[shleepy]

I'm a little surprised that such devices aren't more popular, now that standard headphone DAC/amps are so mainstream.

What I want:

• USB DAC
• 1/4" headphone out
• 2x powered speaker out (not necessarily too powerful, but would be nice to have something that could drive floorstanding speakers at fairly low volume)
• Relatively compact size. This will be on my PC desk, so I can't fit a huge receiver.

What it would be connected to:

• Desktop PC with Windows as the source
• Audio-Technica W1000X headphones (and I don't foresee using any others with this setup)
• Speakers, TBD. Not too powerful or pricy. At least bookshelf size, or possibly efficient floorstanding ones.

My previous setup (still in my signature, for now) included a DR.DAC2 as the DAC, a SOHA II hybrid tube headphone amp, Beyer DT770-600 headphones, and (powered) Audioengine A5 speakers. I switched my headphones to Audio-Technica W1000X's, which I absolutely adore, and I find that they sound better with just the DR.DAC2, which has a solid-state headphone amp, in addition to the DAC. Moreover, I'd like to trade up my A5's for some powered speakers, and I therefore need an amp (in the meantime, I'm borrowing my friend's T-amp and speakers). Headphone sound quality takes precedence, though, and I definitely don't plan on loudly blasting the speakers at any time.

The main goal, therefore, is to get an integrated device that includes all of my "wants" above. Honestly, I just find it annoying to quickly switch between headphones and speakers with two or more devices, and that's something I do very often. What I'm looking for from you fine folks are suggestions for devices I haven't found yet, or opinions on my list of candidates.

My candidates thus far:

• Ordo USB T-amp / headphone amp - The shadiest and cheapest of the bunch, at ~$100. Chinese-made, seemingly by the makers of Muse amps. Components seem OK, but certainly not ultra-high-end. I fear the speaker amp might be a bit weak, if I decide to get some decent speakers... but then, T-amps are supposedly fine for most situations.
• Lead Audio LA-200 (review by project 86) - seemingly good, but I'm worried about the "OK" / not great sound with low-impedance headphones that the reviewer mentions. This is why I switched away from my SOHA II. At ~$550, this is still affordable, but on the high range of what I'd want to spend.
• MUSE DT-50A - another relatively shady Chinese contender, but with a higher price tag and more powerful speaker amp. Also by Muse. I wouldn't mind spending $240, per se, but it would be a shame to waste that much on something that's potentially awful.
• Onkyo A-5VL - probably too big for my desk. Moreover, it only has coax/optical inputs, so I would get a USB>coax/optical adapter. There might be similar devices, though, that are slightly smaller than most receivers and have some kind of digital input.

There are a couple very high-end options, as well, such as Peachtree Decco2. However, that one's around $800, seems to only have 1/8" headphone output, and is a hybrid-tube amp. I'm questioning whether tubes would sound good with my W1000X, after the SOHAII. I would probably just prefer a solid-state solution.

Thanks for your input!

 

[LCfiner]

I have a peachtree music box right now and, similar to the decco2, you can turn off the tube stage if you don’t want it enabled.
 
the music box is smaller and less pricey but it doesn’t have the power for large floor standing speakers - it’d be good for near field speakers, though (I’m currently just using the pre-out for powered speakers). it also doesn’t have as good a dac as the decco 2. but it’s a nice little unit. built very well.

 

[tike71]

I recently purchased a stereo setup to use with my headphone rig:
The speakers consist of B&W CM5 (passive) with a Rotel 2 Channel amp.
Currently using a Nuforce HDP as the preamp & headphone amp.
Will be receiving an SVS SB13 subwoofer today to cover the low frequency extensions. Can't wait!
 
I was pretty close to getting the Benchmark DAC1 PRE this morning but was snatched up by someone else (ebay) while I read some reviews.
 
So far I'm in love with my system.
I apologize that I can't help you with your question, I just wanted to share my setup 

.
 

 

 

[shleepy]

I seem to have finalized my computer setup over the weekend, actually:

• Lead Audio LA-200
• B&W 685 speakers
• ATH-W1000X headphones

Everything sounds good so far, and I'm very pleased to have a simplified setup that doesn't require turning on 2 or more things to get my music going, or to have to flip multiple switches to go between headphones and speakers.

 

[allyl]

How has the LA-200 been for you so far? Specifically have you noticed any deficiencies in its performance with the W1000X? Also, was your buying experience with gooddigitalshop a good one?

 

[shleepy]

How has the LA-200 been for you so far? Specifically have you noticed any deficiencies in its performance with the W1000X? Also, was your buying experience with gooddigitalshop a good one?

So far so good. I think that the bass might be less detailed than with the DR.DAC2, but that could just be my imagination; I didn't test them back-to-back. Honestly, it's good enough for me, and I'm not going to bother comparing it to a few other setups to figure out if there was a marginal sound quality improvement or decline. The point of the LA-200 was to increase my convenience, more than improving sound quality. It's definitely accomplished that, without making the sound quality notably better or worse... I was happy with the headphones on both setups.

I bought the LA-200 on eBay, from seller "global.seller.kor". Fast shipping from Korea and no problems.