What's The Next Step?

[fishymamba]

Hey guys!! About three years ago, I bought myself a set of Sony MDR-V6 headphone for a very reasonable price of $65.They were my first good quality headphones and I was blown away. Even with the direct audio from my motherboard, they sound great. I also like how I can use them with my ipod because they are easy to drive. 

 

But now I have a little bit of money and I want to get something that will improve my music listening experience. 

My question is what is the next step? Should I go for better headphones? A dedicated sound card? External amplifier?  

I do not have much to spend, only ~$150-$200. Maybe a bit more if I wait till the end of the month. 

 

Is it worth spending money on anything right now? Should I just save up and get something better later on?

 

I am pretty happy with the sound of the V6s, great for the music I listen to. They do seem a bit quiet when playing FLAC files sometimes, but other than that they are great!

I have not really heard anything better than them before, so I'm not sure what there is to gain from spending more on headphones. 

 

Any advice for me?

 

EDIT: My motherboard is using the ALC 898 audio codec, which from what I have heard is pretty good. Is it worth getting a cheap sound card?

[nightlitezzz]

My left foot?

 

K sorry I was in a League of Legends game, it's hard to win when you're Plastix XIX. I would get a better sound card however I don't know any sound cards.

[ShearMe]

Headphones do make the biggest difference in sound, but a good source is important if you want the headphones to get to the appropriate volume without distorting. Since you say your current headphones probably don't get loud enough, I'd look at getting a FiiO E10 - it's cheap enough to not break the bank, and good enough for most headphones on the market. DO NOT GET A SOUND CARD - they are an outdated technology.

 

After that, you should save up a bit more money to widen up your options. I would caution you - there is no end-all-be-all headphone, and you might end up owning multiple pairs before you're truly satisfied.

[h264]

Step 1: Get a good sound (with a good volume, but not too loud!)

Step 2: Enjoy that sound

Step 3: Don't listen to golden ear audiophiles

[fishymamba]

Headphones do make the biggest difference in sound, but a good source is important if you want the headphones to get to the appropriate volume without distorting. Since you say your current headphones probably don't get loud enough, I'd look at getting a FiiO E10 - it's cheap enough to not break the bank, and good enough for most headphones on the market. DO NOT GET A SOUND CARD - they are an outdated technology.

 

After that, you should save up a bit more money to widen up your options. I would caution you - there is no end-all-be-all headphone, and you might end up owning multiple pairs before you're truly satisfied.

 

Thanks for the info!! 

That amp looks pretty good to me for the price!! 

I was also looking at some low cost tube amps on amazon. Would something like this be better? 

http://www.amazon.com/SainSmart-Assembled-Headphone-Amplifier-Transformer/dp/B008BGLN5G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1378094289&sr=8-2&keywords=TUBe+headphone+amp

or

http://www.amazon.com/Bravo-AUDIO-V2-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00APSUPLG/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1378094318&sr=8-4&keywords=TUBe+headphone+amp

 

Also, how does the E10 compare with the E09 desktop amp? http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-Output-Desktop-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B008J26ZL4/ref=pd_cp_e_0

 

Also, why are soundcards outdated? I always thought they delivered a big boost in audio quality. 

[ShearMe]

Thanks for the info!! 

That amp looks pretty good to me for the price!! 

I was also looking at some low cost tube amps on amazon. Would something like this be better? 

http://www.amazon.com/SainSmart-Assembled-Headphone-Amplifier-Transformer/dp/B008BGLN5G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1378094289&sr=8-2&keywords=TUBe+headphone+amp

or

http://www.amazon.com/Bravo-AUDIO-V2-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B00APSUPLG/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1378094318&sr=8-4&keywords=TUBe+headphone+amp

 

Also, why are soundcards outdated? I always thought they delivered a big boost in audio quality. 

 

I can't speak to the quality of  tube amps at such a low price point - you'd be best off reading reviews. Of note, however, is that tube amps distort the sound no matter what. They add low order harmonics, which to some people is quite pleasant, and this gives them their characteristic "warm" sound. Not to brag, but I have a $400 tube amp and love it, so it's not like tube amps are a no-no.

 

Sound cards were created around the time when on board audio was really bad, lagged the computer, or wasn't even present. Now-a-days, on board audio uses the same chips as sound cards, and the op amps that just about every soundcard uses have an output impedance of around 10 ohms. When you plug headphones into an amplifier, their impedance needs to be at least 8 times greater to avoid... issues.

[Benjio]

I would think getting better headphones would be worth a lot more than a sound card. Get maybe a ~$150 pair of headphones and a cheap amp like the Fiio E10.

I can't recommend any good  headphones because I've never owned any, from what I can tell this is the best way to go about things though.

[fishymamba]

I can't speak to the quality of  tube amps at such a low price point - you'd be best off reading reviews. Of note, however, is that tube amps distort the sound no matter what. They add low order harmonics, which to some people is quite pleasant, and this gives them their characteristic "warm" sound. Not to brag, but I have a $400 tube amp and love it, so it's not like tube amps are a no-no.

 

Sound cards were created around the time when on board audio was really bad, lagged the computer, or wasn't even present. Now-a-days, on board audio uses the same chips as sound cards, and the op amps that just about every soundcard uses have an output impedance of around 10 ohms. When you plug headphones into an amplifier, their impedance needs to be at least 8 times greater to avoid... issues.

 

Thanks for the info!! I'll think about what amp to get. I do like the "warmer" sound better, but from what I know a $50 tube amp is probably not very high quality.

 

And about the soundcard: would a soundcard+exterior amp give provide better sound than the on board audio? Or is the quality not going to be much different if it goes directly through the Fiio amp? 

 

I'll use the headphones + amp combo for a while, and use the money I save on a new mountain bike . I'm pretty happy with the V6s so I think I'll be able to survive without upgrading headphones just yet. 

[Aphexx]

moving onward from the V6 would be to go to an open backed one or going basshead 

 

then again doing that leads you down a slippery slope. I feel like I'm living an episode of hoarders with the headphones I got. 

[ShearMe]

Thanks for the info!! I'll think about what amp to get. I do like the "warmer" sound better, but from what I know a $50 tube amp is probably not very high quality.

 

And about the soundcard: would a soundcard+exterior amp give provide better sound than the on board audio? Or is the quality not going to be much different if it goes directly through the Fiio amp? 

 

I'll use the headphones + amp combo for a while, and use the money I save on a new mountain bike . I'm pretty happy with the V6s so I think I'll be able to survive without upgrading headphones just yet. 

 

Just to make sure this is clear, the FiiO E10 is a DAC + amp. It will bypass any on board audio or soundcard in your system.

 

I find it useful to keep devices separate when considering their audio quality - instead of considering a soundcard + exterior amp, ask first, "is the soundcard good?" Then you ask, "Is this amp good?" If either is bad, you don't want it in your signal path. Some people try to think of an audio path as if it were a CPU and GPU and that one will bottleneck the other, but DON'T think of it that way (it's technically not correct).Think of an audio path as a three course meal. You can eat each dish independently of one another and they would taste great, but if they don't play nicely together you'll be tasting a bad appetizer well after you've finished desert. Like brushing your teeth before drinking some orange juice, any bad sounds further up the chain are only going to be worse after they've gone through a later component.  :wacko:

 

moving onward from the V6 would be to go to an open backed one or going basshead 

 

then again doing that leads you down a slippery slope. I feel like I'm living an episode of hoarders with the headphones I got. 

 

I had to stop myself from buying a pair of Pioneer SE-700's on eBay a few hours ago....

[Aphexx]

good analogy there's a great connection between hearing and tasting. 

 

 

 

and,,,, yeah I've taken headfi off my bookmarks every time I log on there I keep getting poorer and poorer

[fishymamba]

Just to make sure this is clear, the FiiO E10 is a DAC + amp. It will bypass any on board audio or soundcard in your system.

 

I find it useful to keep devices separate when considering their audio quality - instead of considering a soundcard + exterior amp, ask first, "is the soundcard good?" Then you ask, "Is this amp good?" If either is bad, you don't want it in your signal path. Some people try to think of an audio path as if it were a CPU and GPU and that one will bottleneck the other, but DON'T think of it that way (it's technically not correct).Think of an audio path as a three course meal. You can eat each dish independently of one another and they would taste great, but if they don't play nicely together you'll be tasting a bad appetizer well after you've finished desert. Like brushing your teeth before drinking some orange juice, any bad sounds further up the chain are only going to be worse after they've gone through a later component.  :wacko:

 

 

I had to stop myself from buying a pair of Pioneer SE-700's on eBay a few hours ago....

 

Thanks for the through information! I was wondering about if my onboard audio would be used or not!

Nice analogy, really made it easy to understand! Thanks for all the help, going to order the E10 right away!(Just ordered a mountain bike as well, so I think I'm going to be broke soon  )

 

 

 

and,,,, yeah I've taken headfi off my bookmarks every time I log on there I keep getting poorer and poorer

 

I had to do with some radio control forums. I can't believe how much money I spent on them, but at the same time it was fun!

[Hyydrah]

Nevermind. 

[ShearMe]

Mind Never!  :angry: