[ChetBaker]

Ok guys, here goes: i have been bitten by the headphone bug and am looking for a set-up that will get the best out of my macbook air or ipad air playing spotify premium. Usage: mostly at home on the sofa, jazz, edm, folk, a bit of everything really. Closed cans. Budget: 1500 usd/euro. I only have a pair of t70p but am underwhelmed by the SQ so far. Is is the quality of the files, is it the macbook's internal dac, dont know, but i am happy to spend a bit to get the best possible quality. Does it make sense to buy a portable dac/amp or where do i start? Thanks for the help!

 

[Mython]

Does it make sense to buy a portable dac/amp

 
 
Yes, it does.
 
Plenty of options, depending on how much of your budget you wish to spend (you certainly don't need to spend $1500, to achieve very decent sound quality).
 
 
Some of the available options can be found here:
 
www.head-fi.org/products/category/amp-dacs
 
.

 

[ChetB]

Thanks for the pointer Mython - let me break down my question a bit (I am aware this all sounds very basic):
 
1. I mainly use Spotify premium (320 kbps) - is there a big difference between this and ALAC/FLAC? If so, this means I should start ripping my entire cd collection again. Unless there is an easier way? 
 
2. So once I have the best quality files - is there a difference playing them from my macbook air (Mid 2012) or iPad air? i.e. is there a discernible difference between the DAC in either device? Or would i be able to stream FLAC's from my NAS external drive or would I need to plug in my headphones directly into the NAS?
 
3. I appreciate SQ can still be improved by using a separate DAC + AMP. What I don't understand is how this works? Once I connect the DAC and/or AMP to my macbook will the music files go directly through these external devices, bypassing the internal DAC and AMP? The only headphones I have now are the T70p but willing (eager!) to upgrade to something like the original T1 (i realise these are open back), which can be had for fairly cheap now. These are 600 ohm so require a pretty beefy amp.  
 
4. Ok lets say I need a separate DAC/AMP. They need to be portable, for use on the sofa, dining table etc. I would think I am better off buying a combined DAC/AMP instead of two separate devices, correct? Any suggestion as to a DAC/AMP in the 500-750 USD region?
 
5. Finally, will the T1 be a clear improvement over the T70p? Or what about the Fostex TH-600?
 
Basically what I am trying to achieve is getting the "best" headphone + dac/amp combo for around 1500 USD total. I won't be able to afford walking into a dealer and testing the many possible combinations as I am looking to buy used. So any help is much much appreciated! 

 

[Mython]

1. I mainly use Spotify premium (320 kbps) - is there a big difference between this and ALAC/FLAC? If so, this means I should start ripping my entire cd collection again. Unless there is an easier way? 

 
 
That's a contentious question, with some people claiming there is no audible difference, under double-blind testing, whilst others wouldn't entertain listening to any music encoded using a lossy codec.
 
I'm not going to foist my opinion upon you.
 
All I will say is that, because you have CD originals for most of your music, it would be pragmatic to gradually rip them to a lossless codec (.FLAC or .ALAC).  A couple of terrabytes of HDD space is so cheap these days.
 
I myself re-ripped close to a thousand of my CDs, last year, as I realised it was much better to have them archived in .FLAC than in .mp3. It was a miserable task, but I set my mind to do it and succeeded within approx' 2 weeks - I am repeatedly thankful that I made the effort. I can now listen to them as-is, or, in the rare circumstances when I really do need to squeeze music onto a small memory card (for example, when using my faithful little Cowon J3 DAP), the .FLAC files can be easily re-encoded to .mp3 or .aac without digital artifacts occurring (which infamously occur when transcoding from one lossy format to another lossy format).
 
So, I would say keep enjoying your music in whatever format you already have it available, whilst also gradually improving your music library with .FLAC or .ALAC rips of your CDs, as and when you have time to do so.
 
When you do the ripping , please take the time to find the ripper with the best error-correction for your OS, and make sure it's configured correctly!
I'm mostly on Windows, so I always rip using ExactAudioCopy. I'm not sure what the best ripping options are on OSX. Ripping an entire music collection is a major undertaking, so you want to do it to the very best quality. Also, I would recommend using medium compression, if you're using the .FLAC codec (on a scale of 1-9, I use setting #5)
 
 
 

2. So once I have the best quality files - is there a difference playing them from my macbook air (Mid 2012) or iPad air? i.e. is there a discernible difference between the DAC in either device? Or would i be able to stream FLAC's from my NAS external drive or would I need to plug in my headphones directly into the NAS?

 
Regular Apple-audiophiles would be better-placed to give you a detailed answer to that question, so I'll defer to them.
 
 

3. Once I connect the DAC and/or AMP to my macbook will the music files go directly through these external devices, bypassing the internal DAC and AMP? 

 
In simplistic terms, the computer simply reads the digital music file, and passes the binary data over optical or USB data connection, to the external DAC of your choice, under which circumstances, you are correct - the internal DAC (and amp stage) of the computer will be bypassed.
 
Same situation for an external DAC-Amp
 
If the external device is an analogue amp, however, then the computers internal DAC would be employed, and the resulting analogue signal would be sent, at 'line-level', to the input of the analogue amp, for subsequent amplification.
 
 

4. Ok lets say I need a separate DAC/AMP. They need to be portable, for use on the sofa, dining table etc. I would think I am better off buying a combined DAC/AMP instead of two separate devices, correct? Any suggestion as to a DAC/AMP in the 500-750 USD region?

 
In that price-range, yes, there is some logic to buying a combined unit. There are certainly some competing combos of seperate units, but a combined DAC-Amp is sensible at that price.
 
In the $500-750 price-bracket, the current device against which all others are being judged, is the Chord Mojo. No device is the 'best device' for everyone, but you should at least try to hear a Mojo, to see if it might please you for the money. It has a very unique DAC section, which differentiates it from competitors.
 
 

5. Finally, will the T1 be a clear improvement over the T70p? Or what about the Fostex TH-600?

 
I can't answer that one, as I'm not (yet

) a cans man.
 
 
 
Don't be shy to ask around, in some of the DAC-Amp threads 

 

 

[ChetB]

Wow, thanks for the very comprehensive answer! I have been reading through the buying guide and have come across the AK (100II /120 II). I read they can also double as a separate amp/dac. So if I connect one of the AK100 II to my macbook and my beyer's to the AK 100II will they get close to say a dedicated amp/dac combo like the Chord Mojo? I quite like the flexibility of being able to use them on the go as well. 

 

[Mython]

Everything is relative...

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Thanks for the pointer Mython - let me break down my question a bit (I am aware this all sounds very basic):
1. I mainly use Spotify premium (320 kbps) - is there a big difference between this and ALAC/FLAC? If so, this means I should start ripping my entire cd collection again. Unless there is an easier way? 
2. So once I have the best quality files - is there a difference playing them from my Macbook air (Mid 2012) or iPad air? i.e. is there a discernible difference between the DAC in either device? Or would i be able to stream FLAC's from my NAS external drive or would I need to plug in my headphones directly into the NAS?
3. I appreciate SQ can still be improved by using a separate DAC + AMP. What I don't understand is how this works? Once I connect the DAC and/or AMP to my Macbook will the music files go directly through these external devices, bypassing the internal DAC and AMP? The only headphones I have now are the T70p but willing (eager!) to upgrade to something like the original T1 (i realize these are open back), which can be had for fairly cheap now. These are 600 ohm so require a pretty beefy amp.  
4. Ok lets say I need a separate DAC/AMP. They need to be portable, for use on the sofa, dining table etc. I would think I am better off buying a combined DAC/AMP instead of two separate devices, correct? Any suggestion as to a DAC/AMP in the 500-750 USD region?
5. Finally, will the T1 be a clear improvement over the T70p? Or what about the Fostex TH-600?
Basically what I am trying to achieve is getting the "best" headphone + dac/amp combo for around 1500 USD total. I won't be able to afford walking into a dealer and testing the many possible combinations as I am looking to buy used. So any help is much much appreciated! 

My opinion and two cents.
I really doubt it worth it to rip your entire CD collection to ALAC/FLAC if you already have good quality 320K audio files.
I have a lot of 256K audio files and a few of my ultimate favorites in FLAC, so I've listened to stuff where i have the same song in both 256k and FLAC, really almost no difference.
It nice having audio files in FLAC, but it just may not be worth it for all the time you would need to put in making the FLAC audio files and then not have a worthwhile improvement in audio quality.
Between the Macbook Air and iPad Air, sending the same audio files to an external USB DAC, audio quality should be the same, might make a slight difference depending on what software program is used to play the audio file.
 
If you going to be playing audio from a battery power source, you might consider getting something easier to drive then 600-Ohm headphones.
I really doubt any portable headphone amplifier was designed with the idea that 600-Ohm headphone would be used.
Portable audio amps run off batteries, so power needs to be regulated so as to not run down the batteries too fast and 600-Ohm headphones need voltage to do their job well.
I'm somewhat guessing on some things, but I think a Vulcan would find what I say logical.
 
I'm thinking a good quality digital audio player, connected directly to your 32-Ohm T70p, would make a worthwhile investment.
Something that could also be used as a external DAC/amp, with the Macbook Air, like a FiiO X3 Gen II

 

[thejammonster]

1. I mainly use Spotify premium (320 kbps) - is there a big difference between this and ALAC/FLAC? If so, this means I should start ripping my entire cd collection again. Unless there is an easier way?

Is there a difference? Yes. Will you notice it? No. There are many heated debates around this topic and I would just suggest you avoid them for your own sanity.

2. So once I have the best quality files - is there a difference playing them from my macbook air (Mid 2012) or iPad air? i.e. is there a discernible difference between the DAC in either device? Or would i be able to stream FLAC's from my NAS external drive or would I need to plug in my headphones directly into the NAS?

I don't do Apple, so I don't know if there's a difference. As for the transport, your files would stream via Ethernet or Wi-Fi to your iDevice fully intact and then be converted by the iDevice DAC.

3. I appreciate SQ can still be improved by using a separate DAC + AMP. What I don't understand is how this works? Once I connect the DAC and/or AMP to my macbook will the music files go directly through these external devices, bypassing the internal DAC and AMP? The only headphones I have now are the T70p but willing (eager!) to upgrade to something like the original T1 (i realise these are open back), which can be had for fairly cheap now. These are 600 ohm so require a pretty beefy amp.

Your external DAC/amp would connect via USB and therefore bypass the DAC/amp of your iDevice. This is the same concept as streaming from your NAS but being transmitted via USB.

4. Ok lets say I need a separate DAC/AMP. They need to be portable, for use on the sofa, dining table etc. I would think I am better off buying a combined DAC/AMP instead of two separate devices, correct? Any suggestion as to a DAC/AMP in the 500-750 USD region?

Chord Mojo, iFi iDSD Micro if you want portable. Schiit Magni 2/Modi 2, JDS Labs Element if you want transportable.

5. Finally, will the T1 be a clear improvement over the T70p? Or what about the Fostex TH-600?

Fostex will have more bass, less treble. It really comes down to your music preferences and hopefully being able to demo some different choices somewhere. Or go the route of ordering and returning from Amazon.

 

[ChetB]

Ok, so I found a brand new AK 100II for the price of a new Mojo and decided to jump on it. I realize it won't drive the power hungry T1 well, so I will first try them with my t70p's. Let's see if it is what I am looking for. If it isn't I will be able to return it and get a Mojo or indeed a IFI micro. Thanks for your help!

 

[Fifinder]

One way to get great sound out of your Apple MacBook or iPad is to use an Apple TV box (3rd generation will be fine, about $60, no need to spring for the latest one). Run a TOSlink cable from the Apple TV to your DAC or receiver. Then connect from your MacBook, iPad or iPhone using Airplay. Simple, clean ... one less cable snaking across your lap.
 
FWIW, I use Tidal Hifi for streaming FLAC files and prefer it to Spotify Premium.

 

[Hellkitchen]

I'm using my macbook air 2015 with Apple music and I'm really happy with its sound quality. I don't know the bit rate of Apple's streaming service (maybe 256 kbs?) but I think the Macbook's DAC is really good having tested it with FLACs. I use it also with my FiiO E18 sometimes but I think that with in ear earphones the internal DAC does a good work.