Good Amp and DAC under $350 in europe

Equipment / Electronics / Gear / Accessories Headphone Amps
1

So, I was looking for a DAC and AMP to drive my DT1990 Pro and until now I have come to 3 possible solutions. But none of them are optimal, so I would like some help from you guys.

I had decided on the Xduoo XD-05 Plus, but it’s out of stock now, and I will be in Europe for a limited time (I live in Brazil), so I have make a different choice.

To raise the quantity of options I have raised the budget from 200 to 350 euros. I will only get to 400 if it is going to be REALY Worth it.

So, my options to this point are:

1 - Topping DX3
Good:
-Switchable pre-out for my Monitors
-Bluetooth
-DAC only mode
-High availability

Bad:
-The amp in it is on the brighter side, not good for the DT1990

I could buy the topping and later on import a Liquid Spark, but I would pay arround 200 dollars Total on the LS

2 - Fiio K5 Pro
Good:
-Powerful
-Very recommended

Bad:
-No muting pre-outs
-Could only get in the UK at the end of my trip, and I would buy the DT1990 in the begging. So I would have to drive the headphones through my Fiio A3 until I get to the UK (will be in France for 10 days before going to the UK)

-Do you think the A3 can drive the DT1990 temporarily?

3 - SMSL SP200
Good:
-Very powerful (compared to the others)
-THX Technology
-high availability

BAD:
-I don’t really have experience with THX, and some people said it’s not that good
-expensive, so I would have to buy a very cheap DAC (maybe the FXAudio X-6) and upgrade in the futurr

Sorry for the long post, I just wanted more options. And it has to be available in Amazon France or Amazon UK, delivered by Amazon (because I will use lockers and pickup locations)

Would be better if it is available in Amazon France, since I will have to use the A3 until I get to the UK. But that’s ok if it’s worth the wait

Edit:
I can also get a Regular K5 (not pro) in France, and pair it to another DAC the K5 would be like 130 euros, but the K5 pro is the same price.

The TOPPING IS 220 EUROS, and the THX is 295. The fx audio DAC x6 is 65

2

I don’t have any recommendations for you, but might I suggest ‘https://www.hagglezon.com/’ if you’d like to know from which amazon the products are cheaper from :slight_smile:

3

The Fiio K5 Pro is really good for the price. For the price I would definitely recommend it.
There’s also the RNHP amplifier if you can afford it, it is a much better amplifier than the SMSL. Only if you can afford it. It is really good though.
Not sure if with a DAC you could afford it.
If you want something portable, the Fiio Q5s is a really good AMP/DAC combo portable.

4

The Xduoo XD-05 Plus is still available at the UK and German Amazon pages. I don’t know how long you are in Europe, but my XD-05 Plus took 4 days to arrive from the German Amazon site. And I think it is very very good. I would go for the XD-05 Plus.

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5

That’s a good price for the Plus, I would grab it if portability is something you want.

6

I can only rec to get the BT receiver as well. Then the size is easier to accept when portable, as the source is packed away.

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7

That’s a good option, but the problem is that I can’t use the Amazon lockers or pickup locations if the product is not delivered by Amazon

And I need it since I will be staying in an Airbnb, and will not be there most of the time

8

As well as the Xduoo, you can also find some good deals on the ATC HDA P1 which is a rebadged Xduoo 05. Very powerful, a good DAC, well made and pretty compact ( though it is noticeably bigger than some alternatives). I really can’t criticise mine, it does what it says on the tin and does it very well and doesn’t cost a lot. Interestingly it has a 1/4" Jack which I like but is very unusual on portable devices.

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9

Interesting. I didn’t knew that and they are completely the same; If it is only the name that differs, then it is a good deal.
And I agree re the 1/4" jack, that is part of why I bought mine, it is dope!

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