[Devon8822]

couple questions for yeah.

1. How much do I want to spend on an amp in relation to my headphones? Do you want an amp cheaper or more expensive than you headphones?

2. Can someone give some info on portable vs non-portable HP amps? of course portable ones are... well... portable... but other than that, what are the differences? are non-portables significantly better quality?

3. If I have a setup of a TT and an old big amplifier... and I want use headphones with it but I have a modern dedicated amp (the dedicated amp would be better right?). Can I run the TT with just the portable dedicated HP amp? or can I plug it into my old amp... or what? how should I go about this?

 

[Devon8822]

bump plz?

 

[Asr]

1. Amp budget is a variable factor - you can spend any amount you want to of course, since the cost range is insanely wide, from ~$60 to over $5K. You should keep your system in a state of balance though. A $300 amp, for example, would fit fine with one of the $200-$400 headphones on a source component typically in the >$300 range (though personally I'd advise bumping up the source cost range to more like $500-$600 minimum). Likewise, a $300 amp is probably overkill for most DAP setups unless used with lossless files and a good-quality line-out adapter. Because amp budget is so variable you should post your equipment to help narrow down the range, there's no set cost for all headphones or all sources.

2. Non-portable amps run on AC power which is a better source of voltage and current. You can get an idea of how much extra power can be available if you compare these specs between the HeadAmp AE-2 and Gilmore Lite on the Web site at headamp.com. In my experience, more power usually results in cleaner, lower, and thicker bass output.

Non-portable amps also don't have to deal with a size limitation - well not that the electronics need that much space, but the lack of a real size limitation allows the amp designer to not worry about that issue and focus more on a good implementation.

3. I'm not familiar with using amps with turntables, someone else will have to chip in on that.

 

[nutric08]

1. & 2. i agree with Asr, except that amps running on batteries (12V accu) have purer current (no jitter and interferences from the local power grid), so they sound better (talking about high end stuff). Like you said, portable amps should be portable so the components inside cannot use too much current since they are driven by a couple of 9V batteries. Thus they don't have enough power to run needy headphones. Exceptions are common although.

3. To run the turntable solely on your dedicated amp you need a pre-phono. If your big amp has a pre-out or a tape loop you can connect your dedicated amp on the outs. The difference of SQ between your big amp headphone out and dedicated amp can be determined only by you.

 

[Devon8822]

Do most people have 2 dedicated amps? 1 portable and 1 for at home?

What is considered higher quality SS amps or tube? What is the price difference between them?

Can you get portable tube amps?

and thanks for you helpful answers guys

 

[jilgiljongiljing]

SS vs Tube is a personal preference topic. You can't call either "better" in terms of sound.

But build, form factor, maintenance and sturdiness wise, SS would probably win cos they are compact, you dont have to handle delicate tubes, which can get friggin hot, transportation/shipping is a bigger concern in tube amps, etc.

But when SQ is the primary concern, then there are equally good options on either side.

You do get a few portable tube amps like the Little Dot Micro Tube amp.

 

[Devon8822]

what about a DAC? I definitely want one... and for a portable amp i would obviously need one, but what about for a non-portable amp... isn't their a DAC in computers? only some? soundcard? can someone give me the scoop on DACs and computers?

If I am using my headphones into a TT and amp I won't need a DAC because its already analog... correct?

 

[st4r0c3an]

You only need a DAC if you plan on listening from a computer. MP3 players and all sound cards (even integrated) all have some sort of DAC integrated. The ones build into portable amps are mainly used to listen to music at work where you are stuck with integrated sound cards. Of course, just like how some people use portable amp at home, some also use their amp's DAC with their home computer.

You do not need a DAC with your turntable since there is weren't and never will be any digital signals to begin with.