$1000-2000 Budget for headphone audiophile

[JMcDaddy]

Hello everyone I am new to the audiophile community and would like to partake in some high quality tunes. I've been listening to music on high quality headphones since HS but never decided to take it further until today. I will only be getting this for listening to music during work- I work from home so the headphones can be open back. I've read that I will need a headphone amp, DAC and a pair of good quality headphones. I currently have the Philips Audio Fidelio X2HR Over-Ear Open-Air Headphone 50mm Drivers but I am realizing that is probably not considered good quality for audiophiles. As stated in the title my budget is 1-2k and I would prefer not to spend more as a young scholar to this community. Thanks in advance

[ecwl]

For headphones: Focal Clear or Focal Clear Mg? Dan Clark Audio Aeon 2 Closed?

There are also some great headphones by Audeze and HiFiMan in your price range.

Part of the challenge is that in that price range, you really want to make sure they fit your head and ears right. Especially as some of the headphones are quite heavy so you want good weight distribution.

 

As for DAC/amp, I personally like Chord Mojo for your price range but I know many people don't. To me all the well-reviewed products are well-engineered so it comes down to what sound you like.

[bogi]

Some tips to consider:

DAC Topping E50

Headamp Singxer SA-1

[DuckToller]

 

2 hours ago, ecwl said:

For headphones: Focal Clear or Focal Clear Mg? Dan Clark Audio Aeon 2 Closed?

There are also some great headphones by Audeze and HiFiMan in your price range.

Part of the challenge is that in that price range, you really want to make sure they fit your head and ears right. Especially as some of the headphones are quite heavy so you want good weight distr

+1 for  that recommendation! Dan Clarke Aeon 2 Noire have raving reviews lately ...

I'd like to put in the iFi iDSD signature or Micro BL, which are able to drive most headphones. I like their BurrBrown-DAC chips very much, they do it up to DSD512 and 24/768, depending on the firmware in use. An advantage is the transportability of both, the main usp are:  you can drive the Signature with a power bank, while the BL has a pre-amp function as differentiator. I own the BL for 4 years and have tested the Signature thoroughly, I'd opt with the latter, if pre-amp function doesn't matter.


 

[AudioDoctor]

Is this budget for everything, or just headphones?

[JMcDaddy]

Thanks for the replies. This budget is for everything. Let me add to the question a bit- do you think flac files are necessary or should Spotify be okay? 

[AudioDoctor]

38 minutes ago, JMcDaddy said:

Thanks for the replies. This budget is for everything. Let me add to the question a bit- do you think flac files are necessary or should Spotify be okay? 

 

Personally, I think lossless files are important. Why bother getting anything for quality playback if you're not going to feed it quality material?

 

I haven't heard every headphone on the planet, but I do like Grados very much. I would look into starting the journey here:
 

https://4ourears.com/collections/reference-headphones/products/rs2e?fromgrado=yes

 

Schitt would probably also be a good place to start, and stay for a long time. To get better performance than they offer costs a lot more:

https://www.schiit.com/products/valhalla-1

Add in the BiFrost DAC and you're off to the races.

https://www.schiit.com/products/bifrost-1

 

Then we can discuss playback software...  ha.

[davide256]

The single most important question… what are you using as a source? Chord Mojo is a good DAC/ headphone amp but can make you wince with a poorer quality source. That might push you towards Bluetooth enabled headphones