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Considering diving in: amp vs amp/DAC question

ishouldbeking

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Oct 8, 2019
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Hi all. Long time reader, first time caller. I've been dabbling with headphones for years without taking the plunge into dedicated headphone amps or DACs, but as I start to consider more power hungry cans, I'm thinking it might be time to upgrade my source. I'm familiar with the various brands and options, but I'm really trying to decide whether I even need a DAC at this point.

Here's a quick rundown of my current home office setup: I use a pair of 80 ohm Beyerdynamic DT770's out of the headphone jack of an Anker dock, which connects to a Lenovo Thinkpad yoga. The thinkpad's headphone jack is anemic, so I pretty much stick to the Anker's 3.5 mm jack, which is louder but still only barely powers the Beyers. Additional considerations: I don't have much desk space, so an all-in-one is appealing. And ideally I'd like to use whatever gear I get as a springboard (and justification) for getting a nicer set of headphones. Maybe Sennheiser 6xx to start, and something like an Audeze LCD2 or an open-back ZMF down the line. (A man can dream.)

At the moment I'm considering one of two basic paths: (1) amp/DAC options like the Fiio K5 Pro (appealing all-in-one design and price point) or the newer Schiit Asgard 3 (with the optional DAC card, seems intriguing for $299) or (2) just getting a headphone amp, like a JDS Atom (sounds great on paper, despite plastic build) or any of the other dozens of viable amp options.

Question time. Given my setup and goals:
1. Do I even need a DAC at this point?
2. How would you be thinking about this upgrade process if you were in my shoes?
 
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