[dracynical]

I have been having a constant struggle as of late. A lot of headphones passed through my hands to come to the same conclusion that I really did a big mistake with buying a very transparent DAC/AMP with the THX 789 and the Topping D70. The only headphone that I really enjoyed while using this combination was the HiFiMAN Sundara but on the other hand, my HD800, HD650, and DT1990 are not so appealing. Having tested most of my headphones in a store nearby, I feel that indeed I am missing some warmth and smoothness with these headphones and thus ordered a Shortest Way 51+ amp to fulfill these needs.

Now, my real problem is the fact that my desk is very much cluttered with audio-related things that I just don't have enough space to do my work and also enjoy my other hobbies so I need to resize everything.

Besides the headphones that gracefully sit in my closet while I have a pair in rotation, my desk has powered monitors and two mics. Maybe my ears are deceiving me but in terms of DACs, I have not seen any big difference in audio quality in all of the DACs I've used, cheap or expensive. Thus my idea would be to drive the headphones I already own with the in-built amp and ESS DAC off of my audio interface (RME Babyface Pro fs) if I want transparent sound and if I do need more power or a different sound, I can just go off of my tube amp.

My concerns are the following:

What options do I have for changing my DAC/AMP/Interface setup in an AIO solution that I can just add the tube amp to?
Should I also try going down the route of switching my 789 and D70 for an ADI-2? Would that make any big difference in terms of quality and sound with EQ/Crossfeed as features? Would it be worth it in terms of cost/price performance?

Note: I am using this whole setup for daily use in listening to music (Tidal), movies, browsing, streaming, and video editing.

 

[TWerk]

I would recommend a more mellow/fun sounding DAC/AMP combo unit like for me, the audio GD 11.28.

I could not stand the sterile sounding desktop amps either, took me buying and selling some units but eventually you can find something that works for you and your ears.

I really like the 11.28, it has plenty of power and sounds great with everything.

It's also pretty reasonably priced.

 

[chesebert]

Buy FOTM and get burned. Same story. Nothing to see here.

 

[dracynical]

I actually had an option to buy an nfb 11.28 from a friend. Not sure what they're worth after 3 years of daily use. I'll try listening to that amp first though.

Buy FOTM and get burned. Same story. Nothing to see here.

FOTM with the thx amp back in the day? It was a very good amp back then, it still is but like most things people take for granted/use daily, it will get boring.