ATH-M50X DAC/AMP Solution

[Cyanide]

The onboard sound on my Z97 PC Mate is abysmal. It only has enough power to run a pair of ATH-M50X barely and I desire a cleaner/louder sound, any suggestions? 

[Himommies]

Budget?

[Cyanide]

Just now, Himommies said:

Budget?

$100 and under

[Dackzy]

if you must buy one get a fulla 2.

[DrMacintosh]

lol the price paid for cheaping out on the mobo. 

[Cyanide]

Just now, DrMacintosh said:

lol the price paid for cheaping out on the mobo. 

I just needed it to work man but I guess you're right

[johnt]

9 hours ago, Dackzy said:

if you must buy one get a fulla 2.

You post this response like once a day  

[Dackzy]

20 minutes ago, JohnT said:

You post this response like once a day  

well what can I say, most people look for something in this price range and the fulla 2 is good when you have low impedance headphones. If it is high impedance then I would probably tell them to get the monoprice desktop amp

[johnt]

10 hours ago, Dackzy said:

well what can I say, most people look for something in this price range and the fulla 2 is good when you have low impedance headphones. If it is high impedance then I would probably tell them to get the monoprice desktop amp

Yup I hear you. I'm thinking about picking one up myself for my 770's. I came across a few threads talking about how the Micca OriGen (which I use) has a lower grade DAC in it. I probably won't even notice a difference... but I gots dat upgrade bug.

[Dackzy]

Just now, JohnT said:

Yup I hear you. I'm thinking about picking one up myself for my 770's. I came across a few threads talking about how the Micca OriGen (which I use) has a lower grade DAC in it. I probably won't even notice a difference... but I gots dat upgrade bug.

TBH wait with DAC amp upgrade until you can get the very good stuff, but yeah the 770's are nice. They might be the only beyer headphones I can recommend.... 

[johnt]

3 minutes ago, Dackzy said:

TBH wait with DAC amp upgrade until you can get the very good stuff, but yeah the 770's are nice. They might be the only beyer headphones I can recommend.... 

I use an Emotiva XDA-2 at home. It is beyond impressive, but it's huge. The newer/smaller model is a wee bit too expensive even for me (plus it doesn't have 1/4 inch jacks)

 

The Schiity stack was on my short list also for my work setup. What amp/dac combo (or separates) do you recommend for a comfortable sized desk?

[Dackzy]

3 minutes ago, JohnT said:

I use an Emotiva XDA-2 at home. It is beyond impressive, but it's huge. The newer/smaller model is a wee bit too expensive even for me (plus it doesn't have 1/4 inch jacks)

 

The Schiity stack was on my short list also for my work setup. What amp/dac combo (or separates) do you recommend for a comfortable sized desk?

depends on what budget you have. For 305$ you can get an Audio-gd NFB 11, but that takes a while to arrive since they only make it when people order it and it is a small business. For 200$ a Schiit stack 2 is quite nice. There are more options I can think of but those really start at 500$ and goes to 1200$

[johnt]

5 minutes ago, Dackzy said:

depends on what budget you have. For 305$ you can get an Audio-gd NFB 11, but that takes a while to arrive since they only make it when people order it and it is a small business. For 200$ a Schiit stack 2 is quite nice. There are more options I can think of but those really start at 500$ and goes to 1200$

If it was for my theater, then I would have no issues spending this kind of money. I'm not quite as intrigued by headphones... 

[Dackzy]

17 minutes ago, JohnT said:

If it was for my theater, then I would have no issues spending this kind of money. I'm not quite as intrigued by headphones... 

yeah.. I am upgrading my headphone setup first and then my speaker setup since I use headphones the most, so I think this is the smarter move for me. But yeah I understand you.