[Sherwood4Life]

Greetings everyone,
 
I'm on a quest for a DAC and/or AMP to drive my Sennheiser 580s & AKG 701s.
My audio sources are from my laptop and I don't want to use the substandard onboard Realtek card.
I'm also looking for a good quality 1/4 to 1/8 headphone adapter.
 
 
My budget is currently under $200. Can anybody suggest anything?
 
 
Thanks!

 

[linglingjr]

You should look at the Schiit magni and modi, o2 amp and ODAC, or if you wan't to spend a bit less money the FiiO e9 and e7 or e17 are also good for the price.
 
Audio GD has some amp/dac in one equipment that might work well for you and your price.

 

[thisissomebs]

  Greetings everyone,
 
I'm on a quest for a DAC and/or AMP to drive my Sennheiser 580s & AKG 701s.
My audio sources are from my laptop and I don't want to use the substandard onboard Realtek card.
I'm also looking for a good quality 1/4 to 1/8 headphone adapter.
 
 
My budget is currently under $200. Can anybody suggest anything?
 
 
Thanks!

 
I'm not really an audiophile but I have been doing my research and have looked in to the Fiio E17 which is also portable and can be used with your phone. It is also a dac and an amp together and costs $139.

 

[linglingjr]

   
I'm not really an audiophile but I have been doing my research and have looked in to the Fiio E17 which is also portable and can be used with your phone. It is also a dac and an amp together and costs $139.

It won't have nearly enough power to drive the k701s to a reasonable level.

 

[thisissomebs]

  It won't have nearly enough power to drive the k701s to a reasonable level.

 
What about the Audio Technica ATH M50's?

 

[linglingjr]

   
What about the Audio Technica ATH M50's?

M50's are only 38 ohm, they don't really need an amp at all plus OP didn't list that at all.

 

[PurpleAngel]

  I'm on a quest for a DAC and/or AMP to drive my Sennheiser 580s & AKG 701s.
My audio sources are from my laptop and I don't want to use the substandard on-board Realtek card.
I'm also looking for a good quality 1/4 to 1/8 headphone adapter.
My budget is currently under $200. Can anybody suggest anything?

Hifimediy Sabre U2 USB DAC, $57+shipping
http://hifimediy.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=123
 
Schiit Magni headphone amplifier, $99, + tax & shipping
http://schiit.com/products/magni
 
Here is a used pile (stack) of Schiit (Magni/Modi), $175.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/689905/fs-schiit-stack-magni-modi
 
Grado mini adapter cable (1/4 to 1/8) 8', $14.00
http://www.jr.com/grado/pe/GRA_MINIADAPTER/

 

[Sherwood4Life]

I really like the FiiOs because they're all in one however, can the e7, e9, or e17 drive my headphones? I'm getting conflicted comments.

 

[linglingjr]

The E9 is a full sized desktop amp that runs off an AC wall wart.  The e7 and e17 are only portable amps that don't deliver nearly as much power. You can dock the e7 or e17 into the top of the E9 to use it as a DAC and the E9 as an amp.  I recommend the O2 and ODAC combo over the fiio set up though.
 
EDIT: if you want an all in one that has enough power to drive your AKGs, I'd look into Audio GD stuff.

 

[cel4145]

I really like the FiiOs because they're all in one however, can the e7, e9, or e17 drive my headphones? I'm getting conflicted comments.

The E17 would undoubtedly be better than your computer's built in audio. However, people find that the AKG 701 series does benefit from more powerful amplifiers. Could you be happy with the E17 as an improvement over your current audio output? That depends on you. Would something like the Schiit Magni/Modi stack be potentially better? Yes.

 

[rubinstein]

increase your budget, get Audio gd 15.32 and be happy.