what amp should i get?

[pagani123]

i want a headphone amp but im not sure what to get. tube? solid state? can anyone direct me to a good one probably have $300 max budget.  

[Arty]

Do you even need one.

 

Tubes sound great,  but are costly.

[_ASSASSIN_]

Tubes are expensive, burn out, and need to be replaced every 1-2 years. However they do provide a warmer sound and can have different tubes used to customize the sound. 
But you can just use a DSP to tweak your sound settings... 

Solid state amps are just a 1 time purchase.

[Guest Kloaked]

Yeah, question is do you even need one

[_JohnB330ci]

Yeah, question is do you even need one

No, the question is what amp should he get, if he feels he needs one then that is something he decides on his own.

 

And for my input, if you're an audiophile you need to go Tube Amp, however as said above they need parts replacing every few years but sound the best out of them all but that comes at the higher price, if you don't need the audio of a Tube Amp then go for a Solid state amp, I don't have any advice on which to buy however.

[Wander Away]

Amps are not really needed unless you have a pair of high impedance headphones. If you can listen to everything with a reasonable volume, you really don't need one. 

[SSL]

i want a headphone amp but im not sure what to get. tube? solid state? can anyone direct me to a good one probably have $300 max budget.

 

First, lets talk about some important things to work out first.

• What is your budget.
• Why do you want (or think you need) an amp.
• What headphone(s) will you be driving from the amp.
• Do you have (or want) a DAC.
• What other features might you want (pre-outs, etc).

No, the question is what amp should he get, if he feels he needs one then that is something he decides on his own.

And for my input, if you're an audiophile you need to go Tube Amp, however as said above they need parts replacing every few years but sound the best out of them all but that comes at the higher price, if you don't need the audio of a Tube Amp then go for a Solid state amp, I don't have any advice on which to buy however.

 

Oh Deer. If he just wants to get one to be getting one, there isn't much point in asking for recommendations. He can just get what looks pretty or reviews well on head-fi at that point.

[Lays]

No, the question is what amp should he get, if he feels he needs one then that is something he decides on his own.

 

And for my input, if you're an audiophile you need to go Tube Amp, however as said above they need parts replacing every few years but sound the best out of them all but that comes at the higher price, if you don't need the audio of a Tube Amp then go for a Solid state amp, I don't have any advice on which to buy however.

 

 

LOL.

 

 

 

@OP Solid state is a much better solution, so many less things to worry about.   Tube amps tend to have lots of small quirks that are quite annoying.  Lots have buzzing issues when first started up, tubes need to be matched when buying new pairs to not cause any channel imbalance and lots of other things.

 

 

 

 

 

Amps are not really needed unless you have a pair of high impedance headphones. If you can listen to everything with a reasonable volume, you really don't need one. 

 

 

Sensitivity is a much better spec to go off of vs impedance, just because something has high impedance doesn't mean it's hard to drive.  The HE-6 from Hifiman is one of the hardest headphones to drive, and it only has 50 ohm impedance. 

[pagani123]

 

First, lets talk about some important things to work out first.

• What is your budget.
• Why do you want (or think you need) an amp.
• What headphone(s) will you be driving from the amp.
• Do you have (or want) a DAC.
• What other features might you want (pre-outs, etc).

 

Oh Deer. If he just wants to get one to be getting one, there isn't much point in asking for recommendations. He can just get what looks pretty or reviews well on head-fi at that point.

 

1 budget is 300 max

2 im starting to get into audiophile stuff i want my headphones to sound a little warmer less sharp

3 well right now i have sennhiser 598 (which i love) but i am planning on getting a pair of 650 or 700 not sure yet

4 i dont have a dac probably want one but i have a record player as well and not sure if that needs an amp or not (i am kinda new to the audiophile scene)

5 actually not quite sure what other features there are (again fairly new to the scene)

also going to read your blog on audio reference

[SSL]

1 budget is 300 max

2 im starting to get into audiophile stuff i want my headphones to sound a little warmer less sharp

3 well right now i have sennhiser 598 (which i love) but i am planning on getting a pair of 650 or 700 not sure yet

4 i dont have a dac probably want one but i have a record player as well and not sure if that needs an amp or not (i am kinda new to the audiophile scene)

5 actually not quite sure what other features there are (again fairly new to the scene)

also going to read your blog on audio reference

Maybe a Schiit Asgard 2. Most people claim that it is on the smoother, warmer side. HD 650 are already pretty warm, so no need to go overboard in that area anyway.

 

Also, if you want a headphone that is "less sharp", I would strongly, strongly advise against the HD 700, unless you can hear it before buying.

[pagani123]

i know just enough to get by in a conversation but i could know more

[pagani123]

sorry not sharp more like very bright but i dont want it to be heavy on the bass either kind of middle of the road 

[SSL]

sorry not sharp more like very bright but i dont want it to be heavy on the bass either kind of middle of the road 

 

Whatever. The HD700 is sharp, bright, whatever you want to call it.

[Jacona]

Welp, best to get a transparent AMP/DAC and let the headphone do its job. 

 

The "Line" is usually

O2+ODAC

Modi2+Magni2

 

There are cheaper options with their own quirks. 

[pagani123]

Maybe a Schiit Asgard 2. Most people claim that it is on the smoother, warmer side. HD 650 are already pretty warm, so no need to go overboard in that area anyway.

 

Also, if you want a headphone that is "less sharp", I would strongly, strongly advise against the HD 700, unless you can hear it before buying.

i assume any good tube amps are out of my price range also ill check out schiit asgard 2

[SSL]

i assume any good tube amps are out of my price range also ill check out schiit asgard 2

 

I didn't say that.

 

The bottlehead crack is an option if you are up for DIY. Most aren't. Otherwise there's Little Dot, although I don't know that they're known for having traditional, warm tube sound.

[pagani123]

I didn't say that.

 

The bottlehead crack is an option if you are up for DIY. Most aren't. Otherwise there's Little Dot, although I don't know that they're known for having traditional, warm tube sound.

one last question for you is the schiit asgard 2 an amp and dac combo cant find it on there faq or on amazon page 

[SSL]

one last question for you is the schiit asgard 2 an amp and dac combo cant find it on there faq or on amazon page 

 

It is an amplifier only.

[pagani123]

It is an amplifier only.

ok should i get a dac if most of the music im listing to is digital 

[SSL]

ok should i get a dac if most of the music im listing to is digital 

 

What device are you listeing to your music from?

[pagani123]

What device are you listeing to your music from?

right now my computer and occasonally ill break out the record player but atm i want to rearrange the setup on the computer it used to be itunes but just doesn't have great quality to music if you know any itunes like software that uses lossless files i would take recommendations for that as well

[iShad]

right now my computer and occasonally ill break out the record player but atm i want to rearrange the setup on the computer it used to be itunes but just doesn't have great quality to music if you know any itunes like software that uses lossless files i would take recommendations for that as well

Foobar...