DAC for Headphones

The only advantage MP3 has is much smaller size files , allowing a lot more music in a given space. Sort of. The files are smaller because a lot of the data (music) is missing. For most of the world it works fine. To notice the difference , and care , you now spend more on equipment , invest more time finding higher quality files (FLAC , etc.) and you have moved music from background sound to a hobby-or worse ! High fidelity music playback can be a slippery slope that has the potential to blow big holes in your budget. Good headphones coupled with a good headphone amp and a little attention to the quality of your source material can get you quite far up the scale of music reproduction with the smallest investment. Head Fi is a good website regarding this and definitely worth a look. Oh , and CDs are CD format. The CD standard is called 'Redbook' , after the book the standards were originally written in. There is also SACD , DVD audio , and Blu Ray , for optical discs. CDs aren't the highest resolution , they are better than MP3 but that isn't saying much.

If you want to see what high looks like take a look at audiogon, http://app.audiogon.com/

Yeah , you can spend a few bucks on ear speakers. LOL

No, if you want high, look at finding a USED Sennheiser Orpheus HE-90 set, they sell for $30,000. When new in the 90's it retailed for $16,000.

Alaric said:

Yeah , you can spend a few bucks on ear speakers. LOL
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Mother of God...

Here's a review of another $10,000 headphone amp http://stereos.about.com/od/Headphone-Reviews/ss/Goldmund-HDA-Headphone-Amp-Review.htm It doesn't surprise me that there is a $10k headphone amp out there , but the fact that there is competition at that level is a little wild.

10 grand is not that significant in a studio with several million invested in hardware. Yes, it's very, very far into diminishing returns, but the pros insist on having the best stuff available.

Studio playback equipment often consists of a Crown amp and a couple powered monitor speakers-far from the level of the recording equipment. Abbey Road in London is one of the exceptions. They pride themselves in using the finest equipment available , like the Bowers & Wilkins 800D speakers they use straight out of B & W's Home Audio line up. Behringer , Crown , and Pyle are not high end audio.

These all are just way out of my league lol...I think I be quite satisfy to even just owning a 600 - 1000$ headphone lol.....
So you guys are Audiophile and a PC Enthusiast ??

I don't think I can afford to be an audiophile. LOL There is some very nice equipment out there for decent prices , and getting components that work well together is a big part. I have some gear from the early days of Marantz being purchased by DM Holdings , when they put out some remarkably good stuff at bargain prices just to get back in the higher end market. My Paradigm speakers have always been fantastic bang for the buck as well. Kal Rubinson , of Stereophile Magazine , has a pair of the same speakers I use and loves them. My SACD player was only $1500 and rated Class A by the same magazine. This is their description of their Class A recommendation

Class A: Best attainable sound for a component of its kind, almost without practical considerations; "the least musical compromise." A Class A system is one for which you don't have to make a leap of faith to believe that you're hearing the real thing. With Super Audio CD, DVD-Audio, and Hi-Rez PCM and DSD files now available, we have created a new Class, A+, for the best performance in those digital categories. Class A now represents the best that can be obtained from the conventional 16/44.1 CD medium. We also created Class A+ categories for turntables and phono preamps, to recognize the achievements of the Continuum Caliburn and Boulder 2008, respectively.
Read more at http://www.stereophile.com/content/2015-recommended-components-how-use-listings#0L8fh4Z9grOrdO7j.99

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Bearing in mind it's competitors at the time included the $26,000 Esoteric. I do not , however , have a $10,000 headphone amp. Fortunately my disc player has a very good headphone amp built in. And my phono amp has tubes.....

Nothing beats nor can it accurately reproduce live music. Priceless

habbajabba said:

Nothing beats nor can it accurately reproduce live music. Priceless

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Amen to that. But it doesn't stop some of us from throwing money at the problem !

Gh0sT-NoVa said:

These all are just way out of my league lol...I think I be quite satisfy to even just owning a 600 - 1000$ headphone lol.....
So you guys are Audiophile and a PC Enthusiast ??

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PC enthusiast first. I don't have the money to be a true audiophile. Next on my list is a pair of Md Dog cans.