs, so I may be way off the mark.
 
If I do need a separate amp -- is my Magni a good match for the K712? If not, I'm looking at the Asgard 2. Would that be a good match for the K712?
Or should I just get a Magni 2 and call it a day? I've been happy with my Magni and I'm not particularly needy or eager to spend more than I have to. I like good sound but I don't think I have an audiophile ear and I'm not positive I'd hear an obvious difference by throwing 2.5x more money at a new amp. I can afford it, I'm just looking for value. Yes I know I'm on Head-Fi and RIP wallet and all that, but you know

 
And while I've only mentioned Schiit products, I'm not married to Schiit, I just have been happy with their products but I'm open to alternatives.
 
And lastly, would it be a problem to hook up an Antlion ModMic to the K712, for whatever reason?

 

[PurpleAngel]

Hopefully you disabled the motherboard's on-board audio, in the BIOS, when you installed the sound card.
 
The headphone jack built into the Ti-HD (Titanium-HD) should be able to decently drive the 62-Ohm K712 headphones.
You lose use of the Ti-HD's LME49710 op-amps when you switch from the RCA jacks to the headphone jack
and the Ti-HD's headphone jack has a 35-Ohm output impedance
So it is possible you might lose a little in the sound quality using the Ti-HD's headphone jack.
but until you actually plug the headphones directly into the Ti-HD headphone jack, nothing is certain.
 
You can always be on the look out for a good price on a used Magni (or Vali?)

 

[Shub-Niggurath]

Thanks for the reply! I don't know if I disabled the on-board sound, but why should I? I have the front panel of the case connected to the Sound Blaster and I'm only connecting cords to the Sound Blaster in the back, and all the defaults in the sound control panel are set to the Sound Blaster, so the on-board sound chip shouldn't be doing anything, right?

Anyway, like I mentioned, I have no problem getting a new amp for home if you think the Sound Blaster's headphone outs wouldn't be 100% adequate. For the record, I don't connect the nice headphones to the front panel, I have a cheap headset hooked up to the front that I only use for Skype, so the nice headphones would only be connected to the back. But if not using the RCA out makes me lose out on the nicer op-amps, like I said, I can totally get a new amp for home and keep using the RCA out.
Are the Magni, Vali and Asgard all good matches for the K712? Ideally I'd like to make sure that whatever amp I end up with is versatile in case I switch headphones later.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Thanks for the reply! I don't know if I disabled the on-board sound, but why should I? I have the front panel of the case connected to the Sound Blaster and I'm only connecting cords to the Sound Blaster in the back, and all the defaults in the sound control panel are set to the Sound Blaster, so the on-board sound chip shouldn't be doing anything, right?

Anyway, like I mentioned, I have no problem getting a new amp for home if you think the Sound Blaster's headphone outs wouldn't be 100% adequate. For the record, I don't connect the nice headphones to the front panel, I have a cheap headset hooked up to the front that I only use for Skype, so the nice headphones would only be connected to the back. But if not using the RCA out makes me lose out on the nicer op-amps, like I said, I can totally get a new amp for home and keep using the RCA out.
Are the Magni, Vali and Asgard all good matches for the K712? Ideally I'd like to make sure that whatever amp I end up with is versatile in case I switch headphones later.

 
Sometimes active on-board audio has a negative effect with the add-on sound card, but that is only sometimes.
It's just safer to disable on-board (in the BIOS).
 
I would say to try the K712 with the Magni amp and the Ti-HD headphone jack, see if you notice a difference.
The Ti-HD's front panel connection might not drive headphones as well as the back panel, but I guess it does not really matter for your use.
 
All the amps you listed should be able to drive the 62-Ohm K712, technically the Asgard is a more power amp then the Magni, but would it make a noticeable difference with the K712, have no idea.
The Vali (tube) would be nice to have as something you can switch around with your current Magni (solid state).
 
Might try reading up and asking on this thread about which amps work best with the K712
http://www.head-fi.org/t/659251/the-akg-k712-pro-support-and-impressions-thread
 
I've been using the new AKG K7XX, cheaper then the k712.

 

[Shub-Niggurath]

Guess it can't hurt to look at my BIOS and see if I've disabled the on-board altogether, since I'm not using it.
So anyway, getting a Vali seems like a good idea since I'm keeping the Magni no matter what, it'd be easy to switch between the two, so perhaps I'll just do that.
I would indeed like to hear from Vali owners, ideally owners of both the Vali and the K712, whether they are a good match for one another. I expect that they're fine, though.

 

[Sonic1990]

Hello! I also have Creative X-fi Titanium HD PCI-E card and thinking about some..i still need both RCA for speakers on sound card.
Maybe its good idea swap Craative for SMSL M6 USB https://www.amazon.de/SMSL-M6-Integ...508JZPYXV7B&psc=1&refRID=08WGZ0V3H508JZPYXV7B
In few days i got my K712!) Happy New Year!
Thank you!