Need Headphone Amp for iMac + Sennheiser HD 600

[Frits]

Hey there,

I have a 2008 alu iMac 2.8Ghz and Logic. I just bought a Sennheiser HD 600 for monitoring. Up until now, I used a POD Studio GX for recording my electric guitars and Yamaha cs5 (analog synth). It's doing that alright, but to also get a good quality output for monitoring on my Sennheisers it probably won't suffice to use it's line-out (because it has no headphone amp, right?).

So what I need it to do, in chains:
1. Guitar-> fender guitar amp with line-out-> audio interface for analog to digital-> my iMac
2. Same but starts with my synth, I don't need to do them simultaniously so one input is enough
3. My iMac-> audio interface for digital to analog and headphone amp-> headphones

After searching around the obvious choice seems either the Apogee Duet or ONE. I would not like laying down the €400,- for the Duet at all, and I would have to think think deeply about the ONE, I don't have loads of money. So, my questions:
1. Can someone tell me he/she is absolutely certain that my POD won't be able to drive my Sennheisers to at least a good part of their potential (because no headphone amp/too low power via usb?)? Thanks
2. With that out of the way, will the ONE give me the same or similar quality audio through my Sennheisers as the Duet? I read a lot of contradicting reports on this, some claiming that they have the same A/D/A and amp as the Duet, some saying they don't. I also read a lot of opinions stating that even the Duet doesn't have enough power to max out the HD 600's, but I'm not that much of an audiophile and I'm the firewire has enough power to make it sound good

Thanks a lot, Frits

 

[ChrisA]

The best thing is to buy an audio interface that has a headphone amp with enough power to drive you low sensitivity headphones. Presonus, Lexicon or one of the others that was a 500mw headphone amp. Other option is to replace the headphones. Sweetwater has the K240 (32 ohm) on sale for $99

Both of these options I think are cheaper and less complex than adding a standalone headphone amp to the chain

 

[Frits]

The best thing is to buy an audio interface that has a headphone amp with enough power to drive you low sensitivity headphones.

Thanks for your quick reply, but if you had read more than the title of my post you'd have seen that that is exactly was I am planning on doing, not trying to add a standalone. Replacing the headphones is not an option for me, I just bought them and I don't regret it, I want these

Thanks anyway