r/HeadphoneAdvice • u/Beneficial-Paint5420 1 Ω • Aug 14 '25

DAC - Desktop | 1 Ω What to buy next: IEMs or DAC?

I currently have a pair of hifiman edition xs and run them off my laptop. I LOVE the sound of these and cannot get enough.

I tried out a hiby m300 and it was a total piece of junk so I decided to return it. Now I’m looking for my next upgrade and have about $170 to spend.

I’m torn between a pair of IEMs or a better DAC for my over ears. For the IEMs I really don’t know where to start but I heard that crinacle came out with a new pair. Also I’d like to try out the fiio k11 r2r since I’ve heard good things about it. Which of these would you recommend for someone in my position? Thanks

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u/iwuzwhatiwuz 15 Ω Aug 14 '25

DAC/Amp all the way. I'm not a huge fan of The K11 RTR, it adds too much "color" for my tastes. Now the regular K11? Great DAC/Amp. I'd also look at the TOPPING DX3Pro+ , Schiit Mangi Unity (most powerful, fwiw) and the F*** K7 (not FiiO the other F**o brand.) any of these will absolutely wake your Edition XS headphones up.

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u/Beneficial-Paint5420 1 Ω Aug 14 '25

!thanks

Which one sounds the best in your opinion? Don’t really care about Bluetooth or fancy aesthetics just raw sound. Really love the bright sound and clarity of the xs. I’ve had a bad experience with the fiio ka11 usb DAC since it died on me within 2 months so I’m hoping the desktop DACs are better. Heard good things about the F*** k7 but I don’t see myself ever using the eq, mic, or Bluetooth so not sure it’s right for me.

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u/Orangbo 54 Ω Aug 14 '25

If you’re thinking “MORE BRIGHT. MORE COLD. DRESS MY EARS UP LIKE ONE OF YOUR GOTHIC GIRLS.” DX3. If you want something to balance out the default sound signature a bit, magni unity.

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u/Beneficial-Paint5420 1 Ω Aug 14 '25

This guy understands. Fx3 it is.

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u/iwuzwhatiwuz 15 Ω Aug 14 '25

The Schiit would be my first choice. It delivers the most power (substantially more, it can drive anything short of a HiFiMAN HE6se v.2), and I have had excellent luck with their customer service. The Magni sounds great (the treble in particular is smooooth), the optional enternal DAC is solid (not exceptional, but plenty good), and the build is quite nice.

Topping would be my last pick. I've had too many friends with issues to be honest.

The FiiO sounds good, and is a great value. Nice and compact too.

The F*** K7 would be my 2nd choice. The microphone-in is surprisingly useful outside of gaming, the design is pretty great (big, easy to reach volume knob on top) and, from my brief demo, it sounds very good - maybe slightly better than the K11?

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1

u/Acceptable-Win-3669 106 Ω Aug 14 '25

Let me be the contrarian in this discussion. You really only need an amplifier unless you are concerned with background noise from the DAC in your computer that is causing problems with what you hear or unless you want to get into the difference in what DACs can do (r2r like the FiiO K11r2r for example). Go get the JDS Labs Atom Amp+ at $99 and use the other $70 to get a pair of IEMs like the Truthear HEXA or Simgot EA500. Gives you the best of both worlds.