Author Topic: Anyone have a good DAC/AMP they could suggest?  (Read 1061 times)

I'm not really an audiophile, but I figured if I wanted better sound that I should get a DAC/AMP. I'm currently looking at a 2nd gen Focusrite Scarlett Solo, but was wondering if you guys had any other suggestions for under $100.

but I figured if I wanted better sound that I should get a DAC/AMP.
what pair of headphones do you have
if you're looking to up your sound game it's nearly always your headphones and nothing a dac/amp will fix

what pair of headphones do you have
if you're looking to up your sound game it's nearly always your headphones and nothing a dac/amp will fix
I plan on buying a pair of Sennheiser HD 558's. I dont want better sound in games only. I wanted a bit more bass when listening to music.

I wanted a bit more bass when listening to music.
if you want bass a sennheiser is not what you want.

Ive got an a1 fiio
Pretty cool lil 20 dollar dac.

if you want bass a sennheiser is not what you want.
Okay, well what brand would you suggest for a bit of bass?

I might be talking about something completely different but I know Orange amps are kickass

I might be talking about something completely different but I know Orange amps are kickass
yeah that is something completely different

Okay, well what brand would you suggest for a bit of bass?

audeze For around the price of a 558, the Audio Technica ATH-M40x and the AKG K553 come to mind. I have yet to listen to either, but those would probably satisfy you more than any Sennheiser open back around 100 USD.

If you want good bass reproduction for the absolute lowest price, the Tascam TH-02 can be had for a mere $20 and hilariously beats both my SHP9500 and DT-770 in bass tonality and extension, both of which are a few times more expensive. You might have to spend another $20 on pads to actually make it comfortable though.

As for a good DAC/Amp under 100 USD, the Schiit Fulla 2 is probably worth investigating.
« Last Edit: July 22, 2017, 09:43:02 PM by NoZoner »

I plan on buying a pair of Sennheiser HD 558's. I dont want better sound in games only. I wanted a bit more bass when listening to music.

Honestly you should just look for a pair of headphones that have a good frequency response across the board. "Better bass" headphones are a budget gimmick, at that price range you're going to get more bass in exchange for poor performance in the other 80% of the frequency spectrum. This bass boosting stuff doesn't exist when you pay good money for good headphones because it's a stuffty way to sell stuffty gear. If you REALLY want more bass you can just easily use an equalizer feature in your playback program. It'll sound better and you'll have much more control over how much bass you actually want. Plus you'll still have good sounding audio everywhere else in the spectrum.

audeze For around the price of a 558, the Audio Technica ATH-M40x and the AKG K553 come to mind. I have yet to listen to either, but those would probably satisfy you more than any Sennheiser open back around 100 USD.

If you want good bass reproduction for the absolute lowest price, the Tascam TH-02 can be had for a mere $20 and hilariously beats both my SHP9500 and DT-770 in bass tonality and extension, both of which are a few times more expensive. You might have to spend another $20 on pads to actually make it comfortable though.

As for a good DAC/AMP under 100 USD, the Schiit Fulla 2 is probably worth investigating.
Thank you so much. I also plan to get a Modmic, and I was wondering if that would be able to go into the DAC/AMP or I should just plug that into my motherboard or something.
Honestly you should just look for a pair of headphones that have a good frequency response across the board. "Better bass" headphones are a budget gimmick, at that price range you're going to get more bass in exchange for poor performance in the other 80% of the frequency spectrum. This bass boosting stuff doesn't exist when you pay good money for good headphones because it's a stuffty way to sell stuffty gear. If you REALLY want more bass you can just easily use an equalizer feature in your playback program. It'll sound better and you'll have much more control over how much bass you actually want. Plus you'll still have good sounding audio everywhere else in the spectrum.
I use Spotify to listen to music. I know, not exactly the best way to listen to music, but I really don't have time or money to get lossless versions of the music I listen too. Spotify (at least on the PC) doesn't include an equalizer feature from what I know. I realize that the "better bass" stuff is just marketing mumbo jumbo, but as I said before, I don't really have a way of using an equalizer and I am really uneducated on this stuff. Not really my expertise.
« Last Edit: July 22, 2017, 09:48:32 PM by Willco2 »

Thank you so much. I also plan to get a Modmic, and I was wondering if that would be able to go into the DAC/AMP or I should just plug that into my motherboard or something.

You'll have to plug the modmic into the motherboard if you're gonna get the Fulla :(

I realize that the "better bass" stuff is just marketing mumbo jumbo, but as I said before, I don't really have a way of using an equalizer and I am really uneducated on this stuff. Not really my expertise.
https://www.equalify.me/
This should work for spotify on windows, apparently

https://www.equalify.me/
This should work for spotify on windows, apparently
... But costs $10 to use.