Mondaugen

Thanks for the heads-up, guys and gals. :-) If I read you all correctly, the way to go is (A) buy an external DAC, and (B) re-rip to a lossless format. Appreciate the advice, and will do accordingly. Again, thanks a bunch! :-)

Hi guys, newb alert, so please be gentle. :-) My music lives on a Macbook Pro (2010), and I listen to it on headphones and speakers (obviously). So far I’ve ripped my CDs to 320kbps files. Couldn’t detect a difference vs. Apple lossless, but wouldn’t mind ripping again if that would make a difference down the line. Bought an AKG K-601 (120 Ohms) headphone recently. It’s actually a bit of an improvement over my ancient Koss Porta Pro. After doing some reading, I also bought a Violectric V90 to supposedly drive these headphones adequately. The thing is, I can’t really tell a difference between straight out of the Macbook vs. hooked up to the amplifier. Maybe because of my untrained, 50 years old ears? Then again, reading the FAQ, I might perhaps need a separate audio interface/DAC in between? Running a 3.5mm mini to RCA cable from the computer's headphone jack to a preamp or receiver's AUX input is not recommended but does work. and The DAC inside a computer almost always offers the worst sound quality. Is this still true for an almost current Macbook Pro? Would I be better off with an external audio interface, something like an Apogee Duet? Just to add to the confusion, I’m also planning to upgrade my speakers. I’m currently eyeballing a pair of KS Digital C8s, but these require balanced XLR inputs. Better to get something like a SPL 2Control then? As you can tell by now, I’m somewhat disoriented. Please help, or at least add to the confusion. :-)