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Dvulikaia\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.<\/p>\n
The pursuit of high-fidelity sound is fun and remarkably satisfying. If you enjoy listening to music, there’s little more pleasurable than integrating a new component into your system and listening to old favorites anew, picking out details and nuances you’d never noticed before.<\/p>\n
That said, it’s not without pitfalls. For every truly transformational gadget, there’s a so-called snake oil product out there that doesn’t really affect the sound much, if at all. Products like high-end cables and megabucks power conditioners generally fall into this category, and while there are plenty who will argue that both are essential, I’d venture that neither of those is \u2014 at least, not ahead of other, more important gadgets.<\/p>\n
What would an audiophile consider a must-have, then, beyond basics like speakers and an amplifier? Well, it’s impossible to speak for everyone, but I think I have a good idea. I’ve been obsessing over music and gear for about 20 years now. I started with a humble pair of affordable in-ear monitors before branching out to desktop DACs, turntables, tube phono stages, digital audio players, high-end in-ears, and so much more. I’ve also worked in a record store, selling records and talking hi-fi with customers, so I know my way around the scene. Here are some hi-fi gadgets that one could conceivably get by without, but which most would choose to have anyway.<\/p>\n
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A record cleaning machine<\/p>\n
A key part of any vinyl setup is, in my opinion, a good cleaning machine to remove the gunk and grime that gets stuck in a record’s grooves and negatively\u00a0affects\u00a0sound quality. There are many ways to clean records, and any cleaning method is better than nothing at all, but I’ve found that the best options are a vacuum-style cleaner like the $350 Record Doctor VI<\/a> or, as many audiophiles have chosen, an ultrasonic cleaner.<\/p>\n Vacuum cleaners rely on a cleaning fluid and some elbow grease to dislodge any muck, before a vacuum sucks the dirty fluid up and dries the record. Ultrasonic cleaners\u00a0rotate a record through an ultrasonic tank that uses high-frequency sound to agitate a fluid and dislodge any impurities stuck to the record.<\/p>\n If you’re interested in buying used vinyl records<\/a>, you’ll probably end up with quite a few dirty ones. A vacuum record cleaner will get into playable shape, and is probably all you need if you only buy new vinyl. Some will likely require the cleaning power of the ultrasonic process, however, which will result in a\u00a0much lower noise floor with significantly fewer crackles and pops. Ultrasonic cleaners are available at various price points, from the $140 Vevor Sonic Cleaner<\/a> to sleeker and higher-end devices like the $600\u00a0HumminGuru HG01<\/a>. If you’re curious, you can probably find local record stores that offer cleaning services,\u00a0too, letting you try it out without committing to buying a machine outright.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n High-quality headphones<\/p>\n Listening to music on a proper set of speakers is great, but speakers are highly dependent on room acoustics\u00a0and most rooms will require acoustic treatment to sound good. That’s not a problem if you’re a homeowner, but those living in rented accommodation may not have quite as much freedom. That’s where a great pair of headphones comes into the picture.<\/p>\n In my experience, even the most ardent fan of speakers will still have at least one pair of good headphones on hand, be it as a backup or just as an alternative for late-night listening. They can also offer a different sonic experience, with the close-up nature of headphones great for those times when you want to dig into every little detail of an album or song. In those situations, I find that good headphones are essential.<\/p>\n Audiophile-tier headphones come in many styles at different price points, but a common starter choice is probably the Sennheiser HD600s<\/a>. They’re bass-light but are\u00a0amazing for those who want a detailed and\u00a0natural sound\u00a0\u2014 they are probably\u00a0one of the best wired headphones for audiophiles<\/a>. Sennheiser isn’t the only option, though: brands like HiFiMan, Final, and Audeze all make great products that many audiophiles would happily add to their collections. In-ear monitors are also an option, but headphones are probably safer. They don’t require you to stick stuff into your ears, avoiding the issues that saw AirPods Pro 3s cause some users’ ears to bleed<\/a>.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n A dedicated DAC<\/p>\n
Azzief Khaliq\/SlashGear<\/p>\n A standalone digital-to-analog converter (DAC) is a key component for anyone who listens to digital music. These devices convert digital files’ 1s and 0s into analog signals and usually come in one of two flavors: DAC-only units like the $170 Schiit Modi 5<\/a> or DAC\/amps that include a headphone amplifier, like the $300 Topping DX5 II<\/a>. The former is more flexible, while the latter is much more convenient since you don’t need to buy a separate amp.<\/p>\n Now, any device with a headphone or line-out jack has a DAC. However, a standalone DAC can do a lot for you regardless. Some, like the excellent Chord Mojo 2<\/a>, will give owners access to handy features like hardware-level crossfeed and EQ. Even if your DAC doesn’t have such features,\u00a0it may still offer other advantages over using a motherboard’s DAC. These can include support for higher-bitrate audio files and audiophile-approved file formats like DSD. If a motherboard has especially bad audio output, a dedicated DAC may even sound better.<\/p>\n Even if a DAC doesn’t offer a magical upgrade, getting one makes a lot of sense if you’re already investing some combination of time, money, effort, and storage space tracking down high-quality digital audio. If you’re grabbing hi-res albums from HDTracks, do you want to risk not getting the most out of the music by running them through the potentially mediocre DAC on your laptop or PC’s motherboard? Probably not.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n A digital audio player (or a USB dongle)<\/p>\n
Azzief Khaliq\/SlashGear<\/p>\n Admittedly, not every audiophile wants hi-fi sound on the go. However, there are many that do and, in those cases, a proper digital audio player (DAP) is a key part of their everyday carry. Sure,\u00a0connecting a portable USB DAC to a smartphone<\/a>\u00a0is an entirely valid way to go, but I’m a big advocate of using dedicated devices over tying more of our consumption habits to our smartphones.<\/p>\n Now, I’m not suggesting going back to the days of the iPod here; almost all modern DAPs, from affordable ones like the Fiio JM21<\/a> to high-end ones like the Shanling M7T<\/a>, run on Android and have Wi-Fi connectivity, providing access to\u00a0major streaming services like Spotify and Tidal<\/a>.\u00a0That said, I enjoy going fully offline with my music whenever possible and listening to the CD rips and digital downloads I’ve accumulated over the years.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sure, it’s less convenient, but not only can I decide the specific master\u00a0of the album I’m listening to (a choice we often don’t have when streaming), I also don’t have to worry about an artist or label pulling their music from streaming services. I appreciate that sense of control, and I suspect many audiophiles do as well. As I alluded to earlier, however, loading your phone up with FLAC files and connecting a high-quality dongle like the\u00a0Cayin RU7 or\u00a0iBasso Nunchaku<\/a>\u00a0is definitely an option \u2014 although it’s not quite as satisfying, in my opinion.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n A good-quality record player<\/p>\n Digital music is convenient, but there’s still something about vinyl records that audiophiles gravitate toward. The sound is a big part, of course, but so is the tactility and overall feel of dropping the needle on a record and leaning back to enjoy it \u2014 and having a good turntable plays a huge role.<\/p>\n
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