[xxicrimsonixx]

So here is the deal. My headphone jack on my laptop is broken, so I need to find an alternative, which I plan to get a USB DAC for it, rather than repair it; it is a 6 year old laptop. At most this has to drive a DT 770 PRO 80 Ohm headphone.
 
I was looking at the AudioQuest Dragonfly Red and the Cambridge Audio DACMagic XS. 
 
Are they good for 80 Ohm headphones? Are there any better alternatives? 
 
My laptop is my secondary rig, and is mostly used to play games on the go, not to listen to music. 
 
I have a FiiO x3 Gen 2 which I use for portable music, should I be using that as a DAC/amp instead?
 
Thank you.

 

[povilkami]

Hi,

I had DacMagic XS and it sounded harsh and really not musical. I moved to Dragonfly 1.2 which is much more musical and pleasing to one's ear. XS is very powerful though and DragonFly is not. But will be sufficient enough.

I really think XS is much overrated as it does not deliver in terms of sonic performamce.

 

[xxicrimsonixx]

Hi,

I had DacMagic XS and it sounded harsh and really not musical. I moved to Dragonfly 1.2 which is much more musical and pleasing to one's ear. XS is very powerful though and DragonFly is not. But will be sufficient enough.

I really think XS is much overrated as it does not deliver in terms of sonic performamce.

What about the Dragonfly Red? It is supposed to be more powerful than the 1.2.

 

[MisterMudd]

Hi,

I had DacMagic XS and it sounded harsh and really not musical. I moved to Dragonfly 1.2 which is much more musical and pleasing to one's ear. XS is very powerful though and DragonFly is not. But will be sufficient enough.

I really think XS is much overrated as it does not deliver in terms of sonic performamce.

I have and use others, but have also used my X3ii for a DAC and it sounds very good. Also, the Dragonfly is limited to 24/96.

 

[povilkami]

What about the Dragonfly Red? It is supposed to be more powerful than the 1.2.

Yes

What about the Dragonfly Red? It is supposed to be more powerful than the 1.2.

Yes. On paper it is. I haven't tried it. And it is a next level design compared with 1.2 so sonic performance should be even better.

 

[xxicrimsonixx]

I got my FiiO X3 working on my laptop as a DAC, so I'm just going to use that. Thanks for the help.