Looking for a headphone amp/dac for a pair of hd600's. Don't need any special functionality will be hooked up to my PC. Budget is $300 and just looking for whatever has a good deal on right now and is the most value up to that point.
$300 Headphone Amp/DAC
ClintonL on 18/06/2024 - 10:02
Comments
Yeah have a look at the audiosciencereview site. Toppings score really well there, that's where I'd be looking if I was in the market. You probably want to look into something that pumps out 2-4w per channel at 50 ohm just incase you upgrade to some beastly planars or something that requires a lot of juice.
Hifiman EF499 looks pretty sweet.
have a look at the audiosciencereview site
That's really going down a rabbit-hole of graphs, charts, signal analysis and calculations.
They're using all the analytical skills just to study the equipment,
when, ultimately your ears will tell you, if it sounds good or not.SMSL shop has the M300 SE for $172 and the DL200 for $252. The M300 SE is a good all-rounder and the best you'll get for under $200. The DL200 is currently the go-to and you're not going to get anything even comparable in this price range. I've got both and can't really tell the difference between the two though, but I only use HD 599 and HD 560s which aren't exactly hard to drive. I needed the DL200 because it's connected to an LG OLED and it has a configurable DPLL for poor optical signals. I would recommend the M300 SE for PC use, it doesn't require auxiliary power, just plug it in via USB.
I've got something like this - not bad.
https://www.minidisc.com.au/ifi-zen-dac-v2-headphone-dac-amp
If interested second hand market is usually pretty good - check stereonet au classifieds - people getting into audio generally suffer from severe upgraditis which frees up a lot of decent value entry level gear
I've never tried these, but their value looks 'good on paper'
AU$ 136 | SMSL D12 DAC Headphone Amplifier [AK4493S]
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006233220576.html
AU$ 275 | Topping DX3 Pro+ Hi-Res DAC & Headphone Amp [ES9038Q2M]
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003342280953.html
AU$ 336 | TOPPING A30Pro Headphone Amplifier
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006854054961.html