Desktop dac/amp for AKG K550

Brizzles

Brizzles

Brizzles

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Joined
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Clevedon , Bristol
I've narrowed it down to 3 possible options ;

1) Fiio E10k (£60)

2) Audioengine D1 (£125)

3) Schiit stack (£180)

Is any of the ones mentioned particularly suited to / or overkill for the AKG 550s ?

Or is there a better alternative ?

Any input would be appreciated :D
 
Schiit Modi (optical) + Schiit Vali (tube hybrid amp) will be smoother than the normal Modi + Magni stack.

Another option is the Aune T1 (£135) which has a very good DAC, tube buffer stage and a solid state CMOY headphone amp. The tube buffer stage enables you to alter the sound signature by tube rolling (changing the valve) and something like a Mullard 6DJ8 or Amperex Orange Globe will help thicken the mids and smooth off the spikes in the high frequencies.

I was using the Aune T1 to feed the Schiit Vali until recently and the double tube buffer actually provided a very nice, smooth sound. Reason I was doing that was that my Modi picks up a little noise off the USB while the Aune DAC is absolutely noise free because it has it's own power supply and the USB power is not connected. The optical Modi will also be noise free as it only transmits data and the noise comes in on the USB power lines.
 
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With the Vali you'll get some ringing when you fitst switch it on or plug in the headphones due to tube microphonics - don't worry about it, it's normal and the sound will fade away within 20 to 30 seconds.

I tend to plug the headphones in at the same time I switch it on and as there is a built in delay to protect the headphones from any noise spikes, by the time it comes to life (20 seconds) the ringing has pretty much gone.
 
Got an optical out (x-fi titanium fatality) to a D03k with e11k with q701 headphones and im pretty happy games sound amazing.
 
Delighted :D

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that's because the Uber has USB, optical and co-axial inputs and an improved analogue section (though nobody will say how it's improved) but costs another £40.

The Optical Modi has been moved onto the Modi 2 page, which is a bit misleading because it hasn't been changed.
 
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As rids has pointed out already, £40 more for a USB connection ( which i was not going to use ), it just wasn't worth buying the Uber in my case.

In an ideal world ( bigger wallet ! ) i would have bought the Uber ;)
 
Congratulations mrdbristol looks a great stack, slightly neater than my miss matched one!
The AKG plug looks really smart too.
Hope you enjoy your new listening experience :)
 
rids57 said:
that's because the Uber has USB, optical and co-axial inputs and an improved analogue section (though nobody will say how it's improved) but costs another £40.

The Optical Modi has been moved onto the Modi 2 page, which is a bit misleading because it hasn't been changed.
Click to expand...

Ah thanks for clearing that up.
 
I like the look of
Schiit Modi 2 (optical) + Schiit Vali (tube hybrid amp)
I was thinking of getting an AUNE T1 to use with a pair of sennheiser hd 650 or similar and some speakers also not bought either yet which setup would be better
 
I have both and there really isn't a lot in it. The T1 has a very nice DAC and the tube buffer is glorious but it's amp isn't as good as the Vali. I often end up using the T1 as a DAC to feed the Vali, so I have double the tube goodness :D
 
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