How to hook up all?

[VictorD]

What I currently have:
Motu M4 audio interface
Topping A90D headphone amp
TV (LG C1 55)
Sony Playstation 5
PC
SHURE MV7
Hifiman Edition XS
Meze 109 Pro

What I potentially need to complete my setup:
Power amp
DAC
Desktop speakers
Monitors (maybe)

So what is my current connection:
PS5 to TV - HDMI cable
TV to PC - HDMI cable
TV out 3.5mm jack to Motu M4 TRS in
PC to Motu M4 - usb c
Motu M4 Monitor out (TRS) to Topping A90D (XLR) - balanced - the reason why I connected to Motu M4 Monitor out is because if I just use Line out I do get sound out when connected to the PC, but not when connected to the TV (sometimes I just watch YT or play on my PS5 and don't need the PC to be the source of the sound) and the beauty of Motu M4 is that you can just turn on the Input Monitor Mix 3-4 on the front I/O and turn the knob all the way down to Input.
Shure MV7 to Motu M4 - XLR

Apologies for the long thread, but now I am going to my actual question. Do I need a separate DAC? If I do, I will also need a power amp and speakers and I am totally confused how would I make the whole system work together flawlessly.

I understand the basics, the power amp would need to be connected to the Topping A90D XLR outputs (or RCA). But going back to the DAC...how do I connect the DAC to the Motu M4...I really want to utilise the LCD screen of the Motu M4...

I am also interested in some recommendations for the above. Budget, but still great sounding.

 

[AnalogSteph]

You are already getting hung up on the how when it is not even clear what it is that you need to achieve. Please give us some estimates for
* listening distance to be covered
* whether you are a quiet / normal / loud listener
* approximate budget in local currency ("Budget, but still great sounding" is the most wishy-washy spec ever, sorry)
and
* applicable musical style or aesthetic preferences, if any
* perhaps some information on what the room is like in terms of materials and acoustics.

You have to have the PC running just to have sound when playing on the PS5 - isn't that kind of annoying and wasteful (do you know how much power the PC draws doing so)? I would consider complementing the A90D with its companion Ext90 (even if that isn't particularly cheap) in order to rectify this.

TV out 3.5mm jack to Motu M4 TRS in

I am assuming this means a splitter cable 3.5 mm stereo to 2x TS? (Otherwise I'm sure you would have noticed the wonky sound...) I still don't like the ground loop this entails and would recommend e.g. a Behringer HD400 and two TRS / TRS cables. The latter would be the only thing to be swapped out for some TRS to XLR male when switching to the Ext90.

Given your existing equipment, you're obviously not exactly starving. What do you think of, say, a pair of Neumann KH120 IIs (or if those are too small, KH150s) plus MA-1 plus required stands / XLR cables? The speakers are commonly available in grey and white, though perhaps not everywhere.

 

[VictorD]

You are already getting hung up on the how when it is not even clear what it is that you need to achieve. Please give us some estimates for
* listening distance to be covered
* whether you are a quiet / normal / loud listener
* approximate budget in local currency ("Budget, but still great sounding" is the most wishy-washy spec ever, sorry)
and
* applicable musical style or aesthetic preferences, if any
* perhaps some information on what the room is like in terms of materials and acoustics.

You have to have the PC running just to have sound when playing on the PS5 - isn't that kind of annoying and wasteful (do you know how much power the PC draws doing so)? I would consider complementing the A90D with its companion Ext90 (even if that isn't particularly cheap) in order to rectify this.

I am assuming this means a splitter cable 3.5 mm stereo to 2x TS? (Otherwise I'm sure you would have noticed the wonky sound...) I still don't like the ground loop this entails and would recommend e.g. a Behringer HD400 and two TRS / TRS cables. The latter would be the only thing to be swapped out for some TRS to XLR male when switching to the Ext90.

Given your existing equipment, you're obviously not exactly starving. What do you think of, say, a pair of Neumann KH120 IIs (or if those are too small, KH150s) plus MA-1 plus required stands / XLR cables? The speakers are commonly available in grey and white, though perhaps not everywhere.

Hi, thanks for the reply. My answers below:
* listening distance is about 2 metres
* normal to loud listener
* max £200 DAC, max £200 speakers, max £200 amp
* hmm that's quite hard to answer but I will give it a try - mainly house music, followed by dance, retro and the list goes on. However I mainly watch YT and Netflix.
* my room is quite small - 3.5 x 3.5m

My PC is not running since I have enabled USB power in BIOS, so no need for the PC to be on to power the Audio Interface.

It is a splitter cable 3.5mm stereo to 2 x TS.

Thank you for the recommendations. I do not use speakers quite often, I've always been a headphone guy so I would rather start with something more budget as mentioned above (£200).