[suryand]

Hi,
 
and what about the Beyer DT770 Pro 80 ohm? Any of you have provede with and then without an amp? 
Now I am using them out of an Auzentech Prelude X--fi... 
 
Thx

 

[PETEREK]

Quote:

Hi,
 
and what about the Beyer DT770 Pro 80 ohm? Any of you have provede with and then without an amp? 
Now I am using them out of an Auzentech Prelude X--fi... 
 
Thx

Without an amp the volume is VERY low and nothing really pops out except the bass. 

 

[p a t r i c k]

Quote:

 
It's pretty much this simple: if your headphones aren't clipping, then buying an amp is a waste of money:

 
The Richard Clark Amp Challenge in your post is very interesting!
 
http://tom-morrow-land.com/tests/ampchall/index.htm
 
I think I can hear differences between my different amplifiers, but it could very well be that I am simply exercising auto-suggestion (I have a short article about this and there is a link in my signature).
 
 

You can't add any "warmth" or "forwardness" using an amp that you can't add using the EQ built into a cheap DAP, nor can you add bass attack or definition.
 

 
I believe that people should never add "warmth" or "forwardness" using an amplifier. You will always get sick of it eventually. If the amplifier is behaving like an effects box then it is not a very good amplifier. If the effects are built into the amplifier in this way you can not turn them off when the novelty has worn off.

 

[SunshineReggae]

Quote:

 
The Richard Clark Amp Challenge in your post is very interesting!
 
http://tom-morrow-land.com/tests/ampchall/index.htm
 
I think I can hear differences between my different amplifiers, but it could very well be that I am simply exercising auto-suggestion (I have a short article about this and there is a link in my signature).
 
 
 
I believe that people should never add "warmth" or "forwardness" using an amplifier. You will always get sick of it eventually. If the amplifier is behaving like an effects box then it is not a very good amplifier. If the effects are built into the amplifier in this way you can not turn them off when the novelty has worn off.

 
I think you have the gist of it right, however that quote of Scuttle is a little too strong. Besides supplying enough power, there are other measurements that can mess up an amp's performance. Output impedance, frequency response and crosstalk to name but a few. The Richard Clark tests assumes that all tested amps perform equally (well) on those properties.
It's not necessarily safe to assume that all amps follow suit imo.

 

[p a t r i c k]

Quote:

 
I think you have the gist of it right, however that quote of Scuttle is a little too strong. Besides supplying enough power, there are other measurements that can mess up an amp's performance. Output impedance, frequency response and crosstalk to name but a few. The Richard Clark tests assumes that all tested amps perform equally (well) on those properties.
It's not necessarily safe to assume that all amps follow suit imo.

 
I see, it is a bit more complicated.
 
I am hugely in favour of blind listening tests for audio. Properly conduced blind ABX tests should be a significant part of the reviewing culture of audio products. So, when I read that they are being conducted then I am interested.
 
I remember before the current style of reviewing became established. The current form really became set in the mid 80s. Before that there were various approaches to reviewing audio by various magazines in the UK (and I think in the US). Some UK magazines did do blind listening although these were not full blind ABX tests.
 
In the later part of the 80s then a major change took place and the Hi Fi press abandoned any considerations for reducing influence on the reviewer outside the "test". It was in that time that the market in different cables really began and of course many fortunes have been made for the cable manufacturers.
 
The key thing that is not understood by many consumers and reviewers of audio equipment is that how human's perceive hearing is extremely flexible. This is a great advantage to us for living our lives, but in the case of audio products, it is being used against our interests. It is why we are so susceptible to suggestion and auto-suggestion. I have written a short article about this and there is a link in my signature.
 
 
 

 

[mark t]

Wow, I've read through this thread and I'm still confused.  There seems to be not a lot of consensus.
 
Maybe I can ask this: I have the following headphones:
 
1. MrSpeakers Mad Dogs (Impedance 50 Ohms, sensitivity 98db)
2. UE 6000 (50 Ohms, 97 db)
3. Sony MDR-1R (24 Ohms, 105db)
4. KRK KNS-6400 (36 Ohms, 95db)
5. Monoprice 8323 (40 Ohms, 100db)
 
I've been listenting to all these unamped from various sources (pc, Clip Zip, iPad, Samsung G-S2).  Are there any of them that would definitely sound better (not just louder) with an inexpensive amp (say Fiio E11).