[jsfb]

This is probably a first for this forum. My days of good hearing have passed me. Many say my hearing loss is due to too much amplified Led Zeppelin and AC/DC in my younger years. I say there is no such thing as too much amplified Led Zeppelin or AC/DC. Not possible!

Anyway ... I am in need of amplification on the phone. A couple years back I came across a Xenos X3A. Both my cell phone and land line phone have 2.5mm jacks so I went from them to the Xenos to a headset. Wow! I could hear again! Here is the problem. They quit making the Xenos amps. I need a backup while mine is still working. After searching the web for days I settled on the Headroom Micro Amp as a definite possibility. I don't know all that much about headphone amps, ohms or impedence. AC power is a must. Knowing what I am going to use this for and knowing how well the Xenos has worked for me am I way off base on this Headroom Micro Amp?

$333 seems a bit much for the Micro Amp but the Xenos was well worth the price. Am I going to be happy with the Micro Amp or can someone reccommend something better?

Thanks!

 

[AmanGeorge]

Just to clarify, are you purely looking for power? Is sound quality a factor? Also, why is AC power a must instead of batteries?

Whatever the answer to these questions, you will definitely find something cheaper than $333.

 

[jsfb]

Hi Aman. I am looking for both. I need a power boost and every bit of sound quality I can get. I do networks and computers. I am on the phone maybe 4-6 hours a day so I want to stick with AC power to avoid constantly replacing batteries. It is for the office so there is no need for it to be portable.

 

[paara]

Edit: Removed due to useless suggestion.

Anyway: The Darkvoice 336se is a great amp. Maybe a bit big, but if you dont mind the size it is a great buy for 239$ With a 2,5mm adapter you have both a powerful and great sounding solution. I own one and I like it alot.

Another option is the audio-dg ST-3 amp it is 269$

Minibox headamp 229$

Or this one, which has been used to jump start the space shuttle on several occasions

 

[AtomikPi]

If you don't need the amp to be super portable, I've been using a Little Dot Mk III ($200). I'd definitely recommend it. Sound quality is great for the price and power is definitely there (I normally listen at 9 o'clock). Plus it has plenty of tube rolling options and other people using it. (You would need an adapter for your smaller headphone jack)

 

[jsfb]

There have been a lot of good suggestions. I am kind of curious. No one has mentioned anything about their opinion of the Headroom Micro Amp. Did I make a poor first pass?

 

[goorackerelite]

there are much better products than the Headroom Micro Amp for the money. Headroom has done a great job advertising, but in reality their products are on par with amps that cost half as much.

 

[Drag0n]

Seems counter-productive.
I love the hearing-aid cure.

Person loses hearing due to loud volume.......
Cure? Turn it up louder with a hearing-aid or an amp.
Person loses MORE hearing.
Cure? Get a BIGGER amp.

I think i would first experiment with different voiced headsets and EQs or something and set them to enhance frequencies you CAN hear.
Six hours a day of blasting an amp into your ear doesnt sound good.

I would get a portable amp with power, incase you need it portable.
Something with alot of gain, like maybe one of Ray Samuels amps, like the P51 Mustang, which sounds good and has alot of gain and is small incase you wish to carry it for use on ur cellphone.
Thats what id do if i simply must blast out my ears.

As far as those Little Dot amps, theyre nice, but the guy wants them for a PHONE, not an audio system.
Not to mention he doesnt need a mellow sweet sound, he needs punch and a rise at 2500hz, like Grado SR125 headphones type sound, or Ultrasone Icans, or KOSS KSC75s etc. Lets get real here.
Any 10 gain or better portable amp with lots of battery time will do the trick, then just voice headsets to get the sound thats most clear to you.
I know the OP said he doesnt want to replace batteries, but some amps are rechargeable and also some RSA amps go for like 400 hours. Its handy for the cellphone to have it portable.
I cant see a fat tube amp on the desk for a phone. Id want a big blow up poster of that for my wall for a laugh...lol !!!

 

[jsfb]

DragOn you bring up many good points. To be honest my hearing loss is heriditary. The problem I have is two fold. Volume loss and the real killer is clarity. If someone talks a little too fast or doesn't enunciate well it all blurs together on me and I can't "understand" what is being said.

I have tried Plantronics headset amplifiers and a lot of stuff from Clairity. All phone equipment geared toward hearing loss. None of them seem to have the volume amplification I need and the ones that do seem to interject a lot of distortion. I have tried just about every commercial hearing loss system known to man. Then I got turned on to these headset amps a couple years ago and it seemed to do the trick. I have a not-so-good Plantronics gamer headset with a boom mic. Over the ear on both ears. Doing it that way cuts out all the background which is also a big help.

So you kind of hit it on the head. I wan't something small. These tube amps are nice but I need desk space

and if anyone knows of a good headset with a boom mic I am open to suggestions on that too. You are also correct in that sooner or later I will need to address the cell phone issue. Right now 90% of my need is in the office or in the car. I figure if I get in the office taken care of that I can get a second desktop model and use it in the car with a inverter.

Thanks for all the input guys. You have been more help then you will ever know. It is a wierd situation. I don't want to blow my ears off with music. I just want something small with a lot of volume boost and crisp, clear amplification with minimal distortion.

 

[Caribou679]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsfb /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't want to blow my ears off with music. I just want something small with a lot of volume boost and crisp, clear amplification with minimal distortion.

You could try a FiiO E5 for $20 and see if this is loud enough for you. It recharges through a USB port or independant AC charger. If not loud enough go for another portable headphone amp, like a cmoy or T4.

Head Direct has the E5 around $20
Head-Direct.com | YUIN

or you could find it, and other cmoy headphone amp on ebay.

regards,

 

[jsfb]

Thanks Caribou679. I just ordered a E5 from Head-Direct. I figure if nothing else it will let me know where I stand on the amplification and clarity I need. Maybe I don't need a $200-$300 amp. For $24 at least I will know where I stand.

As long as we are tripping the light fantastic I am going to run one more issue (actually two) up the flag pole. Here is how I am doing this. I start with a 2.5mm stero jack either on my cell phone or a cordless land line phone. One channel is the microphone and one channel is the speaker. I go from that 2.5mm streo jack to a 3.5mm stero jack with an adapter. I go from that 3.5mm stero jack to two seperate 3.5mm mono jacks with an adapter so what I have at this point are two seperate 3.5mm mono jacks. One being the microphone and one being the speaker. Then I put a adapter on the speaker which converts the mono speaker to stero speakers.

I then run the speakers through the headphone amp and on to the gamer headphones. I plug the microphone directly in to the gamer headset boom mic. Confused? Me too. Here are the issues:

I don't really want, or need to do anything with the microphone but as soon as I plug anything in to the 2.5mm jack on the phone (or cell phone) it cuts off the internal mic and sends it external does't it? Is there a way around this where I can plug something in to the 2.5mm jack on the phone to take the speaker external but not cut off the mic?

The really strange part is that the phone I do this to has to be cordless. There are quite a few corded phone out there that have 2.5mm jacks on the base unit but when I try and do this to a corded phone I get a humming from hell through the speakers. It isn't a squeal like a feedback squeal is it just a very loud, rather low pitch, hum. Any idea how to get rid of this hum when I use a corded phone?

 

[Caribou679]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsfb /img/forum/go_quote.gif ...Confused? Me too. Here are the issues: I don't really want, or need to do anything with the microphone but as soon as I plug anything in to the 2.5mm jack on the phone (or cell phone) it cuts off the internal mic and sends it external does't it? Is there a way around this where I can plug something in to the 2.5mm jack on the phone to take the speaker external but not cut off the mic? The really strange part is that the phone I do this to has to be cordless. There are quite a few corded phone out there that have 2.5mm jacks on the base unit but when I try and do this to a corded phone I get a humming from hell through the speakers. It isn't a squeal like a feedback squeal is it just a very loud, rather low pitch, hum. Any idea how to get rid of this hum when I use a corded phone?

For $24 it is hard to go wrong!

Maybe this could be it, I am not 'sure', check this out:

http://www.amazon.com/Shure-MPA-3C-M.../dp/B000UD205K

This is an old thread but I know other products exists like that, either from Shure or from other cie.
or this one:
http://www.zagg.com/audio/zbuds-ipho...FQIyxwod2UV3ZQ


regards

 

[jsfb]

I agree. For $24 it is nothing to lose and everything to gain! I'll take a look at Shure. Life would definitely be easier if the microphone wasn't involved. You can find everything and anything for MP3 or IPOD but the fact that the 2.5mm jack is on a phone and one of the channels is a microphone makes it a whole new ballgame! Time to put on a little Neil Young too. Head to another planet ...

 

[Caribou679]

Yes Life is a bitch sometimes...

Friday I reintroduced myself to Neil Young- Harvest. What a feast this is!!!Been many years since I did not listen to it...


But I think the amazon link could help you!!

have a good one...

regards

 

[Drag0n]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsfb /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks Caribou679. I just ordered a E5 from Head-Direct. I figure if nothing else it will let me know where I stand on the amplification and clarity I need. Maybe I don't need a $200-$300 amp. For $24 at least I will know where I stand. As long as we are tripping the light fantastic I am going to run one more issue (actually two) up the flag pole. Here is how I am doing this. I start with a 2.5mm stero jack either on my cell phone or a cordless land line phone. One channel is the microphone and one channel is the speaker. I go from that 2.5mm streo jack to a 3.5mm stero jack with an adapter. I go from that 3.5mm stero jack to two seperate 3.5mm mono jacks with an adapter so what I have at this point are two seperate 3.5mm mono jacks. One being the microphone and one being the speaker. Then I put a adapter on the speaker which converts the mono speaker to stero speakers. I then run the speakers through the headphone amp and on to the gamer headphones. I plug the microphone directly in to the gamer headset boom mic. Confused? Me too. Here are the issues: I don't really want, or need to do anything with the microphone but as soon as I plug anything in to the 2.5mm jack on the phone (or cell phone) it cuts off the internal mic and sends it external does't it? Is there a way around this where I can plug something in to the 2.5mm jack on the phone to take the speaker external but not cut off the mic? The really strange part is that the phone I do this to has to be cordless. There are quite a few corded phone out there that have 2.5mm jacks on the base unit but when I try and do this to a corded phone I get a humming from hell through the speakers. It isn't a squeal like a feedback squeal is it just a very loud, rather low pitch, hum. Any idea how to get rid of this hum when I use a corded phone?

I saw an adapter that allows use of any regular headphone to be used as a hands-free kit for a cellphone with a 2.5mm jack......Apple Store.