Hello everyone,
although I’ve always been a serious music fan, I started my curiousity for equipment only recently. The reason? I want to change headphones from my ATH-M50x to a pair of Sennheiser HD650s because I want to switch to open back headphones and those sounded great to my ears when I tested them at the store. I’ve also done some “research” and think that they are a great choice at that price point when it comes to my taste. (might also consider looking further into he HiFiMAN Sundara)
However, I can’t drive them with my setup and am in need of amplification.
Here’s how I’ve been listening to music so far: I use my PC to stream Tidal and Spotify (will soon give qobuz and Amazon HD a chance too). I also use the PC to play my CDs – I just put them in the drive and use foobar2000.
I’m now looking for a way to get the best sound out of my music source – nothing else. I’m a headphone-user all the way and am a “plug and play” kind of person. When I’ve found a setup that I like, I want to keep it for years and focus on the music itself.
I originally would have gone with the magni/modi combo by shiit but they are currently out of stock in Europe (I live in Germany), and it will probably take them a while to get new items. So now I’m looking for a good alternative when it comes to a DAC/Amp solution.
My main criteria are:
-best soundquality for streaming Tidal etc., and CDs
-great customer service, support, and warranty
-quality production when it comes to the interior (don’t care about a fancy exterior if it’s just for show)
-longevity (!) I want to invest in something that will last me for years and years to come
I know the last point might be kind of problematic in the eyes of some of you since there have been so many gigantic steps in the last couple of years, but I’m just not the type to sell my stuff just to get the latest thing that offers a 5% performance increase.
When it comes to a budget, I don’t really have a limit but common sense tells me that I personally won’t get much more enjoyment out of the music if I were to spend 2000 Euro more on the whole thing. But considering my criteria I think around 1000 for DAC + Amp should be the upper limit, right?
The RME ADI-2 DAC FS seems to be a great choice and my favorite so far, but things like the Topping D90, SMSL SP200, and many other even cheaper units keep popping up and I’ve heard people say that if you combine from those different companies you outperform the RME soudwise or are at least on an equal level.
What do you guys say? Is the RME still a wise choice? Most importantly, what would speak against the buy? Would it be wasting money if I don’t use the rest of the features and just look for the points mentioned above?
I’m mostly concerned with the question “is this the right tool for what I need specifically?”, because – for example - I’ve read about ASIO drivers not working with tidal properly, having to get something like Audirvana and so on!? That would definitiely be another hassle for me – as I said: plug in and enjoy would be ideal (or at least minimal effort, since I’m – let’s face i - an utter idiot when it comes to computers).
although I’ve always been a serious music fan, I started my curiousity for equipment only recently. The reason? I want to change headphones from my ATH-M50x to a pair of Sennheiser HD650s because I want to switch to open back headphones and those sounded great to my ears when I tested them at the store. I’ve also done some “research” and think that they are a great choice at that price point when it comes to my taste. (might also consider looking further into he HiFiMAN Sundara)
However, I can’t drive them with my setup and am in need of amplification.
Here’s how I’ve been listening to music so far: I use my PC to stream Tidal and Spotify (will soon give qobuz and Amazon HD a chance too). I also use the PC to play my CDs – I just put them in the drive and use foobar2000.
I’m now looking for a way to get the best sound out of my music source – nothing else. I’m a headphone-user all the way and am a “plug and play” kind of person. When I’ve found a setup that I like, I want to keep it for years and focus on the music itself.
I originally would have gone with the magni/modi combo by shiit but they are currently out of stock in Europe (I live in Germany), and it will probably take them a while to get new items. So now I’m looking for a good alternative when it comes to a DAC/Amp solution.
My main criteria are:
-best soundquality for streaming Tidal etc., and CDs
-great customer service, support, and warranty
-quality production when it comes to the interior (don’t care about a fancy exterior if it’s just for show)
-longevity (!) I want to invest in something that will last me for years and years to come
I know the last point might be kind of problematic in the eyes of some of you since there have been so many gigantic steps in the last couple of years, but I’m just not the type to sell my stuff just to get the latest thing that offers a 5% performance increase.
When it comes to a budget, I don’t really have a limit but common sense tells me that I personally won’t get much more enjoyment out of the music if I were to spend 2000 Euro more on the whole thing. But considering my criteria I think around 1000 for DAC + Amp should be the upper limit, right?
The RME ADI-2 DAC FS seems to be a great choice and my favorite so far, but things like the Topping D90, SMSL SP200, and many other even cheaper units keep popping up and I’ve heard people say that if you combine from those different companies you outperform the RME soudwise or are at least on an equal level.
What do you guys say? Is the RME still a wise choice? Most importantly, what would speak against the buy? Would it be wasting money if I don’t use the rest of the features and just look for the points mentioned above?
I’m mostly concerned with the question “is this the right tool for what I need specifically?”, because – for example - I’ve read about ASIO drivers not working with tidal properly, having to get something like Audirvana and so on!? That would definitiely be another hassle for me – as I said: plug in and enjoy would be ideal (or at least minimal effort, since I’m – let’s face i - an utter idiot when it comes to computers).
