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Suggestions for Dac/Amp for HD800S

The Torrent

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Looking for an amp. No budget but want to spend ideally less than 400.. Headphones i will mainly use it with are HD800S and i dont want tube as i plan on getting an Arya at some point in the future and also i dont think tubes and me will work because i like to leave electronics on a lot and the idea of replacing tubes i dont like.

I currently have an RME Fireface 800 and heres the problem - Can't tell the difference between the monitor out on this and anything - a laptop, onboard on my desktop, an ipad, my phone. I did a load of blind tests and theres just very slight difference, and i feel like those may be down to negative issues such as high impendance output it has which may be making the HD800S warmer which i actually prefer. Anyway, if i cant tell much difference between these, it probably means dacs are not too important to my ears. I'm also thinking maybe the built in amp is just bad in the RME am unsure though.

So I'm not able to test amps myself unfortunately so i am curious whether a sub 400 quid amp will have any decent of an impact.

I've been looking at stuff like the Asguard 3, Schiit stack and Atom Stack. I also considered the ADI-2 FS, however i have a few issues with it such as firstly i would for that price want something with an input (such as the adi 2 pro) but that has a lesser dac so i crossed that off. Secondly, i heard it gets extremely hot idle and i leave electronics on a lot. There is also the Element 2 which im told is a less warm Asguard 3, but warmth isn't too much of an issue to me as i can tune it with Equaliser APO and i do like the look of it. But am concerned i wont tell the difference between it and other stuff. I can buy stuff to demo and then return ofcourse but then must bare delivery costs so i want to be sure before i order anything to return it.

Any other suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 

RayDunzl

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From the Fireface 800 manual:

https://archiv.rme-audio.de/download/fface800_e.pdf

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Seems capable enough to me.

If you can't tell the difference between that and a phone, well, ???
 
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LTig

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I also considered the ADI-2 FS, however i have a few issues with it such as firstly i would for that price want something with an input (such as the adi 2 pro) but that has a lesser dac so i crossed that off.
This is quite a statement. Especially from someone who can't differentiate between a very good DAC and a phone.:facepalm: However you're surely not the only one who fails here ... count me in as well.;)
Any other suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Keep your equipment, a better DAC or amp won't bring you better sound. Think about EQing the HD800S though.
 

LTig

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People say the HD800S is extremely amp picky though, even though its capable wont the actual amp make a large different to it??
I'd say this is an urban myth. The HD800s is easy to drive, even my smartphone can feed it without problems (I own the HD800 and a Samsung S5 neo) but not to very loud SPL of course.
 
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The Torrent

The Torrent

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This is quite a statement. Especially from someone who can't differentiate between a very good DAC and a phone.:facepalm: However you're surely not the only one who fails here ... count me in as well.;)
I agree but if im paying that much money i at least want to sit there and thing
'i have the best dac money can buy' lol. I just dont like the idea of throwing money at something lesser even if i cant tell, its lesser and costs more money - thats a deal breaker for me.
 
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Ron Texas

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So many good headphone amps with outstanding measurements have been tested here that I don't know where to start. Set a budget and then shop by features. My preference is for a single box DAC/Headphone amp in a compact package to fit on a night table.
 
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The Torrent

The Torrent

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So many good headphone amps with outstanding measurements have been tested here that I don't know where to start. Set a budget and then shop by features. My preference is for a single box DAC/Headphone amp in a compact package to fit on a night table.
I might just go for Element 2 then it seems to tick all the boxes, you guys are the first lot ive seen that i actually seem to reveal that theres not a whole lot difference sound wise between different amps even if they are HD800S and i was told you guys where measurement fascists lol.

Keep your equipment, a better DAC or amp won't bring you better sound. Think about EQing the HD800S though.

I do need to get some sort of amp though because im currently just using onboard which tbh does work fine but i dont like how the cables run and i would rather get a legit knob to use, but ok then i might skip spending more than the Element 2 and start saving up for my next set of headphones or something.

Also do you think digital EQ on your computer is good enough? I see a lot of people prefering actual physical units for EQing is this just rubbish or is there actually a difference? I use Equalizer APO right now with mostly Oratory's Harman Target EQ.
 

M00ndancer

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Also do you think digital EQ on your computer is good enough? I see a lot of people prefering actual physical units for EQing is this just rubbish or is there actually a difference? I use Equalizer APO right now with mostly Oratory's Harman Target EQ.

Don't worry, the APO is very good. Since I don't know a lot about physical EQ, I can't pass judgement but I have an opinion about it.

In your case, software trumps hardware easily. Unless I see measurements that says something else my opinion stands. You also have a higher flexibility using software based EQ. The list is longer than I have the energy to type tonight.

"people prefering actual physical units for EQing" - even if the hardware EQ have the same low distortion and measures as good as the Element II (I find it very unlikely), there is another reason for wanting a physical EQ. Physical buttons and sliders, different ergonomics, looks and feel.
 

maverickronin

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Also do you think digital EQ on your computer is good enough? I see a lot of people prefering actual physical units for EQing is this just rubbish or is there actually a difference? I use Equalizer APO right now with mostly Oratory's Harman Target EQ.

Mathematically at least, software EQ is just as good if not better, than any hardware you can buy. There would be a couple different reasons to go with hardware EQ even if a computer is your primary source. Hardware EQ will never have latency or dropout issues that computer based DSP may suffer from under multitasking. They're also useful if you want to EQ a secondary source.

If you're already playing everything off your PC and and not having any problems with EQAPO then there's not really any reason to switch.
 
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The Torrent

The Torrent

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I can get a modius and magnius stack for about the same price as an Element 2, how do these compare?
 

maverickronin

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I can get a modius and magnius stack for about the same price as an Element 2, how do these compare?

The Schiit stack is ideal for low efficiency headphones using the Magnius's balanced headout. If you are staying singled ended the Element 2 will outperform it.
 
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