[zsevgymko]

I am new to this hobby, I'm hooked and already pretty scared of how fast my limited budget grows

I bought K81dj and I chose my portable player. I'll want to buy some higher-end headphones and an amp in the future, but right now I'm thinking about my home source. My first guess was the Revo 5.1 sound card, but as the time was passing my source budget doubled once,and then another time, and now it is 300$, and that IS IT ! Sigh. So what do you think is the best sounding source at that price tag? Is it a soundcard - EMU 1212m, Juli@ or another, or maybe some of the lower end cdps ? For example Denon DCD-685 and Azur 340C seem to be available where I am for the price of 300$ and 250$ accordingly, and I hope I'll be able to audition them soon. And maybe even there is a dvd player in my price range that can compete with these players and cards in terms of sound quality?
I wasn't sure where should I put this thread, but I hope I picked the right forum

 

[RedLeader]

well the big question is do you want a computer based system or a stand alone system? You can get a decent low-end cdp for the amount, or a soundcard/DAC combo. Also, do you have an amp, and what cans are you going to want to use?

 

[zsevgymko]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedLeader well the big question is do you want a computer based system or a stand alone system?

Well I don't really know

That's why I'm asking for comparison of the sound quality. Right now I think I'm leaning slightly towards the stand alone system. Maybe that's why I posted here and not in the computer-as-source forum

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedLeader Also, do you have an amp, and what cans are you going to want to use?

No, I don't have an amp, that's why it'll be good if the player or card can handle my K81dj(has a decent headphone-out), as for my next cans, they will most probably be with higher impedence and as a whole in the higher end,so I'll try to buy an amp they deserve.
I can't really audition the headphones I find interesting, but maybe DT880, HD650 or K701, at the moment I am not interested in the Grado and Audio Technica lines.

[Edit]
And if, by any chance, exists a solution,source + amp, in the 300$ range, that can give justice to any of the above mentioned headphones, I'll be more than happy to stick to it and run away from here

I'm pretty sure this is hard to accomplish, though.

 

[zsevgymko]

bump

 

[Xakepa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by zsevgymko bump

HD580/600 + DYI PIMETA from the sales corner could fit $300 budget quite nice

 

[zsevgymko]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xakepa HD580/600 + DYI PIMETA from the sales corner could fit $300 budget quite nice

I guess my english is worse than I thought

My question is about a source - soundcard,soundcard + DAC or CDP in the 300$ price range.

 

[2426]

For a DAC, you can try the Micro DAC from headroom. For a CDP, you can try a used NAD, or the Cambridge that you mentioned.