I was ignorant to the world of high quality audio until I decided to splurge on some decent headphones for my desktop setup. I ended up buying the Audeze Maxwells, which might not be the highest quality audio around these parts, but for what I used to have, it was a massive upgrade. I went to test them, listened to a few songs using Spotify's high fidelity settings, and I was blown away. I noticed things in favorite songs that I had never noticed before. Innerbloom by Rufus du sol sounded amazing.
So recently, I've been a bit obsessed with getting out of streaming and having my own music. I'm looking to get a DAP that's actually capable of playing higher quality music, and want some good headphones to pair it with. I found out about IEMs and how they're favored for providing high quality sound in a more compact form than over ear headphones, and was curious. I'm looking to spend less than $300 in both a DAP and headphones to start off.
I looked at some IEMs and noticed they can range from $40 to hundreds of dollars. I was looking to get something around the $70 range. Would that be worth it? And would i even notice the difference between a FLAC and a 320 kbps mp3 file with IEMs like that? Or even an AAC file? I found a world of difference between my old shitty headphones and my audeze maxwells. I want a similar experience when I transition from Spotify using an old pair of Beats Studio Buds to listening in a DAP with an actual DAC chip and IEMs. I want to know if acquiring my music library in FLACS is even worth it. FLACS are massive, and if the difference between them and high bitrate mp3 or AAC files is negligible for casual music listening sessions, I'd rather not waste my time.
Any help and tips are appreciated!