NOOB vs the AMP

Your receiver is a headphone amp.  Usually, with receivers, the headphone jack is either a separate opamp that powers the phones, or it is a branched circuit off of the main amp pathway that uses resisters to lower the voltage and current, making it suitable for phones.  It's very common that perceived user volume levels are very different between headphones and speakers even if the volume pot is in the same position.  As long as you think the sound is good, regardless of volume, enjoy your setup and put any money towards new music!

Yeah Hodgjy is right. Generally they are the same amp, just with resistors in the way.

A head-fier sent out an email to just about all the major receiver companies like pioneer, onkyo, sony, denon etc and they all said they were resistor based. (which is viewed as superior to a custom op-amp circuit by some, regardless of whether it actually is or not)

Don't think the amp you are using now is inadequate, it is most likely very good. It is not the best, but if you think it sounds good, it is more than enough to drive those HFI780.

The hardest thing in hi-fi is to feel content with your gear when you have all these crazy people raving about how much of a breakthrough their latest piece of kit is, and they are out looking for new stuff a few months later. I myself have been guilty of this. It is part of the fun, but is also part of why people waste so much money unnecessarily.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hillbilly559 

Thanks guys, that makes sense. Yeah, with all the products, info., and opinions, it can get a little confusing. Does anyone ever add an amp to a receiver to improve sound quality? I see alot posted about tube amps. Would any be a noticable improvement, or should I save the Green for a new album?

No, generally people use dedicated headphone amps directly off a source. If your receiver offers a true "line-out" then it is doable, but like I said, not necessary.

As far as a tube amp goes, it could change the sound for better or worse (depends on your tastes and quality of the amp), but it depends how much you are willing to drop on one as well.

Which receiver are we talking about? What kind of price range?

If it is a pretty decent receiver, I would think twice about getting a dedicated amp, unless I was gonna drop a fair chunk of change (like 500-1000$).

Also, the HFI-780 is not a very demanding headphone. I have owned a pair of pro 750, and in my experience they were the easiest headphones to drive that I have ever owned. IE they benefited least from amplification. (which does mean they don't sound good, they do!)

It's generally a very bad idea to daisy chain amps together.  You can use a pre-amp to drive a power amp.  This is essentially what a receiver is--a preamp and a power amp all in one, sometimes called an integrated amp.  A receiver is called a receiver because it usually has more inputs than integrated amps, a radio receiver, and probably more tone controls.  So, I say leave your receiver the way it is, enjoy the hell out of it, and put your scratch towards some records.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by hillbilly559 

 Does anyone ever add an amp to a receiver to improve sound quality? I see alot posted about tube amps.