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HE-500, LCD2, D5000, DT770, SR80, on a speaker amp (Emotiva mini-X A-100) Project
Jun 6, 2014 at 7:48 AM Post #3,572 of 3,819
nehcrow said:
Soooo bumping this: 

What are the best speaker amp options for non-US residents? 

I've heard Topping TP60 but unsure... something around the same price of the Emotiva is preferable
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I can personally recommend as used Cyrus 1/2/3 integrated. Very reasonable on the used market, small form factor and excellent sounding.

I have owned the 1 and currently own the 3. Very good amps for driving the HE500.
 
Jun 6, 2014 at 11:20 AM Post #3,573 of 3,819
danpluck said:
I can personally recommend as used Cyrus 1/2/3 integrated. Very reasonable on the used market, small form factor and excellent sounding.

I have owned the 1 and currently own the 3. Very good amps for driving the HE500.
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Noise floor? How's it in that regard? I see specs around 84-86 dB S/N ratio at 1W output, not that good.
 
Looking at 'Straight Line' it specs at 107 dBA at 500 mV which seems overly impressive if it's through the loudspeaker terminals
 
Jun 6, 2014 at 11:31 AM Post #3,574 of 3,819
davidsh said:
Noise floor? How's it in that regard? I see specs around 84-86 dB S/N ratio at 1W output, not that good.

Looking at 'Straight Line' it specs at 107 dBA at 500 mV which seems overly impressive if it's through the loudspeaker terminals
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Absolutely silent, black or whatever word you want to use. Please remember Cyrus are a very well respected brand, who build a quality product.

I let you don't like it you will get your money back by selling it.
 
Jun 7, 2014 at 2:52 PM Post #3,577 of 3,819
nehcrow said:
  I'm sorry is this just to add resistance to the signal? Would the HE-500 benefit from this or is it just for more sensitive headphones
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It depends on the amp and the headphone. The HE-500 is a pretty sensitive high-end headphone.
 
Many solid state amps work fine when headphones are connected directly to their speaker taps. The resistor network in the above interfaces can solve 3 problems:
 
1. Volume control is too sensitive--slight movement gives too much volume. The attenuation provided by the resistor network can make the knob more useable.
 
2. Noise floor hiss--with some amps like the Mini-X you can hear hiss during quiet music passages. Attenuation can help eliminate it.
 
3. Amp to headphone impedance mismatch--is usually more of a problem with tube amps. The resistor network gives the amp its expected 8 ohm speaker load.
 
I recommend people try their solid state amps connected directly to the speaker taps before worrying about an interface. You may not need one at all.
 
Rob
 
Jun 7, 2014 at 3:31 PM Post #3,578 of 3,819
nehcrow said:
  I'm sorry is this just to add resistance to the signal? Would the HE-500 benefit from this or is it just for more sensitive headphones
Click to expand...

i built a box for my HE-500 and HD800 to use with a pair of tube monoblocks. impedance matching is more critical for tube amps so the resistor network is crucial not to damage the amp...indeed, it works well with the HE-500. i have more useable play with the volume from the preamp...
 
Jun 7, 2014 at 3:41 PM Post #3,579 of 3,819
robrob said:
  Here's a basic layout for a speaker tap to headphone adapter for the Mini-X:
 

Basic Speaker Amp to Headphone Adapter - Single Ended TRS

Speaker_to_Headphone_Attenuator_TRS.png

This type of adapter is only for amplifiers that have their negative speaker terminals tied together (common ground) like the Mini-X.
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how different would it be for an amp without common ground?
 
Jun 7, 2014 at 4:08 PM Post #3,581 of 3,819
bassboysam said:
 
how different would it be for an amp without common ground?
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Don't do it. You know that scene in Ghostbusters where they tell you don't cross the streams? Don't do it.
 
Hell, for the sake of all who don't know how to read the diagrams or don't know what they mean, just don't ever build anything that connects four conductors into three. Build 4 into 4 and you'll be ok for the most part (or at least less-oopsie-go-boom than others). Reterminate your headphones in a 4-pin whatever, then make a headphone adapter that takes it down to TRS. All bananas to TRS(f) should be abolished.
 
Jun 7, 2014 at 4:24 PM Post #3,582 of 3,819
armaegis said:
   
Don't do it. You know that scene in Ghostbusters where they tell you don't cross the streams? Don't do it.
 
Hell, for the sake of all who don't know how to read the diagrams or don't know what they mean, just don't ever build anything that connects four conductors into three. Build 4 into 4 and you'll be ok for the most part (or at least less-oopsie-go-boom than others). Reterminate your headphones in a 4-pin whatever, then make a headphone adapter that takes it down to TRS. All bananas to TRS(f) should be abolished.
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I already have the cable but I'd like to add some resistors to get more "play" with the volume on my Fiio A1.
 
Jun 7, 2014 at 5:01 PM Post #3,583 of 3,819
Simpler solution: http://www.amazon.com/Harrison-Labs-Line-Level-Attenuator/dp/B0006N41B0/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1402174841&sr=1-1&keywords=rca+attenuator
 
Jun 7, 2014 at 5:53 PM Post #3,585 of 3,819
bassboysam said:
interesting, so would you put the attenuators between the DAC and amp?
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Yup. On the amp side between the two. You don't want to attenuate the signal before it has to travel across the wire to your amp.
 
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