AngusMcToon
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jun 15, 2002
- Posts
- 134
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This is my first post on HeadFi, and I'm getting ready to buy my first ever headphone amp, and I'm sorry if this question is dumb or FAQ. But I'm a bit baffled by this concept...If you've got high impedence phones--e.g., HD-600s which I just ordered after having completely fallen in love with them on the Headroom tour--and lower impedence less sensitive phones that you might use as well...well, are you typically going to end up (probably after much trial and error) amping them with different amps? My assumption, though perhaps this is oversimplified, is that you probably want to add power to drive 300ohms through the 600s--so you might, e.g., choose or build a single or dual 9V portable amp over a less powerful unit to try to bring out the best in 600s.
So will I typically find that an amp that rises to the challenge the of 600's resistance is going to be total overkill or worse, abrasively blasty or harsh, on lesser phones? Or am I likely to find, within the range of a given component's strengths and weaknesses, that lesser phones simply have a lot more headroom, and the provision to do right by the 600s works out to the advantage of less hungry phones as well?
Am I missing some crucial point? It comes down, I guess, to a question of how much to invest in making the 600s soar, vs. more general use and use for portability as well. I've been pondering, e.g., something like a Meta42 for home use with the 600s and an AH or TAH 9V for road use and work use sometimes with the 600s too.
Thanks...
AM
So will I typically find that an amp that rises to the challenge the of 600's resistance is going to be total overkill or worse, abrasively blasty or harsh, on lesser phones? Or am I likely to find, within the range of a given component's strengths and weaknesses, that lesser phones simply have a lot more headroom, and the provision to do right by the 600s works out to the advantage of less hungry phones as well?
Am I missing some crucial point? It comes down, I guess, to a question of how much to invest in making the 600s soar, vs. more general use and use for portability as well. I've been pondering, e.g., something like a Meta42 for home use with the 600s and an AH or TAH 9V for road use and work use sometimes with the 600s too.
Thanks...
AM