Reddit mentions of loiog Aux Cable for Car for iPhone X/XS/8/8Plus/7/7Plus Jack to 3.5mm Male Audio Adapter for Headphones Jack Cable Aux Cord for Car Stereo, Headphone, Speaker

I do use both a DAC and an Amp.
I use the Magni amp, and the Modi DAC by Schiit.

Magni: http://www.amazon.com/Schiit-SCH-07-Magni-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00CICPMA6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395407907&sr=8-1&keywords=schiit

Modi: http://www.amazon.com/Modi-USB-Digital-Analog-Convertor/dp/B00CICPN0K/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1395407907&sr=8-2&keywords=schiit

My wife loves me but not HD650 love :X
and would something like this work Magni Headphone Amplifier + Modi USB Digital/Analog Convertor?

Have you looked into Shiit amplifiers? You can get an amp and a USB DAC, which works plug-and-play with the PS4, for like $200.

If this sounds like an option, definitely look around at other amp/DAC combos. Just be ready to overthink it until your head explodes...

I use a pair of Beyerdynamic DT-990 Pro 250ohms coupled with Schiit Magni and Modi for my headphone amp and digital/analog converter combo. The magni/modi combo is great for flat sound i.e doesn't add any extra sound qualities in the conversion or amplification (pro for some, con for others) and they power the 250ohm version of the DT-990 pros wonderfully. The DT-990 pros themselves are great metal headphones in my opinion. First off, they are the most comfortable headphones I've ever put on, I've worn them 8 hours a day for the past 2 months and sometimes forget they're even on. The soft velour earpads are fucking superb. Sound quality wise they're amazing as well. Massive soundstage, when I got them one of the first songs I played was Inside the Particle Storm- Dark Tranquillity and I was motherfucking blown away, and it doesn't hurt that they're good for FPS gaming as well. Amazing, punchy bass, but not overdone at all like you find in some DJ headphones. Good mids and nice highs. Some people find the treble on the dt-990s to be fatiguing but I've yet to come across that and even if I did I could get rid of the problem through the equalizer.

Fiio makes some pretty nice budget and portable amps.

What are you looking for? For a introductory tube amp, I would reccomend the Vali + Modi amp/dac combo. They are made by Schiit, and their products are really good for their price.

>Bellari VP130

The Bellari tube preamp is quite hit or miss — it essentially applies RIAA equalisation using solid state technology, then simply buffers the signal through a vacuum tube to give a warmer sound. This is similar to taking a digital photo and applying an Instagram filter, as opposed taking it with a film camera in the first place.

At this price you would be better off going with solid state (NAD and Cambridge Audio make great preamps in your price range), either new or second-hand. You will definitely be rewarded by the accuracy — in any case, you already have a vacuum tube link in the chain; any more and you risk unwanted distortion.

Aside from this, I don't see why a separate phono is needed with an integrated amplifier like the one that you have chosen?

>Maverick Audio D2 DAC

The Schiit Modi costs half the price and is without a doubt just as good, if not better.

>some kind of RCA switch for switching between the DAC and the turntable preamp

While RCA switchers are widely available and cheap, this configuration would not be possible given that the Maverick A1 only accepts phono input. What you need is either

• a receiver with a phono stage, which would allow you to omit the preamp. You would connect the TT to the phono input and the DAC to the AUX input. Receivers like this can be acquired for cheap second hand on eBay or CL.
  
  
• a standalone amp, that is without a phono stage. In this case you would hook up the preamp and the DAC to the inputs, using an RCA switcher to easily toggle between them.
  
  ___
  
  edit: woops, I didn't see the line-in socket on the Maverick A1. Still think the receiver is a better option though.

you should consdier getting a DAC. DACs are fantastic. Mine died, and i was going straight from the PC to the stereo, and it sounded like straight up butt. Once I got a new DAC it was a friggin revelation.

if you want to go cheap, a fiio D3 will serve: http://www.amazon.com/D03K-Digital-Analog-Audio-Converter/dp/B009346RSS/ref=sr_1_14?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1405281051&sr=1-14&keywords=fiio+dac

after that, i would recommend a Schiit Modi: http://www.amazon.com/Modi-USB-Digital-Analog-Convertor/dp/B00CICPN0K/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1405281149&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=schiit+dac

it keeps going up from there (i personally run an emotiva xda-2 which is in the $250 neighborhood).

It depends on the computer, your music, and the rest of your audio gear. If your music is low bitrate or your amp/speakers aren't great they will hold you back more than the dac in your computer. If you do want a dac I would also consider the Schiit Modi it is very popular for budget setups on /r/headphones. (The D1 is pretty comparable but you are paying more for a headphone amp)

Depends on your price range. A great starter DAC is the FiiO E10K which has a DAC and an amplifier built in, highly recommended

The next step up would be for the Schiit Modi although, it doesn't have a built in amp and requires the companion piece Schiit Magni

Those are the two I would recommend for sub $100 and $200

You could always try /r/audiophile and /r/headphones for more advice

Gaming is a totally different story from what the people here are buying their headphones for (mostly). Personally, if you just want a solid pair of headphones, I like and always recommend the Audio Technica ATH M50. Now, these will plug just fine into your pc BUT if you want some proper listening gear use the rest of that money and a bit more to get the Schiit Magni headphone amp and the Modi DAC. If they're gaming headphones though, you really don't need that.

You could try rewiring your speakers and see if that has anything to do with the interference. If your looking for a DAC that connects to your PC and your AMP to get rid of the interference you could give the Schiit Modi a try. It is a high quality DAC that should give you better sound quality than your MOBO and should help with the interference. /r/audiophile might be able to help you out more.

I would look at getting a better DAC, the DAC on a motherboard is usually one of the cheaper parts.The Behringer UCA202 is better than most motherboad DACs, and even sound cards. The Schiit Modi is really popular over at /r/headphones, and I also know that FiiO makes some quality DACs. Also, the aux cables don't really matter at this price point.

What about this one? But thanks a lot for the info, I will definitely invest more time into researching on this topic. dont want to spend $400 on speakers and only get half the quality just because of sub-par input.

Some great USB DAC's (some with integrated headphone amps) to consider, from lowest price to highest:

• Behringer UCA202 USB sound card: http://www.amazon.com/Behringer-UCA202-Audio-Interface/dp/B000KW2YEI
  
• Soundblaster E1 portable DAC/AMP: http://www.amazon.com/Creative-Headphone-Amplifier-Integrated-Smartphones/dp/B00J2JATL0/
  
• Fiio E07K Desktop DAC & Amp: http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-E10K-Headphone-Amplifier-Black/dp/B00LP3AMC2/
  
• Schiit Modi USB DAC: http://www.amazon.com/Modi-USB-Digital-Analog-Convertor/dp/B00CICPN0K/
  
• Audioengine D1 USB DAC: http://www.amazon.com/Audioengine-D1-24-bit-Digital-to-Analog-Converter/dp/B006IPH5H2

Out of everything you have listed I think you should get these instead.

DT 990 Premium (250ohm):

http://www.amazon.com/Beyerdynamic-DT-990-Pro-250-Professional-Acoustically-Applications/dp/B0011UB9CQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1396410317&sr=1-1

ATH-M50x:

http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-ATH-M50x-Professional-Headphones/dp/B00HVLUR86/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396410360&sr=8-1&keywords=ath-m50

As for Amp/DACS:

Schiit Magni/Modi:

http://www.amazon.com/Schiit-SCH-07-Magni-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00CICPMA6/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1396410429&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CICPN0K/ref=s9_simh_gw_p23_d0_i3?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=042YMDTAE4G9HN1Q9AF0&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1688200382&pf_rd_i=507846

Hey guys,


The DAC and amp guide here seems a bit old and I'm a bit of a newbie so I figured I'd ask here.


Here is my current equipment at my work desk:

• Dell E1505 laptop - crappy, giant, old school enterprise laptop. Only audio output is 1/8th headphone jack and the sound card is awful
  
• M-Audio Studiophile AV-40 Active Studio speakers with built in amp
  
  
  These are currently connected using a simple 1/8th to 1/8th audio cable, but the end result sounds awful and looks ugly as well since the 1/8th cable has to be plugged in to the front.
  
  
  I would like to hook up the laptop to send audio to the speakers, I don't usually use headphones. The speakers use RCA and 1/8th as input, but I'd like to use RCA because those inputs are behind the speaker and won't clutter my desk. In an effort to accomplish this AND improve the sound quality a bit, should I get a DAC? And should I consider switching speakers or do you guys think these are ok?
  
  
  
• Audio source: laptop.
  
• Audio type: music, mostly metal, some IDM, some hip-hop.
  
• Willing to buy used: yes.
  
• Budget: ideally <$150, the lower the better.
  
  
  
  Ideally, I'm looking for the DAC to run off of AC/USB power since I intend to leave it plugged in 95% of the time. A rotary volume dial would be ideal but isn't strictly necessary. Do I need something like these? And if yes, which one would you recommend?
  
  
  
• Syba USB DAC
  
• Nuforce Icon UDAC-3
  
• Modi USB
  
• Fiio E10
  
• Audioengine D1
  
• DAC destroyer
  
  
  
  
  PS - Could something like this Fiio D3 work maybe? Not sure what kind of adapter would be needed, but it seems unlikely.
  

here ya go