[demontux]

i am still hunting for an amp for the Q701.
using the onboard soundard hooked to an 1990 panasonic stereo system it does improve the bass a bit, but the output from the old stereo system has a little hiss (though the Q701 does a great job clearing it compared to the fake beats studio)
 
i was thinknig about buying a Xonar DG, will it improve the sound quality ? also how is the amp on it ? might it be better then the old stereo system ?
 
also what is the best amp i can buy for 100$ ? i was reading a lot about O2 supposed to be the best amp for Q701, but cant find a website that sell it for cheap and ships to Israel for a reasonable price. im not huting for more volume, in fact i listen not that loud, im just hunting for perfection in terms of sound, but i want the 100$ to be well spend and have a big drastic change with the quality to justify that expense. 
 
does buying the XONAR DG will slove any need for an amp ? i must say that even unamp hook directly to the pc they sound good, but the bass is not "full" enough

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

i am still hunting for an amp for the Q701.
using the onboard soundard hooked to an 1990 panasonic stereo system it does improve the bass a bit, but the output from the old stereo system has a little hiss (though the Q701 does a great job clearing it compared to the fake beats studio)
i was thinknig about buying a Xonar DG, will it improve the sound quality ? also how is the amp on it ? might it be better then the old stereo system ?
also what is the best amp i can buy for 100$ ? i was reading a lot about O2 supposed to be the best amp for Q701, but cant find a website that sell it for cheap and ships to Israel for a reasonable price. im not huting for more volume, in fact i listen not that loud, im just hunting for perfection in terms of sound, but i want the 100$ to be well spend and have a big drastic change with the quality to justify that expense. 
Does buying the XONAR DG will slove any need for an amp ? i must say that even unamp hook directly to the pc they sound good, but the bass is not "full" enough

The Q701s are 62-Ohm and the Xonar DG headphone amplifier can at max volume, barely drive a 250-Ohm headphone.
 
So the Xonar DGs should at least drive the Q701s decently.

 

[jasonb]

The Fiio E17 does well with the Q701 at just a little over $100.
Quote:

i am still hunting for an amp for the Q701.
using the onboard soundard hooked to an 1990 panasonic stereo system it does improve the bass a bit, but the output from the old stereo system has a little hiss (though the Q701 does a great job clearing it compared to the fake beats studio)
 
i was thinknig about buying a Xonar DG, will it improve the sound quality ? also how is the amp on it ? might it be better then the old stereo system ?
 
also what is the best amp i can buy for 100$ ? i was reading a lot about O2 supposed to be the best amp for Q701, but cant find a website that sell it for cheap and ships to Israel for a reasonable price. im not huting for more volume, in fact i listen not that loud, im just hunting for perfection in terms of sound, but i want the 100$ to be well spend and have a big drastic change with the quality to justify that expense. 
 
does buying the XONAR DG will slove any need for an amp ? i must say that even unamp hook directly to the pc they sound good, but the bass is not "full" enough

 

[koiloco]

Quote:

The Fiio E17 does well with the Q701 at just a little over $100.

+1000.
 
Jasonb recommended E17 to me also.  I tried it out and still very happy with the combo today.

 

[jimmers]

@demontux
amp
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/200922859574?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649
usb dac
http://hifimediy.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=83

if you want a cheap set up for PC listening and/or portable, it's the best my Q701 has sounded (compared with ODAC/O2 and Essence STX and various Fiios)

 

[demontux]

Tha

@demontux
amp
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/200922859574?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649
usb dac
http://hifimediy.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=83


if you want a cheap set up for PC listening and/or portable, it's the best my Q701 has sounded (compared with ODAC/O2 and Essence STX and various Fiios)

Thanks for reply. I forgot to mension i play games too. So i dont know if i need a dac, maybe the xonar dg is the best value comparedto the dx. But as for amp where can i read about the e7 ? Also shipping to my country might make this very expenssive so i need to buy it from a place that dont overcharge shipping. How is the qinpu amp ? Saw it on headirect for 99 is it any good ? Also can i plug to tha amp my stereo system as well ?

 

[jimmers]

E7 was quite good with Q701, can search this site or google Fiio E7 to find reviews and suppliers, much info around on Fiio products

 

[djcarpentier]

A very nice looking amp is the hifiman ef-2. Hybrid amp so should give a bit of warmth to the q701. Pretty cheap too

 

[djcarpentier]

A very nice looking amp is the hifiman ef-2. Hybrid amp so should give a bit of warmth to the q701. Pretty cheap too

 

[Evshrug]

E7 was quite good with Q701, can search this site or google Fiio E7 to find reviews and suppliers, much info around on Fiio products

What?
The E7 Blackbird you linked to on EBay is not a FiiO product.

 

[demontux]

Quote:

What?
The E7 Blackbird you linked to on EBay is not a FiiO product.

yes i am confused  "E7 Black bird SR-71A XP4 
 
OR FIIO E7 ?
.i hope ffio is not a sponsor here on the forum since everyone talks too greatly about this product while in other fourm ppl say its overatted
i got the E11 and its not that good portable amp, build quality is cheap and does not that much of improvment to the RE0 for instance.

 

[demontux]

also i want to add i dont want an amp that need batteries. its for desktop PC use... would appriciate any help and recommandation thanks

 

[jimmers]

Quote:

What?
The E7 Blackbird you linked to on EBay is not a FiiO product.

Sorry for confusion, as demontux was originally asking about FiiO E17, I thought he was asking about the FiiO E7 (which is one of the "various FiiOs" I mentioned). I don't think of the "E7 Black bird SR-71A XP4" as an E7, those codes basically refer to various different RSA amplifiers and it's none of those (more of a "homage" to them), I just think of it as my Chinese Ebay amp.
As my first external DAC/Amp E7 will always mean FiiO to me. 

 

[demontux]

so how is that "chinese amp " ? is it any good ? match the o2 ? also where can i find o2 for a fair price (without the need for batteries)
 
also was wondering what about a home theather amp ? like pioneer 522K ? will it do a good job amping headphones ? 

 

[Chris J]

so how is that "chinese amp " ? is it any good ? match the o2 ? also where can i find o2 for a fair price (without the need for batteries)

Not a very fair comparison.
The O2 costs more than the E7, almost twice as much.
The O2 is slightly more expensive than the E17, but the E17 is an amp and a DAC.
I own a few FiiO products, and for the money, I have no compliants. Yes, I have better sounding amps and DACs than my FiiO amps and DACs, but they cost more.

You can run an O2 off a Wall wart, the batteries are not absolutely necessary.