Sound level from PC

[OdivValknir]

I have been using a pair of Sennheiser HD280pro for years, and switched over to HD559s today, and really noticed that my volume is not sufficient. It is loud "enough" but not as loud as I would like. I am thinking a headphone amp would help but not sure what to get. I don't have hundreds to spend on it and would like one just to boost the volume as the quality is fine. 

 

So what are some good suggestions for under $100 amps?

[Valkyrie Lenneth]

just get a soundblaster z and ur volume will be fine

 

the onboard soundcards just cant deliver much juice nor quality, getting an actual soundcard would improve ur soundquality alot + give u the wanted extra DB =) , the difference is like night and day u can even hear it on cheap mp3 earplugs :v

 

volume is no concern really , ive got a soundblaster recon3d champion and if i set my volume to 18-20% ( on the headphone amped jack ) its already blowing out my ears and 50-70% can easily blow up headsets even

[OdivValknir]

2 minutes ago, Valkyrie Lenneth said:

just get a soundblaster z and ur volume will be fine

 

the onboard soundcards just cant deliver much juice nor quality, getting an actual soundcard would improve ur soundquality alot + give u the wanted extra DB =) , the difference is like night and day u can even hear it on cheap mp3 earplugs :v

 

volume is no concern really , ive got a soundblaster recon3d champion and if i set my volume to 18-20% ( on the headphone amped jack ) its already blowing out my ears and 50-70% can easily blow up headsets even

Thanks, I have always been told that discreet soundcards are a waste as they are basically the same as what is already on modern motherboards. Also always been told a amp and dac or combo is what I needed, so perhaps I will check out a standalone soundcard and see what happens. Thanks for the reply.

[Valkyrie Lenneth]

2 minutes ago, OdivValknir said:

Thanks, I have always been told that discreet soundcards are a waste as they are basically the same as what is already on modern motherboards. Also always been told a amp and dac or combo is what I needed, so perhaps I will check out a standalone soundcard and see what happens. Thanks for the reply.

nah ppl who say motherboard soundcards are enough just never had a standalone soundcard, the difference really is night an day , also in volume mobo soundcards can only deliver a low volume really , and the quality just cannot be compared, its not even a match where the mobo soundcard would just crack in boosting +4db for example an good standalone card could boost up to 20db easily without crackling ^^ just a example hehe

[Buurvrouw]

I would recommend getting a external DAC with Amp, then you have no hassle with Options, just plug and Play. Check out the SMSL, their cheap and quite good. Else go for Fiio.

 

I have the SMSL AD18, I can recommend that, you can also connect passive Speakers too it

[OdivValknir]

So here's what I'm looking at in case you didn't get a good enough idea for my original post. I have been using a pair of Sennheiser HD 280 Pro for a few years and while they sound good they are getting a bit old so I went out and bought a pair of HD 559, and they sound much better and they have a very low impedance of only 50 ohms. The problem comes from my computer not being able to Output a loud enough volume, or I should clarify while it is loud enough it's not as loud as I would like it with everything turned up. While I don't need a DAC I think an amplifier would do what I'm looking for correct? And some of the options that have been listed here already or a little bit outside of my price range right now I was only looking to spend about 50 to $100. And my selection at my local Fry's is fairly limited to creative Sound Blaster and maybe one or two other companies and I don't have a debit card that I can use online. So just in the interest of testing something I bought a creative Sound Blaster Omni 5.1 external sound card and amplifier. I'm going to throw it on there and see if it will boost the volume much or any, the internal sound card that is on my motherboard is a Realtek ALC 892. I guess I'm not being very well versed and what specs are important when looking at sound cards and impedances and decibel ratings Etc and so forth. I'm going to check this Omni out and see what it does for me and I guess if I don't get any better results I will return it. More suggestions are welcome including something I might be able to do for free to Simply boost volume output.

 

EDIT

Right off the bat I notice a HUGE difference between on-board ALC 892, and this sound blaster omni DAC/AMP. MUCH louder, and MUCH clearer..... Wasn't expecting such a difference from something like this. Plus it has a lot of neat little features to play with in its software, as well as digital surround like what "gaming" headsets advertise and use as a selling point.

Edited October 25, 2017 by OdivValknir