DAC for speakers and headphones?

[anangrylady]

Hey guys, first time posting on here and complete audio noob. 

I was just curious, I was looking at the Fiio E10k and was wondering if it would work for both speakers and headphones at the same time?

 

I quite often switch between using speakers and headphones and don't want to mess around with plugging in and unplugging things too much

[Vacsol]

yes, the FiiO E10K has a headphone output as well as a line-out and coax for speakers.

[ESPclipse]

That little headphone amp will not "power" speakers though - it isn't powerful enough. Unless the speakers you use are already amplified, you will need a speaker amplifier. If you are just using prototypical desktop speakers or something of the like, then you can use the FiiO E10K as a line-out DAC (just no amplifier) as Vacsol suggests.

 

All of this being said, there are ways to set up your audio setup so you do not have to unplug anything to change audio sources. I know because I switch between two DACs and onboard audio regularly, all without unplugging anything. This will, unfortunately, involve using a new audio source (i.e. the FiiO E10K or any other DAC), so if you are hell-bent on upgrading to a DAC-amp combo, go ahead. If you are using a version of Windows > Windows XP, you can select an audio source via the "Sound" program menu native to Windows. From here, you can set a audio device, which is key to the setup. Plug the speakers in to an onboard audio line out, and set this line out to be the default audio source in the Sound menu. Then plug in a new audio source (DAC), install drivers and so on, and the DAC will appear as a new audio source. If you want sound from the E10K for headphones, just open the Sound menu and set it as the default audio source and you will then get sound from it, without unplugging anything. In short, all you have to do is switch between audio sources in the Sound menu by setting the default sound source to the device you want to listen to. At least this is what I do. Hope it helps

[anangrylady]

Oh awesome, thanks so much!