Is there such a thing as a good, budget headphone amp? I really want to improve my listening quality, but I don't want to break the bank.
Yes! I use the HiFiMan HM-101 Dac/Amp by Dr. Fang Bian its $30-$40 bucks and sounds better than my audio card did which was almost $100. I recommend it for gaming I use a pair of Senheisser HD595s with it and there is a noticeable difference when hearing footsteps and it clarifies the direction of sounds in-game. It colors but they all do. Depending on your headphones it may be under powered but my HD595s use 75% max volume before killing my ears. Give it a shot! Make sure you use the tek syndicate affiliate link
http://www.amazon.com/?tag=teksynd-20
search HM-101
Burr Brown PCM2702
Frequency Response: 20 to 20k Hz
THD: 0.07%
S/N: 96 dB
62 mw at 36 Ohm
26 mw at 150 Ohm
Great sound staging for $40! It makes games more fun to play and gives you a slight edge with determining where sounds are coming from ie gun shots, footsteps, and vehicles.
I think I may get one of these. One question though? Does it plug directly in to a USB port, or does it connect via a cable?
usb port
Sennheiser hd 518 user here... I LOVE MINE!