[SoapSeller]

I've my ATH-A900 for a lot of time now.
And it's time to improve things.

Currently I'm listening directly to my X5(using the A900 and im716)
and from my (very) poor onboard card.
And probably will upgrade the headphone too in the not-so-near future.

I did some research and can't conclude what is the best path to go for the $200-$300 that I can spend...

Any thought on the matter?



BTW, If I need more money to improve things, I can consider that..

 

[Brandon B]

Your post is somewhat confusing to me, because I don't know what an X5 or im716 is. You say you either want a new sound card or a DAC+headamp.. what about buying a $100-$150 soundcard and spending the rest on a decent amp? You could get an E-Mu 1212m for $100 on Musician's Friend's website and spend maybe $150-250 on a new or used headamp. Your headphones are excellent so I would forget about upgrading your headphones altogether (at least for a little while) and spend whatever money you can on a quality source and amp. Once you do that, I guarantee you'll hear those A900s in a whole new way.

I think that if you're set on getting a DAC+amp, you'll probably have to spend a little more than $300 unless you buy used.. I could be wrong.

 

[Alucard]

X5 is an mp3 player http://www.cowonamerica.com/products/iaudio/x5/

I agree with Brandon. Buy a good soundcard like 1212m (if you don't play games, cause it has no hardware acceleration nor does it support any game sound standard, but it's great for sheer music).
And an amp in addition to that. Then if you want to get something even better you could upgrade with an external dac.

It may be hard to get all three at the same time for just $300, if you don't buy the cheapest stuff available.

As we usually say:
Welcome to head-fi and sorry about your wallet.

If you do want to go the dac route. You could get a Chaintech AV-710 soundcard, and with that output a bit perfect stream to the dac.
For a cheap dac I think "dac in box" is a popular choice.
But for the amp, I dunno actually. Someone else might fill me in on this.

But I think that the 1212m will outperform the DAC in Box.

If you play a lot of games then exchange the AV-710 for an X-Fi which also can deliver bit perfect sound using the digital out, and is probably the best gaming soundcard available.

 

[SoapSeller]

Hey,
im716 are in-ear headphones -> http://www.alteclansing.com/product_....asp?pID=IM716

Thanks for your posts, but I have some problems

1) As I understand the 1212m takes two slots in the pc, and in my shuttle-xpc there is only one free slot...

2) I'm not an hardcore gamer, but I sometimes playing games, but only with headphones, so the x-fi will not be an overkill for me?
And if not, which version of the x-fi I should get?

3) How much should cost a decent entry-level dac?
As I said, I can put more money if there is a need....
(I'm going to buy a new non-headphones audio system soon, so I better prepare my main source for everything...)

And again, thanks for your comments...

 

[Alucard]

1) One of them is an expansion card. You don't have to install it if you don't need the additional in/outputs.

2) I think that a AV-710 should be enough if you don't game a lot (note that I have not tested this card myself so I could be wrong)
But I don't think an X-Fi would be overkill, it's a good all-round card too. I would recommend you to get the cheapest one (X-Fi XtremeMusic) if you don't need the front bay. They cost around $100 while the av-710 is $25.

Why people on this forum buys the AV-710 are because it's probably the cheapest card there is that supports asio (bit perfect) to a dac.
If you plan to use the analogue outputs the X-Fi and the 1212m (or any of the more expensive cards) will probably sound a lot better.
So the main use of the AV-710 for most people is to feed their dac's, which they are supposed to handle very well.¨

3) I will let someone else answer this as I sense I’m not qualified to do so.
I am searching for a dac to you know.

 

[Alucard]

I could psot some of the more popular dac choices though (although I have not heard them).

Dac in the Box: $59
Lite DAC AH: $103
Zhaolu 2.5: $129-$195 (has a hp-amp)
All can be had from: http://www.diykits.com.hk +some other places too

There is also a new dac available which I find very interesting, the Musiland MD10 which also has an amp that I think is a little better than the one in the Zhaolu.
$255 at http://pacificvalve.us/

Do a little search for these dac's and find out which one you probably will like the most.

EDIT:
If you want a bang for the buck I think you could go with the AV-710 + MD10. That way you would get all 3 at once.
I think the the amp in the MD10 is biased against low impedance cans so you will probably not be able to drive an HD650 for example. But most of the cans under 100ohm should be ok.
If you want to upgrade later you could get a stand alone amp.

If someone thinks I'm wrong please speak up.