[soundeffect]

  Okay I just purchased the D2000 and I'm waiting for it to come in.  At first when reading about the d2000, I find a lot of people saying you don't need an amp for them, then after I purchased the d2000 I started to see people saying the d2000 really benefit from an amp and without an amp, the d2000 doesn't really show its potential and it doesn't do the d2000 justice. 
 
  Well now I feel I need a portable amp.  Since this is a last min. decision, I'm hoping to only spend around $100. My other question is does an amp without usb dac perform better or is it all the same?
 
these are some of the one that comes into mind so far, but I'm lost for choices since I'm completely new on portable amp/amp . I guess this is a good thing for me as I can get a taste of what an amp does for headphones.
 
 
-icon mobile
 
-mini3- does misterx or rockethopper still sell this?  how much does it cost to buy one? where can I find one new? (I'm not handy to build one)
 
-ibasso ???
 
-E7 - I'm not sure if it's good pairing with the D2000 and if I do get this amp I will not get the E9.  I want something small.
 
any other recommendation would be a great help.  Also if you guys don't mind listing the general price for whatever amp recommended.  I know my budget is low, but this is all I can afford right now.
 
I'm looking toward to using it with a iphone 4 and laptop.

 

[soundeffect]

bumpy....
 
no one  care to share some insight? or opinion or experiences?

 

[estreeter]

My experience tells me that you are better off spending your hundred dollars on beer or a vintage integrated amp - personally, I'd go with the beer. The cheapest amp I have purchased was the iBasso T3, and I havent even bothered to plug the thing in for months (make that a year). Even secondhand, I think you will need to spend more money.

 

[soundeffect]

So the problem no one replying is really the money.
 
I guess I might end up taking you advice and buy some beers.

Not a bad thing, I can settle for that for an advice.
 
If anyone else care to share, I'm all ears.

 

[MaxwellDemon]

Where are you plugging in your D2000? If it is for desktop/home usage, I think you should consider a desktop amp instead of a portable one. If it is through a laptop, then a DAC would probably be a really good idea. Source first before amp.

 

[soundeffect]

Laptop as mention above.

 
Yeah desktop would probable be ideal,  but the cost of them is way out of my affordability range as of right now with this new purchase.  I will probable go for a dac amp combo if I end up getting one. Plus I'm leaning to portable because that way I can use it along with my iphone when I'm out and about, not commuting just some where not at home.

 

[MaxwellDemon]

I have the same problem as you do before and I ultimately ended up with deciding between uDAC-2 and Fiio E7. If you are thinking of using it along with your iPhone, maybe the E7 would be a better choice. You can also use that, temporarily, as a DAC for your laptop. After your budget widens a bit, you can then extend to buy the E9 amp to complete your desktop setup.

 

[soundeffect]

I think you are correct. 
 
The E7 has been on my mine.  I guess the worst case scenario is that I end up selling that amp to upgrade in the future.  I might do that for its bass boost option. dunno, I'm just going to wait for my headphone to come in to decide. Crappy shipping is killing me, it's 4 hrs. away since yesterday and it is showing I won't get it until a few days later.

hehe
 
I just need something to get a feel of an amp to convince myself to buy better one...or not.  I mean, I can't tell myself yet to pay more on an amp than a headphone when the sound improvement order is the other way around.

 

[MaxwellDemon]

Haha, yeah, the general rule of thumb apparently is Headphone > Source > Amp. So, most definitely need to check if your headphone is going to sound decent for you first. I hope you won't have to wait much longer to give your headphone a test.

 

[soundeffect]

crap, my d2000 seems to be not working as well as I hope without an amp...now I think I need to make a decision to either return it or get a cheap amp. boo!  I was hoping to use it without an amp temporary until I can afford a better amp for it.