Originally Posted by Zeroblade /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Congrats on the 10,000 indeed! (and honestly, I am incredibly envious)
Your parents are right - invest most of it and spend a bit on audio stuff; I think you're entitled to a bit of splurging now and then
Tempting as it is to jump straight into hi-fi, it's a lot more satisfying to earn your equipment. Plus as you said, you can't really afford to make mistakes with hi-fi, especially with the components.
If you're building a full computer audio deck from scratch, you'll want a DAC, and amp, and a headphone or two (or three ).
When talking about computer audio, I believe that DAC's are a must. if you don't have a good source to start with, a hundred-thousand Dollar setup will sound like crap; likewise, even if you use lossless, if it's processed with a crappy soundcard, then it's all for naught. DAC's range from cheapo cables that have the DAC itself integrated somewhere along the line (not what you want, of course), to huge hulking boxes worth thousands, but really all you'll need is maybe 200~300 bucks for a really good one that'll last you years.
I don't have much experience with DAC's outside the KECES DA-151 which I got at a bargain (and love dearly), as well as a few other lower-end ones I've tried out like the SuperPro 707 DAC and the iBasso D10. One of the cheaper DAC's gaining attention is the NuForce uDAC at about 100 USD, so that might be of interest. Another good source is the EMU 0404 going at twice that price. Cambridge Audio's DACMagic looks pretty neat too, with all those inputs and outputs.
As for amps - you NEED an amp to make your cans shine, but you shouldn't need to spend more than $400 or $500 for a high-end, reliable amp - it's overkill, actually. Personally, I'd go with solid state because they are a lot more practical for non-audiophile listening. No warm-up and no need to tube-roll, they're very low-maintenance, and easier to work with compared to the hot and fragile vacuum tubes. Not that I'm dissing them or anything of course. Mind that all the amps below are solid state. One of the more oft-recommended amps is the Gilmore Lite so you could go with the tried and true path. Creek Audio's OBH-11 amp looks pretty neat too, but apparently the power supply sucks and necessitates buying their more expensive one! Audio-gd also seems to be highly regarded as a great value-for-money manufacturer too, so their C2C might be of interest.
For headphones - well, that's entirely up to you
A good way to save a bit of money is to get a high quality combination DAC/amp (shouldn't be more than 500 USD for a good one either), and then spend the remaining money on say, a pair of really good home-phones, and then on a nice IEM for on-the-go use (if you want one).
Meier Audio's Corda Cantate looks good, but rather pricey at 515 bucks (and pretty darned stylish), as does Audio-gd's FUN for around 300, and KECES's DA-152 which goes for 475, though it only takes USB input. It'd be nice to save a few bucks by popping in the FS board to see if there are any good deals though.
As a final note, a lot of the stuff I noted here is around mid-fi level (IMO) and the amps probably will not be able to drive the really high-end headphones (HD800, K1000, etc.) to their best.
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