[thrgk]

Hi all,

I am getting a pair of UE CSX 5 Pro IEM's and need a DAC/AMP for my desktop at work. I was looking at the Dragonfly red, however then I saw some on drop.com like
SMSL SP200 THX AAA-888 BALANCED HEADPHONE AMP. Would something like that be better? My Max limit is $150 and it doesn't need to be portable.


Thanks in advane!

 

[dunring]

I have an SP200 here and wouldn't recommend it unless those are high impedance ear buds. It has two gain settings, high and higher so you might run into channel imbalance too low on the volume wheel.
What about the Soundblaster G6 which I've had several times. In direct mode it sounds and measure really well. The low gain mode is ear bud friendly, ASR did a measurement test and it scores really high if you keep main windows volume at 79%. On Creative Labs site they have factory renewed ones for $110 with tax and shipping and warranty. The direct mode is really good, the surround is ok for gaming but I couldn't go back to using it for anything else like music.

The Drop 789 One would be a better choice (I had one last month, used they're around $120 or so on eBay)) with the three gain stages, it's perfect for IEM's and also has a deeper sound stage and better bass dynamics than the SP200. The SP200 has lots of detail, tons of power, but no low gain mode. I still have it and use my Venture Electronics VE Monk ear buds which are 64ohm (actually they measure at 71) and sound great with it. It's nice for critical listening, or mixing where you want every hear little detail, but for casual listening or gaming the Drop 789 is so much better.

 

[thrgk]

Hmm I won't use it at all for gaming, the Drop 789 is quite pricey at $250 used on ebay tho, is there a more midrange one ?

 

[thrgk]

I have an SP200 here and wouldn't recommend it unless those are high impedance ear buds. It has two gain settings, high and higher so you might run into channel imbalance too low on the volume wheel.
What about the Soundblaster G6 which I've had several times. In direct mode it sounds and measure really well. The low gain mode is ear bud friendly, ASR did a measurement test and it scores really high if you keep main windows volume at 79%. On Creative Labs site they have factory renewed ones for $110 with tax and shipping and warranty. The direct mode is really good, the surround is ok for gaming but I couldn't go back to using it for anything else like music.

The Drop 789 One would be a better choice (I had one last month, used they're around $120 or so on eBay)) with the three gain stages, it's perfect for IEM's and also has a deeper sound stage and better bass dynamics than the SP200. The SP200 has lots of detail, tons of power, but no low gain mode. I still have it and use my Venture Electronics VE Monk ear buds which are 64ohm (actually they measure at 71) and sound great with it. It's nice for critical listening, or mixing where you want every hear little detail, but for casual listening or gaming the Drop 789 is so much better.

oh was this the one? https://drop.com/buy/drop-thx-aaa-one-linear-amplifier its not a DAC tho just amp I believe