[MakeshiftApe]

Nobody can know and understand everything. The fact that you are aware of this and you are willing to listen to those who do understand things is a good thing itself.


Well, amps definitely should not drastically colour the sound! In many (but not in all) cases having enough power is indeed enough.


Distortion happens, when the amp doesn't have enough control over the headphones. The smaller the output impedance of the amp is compared to the headphone impedance, the better control the amp has and the less distortion there is. However, this is not the only factor. Some headphone models "need" more control than others. That's why some headphones work nicely even when the output impedance of the amp is almost as big as the headphone impedance.


62 Ω is minimum at 0 Hz, about 100 Ω is maximum at 20 kHz.

Rout < 100*62*0.06/(100-1.06*62) = 11 Ω.

This means your 16 Ω amp has a bit too large impedance for K702, but the sound may still be good. There shouldn't be issues with distortion. There might be too much treble. Don't worry about it if the sound is great in your opinion. Lower output impedance will change the sound very marginally.

That's good to know. I am partial to maximising every last little thing where possible though - so I'd be happy to purchase an amp that only offered a very marginal improvement to the sound - if that's doable and doesn't set me back more than $100 at the max. Do you think I could get anything in the $50-100 region (or less if that's even possible) that'd be a better fit? And/or have a suggestion on what spec(s) I need to look at? Am I just looking for something with that ~11Ω output impedance you mentioned?

 

[bigshot]

I think it would be better to save money and look to upgrading your headphones or speakers, not your amp. Or spend it on music.

 

[71 dB]

I think it would be better to save money and look to upgrading your headphones or speakers, not your amp. Or spend it on music.

Exactly. A theoretical improvement doesn't mean one has to jump on it.

 

[71 dB]

That's good to know. I am partial to maximising every last little thing where possible though - so I'd be happy to purchase an amp that only offered a very marginal improvement to the sound - if that's doable and doesn't set me back more than $100 at the max. Do you think I could get anything in the $50-100 region (or less if that's even possible) that'd be a better fit? And/or have a suggestion on what spec(s) I need to look at? Am I just looking for something with that ~11Ω output impedance you mentioned?

The 11 Ω value is calculated using a certain criteria (because we need one to calculate anything). This chosen criteria means you are definitely good, but you can be good before reaching it. I'd say this: Use your current amp, but if it gets broken and you need a new one, buy one with lower impedance. I don't know headphone amp models well and I can't recommend you anything. I use a DIY headphone adapter/crossfeeder myself.

 

[bigshot]

It's important to remember that the vast majority of the ideas for "improvements" thrown around in audiophile circles are purely theoretical. You'd never actually hear any improvement in practice.

 

[castleofargh]

It's important to remember that the vast majority of the ideas for "improvements" thrown around in audiophile circles are purely theoretical. You'd never actually hear any improvement in practice.

That's the kind of foolish ideas spread by the mass media to trick poor people into thinking they can also afford good stuff. But we all know that more ohms mean better sound. It wasn't a problem in the past, so most headphones could have the needed 600ohm per driver. But due to climate change, mining ohm has become much more difficult and only the elite can afford to have hundreds of it in a headphone. The situation was only made worse with electrical vehicles, as they too require massive amounts of ohms in their motors, creating a worldwide penury.

 

[bigshot]

We need to conserve ohms so the billionaires like Jeff Bezos can sprinkle them on his nearly extinct and exotic animal roasts.

 

[Ryokan]

That's why I starting using iem's as daps a few years ago weren't powerful enough to run average impedance headphones satisfactorily or if they could the battery didn't last long. Now there are lots of easy(ier) to drive headphones as many people now use daps.

 

[bigshot]

...or phones.

 

[Ryokan]

or dongles.

 

[gregorio]

If not why such a high impedance?

Much of what we have in the audio world comes from the telecoms world; amps, balanced lines, decibels, digital audio, headphones and much more. Telegraph typically had around 600 Ohm impedance, this carried forward and was standardised in the telephone industry and then adopted by the audio and broadcast industry. In the 50’s/60’s with the explosion of broadcast media (radio/TV) lower impedances had some benefits (freq response for example), although the 600 Ohm standard still had some “hang-over” applications in pro audio well into the 1990’s.

G

 

[Ryokan]

So today there's no reason to make 600ohm headphones then, unless they're to be paired with the makers own amp?

 

[dfiled]

I was asking for upgrade suggestions for my Verite Closed (300 ohms nominally) on the ZMF amp forum (I currently have the Questyle CMA Twelve) and someone responded:
“Questyle dac/amps are geared more toward lower impedance headphones. Mine doesn't power 300ohms very well.”

Nonsense?

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-un-official-amp-thread-for-zmf-headphones.965309/post-17732652

 

[71 dB]

I was asking for upgrade suggestions for my Verite Closed (300 ohms nominally) on the ZMF amp forum (I currently have the Questyle CMA Twelve) and someone responded:
“Questyle dac/amps are geared more toward lower impedance headphones. Mine doesn't power 300ohms very well.”

Nonsense?

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-un-official-amp-thread-for-zmf-headphones.965309/post-17732652

The first thing you need to ask yourself is why are you upgrading? Does your current system prevent you from enjoying music?

The claim itself might be nonsense. Amps need enough voltage and current capabilities to drive headphones. More current/less voltage when the impedance decreases and vice versa. The sensitivity of the headphones dictates how much power is needed.