Looking for a first, cheap AMP

[FRD]

Hi everyone,

Currently I have a pair of AKG K701 headphones, which I really like because of the design. I'm not an audiophile at all, so help me out on this one.

The headphones are currently connected to my Asus ROG B450-F motherboard's soundcard with a 6.3mm to 3.5mm converter cable.

I'm thinking of getting an AMP to get better sound quality and if possible more base (I know there's a base mod out there, but I don't want to modify mine).

My budget is fairly low, I'm looking for a sub $100, preferably around $50 AMP. This low, because audio isn't really my priority and I don't really feel like spending more or the same amount on an AMP as the headphones itself. I just want to try out an AMP and fill the spot on my desk (lol). I prefer the cheapest one to be honest. The only thing it needs to have is a 6.3mm jack, I don't use a mic.

Which options for me are out there?

 

What I found are:

- Behringer U-Phoria UM2

Below $50 shipped. But are they any good for starters?

- Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen/2nd Gen

These sometimes are found secondhand for under $75. New is out of my budget, but considerable.

- Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD

- PreSonus AudioBox iOne

Then probably Ebay/Aliexpress also has cheap AMPs, but I don't know about those and their quality.

[Applefreak]

15 minutes ago, FRD said:

Hi everyone,

Currently I have a pair of AKG K701 headphones, which I really like because of the design. I'm not an audiophile at all, so help me out on this one.

The headphones are currently connected to my Asus ROG B450-F motherboard's soundcard with a 6.3mm to 3.5mm converter cable.

I'm thinking of getting an AMP to get better sound quality and if possible more base (I know there's a base mod out there, but I don't want to modify mine).

My budget is fairly low, I'm looking for a sub $100, preferably around $50 AMP. This low, because audio isn't really my priority and I don't really feel like spending more or the same amount on an AMP as the headphones itself. I just want to try out an AMP and fill the spot on my desk (lol). I prefer the cheapest one to be honest. The only thing it needs to have is a 6.3mm jack, I don't use a mic.

Which options for me are out there?

 

What I found are:

- Behringer U-Phoria UM2

Below $50 shipped. But are they any good for starters?

- Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen/2nd Gen

These sometimes are found secondhand for under $75. New is out of my budget, but considerable.

- Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD

- PreSonus AudioBox iOne

Then probably Ebay/Aliexpress also has cheap AMPs, but I don't know about those and their quality.

If you primarily listen to music on your pc, I would suggest getting a sound card. Your onboard audio will struggle a bit the the 62 Ohms of your headphones. Consider ASUS or creative sound cards, does not need to be super high end either. If you want an external amp, make sure the get one that connects digital to your pc so either via optical link, if your motherboard has one or via USB. 

[FRD]

5 minutes ago, Applefreak said:

If you primarily listen to music on your pc, I would suggest getting a sound card. Your onboard audio will struggle a bit the the 62 Ohms of your headphones. Consider ASUS or creative sound cards, does not need to be super high end either. If you want an external amp, make sure the get one that connects digital to your pc so either via optical link, if your motherboard has one or via USB. 

I use my headphones for music, gaming and video editing. I have checked the Asus and Creative soundcards and there are only a handful with 6.3mm jacks or they are way out of my budget ($200 area). I think I prefer to go external, also because of easier cable handling and I might want to use my extra PCI slot for other expansion cards.

My motherboard does have optical, so that's a good option. USB is fine too, but I pretty much used all my ports for external HDDs.

Let's see what other people have to say. None are recommended from my list?

[Applefreak]

1 minute ago, FRD said:

I use my headphones for music, gaming and video editing. I have checked the Asus and Creative soundcards and there are only a handful with 6.3mm jacks or they are way out of my budget ($200 area). I think I prefer to go external, also because of easier cable handling and I might want to use my extra PCI slot for other expansion cards.

My motherboard does have optical, so that's a good option. USB is fine too, but I pretty much used all my ports for external HDDs.

Let's see what other people have to say. None are recommended from my list?

I use my headphones with a 6.3 to 3.5 adapter just fine. There is no need to need to look for a device with a larger port.

[FRD]

3 minutes ago, Applefreak said:

I use my headphones with a 6.3 to 3.5 adapter just fine. There is no need to need to look for a device with a larger port.

I see, then I have more options indeed.

By the way, when looking at a soundcard, do I really only need to look for the ones with 2.0 sound? Or are 5.1 and 7.1 also possible?

[Ahoy Hoy]

Your just wasting your money.
Your not going to improve your audio by anything meaningful with a amp especial at such a low price point.

[geo3]

For around $100 I'd go for either a Schiit Fulla or Fiio K3. If you don't need mic in then the Fiio is the better choice. Both are DAC/AMPs, a "sound card".... , and are a huge step up over on board.  For less I don't think there are many quality options. $100 is sort of a sweet spot for these class devices. 

[H713]

Agreed, $100 is kind of the "minimum viable" for a good amp and DAC. Some of the lower-cost audio interfaces are OK (the Behringer UMC202 comes to mind), though the headphone amps in them are nothing to write home about. Should do OK with those headphones, however, so you may consider it.

 

You may find it worth it for the analog volume control if you find PC volume control to be annoying. 

[FRD]

16 hours ago, geo3 said:

For around $100 I'd go for either a Schiit Fulla or Fiio K3. If you don't need mic in then the Fiio is the better choice. Both are DAC/AMPs, a "sound card".... , and are a huge step up over on board.  For less I don't think there are many quality options. $100 is sort of a sweet spot for these class devices. 

Thanks, I didn't know about those yet. Like I mentioned before I also heard/read that the Focus Scarlett Solos are very well reviewed. I will keep that in mind, of course I need to have noticable difference or else it's not worth the money.

12 hours ago, H713 said:

Agreed, $100 is kind of the "minimum viable" for a good amp and DAC. Some of the lower-cost audio interfaces are OK (the Behringer UMC202 comes to mind), though the headphone amps in them are nothing to write home about. Should do OK with those headphones, however, so you may consider it.

 

You may find it worth it for the analog volume control if you find PC volume control to be annoying. 

That one seems affordable, but as you say I can't expect too much from the AMP at that price I think.
I do like the analog volume control, but what I kind of dislike is having the digital slider+analog knob for volume control, which I would have to balance out to be user-friendly, at least that's how I see it.

[NinJake]

6 hours ago, FRD said:

but what I kind of dislike is having the digital slider+analog knob for volume control

If you mean the operating system's volume control... Keep that at 100 and adjust the knobs on your physical device accordingly.

[TheRandomness]

The Scarlett Solo and the UM2 are both audio interfaces rather than amps alone. Meaning, it's about $50 for a mic preamp, DAC/ADC and amp all in that price. Can be thought of having a $17 amp if the funds were all divided equally among the different components.

 

If you are willing, Schiit has the Magni 3+ or Heresy (pick whichever makes you feel happy tbh, both are $99, the differences are colours and some numbers that you most likely cannot hear anyway) and they are benchmark amps at that price point. You can connect to them using a 3.5mm to 2x RCA from the line out on your motherboard.

 

Out of all currently suggested I agree with @geo3 the most, though if anything I'd recommend just saving up to get something you wont need to replace ever, basically. I lean away from sound cards because of some grudges against electronic noise you'll find present in a PC.

[FRD]

10 minutes ago, TheRandomness said:

The Scarlett Solo and the UM2 are both audio interfaces rather than amps alone. Meaning, it's about $50 for a mic preamp, DAC/ADC and amp all in that price. Can be thought of having a $17 amp if the funds were all divided equally among the different components.

 

If you are willing, Schiit has the Magni 3+ or Heresy (pick whichever makes you feel happy tbh, both are $99, the differences are colours and some numbers that you most likely cannot hear anyway) and they are benchmark amps at that price point. You can connect to them using a 3.5mm to 2x RCA from the line out on your motherboard.

 

Out of all currently suggested I agree with @geo3 the most, though if anything I'd recommend just saving up to get something you wont need to replace ever, basically. I lean away from sound cards because of some grudges against electronic noise you'll find present in a PC.

Thanks for the good suggestions as well. I've got quite a few options now, I will just go over them and see which fits my preference. In this case it might be better to spend more have for a lifetime than have cheap and wanting to upgrade shortly after.

I'm actually not a big fan of those internal soundcards, they are not always that good, I prefer an external AMP instead for that reason too. As for the electronic noise, I experience it with my current PC with my headphones connected to the motherboard. This is only sometimes though, other days it works perfectly fine. On my past PC build I never had the electronic issue. Could be my motherboard, but I don't think it's defective or something. At least with an external AMP I will be sure that noise is gone and I get more out of my headphones.

[Skielum]

You can try going for Fiio BTR5, save up then buy a better amp of your choice. BTR5 is my all around DAC/Amp when outside since it's small and it can drive my HD6xx pretty easily, the DAC also helps out with my shitty laptop.

[FRD]

8 hours ago, Skielum said:

You can try going for Fiio BTR5, save up then buy a better amp of your choice. BTR5 is my all around DAC/Amp when outside since it's small and it can drive my HD6xx pretty easily, the DAC also helps out with my shitty laptop.

I have checked it out. I'm sure it must be a good amp, but it's bluetooth and portable, not exactly what I am looking for as I just want an amp that I put on my desk. It's a great solution though if you need something small. The one you mentioned costs like $120, so I think it's better to actually straight go for the amp I need for a long time.

[Ahoy Hoy]

Going to say it again. You are wasting your money

A amp will increase power to allow the headphones to go louder. If what ever you currently are using is loud enough you will not be doing anything.

Spending a hundred pounds dollars euros yen what ever on extra audio equipment for what is "cheap" headphones is pointless just get better headphones if you want a better audio experience. Headphones worth 200 will be better audio quality then $100 headphone and a 100 dollar amp. 

You $50 budget is pointless there is nothing in that budget range which will do anything to improve your audio if anything it may be worse.
 

- Behringer U-Phoria UM2                                     Terrible audio outputs, will probably increase background noise compared to a decent computer.

- Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen/2nd Gen           Probably not noticably better then your computer. Your spending most the money on the inputs which your not even using       

- Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD                         Everything Creative makes is shit.

- PreSonus AudioBox iOne                                   Worse then the Focusrite in every way

 

If all your after is a knob to control audio just get a volume knob. Google search computer volume knob and there is loads of cheap USB things which don't affect audio quality but give volume control.

[CTR640]

Looking for a first cheap amp? Well, you're probably limiting yourself.

There are some good options out there:

 

Fiio E10K. This one is as good as an onboard audio on your motherboard. But it can drive difficult headphones louder than mobo audio.

Fiio K5 Pro. A nice dac/amp combo in one with a 6.3mm. It can drive any headphone without any issue but it's a bit expensive but if you're looking for one to use for many of years, this is  a very good one.

iFi ZEN CAN, idem dito to the K5 Pro.

 

If going for E10K, then there are a shitton of 6.3mm to 3.5mm adapters. If audio is not a priority, then stick to onboard audio and current headphone and call it a day. A $50 amp will probably sound horrible compared to your mobo audio.

[FRD]

4 hours ago, Ahoy Hoy said:

Going to say it again. You are wasting your money

A amp will increase power to allow the headphones to go louder. If what ever you currently are using is loud enough you will not be doing anything.

Spending a hundred pounds dollars euros yen what ever on extra audio equipment for what is "cheap" headphones is pointless just get better headphones if you want a better audio experience. Headphones worth 200 will be better audio quality then $100 headphone and a 100 dollar amp. 

You $50 budget is pointless there is nothing in that budget range which will do anything to improve your audio if anything it may be worse.
 

- Behringer U-Phoria UM2                                     Terrible audio outputs, will probably increase background noise compared to a decent computer.

- Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen/2nd Gen           Probably not noticably better then your computer. Your spending most the money on the inputs which your not even using       

- Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD                         Everything Creative makes is shit.

- PreSonus AudioBox iOne                                   Worse then the Focusrite in every way

 

If all your after is a knob to control audio just get a volume knob. Google search computer volume knob and there is loads of cheap USB things which don't affect audio quality but give volume control.

Alright, that's clear for me now.

I personally think my current headphones are loud enough. I use them between 20-50% volume in Windows. I ever tried 100% and it's loud enough, just of course not as loud as when I tried it on an actual amplifier.

Of course upgrading my headphones is always a future option too than just getting an amp. The AKG K701 is quite a popular enthusiast reference headphone, I didn't buy it for that exact reason. If I would buy an expensive amp now, I would prefer to use it with my new headphones in the future too. Right now I'm not comfortable yet spending more than my headphones for an amp, which is about $130.

Sorry for being still a newbie in amplifiers. I won't go for any of the cheap amps. Either I will get a good expensive amp or I will go on using what I have right now, the onboard sound is not that bad. Just sometimes light buzzing noise can occur, not always though. Never knew those USB volume knobs existed, but that also seems a waste of money to me.

4 hours ago, CTR640 said:

Looking for a first cheap amp? Well, you're probably limiting yourself.

There are some good options out there:

 

Fiio E10K. This one is as good as an onboard audio on your motherboard. But it can drive difficult headphones louder than mobo audio.

Fiio K5 Pro. A nice dac/amp combo in one with a 6.3mm. It can drive any headphone without any issue but it's a bit expensive but if you're looking for one to use for many of years, this is  a very good one.

iFi ZEN CAN, idem dito to the K5 Pro.

 

If going for E10K, then there are a shitton of 6.3mm to 3.5mm adapters. If audio is not a priority, then stick to onboard audio and current headphone and call it a day. A $50 amp will probably sound horrible compared to your mobo audio.

Nice suggestions, some new ones than before. In my case I would have to start from the K5 Pro, if not get the ZEN CAN. Like others said I think it's better for me to save up then just gamble with a cheap amp and upgrade later. Better to be set for the next few years. I won't go for a $50 amp, thanks.

[geo3]

On 3/13/2021 at 8:39 AM, Ahoy Hoy said:

A amp will increase power to allow the headphones to go louder. If what ever you currently are using is loud enough you will not be doing anything.

This is simply not correct. 

[Ahoy Hoy]

2 hours ago, geo3 said:

This is simply not correct. 

Is kind of the definition of a amplifier.
And with the cost of making a amplifier with a reasonably flat amplification and enough power for 2mW at 30 to 80 ohms means most modern electronic devices have reasonably good amplifiers without putting a extra cost on manufactures which work well with most headphones. 

[geo3]

5 hours ago, Ahoy Hoy said:

Is kind of the definition of a amplifier.
And with the cost of making a amplifier with a reasonably flat amplification and enough power for 2mW at 30 to 80 ohms means most modern electronic devices have reasonably good amplifiers without putting a extra cost on manufactures which work well with most headphones. 

An underpowered amp will manifest in other ways that just  "not loud"