M-Audio AV40 beginner setup

[nekit14]

Hi guys,

 

I am new to this forum and to audio setups and having browsed these forums for the past couple of days and feel like I might get some decent advice here. 

 

I am by no means an audiophile but I noticed a significant audio quality increase having purchased a set of M-Audio AV40 monitors and paired it with Asus Xonar Essence STs and had no complaints. My only problem now is having upgraded my rig, my new motherboard no longer supports the Essence ST (there is simply no free slots left). I've browsed the youtube and forums for a few days and got a general understanding of what a DAC and Amp is and if I get it right purchasing an external DAC to pair with AV40s should replace the Essence ST? In addition to the setup I have now, I would also like to buy a decent set of headphones to use when I can't use the monitors. My overall budget to cover DAC + amp (if recommended) + headphones is about €400 - €500.

 

Now to the questions.

1. Apparently AV40 have internal Amp so just adding the DAC should complete this setup am I right?

2. I presume for a decent set of starter headphones I might need a separate Amp?

3. Are there any reasonable DAC/Amp combos that I could purchase to use both with the headphones and AV40s?

4. Can I connect my AV40s into the DAC/Amp combo in point 3 above and will the presence of 2 Amps cause any potential issues?

5. Finally to someone who knows nothing about audio but want to get started in it, could you recommend a good set of headphones / DAC / Amp within around €500?

 

Cheers, any advice is much appreciated!

[Monstieur]

There is no audible difference between onboard audio and any snakeoil DAC when using powered monitors. If you need a headphone amp, buy the ARC Mk2 DAC + AMP which can drive any headphone and also has a line out for powered monitors.

[Derkoli]

42 minutes ago, Monstieur said:

There is no audible difference between onboard audio and any snakeoil DAC when using powered monitors. If you need a headphone amp, buy the ARC Mk2 DAC + AMP which can drive any headphone and also has a line out for powered monitors.

Since when were external DAC's snake oil?

[nekit14]

1 hour ago, Monstieur said:

There is no audible difference between onboard audio and any snakeoil DAC when using powered monitors. If you need a headphone amp, buy the ARC Mk2 DAC + AMP which can drive any headphone and also has a line out for powered monitors.

Thanks, I will definitely check the ARC Mk2 out.

So just to clarify, are you saying that:

 

1. regardless of whether it is a built-in motherboard DAC or extenal DAC, there won't be any noticeable difference in case of my AV40 monitors? In this case is there anyway to improve their current audio performance (clarity / sound qualify) by any other means other than DAC?

 

2. You would only recommend a set of DAC + AMP in case of using decent headphones? In this case 2 follow up questions, would you be able to recommend a decent set of headphones to utilise the maximum potential of the Amp/DAC you have suggested and secondly if I do end up plugging my AV40s into the suggested AMP/DAC combo, could there be any issues with there being and internal and external amp's used at once or would they supplement one another?

 

Cheers

[Monstieur]

5 hours ago, Derkoli said:

Since when were external DAC's snake oil?

For line out to high impedance powered monitors, the onboard DAC is probably transparent.

4 hours ago, nekit14 said:

Thanks, I will definitely check the ARC Mk2 out.

So just to clarify, are you saying that:

 

1. regardless of whether it is a built-in motherboard DAC or extenal DAC, there won't be any noticeable difference in case of my AV40 monitors? In this case is there anyway to improve their current audio performance (clarity / sound qualify) by any other means other than DAC?

 

2. You would only recommend a set of DAC + AMP in case of using decent headphones? In this case 2 follow up questions, would you be able to recommend a decent set of headphones to utilise the maximum potential of the Amp/DAC you have suggested and secondly if I do end up plugging my AV40s into the suggested AMP/DAC combo, could there be any issues with there being and internal and external amp's used at once or would they supplement one another?

 

Cheers

Room correction for speakers is mandatory or your “monitor” is not a monitor. It’s a random speaker in a random room with an unknown frequency response. You can get a hardware unit like MiniDSP’s Dirac series, or PC software like Dirac Live or Sonarworks Reference.

 

Your speakers are not full range. I would personally invest in a subwoofer as well. You can get room correction for cheap by buying an old AV receiver with Audyssey MultEQ XT32.

 

Your headphones should be full range as well. Something like the Audeze LCD-2 with the Reveal+ plugin for response correction is great. Headphones also require correction like speakers. Sonarworks has correction profiles for other headphones. Don’t get conned by recommendations of Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, etc. Those are not full range headphones and do not produce bass down to 20 Hz without distortion.

 

The line out on the ARC Mk2 is designed for powered monitors so you can switch between headphones and speakers.