If you’re looking for better audio at your desk, one of the best things you can do is buy a nice pair of wired headphones and a headphone amp/DAC that can properly drive them. The advantage of wired headphones is they’re generally more affordable and more likely to play higher-resolution audio. Good wired headphones really shine when paired with a suitable headphone amp/DAC is going to make them sound their best.
Read More
Picking the right pairing of wired headphones and amp/DAC sounds a little daunting, but in reality it isn’t all that complicated. The main thing you need to be aware of is the headphone’s impedance (measured in ohms), which is the power required to drive them properly, as well as the impedance range of headphone amp/DAC. The good news is that most headphone amp/DACs have a wide range of impedances and, so long as the headphone’s impedance falls within that range, the pairing will work great.
Most affordable headphones have a low impedance, meaning they are fairly easy to drive, which is why you can plug them directly into a laptop or computer’s headphone jack. However, because the amp/DAC that’s built into your laptop or computer isn’t great, the audio can sound flat and grainy. If you pair an affordable DAC, like the Schiit Audio Fulla 3 ($99) or the FiiO K5 Pro ($150), even your low impedance headphones are going to sound noticeably better.
If you’re thinking about buying wired headphones with a high impedance, they are going to be more difficult to drive and therefore you need to be more diligent in your research before buying a headphone amp/DAC to pair it with.
The Entry-Level Pair
