The Best Audiophile Gear (2024): Headphones, Speakers, Amps, DACs

Take it from idiosyncratic who records music: The satellite of high-end audio is often tainted with bullshit. Precious (and often snake-oily) materials and presumption are exploited to merchantability products for inflated prices. Faux subject is deployed to instrumentality you into reasoning you request overpriced accessories similar 2-inch-thick talker cables.

Once you commencement buying for cogwheel that approaches 4 figures, it's pugnacious to separate what's good-sounding from what's simply good-looking. Never fear! Our experts person spent thousands of hours listening to euphony successful acoustically treated location studios done galore of the most-loved high-end headphones, speakers, and amps connected the market. Below you'll find our favorites and immoderate accusation astir what each point does.

Before speechmaking on, beryllium definite to cheque retired our cheap (or free!) tips connected however to get much retired of your location audio setup.

Interested successful different audio advice? Check retired the tips successful our different guides, including the Best Wireless Headphones, Best Bookshelf Speakers, Best Turntables, Best Bluetooth Speakers, and Best Gear for Learning Music.

Updated September 2024: We've added much audiophile goodies, including the Focal Theva No1 and SVS Ultra Evolution bookshelf speakers, the Yamaha R-N1000A Network Receiver, and the U-Turn Orbit Theory turntable.

Table of Contents

• Before Wasting Money
• Headphones
• Speakers
• Digital-to-Analog Converters
• Headphone Amplifiers
• Stereo Amplifiers
• Turntables
• Phono Preamps
• Cables and Accessories

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Consider where you volition beryllium listening earlier you determine what you should beryllium listening with.

The prime of the dependable you perceive successful your country volition lone ever beryllium arsenic bully arsenic the country itself. A brace of $250 speakers volition dependable amended successful a country that's been acoustically treated, than a brace of $10,000 speakers volition dependable successful an bare country with bare floors and walls.

What precisely is "bad" erstwhile it comes to country dynamics for high-end listening? Typically it means dependable waves bounce astir excessively much, creating frequence issues similar muddy bass and giving the country what's known arsenic a agelong reverb decay time. This is the magnitude of clip it takes for dependable to dice retired arsenic it bounces disconnected the walls.

Try this: Clap your hands loudly successful the mediate of your country and perceive for the decay—the audible echoing of that clapping sound. The champion mode to shorten that decay clip is to capable the country with arsenic overmuch soft, porous wide arsenic possible. This helps power audio reflections, damping them truthful you perceive much of the focused dependable waves coming retired of the speakers, and less of the messy dependable waves bouncing astir the room. To dainty a room, usage acoustic panels (typically Rockwool insulation wrapped successful inexpensive cloth and hung from the walls oregon ceiling) to supply the recommended magnitude of coverage for the space.

Throbbing and thumping bass frequencies, which are harder to tame than higher frequencies similar splashy cymbals and twangy guitars, volition typically degrade the audio prime you get successful smaller rooms. Significant porous absorption is required to marque ample speakers dependable large successful a tighter abstraction similar a bedroom. If you similar large speakers with large bass, acceptable up your strategy determination a small much spacious.

In general, the softer and bigger your country is the bigger you tin spell successful presumption of talker systems, and the amended they'll sound. If you're stuck mounting up your stereo successful a country that's either tiny oregon peculiarly reverberant and acoustically “bright,” I urge buying smaller speakers oregon conscionable sticking with headphones. (Don't worry, large headphones are awesome.)

When improving your listening room, it's worthy noting that investing successful immoderate acoustic attraction is overmuch much cost-effective than investing successful much costly audio gear. You tin bargain oregon physique capable panels for a medium-size abstraction with conscionable a fewer 100 dollars, and they tin really marque your country look beauteous neat. In my experience, hanging immoderate panels and curtains implicit your bare walls volition summation the prime of your dependable much than immoderate azygous portion of equipment.

Because they instrumentality problems with country acoustics retired of the equation, a prime brace of headphones is the spot astir budding audiophiles should start.

Open-backed headphones similar the Sennheiser HD6XX ($239) are a large archetypal bargain for those with a quiescent listening room. “Open-back” means they don't seal retired the extracurricular satellite similar the “closed-back” over-ears you mightiness beryllium utilized to. There's thing to artifact dependable successful oregon out—not lone volition different radical perceive your music, but you'll beryllium capable to perceive sounds different than your music. However, open-back headphones dependable much earthy and speaker-like. They are the cleanable headphones to plug consecutive into a telephone oregon a stereo, though you volition announcement that utilizing a dedicated headphone amp improves the sound. (More connected those later.)

If you privation much dependable isolation, I besides truly similar in-ear headphones similar the Shure Aonic 3 ($199), which chopped retired precise astir each extracurricular noise, and battalion up ace tiny for travel. Sound prime is excellent, particularly with an outboard headphone amp successful tow.

At the higher end, my existent favourite in-ears are from Portland-based marque Campfire Audio (the 3D-printed Supermoon ($1,099). There are galore different high-end headphones that besides dependable fantastic. I besides emotion in-ears from the premium audio marque Audeze. The company's planar magnetic earbuds similar the Euclid buds (no longer available) are among the astir astonishing in-ears we've ever tested. Their existent options commencement with the somewhat awkward, but inactive astonishing iSine 20 ($600) and spell up from there.

If you similar over-ear headphones, our full audio squad truly likes the French marque Focal. The Celestee closed-back headphones ($999) are arsenic gorgeous to perceive to arsenic they are to look at, and the Bathys ($799) are wireless and connection noise-canceling, making them immoderate of the champion for travel. They nutrient 1 of the widest soundstages you'll find successful wireless headphones. (In headphone lingo, the soundstage is the imaginary three-dimensional abstraction you find yourself successful erstwhile you unopen your eyes and listen.) Other large wireless options that vie with wired headphones are the Bowers & Wilkins PX8 ($699) and the Master & Dynamic MW75 ($599), some of which diagnostic beauteous plan and high-end materials.

I inactive person yet to brushwood a brace of wireless earbuds that dependable amazing, but the champion I've tested are the Astell & Kern UW100 ($299), which person immoderate of the astir realistic dependable you'll find, acknowledgment to the company's fantabulous processing.

Fans of open-back listening with large budgets should cheque retired the Elex ($599), a collaboration betwixt Drop and Focal that brings elements of Focal's much costly Elear and Clear headphones to the sub-$1,000 mark. They dependable amended than galore pricier closed-back models. Another coagulated brace are the Neumann NDH 30 ($649), which are aimed astatine much studio-style sound. If you've got unlimited cash, the Audeze LCD-5 ($4,500) are exceptional. They connection the cleanest, clearest dependable I've ever heard from a brace of headphones—great for precocious rollers without cleanable listening rooms.

A prime brace of wired speakers volition past a beingness with a small TLC, portion powered/active speakers whitethorn person little longevity, but should inactive past galore years. Speaker size and powerfulness output is an important origin erstwhile determining what to buy. For astir people, smaller, “bookshelf-style" speakers are the champion fit. If you person a large listening space, though, see going bigger. It's not ever true, but larger speakers typically person amended bass effect and a wider, much expansive soundstage.

Your archetypal talker acquisition should beryllium a prime brace for your desktop. After all, it's wherever you astir apt walk a batch of your clip astatine home. For listening astatine my desk, I emotion the iLoud Micro Monitors ($350). They're a tiny brace that dependable exceptional for their size, and they person amazingly awesome bass response.

As acold arsenic bookshelf speakers go, my favourite brace is the KEF LS50 Wireless II ($2,500 per pair). They person the biggest, astir elaborate dependable I've ever heard from a brace of speakers their size. The cheaper KEF LSX II ($1,300-1,400 per pair) are also great, arsenic are the wired KEF LS50 Meta ($1,600 per pair). We've besides precocious tried and enjoyed the Q Acoustics M20 HD ($499 per pair), which are a coagulated enactment for those who privation a tiny but great-sounding brace for a turntable oregon desktop.

The KEF and iLoud models I conscionable mentioned are powered. They person amplification and connections built-in, and they gully their powerfulness from a partition socket, truthful they tin beryllium utilized without a dedicated amplifier. If you already person an amp (or if you program to bargain one), a brace of passive speakers is the champion mode to go. Those hook up with regular talker cables, and you won't request to interest astir plugging them into the wall.

Some passive bookshelf models I emotion are the ELAC Debut 2.0 ($380 per pair) and JBL 4309 ($1,100-2,000 per pair), though the second is getting harder to find present that it's been replaced by the likewise designed Synthesis 4309 ($2,000 per pair). The ELACs are a large entry-level talker that volition easy instrumentality you into audiophile territory with the close amp, whereas the 4309 much oregon little dependable astonishing with thing powering them. I'm a instrumentality of fun, energetic dependable erstwhile I'm listening connected speakers, and some of these models present that, but with capable item that you won't consciousness you're sacrificing anything.

More recently, we've tested immoderate fantabulous options astatine comparatively accessible pricing, similar Focal's creaseless and elaborate Theva No 1 ($1,000 per pair) and the much taut and punchy SVS Ultra Evolution ($1,200 per pair), some of which are among our favourite notation speakers close now. If you similar a brighter dependable that truly brings the bass, the Bowers & Wilkins 606 S3 ($1,100) are besides worthy considering.

Moving distant from bookshelves and onto passive floorstanding speakers, I'll item 2 precise antithetic models. The Paradigm Monitor SE 6000F ($1,000 per pair) are a large brace of speakers for those who similar things a spot much objective and precise—they're astonishing for classical music, jazz, and folk, acknowledgment to their unthinkable detail. Some audiophiles similar the benignant of choky precision you get from speakers similar the Paradigms. The much lively Klipsch Forte IV ($4,998 per pair) are perfectly tuned, mid-century–inspired masterpieces with hand-made woody cabinets and gorgeous horn tweeters. Their 15-inch passive bass radiators astatine the backmost assistance them punch deeper and with much authorization than a nonrecreational boxer. If you're looking for the astir amusive you've ever had listening to Hendrix astatine precocious volume, these are the mode to go.

Your sensation whitethorn disagree from mine! The champion mode to find your favourite high-end speakers is to usage your ears. Find a section trader and spell perceive to respective models earlier you buy. For reference, different brands that marque fantabulous speakers these days see Yamaha, Bang & Olufsen, and Polk Audio, among galore different much boutique brands.

You'll ne'er cognize however a brace of speakers genuinely sounds successful your country until you get them there, truthful effort to trial them astatine home. Most high-end dealers let a proceedings option, but big-box retailers whitethorn not truthful cheque the instrumentality argumentation connected thing you buy.

Digital-to-analog converters (DACs) instrumentality the integer audio awesome from your audio files and person them to analog audio that you tin nonstop (via an amplifier) to headphones and speakers. Every portion of integer exertion you ain that comes with a headphone jack already has a DAC spot wrong it, but it's usually a beauteous inexpensive one. If you way your awesome done a dedicated DAC—one with amended components and a higher physique prime than whatever's successful your telephone oregon machine you'll get higher fidelity from your integer files.

In my experience, if you person bully headphones oregon speakers, it's worthy investing successful a due outboard DAC. On the much affordable side, I emotion the options from AudioQuest ($100), Schiit ($149), and S.M.S.L. ($479). All of these link to your machine oregon telephone implicit USB oregon a integer audio cable. If you are consenting to walk adjacent more, the champion DAC I've heard is the Chord Electronics Mojo 2 ($775). You tin walk more, but higher-priced models typically besides travel with a headphone amplifier oregon different amplification connected board.

Many higher-end headphones dependable their champion erstwhile driven by a much almighty amplifier than what's built into your laptop, phone, oregon tablet. Headphone amplifiers instrumentality the awesome from your DAC and amplify it with amended wide fidelity than the cheapo amps recovered successful astir idiosyncratic electronics. A bully headphone amp tin truly bring much beingness and a much realistic soundstage to your music, mostly by providing amended signal-to-noise ratio.

As with headphone amps, immoderate of the champion affordable options are from Schiit ($139) and S.M.S.L. ($149). Either exemplary is good made and should beryllium particularly bully astatine improving the dependable of much power-hungry headphones. You tin walk a ton of wealth astatine the precocious end, but you astir apt don't request to spell higher-end than the Rupert Neve Designs RNHP ($549). Neve was a legendary technologist who designed immoderate of the astir celebrated signaling instrumentality successful history, and helium didn't chopped immoderate corners making his headphone amp either. It sounds lukewarm and open, bringing adjacent the densest mixes to life.

Quality amps scope from fully-fledged streaming models with colour displays to old-school conduit behemoths. Each has its place. Your main interest erstwhile buying for a stereo amp should beryllium however overmuch powerfulness per transmission you want, and what kinds of analog and integer inputs you need.

I'm a beauteous lazy listener, which is wherefore I emotion modern streaming amps. These amps person controls for Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, and different streaming services built straight into easy-to-use interfaces. Streaming amps person gotten truly large implicit the past fewer years. It utilized to beryllium that thing with an net transportation sounded terrible, but that's not the lawsuit with the latest models. My high-end favorites close present are the Cambridge Audio Evo 150 ($2,999) and the Naim Uniti Atom ($3,799), which some diagnostic gorgeous colour displays and immoderate of the champion fidelity (and astir glorious knobs) I've ever experienced. Both enactment with each large streaming work imaginable, and you tin link to them implicit Bluetooth too.

A bully step-down enactment is Yamaha's R-N1000A ($1,800) stereo web receiver. It's loaded with high-end components similar a SABRE ES9090Q DAC for high-resolution integer audio and capable A/B amplification for astir immoderate brace of speakers successful your arsenal. Just arsenic important, it provides rock-steady performance and loads of transportation options, from tons of streaming services and net vigor stations to a turntable input and HDMI ARC for connecting to your TV. Its retro design, which skips a colour surface for a slim integer show acceptable beneath tactile knobs, stokes nostalgia portion delivering fantabulous dependable quality.

If you don't person that benignant of money, I highly urge checking retired the Canadian marque NAD. Its amps, similar the NAD C 316 V2 ($399) aren't the flashiest, but they dependable astonishing for the money. Like the Yamaha above, the C 316 adjacent comes with a phono transmission connected committee truthful you tin hook up a grounds player—a bully touch, seeing however NAD's exemplary doesn't person built-in streaming. If you privation to stream, you tin find the due dongle to link your telephone to it.

Vinyl is back! And turntables are much fun—and better-sounding—than ever. If you're looking for a starter platform with audiophile-grade dependable quality, I would cheque retired options similar the Pro-Ject T1 ($499) oregon Debut Carbon Evo ($599). On the higher end, we similar the Rega Planar 2 ($775), which has a spot much unfastened and dynamic sound, and U-Turn's Orbit Theory ($999), which sounds fantastic acknowledgment to extras similar a custom-made magnesium tonearm, the portion that sets the needle to the groove.

If you person a vintage stereo, it apt has a phono preamp built-in, meaning you tin plug a turntable straight and get consecutive to listening. But if you person a modern stereo, you whitethorn request to bargain a dedicated phono preamp to play your records done your headphones oregon speakers. Check some your turntable and your stereo, due to the fact that setups differ, and immoderate turntables travel with phono amps wrong them that you tin activate by flipping a switch. Still, portion immoderate built-in options similar the 1 wrong the Orbit Theory supra execute well, others whitethorn not dependable arsenic bully arsenic you'd like.

Outboard models similar the Pro-Ject Phono Box DC ($129) and Fluance PA10 ($100) volition rise the dependable of galore built-in models, but for genuinely precocious fidelity, I urge much costly models. My existent favourite for the wealth is the Cambridge Audio Alva Solo ($229), but different acclaimed options see the Rega Fono MM ($445) and Pro-Ject Phono Box S2 Ultra ($349).

People mightiness archer you to walk much wealth than this connected a phono stage, but I mostly deliberation those radical are foolish. The awesome illustration for phono stages is acceptable by the RIAA, the signaling industry's large commercialized group. In theory, each bully phono amp should dependable astir identical.

Accessories are wherever the immense bulk of audio snake lipid shows up. The worst offender? Cables. The archetypal happening to cognize is that unless you're moving talker cables for hundreds of feet, you conscionable don't request to interest excessively overmuch astir cablegram quality. People volition effort to merchantability you crazy-expensive cables. Laugh astatine them and bargain modular cabling—which isn't arsenic inexpensive arsenic it utilized to beryllium owed to the worldly costs of copper alone, but is inactive beauteous affordable.

You're fundamentally paying up for looks and durability, not fidelity; cheaper talker cables are much susceptible to fraying oregon breaking, but they inactive transportation audio signals conscionable arsenic well. Just bargain modern wire and you'll beryllium fine. Anyone who tells you different doesn't recognize physics.

I besides urge grabbing immoderate banana plugs, which you tin easy twist talker ligament ends into to marque speedy plug-and-play connections betwixt your amp and speakers.

In presumption of sources, I'm a die-hard vinyl and Spotify listener, truthful I typically bask euphony successful those 2 ways. I cognize Spotify's streams are compressed, but adjacent done high-end gear, I can't perceive immoderate degradation connected astir tracks. (You astir apt can't, either.)

I volition accidental that a bully portable subordinate similar the Astell & Kern SP3000 ($3,999) is simply a large enactment if you're connected the go, though successful astir cases, your telephone volition supply fantabulous integer audio prime via its USB port.

There are besides fantabulous caller plug-and-go DACs made conscionable for mobile phones. I've ne'er utilized one, but the Chord Mojo ($403) is beloved by many. I besides similar the THX Onyx ($200), which comes with a modular USB adapter successful summation to USB-C, truthful you tin besides usage it with iPhones and laptops.