![]() I also own and OFTEN use a FiiO E11K Portable HP Amp! Best $200 I've spent in awhile buying the FiiO E10K & E11K a couple of years ago! $5,000-Plus → Since the top end is infinite, need to hear more stuff.I LOVE my FiiO E10K Olympus 2 DAC/HP Amp! And it was only like $130 or so I think? Drives everything that I own pretty nicely, and I've been looking to pair some HQ cans with it soon! Oh and it's TINY! It drives my Sony VA15 speakers very well and I will definitely continue to use FiiO products for their amazing price and sound quality! I've liked their stuff since I bought a small FiiO HP Amp many years ago for $30 It's a shame that Tonedeaf isn't here on ts.com any longer, because he owns both the Senn HD6xx AND a FiiO HP Amp, so he could really tell you how the two pair together But for under $200, a FiiO DAC/HP Amp would be a great and tiny solution IMO, and won't take up much space at all around your computer! My option would probably be the LCD-R ($2500) + Matrix Sabre X (~$2500). The BF2 adds a little more warmth which can help what I’d call a slightly neutral-bright signature on the FA-10. Get a headphone that stages and images well, with an amp that can drive that ability out of it. So this is about $50 over but close enough. Budget wise, that $99 Loxjie tube hybrid wouldn’t be a horrible choice and use the other funds to buy yourself a year of Qobuz, Tidal, or whatever. So keep the headphone and ZenDac above, add the Lyr 3. This is a tough range as a lot of product combos that are ideal push it over the mark for me. If I could get the Denon AH-D5200 on sale in a similar $350 range I’d probably go that route as they’re a bit better with stage pleasing tone, solid but not overdone bass. Maybe attach a bunch of $100 bills or a couple ounces of gold bullion to the headband of a cheaper setup? I haven’t heard much price/performance value with my demos. ![]() $5,000-Plus Mostly in-store experience, so no comment. The Bifrost 2 is probably the only firm piece for staying below $5,000. This could go many different directions with both headphones (e.g., Utopia, ZMF, RAAL, Rosson, etc.) and higher priced amps, and there are lots of boutique products I haven’t tried. One has an awful lot of premium choices if adding another $2,000 to the budget. Still, that brings the total system cost to under $2,500 with the Clear OG or under $3,000 with the Clear MG. $2,000-$5,000: This is tricky, as the Clear MG may be all that’s available and adding the Bifrost 2 to the setup above makes a big difference. $1,000-$2,000: Focal Clear (OG at $1,000 if still available), RebelAudio RebelAmp, and ZenDAC used as DAC only. If you decide to explore headphone technologies…well there goes the amp budget… I’d not recommend the Bottlehead Crack or other OTL amps to buyers in this price class because of the narrow OTL use cases. However, try the alternatives before dogmatically choosing one style based on a reviewer’s opinions or a technician’s measurements. Pick either a solid state or tube hybrid amp, per personal preference (e.g., measurement kings like Topping/THX, P20, etc.). Also consider balanced interconnects from DAC to amp, but this isn’t a big deal. The ZenDAC has shallow and boomy bass on its own, so almost any amp would be an improvement. Again, balanced helps tremendously in the low-cost segment. $500-$1,000: Same as above, but add a dedicated balanced entry level headphone amp. I no longer recommend any HiFiMan product, despite good sound quality. The warm Burr-Brown chip in the iFi offsets the 600’s brightness. The drivers generate fluttery movements that can either become hissy and shrill, or (if driven correctly) nice air and ambiance. The 600 series greatly benefits from balanced amps in the low priced gear segment. Sub $500: Sennheiser HD-6XX or HD-600, plus an iFI ZenDAC and a balanced cable. What are your favorite headphone/stack combos in the following price ranges:
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