Amp just about volume?
May 30, 2011 at 1:30 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 5

teambayern

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I mainly listen to lossless music through my ipod or laptop connected to sr 60s or m50s.  I'm thinking of upgrading to the 225s.  I'm terrified of tinnitus, so I usually listen at half the volume or below and that's plenty for me.  Given that I don't need extra volume and i use low impedence phones, what benefits would an amp provide?  Would something like a total bithead be worth the expense?
 
 
 
 
May 30, 2011 at 10:06 AM Post #3 of 5
I gave up on portable amps myself awhile back, since I don't think they are worth the extra hassle in a noisy environment like public transport.
But one of the benefits is that a good amp removes the hiss that some DAP headphone outputs have.
 
May 31, 2011 at 12:27 AM Post #4 of 5
Grados definitely benefit from amping.
Even at lower volume levels.
I had an SR80 and now the HF2.
 
Like tk3, I have also decided to only use my Cowon J3 + Westone ES5 as my portable rig.
The iBasso D6 created too much hassle carrying it around.
 
The D6 is used as my AMP/DAC at home with HF2s and ES5s.
 
May 31, 2011 at 1:39 AM Post #5 of 5
Amps are much more about control than volume. A driver moves, physically. Precisely controlling when it starts and stops is more important than how loud it can go.

I'm not crazy about portables, either. Read Boomana's guide for new users in the Wiki for more detail on this. There's a lot more power on the mains than there is from a pocketable battery. Desktop amps are almost always better.
 

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