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What DAC/AMP to buy

Pkron17

Hi! I am going to buy the 250 ohm version of the Beyerdynamic DT990 Premiums. I know that the built in sound on my Asus X99 Deluxe motherboard won't be able to use the headphones to their fullest extent, so I need a DAC/AMP combo that can run them. I am willing to spend a maximum of around $200-250 USD, so anything in that price range is fine, but lower is even better. Thanks for your help!

-Pkron17

CPU: i7 5820k      GPU: MSI GTX 980 Gaming 4g      MOBO: Asus X99-Deluxe      RAM: 16 GB G.Skill Ripjaws DDR4 2400      CPU Cooler: Corsiar H100i      PSU: Corsair HX850      Storage: 1 TB WD Blue & 512 GB Crucial MX100      

OS: Windows 8.1 64 bit

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Fiio E10k does a good job (it's what i use for my DT990's - check my sig)

Shot through the heart and you're to blame, 30fps and i'll pirate your game - Bon Jovi

Take me down to the console city where the games are blurry and the frames are thirty - Guns N' Roses

Arguing with religious people is like explaining to your mother that online games can't be paused...

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Fiio E10k does a good job (it's what i use for my DT990's - check my sig)

That's the exact same setup that I use

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Does not matter at all.... lol in my opinoin, I used hundred differences are minor on can (in my opinoin, since part sourcing is the same on the same price range0

Kevin Jin

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If oyu are getting Fiio though, you can actually get it lie 25% cheaper in asian online dealers especially in hong kong, 

Kevin Jin

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I know that the built in sound on my Asus X99 Deluxe motherboard won't be able to use the headphones to their fullest extent, so I need a DAC/AMP combo that can run them. 

how u no dis?

 

200 to 250 for an amp is way more than you need. O2 amp is what, 120?

In Placebo We Trust - Resident Obnoxious Objective Fangirl (R.O.O.F) - Your Eyes Cannot Hear
Haswell Overclocking Guide | Skylake Overclocking GuideCan my amp power my headphones?

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I know that the built in sound on my Asus X99 Deluxe motherboard won't be able to use the headphones to their fullest extent

 

Do you? Do you really know that? What does that even mean?

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250 ohm's DT990's run more than fine on my motherboard, i don't even pass 50% of the volume because it won't be comfortable to listen to at that point. And my motherboard is a low range board, especially compared to yours.

 

As far as i was told, spending the same amount of money on a DAC/amp as you did on your headphones is a waste. With the saved money you could have gotten higher range headphones, and you'd probably enjoy them more.

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250 ohm's DT990's run more than fine on my motherboard, i don't even pass 50% of the volume because it won't be comfortable to listen to at that point. And my motherboard is a low range board, especially compared to yours.

 

As far as i was told, spending the same amount of money on a DAC/amp as you did on your headphones is a waste. With the saved money you could have gotten higher range headphones, and you'd probably enjoy them more.

 

Precisely. Doubling the budget of a DT990 puts the OP into the HE-400i territory.

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Do you? Do you really know that? What does that even mean?

I like loud music. I want to be able to blast music and my motherboard cannot drive 250 ohms

-Pkron17

CPU: i7 5820k      GPU: MSI GTX 980 Gaming 4g      MOBO: Asus X99-Deluxe      RAM: 16 GB G.Skill Ripjaws DDR4 2400      CPU Cooler: Corsiar H100i      PSU: Corsair HX850      Storage: 1 TB WD Blue & 512 GB Crucial MX100      

OS: Windows 8.1 64 bit

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Precisely. Doubling the budget of a DT990 puts the OP into the HE-400i territory.

So should I not get a DAC/AMP or should I get the fiio ek10?

-Pkron17

CPU: i7 5820k      GPU: MSI GTX 980 Gaming 4g      MOBO: Asus X99-Deluxe      RAM: 16 GB G.Skill Ripjaws DDR4 2400      CPU Cooler: Corsiar H100i      PSU: Corsair HX850      Storage: 1 TB WD Blue & 512 GB Crucial MX100      

OS: Windows 8.1 64 bit

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I like loud music. I want to be able to blast music and my motherboard cannot drive 250 ohms

Doesn't it make more sense to buy the headphones and see if the audio can get loud enough for your tastes first?

In Placebo We Trust - Resident Obnoxious Objective Fangirl (R.O.O.F) - Your Eyes Cannot Hear
Haswell Overclocking Guide | Skylake Overclocking GuideCan my amp power my headphones?

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I like loud music. I want to be able to blast music and my motherboard cannot drive 250 ohms

Most likely it'll be enough x99 deluxe has a strong onboard power. Unless you need to crank the volume to 95-100% to get the audible volume, i dont think you'd need to get an amp

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I like loud music. I want to be able to blast music and my motherboard cannot drive 250 ohms

 

Hope you like premature deafness as well.

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Hope you like premature deafness as well.

Haha. Do the DT990s get that loud.

-Pkron17

CPU: i7 5820k      GPU: MSI GTX 980 Gaming 4g      MOBO: Asus X99-Deluxe      RAM: 16 GB G.Skill Ripjaws DDR4 2400      CPU Cooler: Corsiar H100i      PSU: Corsair HX850      Storage: 1 TB WD Blue & 512 GB Crucial MX100      

OS: Windows 8.1 64 bit

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 my motherboard cannot drive 250 ohms

 

What they were asking is really simple: how do you know that? Have you tried it personally? Or just because some random guy on some random audio site says so?

 

But yeah, in the end it's your money tho. 

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To add to the above, 110dB is roughly the same loudness as a running chainsaw at 1m from your ears. 120dB is roughly the same as watching a rock concert 4-6 feet in front of the speakers. 

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Hi! I am going to buy the 250 ohm version of the Beyerdynamic DT990 Premiums. I know that the built in sound on my Asus X99 Deluxe motherboard won't be able to use the headphones to their fullest extent, so I need a DAC/AMP combo that can run them. I am willing to spend a maximum of around $200-250 USD, so anything in that price range is fine, but lower is even better. Thanks for your help!

I wudd recommend the d1 dac from audioengine it is small runs on usb power is a dac/amp can power cans up to 300ohms can take hits and pretty balanced also 180 dollars usd

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Motherboard-Asus Maximus VI Formula    Graphics-Asus Gtx 780 Ti x2     CPU Cooler-Corsair H100i               SSDs-Corsair Force GS 128/360 Gb       

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I wudd recommend the d1 dac from audioengine it is small runs on usb power is a dac/amp can power cans up to 300ohms can take hits and pretty balanced also 180 dollars usd

 

'can power cans up to X ohms' got little to nothing to do in real world. Impedance is just a fraction of a factor of how hard a headphone to be driven.

 

The Hifiman HE-6, which is only 50 ohms, needs approximately 17.88x the power needed by DT990 250 ohms, to drive it to the same 110dB. 

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'can power cans up to X ohms' got little to nothing to do in real world. Impedance is just a fraction of a factor of how hard a headphone to be driven.

 

The Hifiman HE-6, which is only 50 ohms, needs approximately 17.88x the power needed by DT990 250 ohms, to drive it to the same 110dB.

that's cool guy don't care

System Specs~~~~~

Case-Corsair Air 540                                   CPU-i7 4770k                           Ram-Corsair Vengeance 16 Gbs    PSU-Corsair RM1000

Motherboard-Asus Maximus VI Formula    Graphics-Asus Gtx 780 Ti x2     CPU Cooler-Corsair H100i               SSDs-Corsair Force GS 128/360 Gb       

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My DT990s at 100% volume sound like speakers you can hear them on a different floor... You won't need a amp well most likely not.

CPU: i7 5820k @4.4GHz | MoboMSI MPower X99A | RAM: 16GB DDR4 Quad Channel Corsair LP | GPU: EVGA 1080 FTW Case: Define R5 Black Window | OS: Win 10 Pro

Storage: SanDisk Ultra II 960GB 2x WD Red 4TB | PSU: EVGA 750W G2 | Display:Acer XF270HU + Dell U2515H | Cooling: Phanteks PH-TC14PE

Keyboard: Ducky One  TKL Browns | Mouse: Steel Series Rival 300 | Sound: DT990s

 

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