Headphone & Amp Impedance Questions? Find the answers here!

[KatrinFruehauf01]

Hi, I read this whole thread, but didn't see this question addressed. I don't know much about the science behind audio, but am willing and eager to learn! My question is: "What would happen if my headphone and amp impedance are exactly the same?" For example, if my headphones are 470 ohm(like the Audio-Technica ATH-R70xa) and my amp output impedance is 470 ohm, would there be frequency response variation or some other kind of distortion? Thank you!

sure! if amp and headphone impedance match (like 470Ω), you’ll likely get worse sound less bass control, more distortion. better to have amp output way lower, like 1/8 of headphone.

 

[redrol]

I made a video on this which is really mostly supported by ASR's measurements but also I did look around and find corroborating evidence. I don't monetize my videos or anything except IEMs I make.. so this is just me talking.