[drgnfrc13]

Pretty much what the title asks... The vast majority of my music (around 40-50GB of music) is either 256kbps AAC or 320kbps MP3, so switching everything to lossless is not a very realistic option unless I want to spend the next 5 years downloading files... I've been thinking about buying an ODAC to use in combination with my FiiO E9 amp and my Philips Fidelio X2 headphones, but I don't know whether or not it would improve the sound quality, given my lossy source files, and I can't find much info on the topic.

 

[visanj]

Depends on how much you are spending. Obviously, there will be a difference but the point is that if you spend on a $1000 equipment then you are not utilizing the complete money you are spending on the high end equipment
 
Also, buying high end equipment for aac is a double edge sword as those can reveal the low bitrate quality thereby reducing listening pleasure
 
I'm also like you, I have no other option other than sticking to itunes music due to the availability of specific albums. I'm not spending more on equipment. 

 

[drgnfrc13]

The ODAC is definitely on the cheaper end of the spectrum. $119 on Massdrop. And actually, that's something I hadn't even thought about... Even if I decided to switch over to lossless, there are quite a few albums in my collection that I simply would not be able to find...

 

[kevnin]

I'd definitely say the fact you use 256AAC/320MP3 is by itself no reason not to get an external DAC. These formats still sound very good and the difference vs lossless is quite small.
 
I'd recommend the Schiit Modi2, although the ODAC is probably a good choice also (I haven't heard it). IMO there is not much point spending beyond this level until you are done with any potential headphone upgrades, as you will get much more SQ improvement for your money that way.

 

[drgnfrc13]

That is the kind of response I was hoping to hear, since I just won an ODAC in an eBay auction a couple nights ago(only paid $75 for it, though). I do believe I am finished with headphone upgrades, though I did say the same thing 4 years ago, when I first started in this hobby, with the Shure SRH-840, so who knows... Lol.

On the bright side, I've gotten my source setup for a much lower cost than I ever expected... FiiO E9 + ODAC + necessary cables (E9 was sold to me without them) has only set me back about $115 total.

 

[drgnfrc13]

Thank you both for responding, by the way. I appreciate it a lot.

 

[aevus]

I know absolutely no human being who is able to identify a AAC256 from a CD or HD version in a controlled blind test environment. No matter on what equipment the playback in made on.
 
All (serious) tests that were made point out the audibility threshold to be about 160-192kbps for the MP3 and 96-128kbps for the AAC.
 
Any other perceived difference is caused by psychoacoustic.

 

[lmf22]

Even with 256 kbps AAC or other lossy formats, it's still worth considering an external DAC. I also have a lot of music in lossy format and listening to them on my desktop (Oppos HA-1 and Audioquest Nighthawk) brings much more enjoyment than listening on the iPod Touch (using the same headphones). For me, it was worth it going from iPod Touch ($300) to Oppo HA-1 ($1200) using the same headphones.
 
As a previous post mentioned, you may not get the full benefits of a higher end system, but you do get noticeable and positive improvements. I often listen to these same lossy files on my speaker system, and it is even better (Aurender X100L, Bryston BDA-2, Octave V70SE, Dynaudio S3.4, Nordost Heimdall 2 interconnects and speaker cables, Wireworld Eclipse 7 power cords, Running Springs Audio Elgar power conditioner).
 
EDIT: Also note that it's not always the format that determines the quality of the music. There are a lot of music in lossless (FLAC, AIFF) format that sounds awful. If your music is good, even lossy format can sound good; it just wouldn't allow you to get the most out of the music. One strategy is to pick out some of your favorite music that sounds good, and buy the CD or download it in lossless format (or high resolution format).