Tadgh
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- May 8, 2015
- Posts
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I'm confused regarding headphone amplification, and could do with some totally objective and scientific clarification, if anybody could be as good as to enlighten me that'd be greatly appreciated
I have a fairly basic understanding of the science of sound (okay super basic). As I see it, electricity powers a driver at certain frequencies in order to produce certain tones. Drivers that require a lot of energy (that are inefficient) or use particularly resistive components (are high impedance), require more power. Cleaner amplification leads to cleaner signal, hence why the capacitors on an amplifier are crucial.
Where I get confused is:
Why amps have sonic charictaristics (and aren't all just mirror images of their input signal with a little added distortion)
Why amps have so many different metrics, and what these measurments mean
Why leaving amps to "warm up" supposedly offers an improvement in SQ
What makes a "good" amp
If any examples are used, please use these metrics (Just for my ease, I plan to buy said amp):
Frequency Response: 20Hz-20Khz, -0.1db, 2Hz-400KHz, -3dB
Maximum Power, 32 ohms: 1.0W RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 50 ohms: 1.0W RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 300 ohms: 380mW RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 600 ohms: 190mW RMS per channel
THD: Less than 0.008%, 20Hz-20KHz, at 1V RMS, high gain mode (worst case)
IMD: Less than 0.010%, CCIF at 1V RMS, high gain mode (worst case)
SNR: More than 102db, unweighted, referenced to 1V RMS, in low gain mode
Crosstalk: Less than -72dB, 20Hz-20KHz
Output Impedance: Less than 2 ohms
Gain: High = 6 (15.6db) or Low = 1.5 (3.5db), via rear switch
I have a fairly basic understanding of the science of sound (okay super basic). As I see it, electricity powers a driver at certain frequencies in order to produce certain tones. Drivers that require a lot of energy (that are inefficient) or use particularly resistive components (are high impedance), require more power. Cleaner amplification leads to cleaner signal, hence why the capacitors on an amplifier are crucial.
Where I get confused is:
Why amps have sonic charictaristics (and aren't all just mirror images of their input signal with a little added distortion)
Why amps have so many different metrics, and what these measurments mean
Why leaving amps to "warm up" supposedly offers an improvement in SQ
What makes a "good" amp
If any examples are used, please use these metrics (Just for my ease, I plan to buy said amp):
Frequency Response: 20Hz-20Khz, -0.1db, 2Hz-400KHz, -3dB
Maximum Power, 32 ohms: 1.0W RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 50 ohms: 1.0W RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 300 ohms: 380mW RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 600 ohms: 190mW RMS per channel
THD: Less than 0.008%, 20Hz-20KHz, at 1V RMS, high gain mode (worst case)
IMD: Less than 0.010%, CCIF at 1V RMS, high gain mode (worst case)
SNR: More than 102db, unweighted, referenced to 1V RMS, in low gain mode
Crosstalk: Less than -72dB, 20Hz-20KHz
Output Impedance: Less than 2 ohms
Gain: High = 6 (15.6db) or Low = 1.5 (3.5db), via rear switch