Best Dac Amp for FPS Gaming with HD 800s

[dfuller]

I'd be inclined to just say get an RME ADI-2 DAC and call it a day. HD800s aren't particularly difficult headphones to drive - 300 ohms is relatively high nominal impedance, but they're also quite sensitive (~100dB/mW at 1KHz) so they are fairly sensitive to noise but don't require quite as much input power as you'd expect. The RME drivers, however, are the real feather in their cap.

 

[Brave91Heart]

No worries. In the last 1.5 years so many terrific affordable DAC/Amps have been released that it is hard to recommend just one! And there is no PC Part Picker for newbies looking to purchase their first high end DAC/Amp, so happy to help. You are going to love the A90+HD800s.

@Jimbob54 Do you have an Enog2 Pro? How do you stack it with an amp & cable manage when the XLR OUT and SPDIF IN are on opposite sides?

Not unless you want to donate your cash to Sennheiser. You already get a 4.4mm balanced cable with the HD800s that will deliver the exact same power as the XLR. I have an after-market cable because I wanted something shorter than the stock 10ft ones, unfortunately you are going to pay at least $100 for one because the HD800s proprietary connectors are 3x more expensive vs other headphones.
You will need two 3-pin male to female XLR cables to connect the DAC to the Amp.
These are $18 each for the 1ft option, and use very high quality components from Neutrik and Mogami: XLR Interconnects
Here is a whole thread about XLR cables if you want other options: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...cent-inexpensive-relatively-xlr-cables.14328/

I will look at it... Do you anything about gaming pc by any means? Can you direct me to some forums in case you do know?
Thank you....

 

[Racheski]

I will look at it... Do you anything about gaming pc by any means? Can you direct me to some forums in case you do know?
Thank you....

I built a gaming PC using PC Part Picker and by watching You Tube videos during the Fall of 2019. Since then I generally keep up to speed with gaming hardware news by watching You Tube videos (mostly Linus Tech Tips) or reading the occasional article, but I'm by no means an expert. I would start with the Linus Tech Tips forum.

 

[Brave91Heart]

I built a gaming PC using PC Part Picker and by watching You Tube videos during the Fall of 2019. Since then I generally keep up to speed with gaming hardware news by watching You Tube videos (mostly Linus Tech Tips) or reading the occasional article, but I'm by no means an expert. I would start with the Linus Tech Tips forum.

It is mainly for gaming? Can you tell me which parts you used?

 

[Racheski]

It is mainly for gaming? Can you tell me which parts you used?

Yes mainly for gaming. I don’t do video editing, animation, or any sort of graphic design, etc...I went with an Intel based system because there were some excellent deals on Amazon Prime Day, and all of the new AMD Zen 2 chips were sold out. If I had to do it all over again, I probably would wait until Zen3 comes out and go AMD. If you create a profile on PC Part Picker I can share my build.

 

[Jimbob54]

@Jimbob54 Do you have an Enog2 Pro? How do you stack it with an amp & cable manage when the XLR OUT and SPDIF IN are on opposite sides?

I dont for that reason- I have it lying on my rack behind other kit out of sight! In the rats nest!

I could stack it but it looks wrong! Hopefully their next DAC will squeeze all inputs round the back. Luckily it has no remote or controls I need to access.

 

[Brave91Heart]

I dont for that reason- I have it lying on my rack behind other kit out of sight! In the rats nest!

I could stack it but it looks wrong! Hopefully their next DAC will squeeze all inputs round the back. Luckily it has no remote or controls I need to access.

Good news. A new dac is in the works and all the parts will be at the back. Geshelli confirmed. Expected date is fall.

 

[Brave91Heart]

Yes mainly for gaming. I don’t do video editing, animation, or any sort of graphic design, etc...I went with an Intel based system because there were some excellent deals on Amazon Prime Day, and all of the new AMD Zen 2 chips were sold out. If I had to do it all over again, I probably would wait until Zen3 comes out and go AMD. If you create a profile on PC Part Picker I can share my build.

I will inform you once I have done the registering. I only have one question. Is it possible to run two monitors (one for gaming and the other for streaming) using the same PC?

 

[Brave91Heart]

I'd be inclined to just say get an RME ADI-2 DAC and call it a day. HD800s aren't particularly difficult headphones to drive - 300 ohms is relatively high nominal impedance, but they're also quite sensitive (~100dB/mW at 1KHz) so they are fairly sensitive to noise but don't require quite as much input power as you'd expect. The RME drivers, however, are the real feather in their cap.

Thank you for your kind reply. This dac has features I don't need at all, which justifies it high price.

 

[Racheski]

I will inform you once I have done the registering. I only have one question. Is it possible to run two monitors (one for gaming and the other for streaming) using the same PC?

It must be since presumably streamers do this all the time - I'm just not sure exactly how it is done. I'm sure you would get an explanation on the LTT forum.

 

[Jimbob54]

Good news. A new dac is in the works and all the parts will be at the back. Geshelli confirmed. Expected date is fall.

Did they mention if it would be USB too? Enog 2 isnt

 

[Brave91Heart]

Did they mention if it would be USB too? Enog 2 isnt

No. They only said the parts will be at the back. I think, based on Zreview of enog 2, the don't like usb.