Should my headphones be this loud and do I need a DAC\Amp

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I got a pair of AKG K702s, they seem good although I don't have anything to compare them to. The only thing that I am wondering is why they are so loud, I was under the impression that I needed some amplification. I have decent hearing so I thought I would try them without a DAC\Amp. But even without an amp I'm really surprised how loud the headphones are, I have set the volume though windows to less than 1% to around 2% for games, or there about. Is this normal or is my motherboard, an MSI Pro Carbon X370, amplifying the output? And would I benefit from a DAC\Amp, such as a Fiio E10K, which is currently on sale.

 

[lucid]

Your headphones have an impedance of 62 Ohms. This makes them very easy to drive. Their maximum rated input is 200mV. That's 0.2V in simpler terms.

The socket you connect them to on the MB rear panel can be used for 'phones or for line output. There is software to change the settings. That's important because the signal levels and electrical impedances are very different for Line Level compared to headphones.

For Line Level, the maximum output voltage is 2V. That's 900% more than the headphones require! It's no wonder you have to have the volume set at 1-2% lol

Start off by opening the Realtek HD Audio Manager app. (If you haven't got it, make sure you load the Realtek audio drivers for your motherboard. The Audio Manager app is part of that package. Open the app and click on the Speaker Configuration tab. There's a graphic on the right hand panel that shows the correct rear panel socket for a headphone connection. Make sure your 'phones are connected to the correct one. Then look at the section that shows Headphone Impedance Setting. Click on the slider bar to adjust to 60 Ohms. Finally, check the apps volume settings.

Do these things then report back here on the results.

 

[Dark Light]

Your headphones have an impedance of 62 Ohms. This makes them very easy to drive. Their maximum rated input is 200mV. That's 0.2V in simpler terms.

The socket you connect them to on the MB rear panel can be used for 'phones or for line output. There is software to change the settings. That's important because the signal levels and electrical impedances are very different for Line Level compared to headphones.

For Line Level, the maximum output voltage is 2V. That's 900% more than the headphones require! It's no wonder you have to have the volume set at 1-2% lol

Start off by opening the Realtek HD Audio Manager app. (If you haven't got it, make sure you load the Realtek audio drivers for your motherboard. The Audio Manager app is part of that package. Open the app and click on the Speaker Configuration tab. There's a graphic on the right hand panel that shows the correct rear panel socket for a headphone connection. Make sure your 'phones are connected to the correct one. Then look at the section that shows Headphone Impedance Setting. Click on the slider bar to adjust to 60 Ohms. Finally, check the apps volume settings.

Do these things then report back here on the results.

There was an app called Realtek audio console, it does show the selected impendence for the headphones and was set somewhere between 180 and 60. But there is no way to change it, nor is there an option to set the socket to headphones\speakers. I uninstalled the Realtek drivers and installed what seems to a be legacy version and did then have a program called Realtech HD Audio Manger. But it just has the same options as before, I can change the headphone power between Balanced, Dynamic and Ultimate which does have a small affect of volume. Its also worth nothing that output device is named Speakers.

The headphone tab at the top seems to be referring to the front sockets on my case, which I obviously don't want to use.

 

[lucid]

I suspect you're going to have to work your way through the app.

To see if the options change, try clicking on the picture of the 'phones and of the red rear panel socket. There's also a spanner symbol at the bottom right corner and a gear symbol in the upper right corner.

As it stands right now, you are overloading the 'phones with too much signal because the app is set to drive speaker output levels. Buying a small portable headphone amp won't solve this because you'll just be over-driving that as well. You either need to get the source levels under control, or buy a headphone amp designed to take a line input.