[alexlinftw]

Hey all,
 
I just purchased a pair of Sennheiser's HD515 headphones (my first headphones), and I must say they are awesome... that is, when they are plugged in to the right sources. When I plug the headphones into my harmon/kardon receiver via the TRS 1/4" Jack, they sound much better than when I plug them into my onboard soundcard on my computer via the 1/4" to 3.5mm converter that came with the headphones. (Which I kind of expected)
 
My question is: If I get a dedicated soundcard (Like Creative's Soundblaster), would it be enough to power the cans using the 3.5mm auxiliary jack? Would I need to look for a TRS output solution for my PC? 
 
Regards,
Alex Lin

 

[alexlinftw]

Bump?
 
C'mon Audiophiles, I know you have it in you to indoctrinate a fledgling. 
 
-Alex Lin

 

[ford2]

 
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRS_connector

 

[alexlinftw]

C'mon dude, did you even read the post?
 
-Alex Lin

 

[gknix]

It's probably nice to be a little patient and polite here.
I would infact suggest a DAC for your computer rather than a soundcard.
 
Depending on your pricepoint, there are many options. You should probably do a little research here, but here are some quick options that are quite popular on head-fi and on my mind currently:
 
Nuforce uDac
Centrance Dacport
Pico Amp/DAC, DAC
Music Fidelity VDAC
Cambridge DACMagic
Audio-gd reference Dacs

 

[alexlinftw]

Thanks, gknix, That's what I'm talking about! Also, I apologize, there was no rudeness intended, only a bit of impatience. 
 
-Alex Lin

 

[alexlinftw]

Oh yeah! Another question (That kinda stems from the first):
 
Will running the headphones through the TRS>3.5 Aux converter degrade audio quality in any way? I am not worried necessarily about the connection itself, but I assume that generally (output-wise) 3.5mm jacks are not as "powerful" as their 1/4" counterparts.
Of course, if anyone could clarify on this it would be much appreciated, as it is pure speculation.

 

[grokit]

Get a uDac or EF2A instead

 

[Volta]

Quote:

I assume that generally (output-wise) 3.5mm jacks are not as "powerful" as their 1/4" counterparts.

There's practially no difference. Use whichever connectors are most convenient.

 

[alexlinftw]

Excellent. So I've been looking at DAC's and I think I want to get a Behringer UCA-202. It seems like a good place to start and since I spent $70 on the headphones it seems silly to spend more than that on a DAC.
 
From what I understand all it does it convert a digital signal to an analog signal, but would I still need a headphone amp to drive the headphones, or would I be alright with the Soundcard>DAC>Headphones? 

 

[gknix]

Yep, I think connections don't matter TOO Much, but there are purists out there who would beg to differ on this issue.
 
I think if you do run to upgraditis(which most people seem to be infected eventually), the uDAC will last you quite long, and its really quite a good product. 

 

[Prog Rock Man]

Quote:

Excellent. So I've been looking at DAC's and I think I want to get a Behringer UCA-202. It seems like a good place to start and since I spent $70 on the headphones it seems silly to spend more than that on a DAC.
 
From what I understand all it does it convert a digital signal to an analog signal, but would I still need a headphone amp to drive the headphones, or would I be alright with the Soundcard>DAC>Headphones? 

You need a source > soundcard or DAC > amp > headphones. Both a soundcard and a DAC do the same thing, convert the digital signal from the source to the analogue signal the amp needs. Soundcards refer to onboard PC DACs, DACs mean stand alone converters. You can also get combined DAC/headphone amps, such as by Beresford or Firestone Audio.
 
i prefer my DAC as opposed to my soundcard, but it is a bog standard laptop sound card that has too much noise coming through it. Audiophile soundcards appear to be able to equal many DACs in terms of sound quality.

 

[sokolov91]

Quote:

Hey all,
 
I just purchased a pair of Sennheiser's HD515 headphones (my first headphones), and I must say they are awesome... that is, when they are plugged in to the right sources. When I plug the headphones into my harmon/kardon receiver via the TRS 1/4" Jack, they sound much better than when I plug them into my onboard soundcard on my computer via the 1/4" to 3.5mm converter that came with the headphones. (Which I kind of expected)
 
My question is: If I get a dedicated soundcard (Like Creative's Soundblaster), would it be enough to power the cans using the 3.5mm auxiliary jack? Would I need to look for a TRS output solution for my PC? 
 
Regards,
Alex Lin

Creatives: no
 
Asus Xonar STX (or ST) yup and they sound great to boot. Perfect for people who want Hi-fi on a budget. With the headphones you have it would be a much better deal than paying much more for a stand alone DAC.

 

[Prog Rock Man]

FiiO and Firestone Audio do combined DAC/headphone amps with the E7 and Fireye that are cheap and will do what you want. They are also portable.

 

[jr41]

I can recommend the NuForce uDac. It's a DAC and amp combined which has made a large improvement over the output from the onboard sound of my PC.
 
HeadphoneAddict did a very good review of it which convinced me to get one for my Sennheiser HD 25-1 II
 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/456945/first-impressions-nuforce-udac-usb-dac-amp-with-line-out-and-s-pdif-out
 
There are also a number of chinese DAC and amp combinations which sound like good value for money, and many of them have got good reviews here too.