Reddit mentions of Fiio E17K ALPEN 2 USB DAC Headphone Amplifier

Ok so if you own these than you know that the earbuds meet at a hub. From bud to this hub the cords appear to be rubber and very flexible. Below that meeting hub the cord appears braided. The braided portion is relatively stiff and there are some users who report that it frays and/or kinks if repeatedly wound tightly.

I suggest you use the supplied carrying case and don't tightly bend the braided portion.

Now while these absolutely do not require any headphone amp to drive these things (a cellphone will easily drive these), I just for giggles paired them with my FiiO E17K that I use for my DT 990s and Sennheiser HD650s and they open up VERY well if not driven too hard.

This is my go to track to test any new headphones and earbuds I buy and the 1More Triples pass with flying colors.

This is a no brainer purchase if you are looking for sub $100 buds as long as you are careful with the cord.

I went ahead and preemptively ordered this DAC/AMP, mostly because it's fairly cheap and has good reviews. I feel like I'm entering the audiophile rabbit hole from which there may be no coming back.

150 for an HD650 is a good deal and a properly amped HD650 is taking a huge dump on the HD598CS. But using the HD650 portable is not possible, due to its open back build and the poor isolation and high sound leakage that comes with it.

The HD650 is a headphone for desktop use only and using it with a portable amp does not make much sense.

If you really need a portable DAC/Amp and want to amp an HD650 the logical choice would be

• FiiO E17K
  
• in combination with a K5
  
  ___
  
  Don't understand me wrong. The Fulla 2 will most likely work with everything you throw at it. But don't expect it to drive the HD650 while listening to Clair de lune with a track gain of +19dB

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 650's and a FiiO E17K Aspen 2 portable DAC.

Those two combined with the proper EQ settings for the headphones = fucking Nirvana.

That setup plus the FLACs from HDtracks is going to be my experience for the new album.

Not a PCIe sound card, but I have a FiiO E17K DAC/AMP for sale at £75.

There's some more info in the thread I made a few days ago.

Never dropped below £94.99 new on Amazon.

good morning. i'm no expert, but would it be a problem driving 250ohm headphones with a 600ohm amp?

also, i would suggest considering a more portable headphone amp. if you're going to spend on some nice headphones, there's no reason to limit their use to at home because you've only got a clunky headphone amp that is designed to sit on a desk.

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Fiio is well known in the headphone amp market, and they definitely have more pocketable products.

https://www.amazon.com/Fiio-E17K-ALPEN-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00RPD7KP8/

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don't know if the amp you're looking at has particular features you want.

I'd go for the Micca Origen+ unless you need portability. Although it doesn't have bass boost it can drive 600ohm headphones which should cover later headphone upgrades (in case you're interested in upgrading of course).

I currently have a FiiO E17K which is great if you want to EQ the bass. It has +/-10db on bass and treble in steps of 2db so you can fine tune the bass boost instead of just flipping a switch. But it costs as much as the Micca Origen+ and is rather on the portable side (although it can be used as a desktop amp, I mostly use it this way).

A few things can cause hiss in the HD598. Check their impedance against the impedance of your laptop's DAC (its headphone port). HD598 are pretty efficient (50Ω), but they might be a little power thirsty. Your laptop is also designed for gaming and has a lot of processing going on, so the sound card might be causing interference. Then there's also power isolation to consider. Dirty or insufficient power can introduce a ton of noise, especially in the form of a hiss.

That being said, an external amp/DAC will work wonders for those HD598. Something like the affordable, portable Fiio E17 ($139) has USB input and will make those cans really sing.

Finally, you gotta look at the quality of your source. "High quality spotify" is an oxymoron. Spotify on its best day is 320kbps, which is like a typical MP3. You definitely want to delve into lossless (like FLAC you mentioned, ideally at 16-bit/44.1kHz or better) and Hi-Res (24-bit and 32-bit .flac or .dsf @ 96kHz-352kHz, and DSD 2.8MHz or 5.6MHz).

That's why I use one of these to listen to music at work.

At $200 you don't have a lot of options for Spotify capable DAPs as you surmised. An AMP/DAC would probably be the way to go if you're looking to put a little more juice into your current IEMs. FiiO is definitely well regarded in the price range you are looking at. I think the next best portable amp I see recommended regularly is the Oppo ha-2 at around $300 new. Like I said, I had buzzing with the my E18, but /u/AV3Nguyen didn't. I've seen others [claim to have this issue](https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/5386ko/fiio_e18k_gsm_interference/ too, suggesting that it has to do with GSM networks, so it might not matter to you either way. Otherwise the E17K is a perfectly fine option. You'd even have the option to upgrade to the docking unit if you wanted. Your mileage may vary with all of this, of course, since a lot of IEMs aren't very power hungry. You might not notice much more than a bump in your potential volume, but it will future proof you should you want to pick up something that needs a bit more oomph.

The third option would be to put the money towards a slightly better phone with the features you want, unless there's a reason you'd prefer to have your music on a separate unit. The LG v10 and v20(not yet out) have good DAC/Amps, so those might be options if your carrier allows, though I don't know how much you were going to spend on the phone.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GPV7AH4/ref=s9_dcbhz_bw_d0_g23_i1_sh

This is a super basic amp and portable. You may also want a DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) as well assuming it's for a desktop computer setup.

This should be a decent intro level DAC/Amp combo: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00A2QLPJM/ref=s9_hps_bw_g23_i2

I went with a Creative Sound Blaster. It replaced my broken headphone jack and improved audio. Just don't use the software. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004275EO4/ref=s9_hps_bw_g147_i16
And I also have this Fiio for using my Sennheiser HD280s at work. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RPD7KP8?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00

I went a seperate route.

Once I got my speakers (w/ receiver), I bought a Fiio E17k AMP/DAC and a bluetooth adapter.

I plug the bluetooth adapter into the input on my AMP/DAC, and connect my receiver to the output from my AMP/DAC. Works great for playing music from any bluetooth device. I also have the AMP/DAC plugged into my PC via USB to use as a soundcard, and just have to hit the input button on the AMP/DAC to switch from AUX(bluetooth) to USB(computer).

Hi there,
from personal experience I'd recommend the Sennheiser ie80 ($200 USD) with the Fiio E17K ($100 USD). :)

Budget is 100$. Headphones are ATH-M50xWH. Looking for a USB DAC for my Galaxy S5. Any help is greatly appreciated. I've been looking at these which are a little over the budget but I might be able to swing it. I love bass but I don't want it to distort or silence/quiet any treble.

I'm not sure where you are getting 27 CAD. On Amazon.ca it's $178 CAD... https://www.amazon.ca/FiiO-E17K-ALPEN-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00RPD7KP8. Anyways if you can get it for that price why not go for that?

Should I get the Fiio E17k DAC/Headphone amp or would I be better off going with something else? I'm looking for a dac with a headphone amp for no more than $100. I would like it to be portable and have an aux in. Is this my best option or should I go with something else?

https://www.amazon.com/Fiio-E17K-ALPEN-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00RPD7KP8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481228769&sr=8-1&keywords=e17k

Looking for something more portable so the E09k might not work but through the Amazon questions I came across the Fiio E17K ALPEN 2 USB DAC Headphone Amplifier https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RPD7KP8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_xcNHzbAVTGQE2

Might try this option.

Sup Fam,


I currently own this amp:


https://www.amazon.com/Fiio-E17K-ALPEN-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00RPD7KP8


Is there a way to use this such that I can connect it to a CRT and get in game sound?

If you got the Schiit Magni 2 you definitely need an amp because it only has RCA input. Most people get the Schiit Modi 2 with it, hence why they call it a Schiit stack. The Schiit combo isn't very mobile at all.

If you are looking for something to also use with a phone as well as on the laptop I would suggest the Fiio E17k or if you just want a laptop setup (for like working in an office) you could consider the Schiit Fulla 2.

I wouldn't worry too much about trying to find the "perfect" amp because most $100+ amps will be more than enough to power most headphones. Your computer
is technically enough to power them though it would sound much better through an amp/DAC combo (either as a single unit or separate amp and DAC units).

To drive headphones you'll need a USB DAC and a headphone amp. For $100 you're probably looking at a combination unit. The Schiit Fulla 2 fits into your budget.

You could also consider the Fiio E17K.

If you sit far from your console you'll also need a long cable!

Hey guys, I recently got my first pair of "nice" headphones (Sennheiser 598 Cs) and was looking into getting a DAC/amp for them to use with my PC. I know this isn't specifically about headphones, but are there any good DAC/amp combos you would recommend?

Budget is ~$100, but any suggestions are welcome. My only caveat is it needs to have an AUX In port so I can route my mic through for reference audio. I've been looking at this one, but I have no experience in this area.

$110, so dead on budget. But, unsurprisingly for a portable, it only has line out and headphone out. So same features as e.g. the $67 SMSL SD793-II. I really want a usable volume knob -I'm unfortunately using an Alessis RA-100 and, as I'm sure you can imagine, having a knob for each channel is a huge pain in the arse outside of a studio environment.

I have a Fiio Alpen 2 that is supposed to work on OTG for digital transfer of the music to the DAC/AMP (which is how I use in on my PC) but I've never got that function to work. It comes with a short headphone jumper cable though. Has plenty of power for my ATH-M50x's which are 38 ohms, the Crushers appear to be 32 so it would work well.

My best use of it has been with a tablet so my wife and I can watch a movie on planes with a splitter cable. The battery is good for 10+ hours on a charge.

That would work perfectly. That way you aren't running the signal through two amp circuits.

Another option would be to go with a Fiio E17K, which has a 3.5mm line out which you could hook up to your speakers. It's smaller and more geared towards being portable, but I use the original E17 and it sounds great.

1. What is your budget?
   
   
2. 4K is still being worked on and improved. What you're describing is almost impossible and super expensive.
   
   
3. Don't do SLI. People have a lot of problems and they don't always work with all games anyway. Stick with one good GPU, like a 1070.
   
   
4. There's really no need for a Titan X unless you're a professional videographer or graphics editor. That's beyond overkill. A 1070 is more than enough for any gamer today.
   
   
5. You went overkill on some parts but only listed 16 GB of RAM. You should go with 32.
   
   
6. You didn't include your audio options like a DAC, amp, or speakers, and could have listed a better headset. I have the Sennheiser PC 363D (Amazon link) for gaming and watching TV/movies, and it's awesome. For listening to music, I use Sennheiser HD 598 SE (Amazon link). For your PC audio, you want good speakers. Check out the JBL LSR305 (Amazon link). You want a decent DAC, so check out the Schiit Modi 2 or Modi 2 Uber (Amazon link for Modi 2) (Amazon link for Modi 2 Uber). You could even get the Schiit Bifrost. Depending on what headphones you get, you might also want an amp like the Schiit Magni 2. Many people call it a Schiit-stack when you have both a Schiit DAC and amp together, usually the Modi 2 and Magni 2. You could also check out the new combo DAC/amp, Schiit Jotunheim. I found some great deals on eBay and paid about half the retail price for a Schiit Bifrost Uber DAC. Some other options are: JDSLABS Objective2 + ODAC Combo, Cambridge Audio DacMagic XS v2, Micca OriGen+, Fiio E17K, AudioQuest DragonFly, and Audioengine D1. Some great people helped me learn about audio from /r/BudgetAudiophile /r/audiophile /r/Audio.
   
   
7. Make the list with PC Part Picker Australia so it's easier for everyone to see.