[estreeter]

Quote:

 now for modern receivers especially ht receivers,yea they tend to use cheap op-amp circuits for headphone out section instead of just allowing a simple resistor between the speaker amp and headphone out section. just  letting you know 

 
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AV receivers, yes, particularly at the lower end.
Entry level integrated amps MAYBE. I have had good results with the Marantz PM5003, but I didnt enjoy the headphone out on several NAD amps I auditioned - others have reported the opposite.
 
Midrange integrated amps and up : please do not repeat this old standby about op-amps in the output stage on Head-Fi without links to images of the internals of the amps in question. Its been taken as gospel many times here, and it implies that we should totally ignore modern integrated amps/receivers.
 
markl has an old thread here where he claims that the headphone out on his top-of-the-line Denon AV receiver is comparable to the best dedicated headphone amps he has heard. For the money he paid, it would want to be.
 
 
 
 

 

[sling5s]

I've used vintage Marantz and currently vintage Setton receivers with my Grado RS1, HD800 and AH-D7000 and AKG K240.
I've compared my vintage receivers to RSA X-7, Corda Symphony, Pico Amp, Woo upgraded 6,  and nuforce HDP.
What I learned is that these vintage receivers have a lot of power, and they drive high impedance cans effortlessly. They will give you more bass and wider soundstage.  
But dedicated amps were slightly more clean and transparent than the vintage receivers.   

 

[Brumagician99]

+1! Good stuff sling
 
I'm not sure - maybe my Vintage Marantz isnt even a good vintage model, but although I found the bass extension quite pleasing, and the sound stage widish, i found it to be a similar size to the LD MKIII, but the marantz sounded a bit muddy or foggy with a lot of floor noise.
 
The "loudness" setting on the marantz was particularly good for those seeking bass and lots of it! I dont think the LD MKIII can offer that much bass as the Marantz did. and thats even with keeping the bass/treble equalization on 0.
 
Then again this is coming from a grado sr80i - a fairly ineffective can, which can be driven quite easily, but honestly plugged into the marantz vs straight into a ipod - there isnt a contest. - yes the ipod may create a cleaner sound with better separation - but with the grado sr80i unamped there is a severe lack in bass - this is overturned when plugged into the vintage marantz amp 
 
I feel a sign of a good amp is to show that even a can like sr80i can sound totally different when amped... there are countless threads about sr80i/sr60i and how they dont need to be amped because amping will "not do alot" for them - after using my sr80i's with the marantz  - the difference is night and day.