headphone amp

[Floeee]

can anyone tell me, what a headphne amp is good for?

[Dalmane98]

For amplifying the signal going to the Headphones....

[EddieE]

Why not be a bit more specific?

[NIN2theVoid]

lol :) directly from Headroom:

"A headphone amp is simply a miniaturized power amplifier specifically designed to correctly drive the tiny speakers inside headphones. Headphone amps allow for use of reference high-impedance headphones from low-power audio sources and substantially improve tonal & timbral detail resolution and dynamic range extension while also maximizing musical clarity. Because headphones are often used in portable applications, some head-amps are conveniently battery-powered. Headphone amps can also be used in a workstation or desktop setting where they can act as a central controller switch between various digital and/or analog sound sources or as a pre-amp stage for self-powered desktop speakers. Dedicated headphone amps may also include USB connections for use directly from a computer's digital USB feed along with other digital inputs (optical, co-axial) for compatibility with most modern digital-out audio sources."

[EddieE]

Perfect [thumbsup]

[Floeee]

hmm thanks, but what exactly does it change in use with a mp3 player? do i only need something like that, if i have high-impedance headphones?

[SawaFish]

It's more usefull with high impedance headphones because every player will drive 32 Ohm players just fine. But except for the amplification, a lot of people also believe it can bring out the detail or add the treble/bass not gotten straight from their player. And your signal should get cleaner. I use a Corda 2Move from time to time and it indeeds sounds better but not enough to carry around with the extra bulk. I wouldn't worry about headphone amps untill you've got some pretty good headphones or IEM's. I'd recommend head-fi.org for more information about this. If it's about headphones, they'll know the answer :)

[Floeee]

thaaats a really useful answer
thank you very much

i have the sennheiser hd25 and i dont know any headphone below 200 euro that would be better, so i think they are good ^^

[SawaFish]

thaaats a really useful answer
thank you very much

i have the sennheiser hd25 and i dont know any headphone below 200 euro that would be better, so i think they are good ^^

A lot of people use stock earbuds and don't know any better sounding headphone for free, but that doesn't make them good :P But as long as you think they're good, they are good!

(for you anyway :))

[Floeee]

yeah but the question is, would the sound be better with an amp ? :D

[SawaFish]

The sound will probably be better though the more important question is: is it worth the money? Search Head-Fi if the Senn HD25 pairs good with an amp to find out. Also, the prices for headphone amps vary from 30 euro for a CMOY to 200 euro for a Corda 2Move to even 475 dollar for a Predator. And stationary amps can costs even more than that.

Check out this review of 47 different portable amps. It's quite big and extensive but scroll to bottom of the first post for the ranking and prices
http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f105/review-portable-amp-roundup-37-portable-amps-reviewed-compared-214588/

[robojack]

I've got a Predator amp, and it sounds fantastic with my D2, and Sleek Audio IEMs.

[lkik2]

Personally I'd recommend people to try the portable headphone amps carefully in real person before buying one. I've tried and owned a few headphone amps and personally I've always found the improvements to be mostly placebo or simply due to difference in volume levels. Not to mention extra inconvinience and added noise level(sometimes)

Now with some headphones and players, there are indeed differences but in most cases I struggled to tell the difference when I blind-tested myself after volume matching the amps. Also I'm still leery of relying on the internal DAC of a portable player instead of a good external DAC if I were to be that picky about pristine audio quality from my portable rig.

But hey, audio is all about self-satisfaction and by all means go ahead and get one if you think a portable amp could help you out. Also there are cases such as inefficient hard-to-drive cans needing that extra oomph or player being unable to supply full bass with low-impedance 'phones.

[Floeee]

thats the point, i really dont know anything about head amps, and i have no friends using one

but i have some knowledge about loudspeakers and also built one, but never heart a portable device with an amp

[SawaFish]

If it'll be just for portable use, don't worry about it cause a external amp will make you reconsider if the term portable still applies to your rig. Besides, it's most usefull when paired with an direct line-out which the S9 doesn't have (though I've heard a cable will be released for that)

But when you use your computer a lot as your source it may be worth it since some of the more expensive amps also feature an DAC replacing the soundcard in your computer. I've got a X-Fi Xtreme Music soundcard but prefer to use my Corda 2Move cause it's DAC sounds better.

[Floeee]

oh ok thank you very much for these infos, i have a x-fi elite pro myself and im very happy with it so i have ordered my s9 yesterday and i will see how it sounds with my headphones next week

[robojack]

If it'll be just for portable use, don't worry about it cause a external amp will make you reconsider if the term portable still applies to your rig. Besides, it's most usefull when paired with an direct line-out which the S9 doesn't have (though I've heard a cable will be released for that)
Where did you hear that Cowon's releasing a line-out cable? If it's true, this is great news.

[SawaFish]

I believe I've read it somewhere on this site or ABI, I'm not too sure about it though