[thelsuman]

Thanks paaj. I'm a bit confused- I thought that the Zero DAC was needed primarily for it's abilities as an amp. Are you saying that I should either use whatever built-in headphone amp is included with the Marantz player OR just use my iPod connected to the Zero DAC? Sorry- but I'm really new at this!

 

[tke398]

I wouldn't rule out tube amps. They aren't any more difficult to use than solid state. Little Dot makes a very good line of tube amps for what I consider to be very cheap prices. I bought mine for $199 and all I do is turn it on and off. It's not like the old stereo tube amps where you had to whip out a volt meter and bias every tube every couple of months. Very low maintenance.

As far as having worries about the kids around them, for some kids that may be justified. But I have a three year old and he never went near it after I told him it was hot. With the room lights on you could barely see the glow, so he's not drawn to it. I've touched tubes while there were on by accident and I have not been burned (6l6 power tubes, too). I think some Christmas (sorry, I mean Holiday) light bulbs are much hotter than the tubes on some of these headphone amps.

 

[oldskoolboarder]

You can also get tube amps w/ cages.

 

[tke398]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldskoolboarder /img/forum/go_quote.gif You can also get tube amps w/ cages.

Yes, very good point!

 

[darwinshardhat]

I'm new here and don't know much about much so I'll try not to make recommendations outside of the stuff I do have some experience with, but lets start with the source since it really helps to define the rest of the components... it would be easy on your budget to overkill on the amp and headphones only to have the limitations of your source revealed with astounding clarity.

Your music on the ipod touch should be 'Apple Lossless' encoding. MP3 or MP4 (Apple calls this AAC) files will sound pretty bad with an amp and headphones in the price range you're aiming at.

The best way to get sound out of the ipod touch is using line level out, not the headphone jack. There are ipod connector to RCA stereo jacks but double check that they work. I read somewhere the pin-outs on the 2nd Gen iPod Touch are different and old line out jacks won't work. You won't be able to charge your iPod while listening but with the great battery life they have this may not be an issue for you. A slick solution is to get the Universal iPod Dock and USB charger from Apple (I think it's about $80 for both). That way it sits on a cradle, will always be charged, and you have a line out jack on the back of the cradle and a remote control you can use while lost in audio bliss out of reach of your iPod. I think most desktop amps will have RCA in so you'll need a 3.5mm to stereo RCA adaptor cable if you use the Dock. Go for as short of a cable as possible, usually 1m/3ft. The longer the cable, the more signal loss you get before you even get to the amp.

As for amps and headphones, I'm just starting down that path myself so I'll leave that to others that have great ideas. A sensible plan would be to split the remaining budget about 50/50 between headphone and amp. If you've got $750 to spend total and buy the dock, charger and adapter cable, you've still got $650 for the amp and headphones, that will get you a great setup.

The CD Player to DAC/headphone amp is just a different way to spend your money and might work out better, but it also means you'll have larger gear in the bedroom and limited to loading and playing a disc at a time... not a problem at all for a hardcore audiophile but less flexible on the content side.

 

[Cosimojack]

I was in a similiar (monetary) situation and was able to get a great deal on used Stax setup (Lambda pro, srm-1 amp).... I'm simply using with an older modded Cd player for now... but it sounds awesome. I plan on getting a Dac (Valab) soon and going the computer source route for convience in the future.

If I were you, I'd consider the following setup (this is what I would have done, had I not went Stax):

Audio-gd Compass - this is an amp/dac combo and the early indications are that it's quite good. Right now there is a promo deal going on $258...
you simply won't find this level of quality/utility any where else unless you DIY.

Sennheiser 580-600 - $150-300 used... I'd get the 600 if possible as it basically does everything well and is a classic.

This will leave about $150-200 for your CD player/interconnects...

 

[xxbaker]

If you plan on using the iPod as your primary source, I wouldn't bother with the Zero or Compass. They're both designed to be DAC with an included headphone amp, not the other way around. Getting a LOD, a nice amp and HD580/HD6x0 will be a good setup. Then later you can decide to upgrade your source.

 

[limpidglitch]

If i were thelsuman, I'd be very confused indeed. So many random recommendations, and here I am with yet another one. You say you want a bedside rig, I suppose this means a reasonably compact mobile setup, preferably battery run, that enables you to move it around from bedside, to computer desk, to living room, or wherever you want to enjoy your music. If this is the case I will advise you to put a CD-player purchase on hold, for the time being, think about it later when you might be considering a stationary setup. This leaves you with LOD+amp+headphone<$750, which is really quite decent.
Then I would recommend you to start with the headphone, partially because the headphone is by far the most important equipment, and it makes the rest of the decision making easier. So, classical baroque, jazz and classic rock. Hmmm, I really don't know, Why hasn't anybody mentioned open back audio-technica, wouldn't AD900 ($200 here) or AD1000 suit him well? $50 or less for a LOD, $350 for an amp, $350 for the headphones.

 

[paaj]

What I did try to say, is that a CD player already comes with a DAC, most probably with a pretty decent one. Don't spend your money twice on a DAC, but choose! You can use a CD player or you can use a PC to a DAC. Next link in the chain is the amp (where you can always plug in your iPod)
Then you get to the amp. Don't know the big bang/buck amps <$300 (head-direct ef1?) but get a decent one and an HD6x0 (I prefer 650 but taste is key) and you have a great start.
If you want to save some money, don't get the source just yet, but use your iPod with line-out-cable into an amp. If you use your iPod as source, forget the DAC and get a good amp.

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by thelsuman /img/forum/go_quote.gif Your advice is appreciated here!...I'm thinking of investing in a setup (thinking around $750 or less for everything). What do you guys think would be a good choice for a bedroom setup in this price range (and relative budget for each system piece to maximize bang for buck)? For any recommendations, please consider that the main source will be my iPod Touch. I've heard that tube amps can work wonders for HP's, but was leaning towards solid state due to my complete inexperience with tubes (frankly I'm intimidated & am concerned about their fragility...don't know if this is justified...but I do have kids under age 5). Can you guys opine on a good combo of: -Amp (SS or otherwise "kid-friendly"...mobility would be nice) -DAC (do I need this?) -Interconnects (I'm guessing the type that plugs into the bottom of iPod?) -Headphones (I'm torn here... I like the "open" style, but some sound isolation would prob be a good idea for me), should I consider IEPs? If this has all been previously discussed elsewhere on headfi, please direct me to the right place(s). Much Obliged!

Starving student amp 188.00.
Since you like Jazz, orchestra, classical, the easy choice would be the Beyerdynamic DT48, they specificly made for acoustic playback. Other good choices would be the Beyer 880, AKG 501, AKG 701 & 2.

 

[kool bubba ice]

Ipod as the primary source? Ugh..Talk about weakest link.

 

[Doo Doo Brown]

While this is all good advice, if I were you, I would start with just the headphones and worry about DACs and amps later. Figure out what kind of sound signature you like, settle on the cans, and go from there. Like you, I don't have that much experience with all this, but different headphones can sound wildly different from one another. Figure out which one is best for you and then you can go about finding a good compliment as far as an amp/dac goes.