[mab1376]

I just got some Ultrasone HFI-780 headphones and since I'm brand new tot his stuff i was wondering if someone could suggest an amp.
 
I listen to mostly Rock/Metal music and some Electronic, currently all I have is an Creative X-FI XtremeMusic, I'm probably going to pick-up and HT Omeha Claro Halo soon though.
 
I also have a ION TTUSB record player I'd like to amplify as well as my iPod.

 

[GreyArea]

What's your budget?

 

[glasslike]

I recommend Fiio E7 or ibasso D12.
Sorry forgot that this is a full size amp area

 

[GreyArea]

BTW, you could check out the massive ultrasone appreciation thread. It's so long, you'll be able to get a list of amps as long as your arm from there.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/204879/there-s-something-about-ultrasone
 
There's 387 pages. Enjoy!

 

[mab1376]

wow jeez, my budget is $200-300, i'm also buying a Auzentech X-Fi Bravura.
 
I listen to alot of Queens of the Stone Age so I was thinking something tube driven to give it a warm sound.
 
I was looking at the Maverick TubeMagic D1, as well as the HiFIMan EF2A.

 

[Croozer]

http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/521680/fiio-e9-review

 

[GreyArea]

Quote:

wow jeez, my budget is $200-300, i'm also buying a Auzentech X-Fi Bravura.
 
I listen to alot of Queens of the Stone Age so I was thinking something tube driven to give it a warm sound.
 
I was looking at the Maverick TubeMagic D1, as well as the HiFIMan EF2A.

Sweet. OK, haven't heard much about the Maverick, I believe it's a hybrid tube/SS amp though so it might not have the signature tube sound you're looking for.
The HiFiMan has been well reviewed.
Other brands to consider are LittleDot and Darkvoice.
You could go for WooAudio but that might be out of your range.
Also, there's the AudioTailor Jade and the HiFiMan EF5.
 
I imagine Queens will sound good through tubes. Especially some of the harsher tunes like In My Head and the self-titled album.
 
 
Oh, BTW, the Fiio E9 is getting a lot of love but it's solid state and I imagine you need an E7 to get the true potential. True, Croozer?

 

[Croozer]

The E7 just acts as a DAC for the E9.

 

[GreyArea]

Oh, so the E9 on it's own is just a headphone amp and not a DAC?
Sorry I hadn't realised.

 

[Croozer]

Yep, the E9 is a desktop amp.

 

[mab1376]

I think the E7/E9 combo for me is the way to go to start with, I like how the E7 is powerful and portable.

 

[Croozer]

Quote:

I think the E7/E9 combo for me is the way to go to start with, I like how the E7 is powerful and portable.

 
Having the ability to undock the E7 and go mobile is very nice.
 

 

[Jack C]

To those with a desktop computer with a fairly good sound card already, it is worthwhile to do a RMAA loop-back test of their sound card to see if its performance is fairly good already. Recently I've seen quite a few systems where the noise was kept to an acceptable level. This varies system to system, so use RMAA to take a look. If the output is of very good or excellent quality, the E9 can be used to provide high quality amplification on top of that.
 
Of course the E7 offers more than providing a low noise high quality DAC, but for those not looking for a portable DAC/AMP and wanting to keep costs down, this is worth investigating.
 
Jack

 

[DaveLinx]

Dont forget this little guy in that price range:
 
 
 

 

[Eric_C]

Quote:

Sweet. OK, haven't heard much about the Maverick, I believe it's a hybrid tube/SS amp though so it might not have the signature tube sound you're looking for.
 

Maverick D1 is not a hybrid.
It is an amp/DAC, and there's technically 2 amps inside it: one SS, one tube. The SS part can work for headphone out, and for line-out. The tube part only works for preamp-out. 
And no, there is no way to somehow route the tube pre-out back into the D1 for your headphones.
 
The Maverick A1 is a hybrid tube/SS amp, and it has no DAC.