[xHiLex]

Hey there guys, i am looking at buying an Amp & DAC - What differences would the Fiio E7/E9 Combo make with the Ultrasone Pro 900's? In what ways would the quality change?

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,
 
The PRO 900 doesn't need big amping. You'd be hard pressed to know the difference between the E7 and the E9 separate with the PRO 900. You can get the E7 and be done. But if you plan on getting more headphones down the road, by all means, get the E9 too. But as it is, you just don't need a lot of amplification for the PRO 900's. I've tried mine on my solid state, tube amp and portable amp. And really, it sounds about the same across the board. A little amplification fills out the low end, tames the high end, and that's that. So you could save some money and not get more than you need there.
 
Very best,

 

[Roller]

A Fiio E7 is rather weak compared to the E7/E9 combo, and while Pro 900s are easy to drive, doesn't mean they don't benefit from more amping, for which the combo would be more than enough, while E7 would be far closer to a minimum amp for the Pro 900s. That being said, I do agree that the overall sound doesn't change significantly from amp to amp.

 

[NamelessPFG]

Pro 900s are easy to amp, huh? Would the amp in the X-Fi Forte (or most other sound cards that advertise a proper headphone amp) be sufficient? I don't know where it stands between dedicated products like the FiiO E7 and E9.
 
I'm considering them as a potential next step from my AD700s, provided that the imaging actually is an improvement (I don't mind the soundstage being a bit more closed-in if it means I can tell even more accurately from what direction gunshots or other noises are coming from) and they're just as comfortable to wear.
 
On the other hand, $300 and up is no small chunk of change, enough to get me a Stax Lambda variant in some cases...but without the required driver unit, which is where the savings comes in if the Forte has a potent enough amp.

 

[matthewh133]

Quote:

Pro 900s are easy to amp, huh? Would the amp in the X-Fi Forte (or most other sound cards that advertise a proper headphone amp) be sufficient? I don't know where it stands between dedicated products like the FiiO E7 and E9.
 
I'm considering them as a potential next step from my AD700s, provided that the imaging actually is an improvement (I don't mind the soundstage being a bit more closed-in if it means I can tell even more accurately from what direction gunshots or other noises are coming from) and they're just as comfortable to wear.
 
On the other hand, $300 and up is no small chunk of change, enough to get me a Stax Lambda variant in some cases...but without the required driver unit, which is where the savings comes in if the Forte has a potent enough amp.

No. I had the Pro 900s and an Auzentech Forte 7.1 and it didn't power it near enough. There was none of the huge bass that I has been told about. I plugged the Pro 900s into a dedicated headphone amp and they sounded completely different. They also aren't nearly as good as the AD700 for gaming.
 

 

[NamelessPFG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by matthewh133 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
No. I had the Pro 900s and an Auzentech Forte 7.1 and it didn't power it near enough. There was none of the huge bass that I has been told about. I plugged the Pro 900s into a dedicated headphone amp and they sounded completely different. They also aren't nearly as good as the AD700 for gaming.

So they're not THAT easy to drive after all.
 
Factoring in the price of an amp, I might as well stick to my goal of getting a Stax Lambda, even if electrostats may not deliver that head-thumping bass sensation the Pro 900s might be touted for.

 

[Roller]

No one said they don't need proper amping to sound good, only that they can put out sound when running "unamped" (it's quoted due to everything actually being amped).
 
The thing is that a bare minimum can go in the form of a PA2V2, a Fiio E11, a JDS Labs cMoy, etc. Anything beyond that is just pushing the envelope towards diminishing returns.

 

[xHiLex]

Well my situation is, i accidently ruined the front headphone jack on my PC - So i use the speaker jack in my onboard sound for my headphones - Doesnt sound as good as the front jack did for some reason, but im sure the Fiio E7+E9 combo will make at least a wee bit of difference, all my music is 320kbps and nothing less.
 
Play A Milli from Lil Wayne or Granite from Pendulum and you cant tell me you dont get that head thumping bass lol - Another reason i really need an amp is because i have the sound at 100/100 and its just not even close to loud enough with the Sone 900s - Im a basshead & metalhead.

 

[fabio-fi]

I know onboard sucks. Why not the Xonar STX? 

 

[Optimus Praim]

Quote:

I know onboard sucks. Why not the Xonar STX? 

+1..
It has also the Flex bass crossover function that you can enable and get the bass that you want..
I have D2X which i believe has a similar DAC chip and it makes a hell of a job feeding my Pro's with nice sounding tunes..

 

[Roller]

Quote:

Well my situation is, i accidently ruined the front headphone jack on my PC - So i use the speaker jack in my onboard sound for my headphones - Doesnt sound as good as the front jack did for some reason, but im sure the Fiio E7+E9 combo will make at least a wee bit of difference, all my music is 320kbps and nothing less.
 
Play A Milli from Lil Wayne or Granite from Pendulum and you cant tell me you dont get that head thumping bass lol - Another reason i really need an amp is because i have the sound at 100/100 and its just not even close to loud enough with the Sone 900s - Im a basshead & metalhead.

You can get a Creative X-Fi Titanium HD, that is quite a good match for the Pro 900s, unlike the ST/STX, and a Fiio E9. That setup will fulfill every need the Pro 900s might need in terms of source and amping.

 

[xHiLex]

 
Quote:

You can get a Creative X-Fi Titanium HD, that is quite a good match for the Pro 900s, unlike the ST/STX, and a Fiio E9. That setup will fulfill every need the Pro 900s might need in terms of source and amping.

Creative X-Fi Titanium HD has an Amp in it?
 

 

[NamelessPFG]

Quote:

Creative X-Fi Titanium HD has an Amp in it?

 
*re-reads Roller's post* I get the impression he meant that the X-Fi Titanium HD's sound signature synergizes better with the Pro 900 than the Essence ST/STX does, but that while it may have a headphone amp built-in like most sound cards of that class nowadays, you'd still want the FiiO E9 to drive the Pro 900s properly. That's probably true regardless of what sound card you're using.
 
The confusion likely stems from "...quite a good match for the Pro 900s, unlike the ST/STX, and a Fiio E9." The way that's worded, you'd think that he lumped the ST/STX and the FiiO E9 together, but that comma in between makes all the difference.

 

[Roller]

Quote:

 
*re-reads Roller's post* I get the impression he meant that the X-Fi Titanium HD's sound signature synergizes better with the Pro 900 than the Essence ST/STX does, but that while it may have a headphone amp built-in like most sound cards of that class nowadays, you'd still want the FiiO E9 to drive the Pro 900s properly. That's probably true regardless of what sound card you're using.
 
The confusion likely stems from "...quite a good match for the Pro 900s, unlike the ST/STX, and a Fiio E9." The way that's worded, you'd think that he lumped the ST/STX and the FiiO E9 together, but that comma in between makes all the difference.

Good observation, as that was indeed what I was saying. A Titanium HD paired with a Fiio E9 is, IMO, a far better sounding/more balanced setup, compared to running them straight from a ST/STX with or without further amping from that card. And those devices combined will undoubtedly give more volume than what most, if not all, people would consider comfortable.

 

[xHiLex]

 
Quote:

Good observation, as that was indeed what I was saying. A Titanium HD paired with a Fiio E9 is, IMO, a far better sounding/more balanced setup, compared to running them straight from a ST/STX with or without further amping from that card. And those devices combined will undoubtedly give more volume than what most, if not all, people would consider comfortable.

Sounds like it would be alot better having the Internal sound card compared to the Fiio E7 DAC - Problem being I can get the Fiio E7/E9 combo shipped to New Zealand for $189 as its free shipping from Hong Kong, but Fiio E9 + Creative X-Fi Titanium HD im looking at around $320 shipped, huge difference in price