I'm running a T-amp that powers passive bookshelves on my desktop right now, but would like to get a pair of quality cans for use when neighbors/roommates are an issue. The question is, how do I accommodate both while maximizing desk space and minimizing excessive wires?
I'm using Realtek onboard sound at the moment. Its quality is sufficient for my purposes, but the headphone jack on the front of my case introduces excessive background noise, so it's of no use to me. It seems I have at least a few options:
- Buy a cheap receiver and use it for both the speakers and phones. Disadvantage is that (a) I don't really have the desk space for one, and (b) the amplifier is not intended for headphones.
- Get a headphone amp, along with some type of splitter for my onboard analog out. Are splitters available which don't degrade sound quality in any measurable way? Having a splitter, T-amp, and headphone amp on my desk seems a bit inelegant, but probably requires a much smaller footprint than a receiver, at least.
- Grab something like the uDac, which claims to have an integrated headphone amplifier. This would probably be the simplest and most desk-friendly, but I'm not sure the amplifier is really sufficient to drive high-end headphones. Granted, I'm only looking into something along the lines of the Denon D1100/D2000 or Beyer 770, so perhaps I'd be OK?
Any suggestions or comments are welcome...
I'm using Realtek onboard sound at the moment. Its quality is sufficient for my purposes, but the headphone jack on the front of my case introduces excessive background noise, so it's of no use to me. It seems I have at least a few options:
- Buy a cheap receiver and use it for both the speakers and phones. Disadvantage is that (a) I don't really have the desk space for one, and (b) the amplifier is not intended for headphones.
- Get a headphone amp, along with some type of splitter for my onboard analog out. Are splitters available which don't degrade sound quality in any measurable way? Having a splitter, T-amp, and headphone amp on my desk seems a bit inelegant, but probably requires a much smaller footprint than a receiver, at least.
- Grab something like the uDac, which claims to have an integrated headphone amplifier. This would probably be the simplest and most desk-friendly, but I'm not sure the amplifier is really sufficient to drive high-end headphones. Granted, I'm only looking into something along the lines of the Denon D1100/D2000 or Beyer 770, so perhaps I'd be OK?
Any suggestions or comments are welcome...