Buy better soundcard or buy headphone ampifier?

[Firzen 0]

Hi everyone

 

I'm thinking of buying headphone Senn HD600/HD650 to listen to music.

 

Shall I upgrade my soundcard (currently using SB Live D.E) or shall I buy a dedicated headphone ampifier (Sugden Headmaster) to be connected to my Sony pcdp and existing soundcard?

 

Which sounds better?

 

The reason is that if using a high quality soundcard is not much different from using an expensive headphone ampifier, I might as well save the money to buy a better soundcard.

 

 

[Mackie 0]

I though this is a trick question............

 

In a word..........headamp! It's the way to go for the kinda budget U imply. Of course, there are other amps cheaper than Headmaster and I suggest U spend the money on a balanced cdp+amp setup than drive the Sugden from your pcdp. Makes more economical and sonic sense to me.

[evil-zen 0]

hmmm, most people think that the SB Live is a crap soundcard. there is no point adding a amp to amplify crap right?

 

I suggest you go for a better sound card, ie m-audio, terratec and go for a cheaper DIY amp if needed. or even better, use the money for the sugden to buy a cdp + a DIY amp.

[CRESCENDOPOWER 0]

If you knew ahead of time that you were going to buy a nice CD player, and power cord in the future go ahead, and buy the Sudgen now, so you are getting the amp you really want. Just realize though that you certainly will not be using your power amp, and phones to their maximum potential until you upgrade your source, and power cord.

Edited May 5, 2004 by CRESCENDOPOWER

[Blues 0]

IMO, sugden out of a sb live is really super overkill

My advice, cut the budget for the amp, spend it on a good soundcard( m-audio revo or if you are feeling rich the RME 24/96 ...)

the creative soundcard is really bright, thin and imo poor to even start with. Amplifying it with sugden will be

[lekguan 0]

I would say get a decent soundcard and an amp which can drive the cans well enough, e.g. RA-1 for HD650, or the cordas for eitehr of the cans, etc. Spend more on soundcard so that the next upgrade would only be your amp. Not both amp and soundcard.

Another alternative is to spend on soundcard, something with both line out and head out. (The m-audio firewire USB looks nice, wonder how it sounds through the head out) However the only drawback is that you have no idea whetehr the headphone out is good. Then save up before you get the sugden.

[jasonhanjk 0]

Creative Audigy 3

HD650 and

DIY headphone amp

[kenshinz 0]

I'm thinking of buying headphone Senn HD600/HD650 to listen to music.

 

Hmm, 1st have you heard the Senn HD600/650 before. You might wana demo the headphones before making a choice on headphones. It really boils down to the kind of music you listen to. If you're gona to listen to pop and rock mostly, the HD650/600 would not be my 1st choice. Try and listen to the different headphones and see what you like. Don't base your purchases on brands, but your ears (and of course budget ).

 

Shall I upgrade my soundcard (currently using SB Live D.E) or shall I buy a dedicated headphone ampifier (Sugden Headmaster) to be connected to my Sony pcdp and existing soundcard?

 

2ndly, do you listen to music from you PC mostly or PCDP ? If PC I'm thinking mostly mp3s here right?. If thats the case. You might want to invest in a better soundcard. The SB Live is pretty much the bottom of the pile here, so anything is gona sound better, even the Audigy 2 A cheap and good choice would be an external USB soundcard something like the M-Audio Transit currently going for $169. If you can afford better, by all means go ahead and spurge, but do remember that mp3s are compressed format, and no matter how good the equipment is, it is still limited by the source.

 

3rdly, if you're gona use your Sony PCDP as a source with no intention to upgrade, the Sudgen is way overkill to the power of 100x. (1000x if u intend to connect to the SB Live). The Sudgen is an excellent smooth sounding amp. However you must have the right source to bring out its potential. The Sony PCDP would even begin to tickle it. Of course again you have to base your choice of amp on the music you listen to, the headphone you'll have and the source you intend to use with. Its all about system synergy when assembling your setup.

 

The reason is that if using a high quality soundcard is not much different from using an expensive headphone ampifier, I might as well save the money to buy a better soundcard.

 

Since you can consider about buying the HD600/650 and Sudgen, you should have a nice budget to play with. My advice would be to get a good source - CDP and a external USB soundcard. This would allow you to cover both base, mp3s and Audio CDs. Next, you might want to consider getting a DIY amp from the few DIYers we have on the forum. (I highly recommend the RA-1 clone, one of the best bang-for-buck amps available). The total cost of the 1st 3 purchase should still be lesser than the price of the Sudgen. After which you can decide on the headphone you like and spent abit on the interconnects to roundup your setup.

 

Well, these are just my $0.02 worth of opnion. Feel free to think about them. It might not be the best recommendation - everyone of us have different priorities and needs . Cheers, and Welcome to SGheadphones !!!

Edited May 5, 2004 by kenshinz

[Firzen 0]

Thanks alot. Will spend some more time thinking before deciding on the equipments to be purchased.

[Firefox 0]

You can actually do better by buying a cheaper amp such as a 2nd hand Corda HA-1 or a PPA. The money saved can actually buy you a better soundcard AND a full-fledge CDP. That would be a better choice. IMO, the Sugden bought new is overpriced.

[Rameish 0]

I dont know much about soundcards. Wait for ablaze to respond as he have quite a bit of knowledge about them as well as Ken and AMD.

 

I would say get a home CDP like the Rotel RDC-02 or Marantz CD-7300 first. Then partner it with a Corda/PPA (solid state op-amp based)/Spark(tube)/Sugden (2nd hand). The Senn HD-600 does work well with all the amps I mentioned. As for the PPA ask for one with the AD-8610 chips.

 

Also consider some nice interconnects like the Grado Signature (S$295 approx) or the Kimber PBJ (S$100 approx). The Straightwire also makes some decent cables for around S$180 or so.

 

Of course if you had asked this smae question in the PC Audio forum you might have got a different set of answers - hint ;-)

Edited May 8, 2004 by Rameish