[KettyKrueger]

Hi all,

Just got my Sennheiser HD448's. Still burning them in but there appears to be a lot of distortion on them. In fact, all my earphones and headphones suffer from this to a certain degree. Also, doesn't seem to be my source, it happened on all my previous iPhones, currently using the 4.

Could this be due to lack of amplification? It's mighty annoying!

No addition bass boost on the iPhone, EQ is flat.

Thanks in advance

 

[Uncle Erik]

Yes, you could be hearing the amps clip, especially if the low end sounds distorted. A more powerful amp helps with this.

 

[KettyKrueger]

Thanks for that. I know the little Fiios aren't great but they are small and compact. Will they help in this situation?

Or can you suggest something equally as compact?

Thanks

 

[BlackSushi222]

I'd love to know this too, and your feedback when u get an amp.

 

[majkel]

I'm note sure about each model but first FIIO's were powered with two AAA batteries which results in low output voltage and resulting clipping distortion. Use a true amplifier instead.

 

[KettyKrueger]

Apologies for resurrecting this old thread.

Anyways, I have since bought a Penguin Royal amp.  Whilst cheap and
cheerful, it got decent reviews and allowed me to dip my toes into the
amp world.

I've done some quick testing and this amp doesn't fix the distortion
problem, so I'm thinking it's either the recordings or my iPhone 4.

Further, I couldn't tell a damn difference between using the amp and
not! It didn't seem to make any difference at all to the sound, let
alone the distortion. What am I doing wrong??!?

Got the volume set to about 70% on my iPhone, then set to preference on
the amp.  Quick A-B tests showed no difference amped or unamped.  Could
it be my headphones (Sennheiser HD 448?), perhaps they don't really
benefit from amping. Or is the amp ineffective??

Thanks for the input

 

[KettyKrueger]

Just a quick bump and to add that I'm using the headphone out and not a LOD, if that would make a difference.

 

[jcx]

the 448 is low impedance and moderately high sensitivity for full size headphones
 
portable player's output op amps are usually chosen for low impedance loads and can usually provide ~1 Vrms (Li rechargeable battery)
 
the 114 dB SPL that many players will drive the HD 448 to is adequate for all but the most dynamic acoustic music live event sound levels - but not for amplified club or Rock concert levels - which you shouldn't want to reproduce at "live" levels if you value your hearing
 
http://gilmore2.chem.northwestern.edu/articles/hearing_art.htm
 
the Penguin amp's AD8397 and split supply "9 V" battery should put the clipping level at >120 dB SPL with HD 448
 
intermittent clipping of rare peaks with very loud 95 dB average SPL is probably not the cause of distortion you easily notice unless you use serious bass boost eq - and listening as loud as 95 dB average level should be restricted to infrequent, limited length critical listening sessions - daliy background level listening should be much quieter