- Joined
- Sep 3, 2006
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My view is that you should buy headphones for the sound quality & specific sound signature they provide. You buy electronics *primarily* to meet the headphone's requirements for voltage, current, etc and allow the headphones to be driven properly so the headphones can provide all the sound they are capable of delivering. This is not always true - (for example tube amps) - but IMHO meeting the requirements should be the first consideration.
Therefore, the amp is purchased when the headphones you want to use need an amp. They might need an amp because the headphones are difficult to drive (have high requirements for voltage, current, etc), and/or because the music source you are using can't meet whatever the requirements are. For some phones & cheap onboard PC soundcards, even relatively easy to drive headphones can be improved by an amp. OTOH, if the headphones are particularly easy to drive, then an amp might be unnecessary, even from a puny phone. It all depends on the requirements.
Now the DAC... IMHO, the DAC has more subtle effect on the actual sound quality. ESPECIALLY when we are talking about modern DAC designs based on the latest DAC chips. I think many people that speak of night & day differences when swapping the DAC may really be hearing differences in the amp sections that are after the actual DAC circuit. Hooking a DAC to your PC bypasses the internal amp in your onboard soundcard. I think that's the primary benefit.
This, of course, is heresy to many of the golden-eared folks at head-fi. They might say they can absolutely hear the difference between two DAC chips from the same chip manufacturer. They might also say they can hear the difference between two USB cables, or two AC power cables or whether the amp was made while Jupiter was rising in Virgo.
So - with that long discourse being said, my advice is:
1) Pick the headphones
2) Buy an amp if they need one
3) If you want to bypass your PC soundcard, then buy a DAC (or combine #2 & #3 and buy a DAC/amp device)
Therefore, the amp is purchased when the headphones you want to use need an amp. They might need an amp because the headphones are difficult to drive (have high requirements for voltage, current, etc), and/or because the music source you are using can't meet whatever the requirements are. For some phones & cheap onboard PC soundcards, even relatively easy to drive headphones can be improved by an amp. OTOH, if the headphones are particularly easy to drive, then an amp might be unnecessary, even from a puny phone. It all depends on the requirements.
Now the DAC... IMHO, the DAC has more subtle effect on the actual sound quality. ESPECIALLY when we are talking about modern DAC designs based on the latest DAC chips. I think many people that speak of night & day differences when swapping the DAC may really be hearing differences in the amp sections that are after the actual DAC circuit. Hooking a DAC to your PC bypasses the internal amp in your onboard soundcard. I think that's the primary benefit.
This, of course, is heresy to many of the golden-eared folks at head-fi. They might say they can absolutely hear the difference between two DAC chips from the same chip manufacturer. They might also say they can hear the difference between two USB cables, or two AC power cables or whether the amp was made while Jupiter was rising in Virgo.
So - with that long discourse being said, my advice is:
1) Pick the headphones
2) Buy an amp if they need one
3) If you want to bypass your PC soundcard, then buy a DAC (or combine #2 & #3 and buy a DAC/amp device)
