[musickid]

Quick query:

My Oppo PM1 is really sensitive at 102dBL. So this means it requires very little power to play loud. However Oppo also sell a balanced cable by which you can use the headphone with their HA1 amp balanced. How can a really sensitive headphone also play balanced and take up to 2W if not more from the Oppo HA1 amp? I assume maximum loudness would be similar to maximum loudness with single ended. The website also mentions (Pulse Max Input Power 2 W). This seems like a contradiction and i don't quite understand. I know other TOTL easy to drive headphones can also do the same balanced. Feedback appreciated. Would running the PM1 balanced as an experiment be a bad idea from a TT2 or just plain dangerous? BTW TT2 is arriving tomorrow the DPD tracking is live! Photos to come. Long term maximum input power on the PM1 is 500mW.

Finally can anyone calculate the power output into 32ohms with the TT2 unbalanced by looking at the specs? That would help me immensely. The PM1 is 32 ohms impedance. (From Chord: 288 mW RMS 300Ω; 7.3 W RMS 8Ω). These figures are for unbalanced.

Quick note: I've just read that Rob definitely does not recommend balanced for headphones at all. Maybe this does not apply to monsters like susvara/abyss? Anyway this does not still answer my original query above in the first paragraph if anyone can help. I'm on a steep learning curve so bear with me

 

[ufospls2]

Quick query:

My Oppo PM1 is really sensitive at 102dBL. So this means it requires very little power to play loud. However Oppo also sell a balanced cable by which you can use the headphone with their HA1 amp balanced. How can a really sensitive headphone also play balanced and take up to 2W if not more from the Oppo HA1 amp? I assume maximum loudness would be similar to maximum loudness with single ended. The website also mentions (Pulse Max Input Power 2 W). This seems like a contradiction and i don't quite understand. I know other TOTL easy to drive headphones can also do the same balanced. Feedback appreciated. Would running the PM1 balanced as an experiment be a bad idea from a TT2 or just plain dangerous? BTW TT2 is arriving tomorrow the DPD tracking is live! Photos to come. Long term maximum input power on the PM1 is 500mW.

Finally can anyone calculate the power output into 32ohms with the TT2 unbalanced by looking at the specs? That would help me immensely. The PM1 is 32 ohms impedance. (From Chord: 288 mW RMS 300Ω; 7.3 W RMS 8Ω). These figures are for unbalanced.

Quick note: I've just read that Rob definitely does not recommend balanced for headphones at all. Maybe this does not apply to monsters like susvara/abyss? Anyway this does not still answer my original query above in the first paragraph if anyone can help. I'm on a steep learning curve so bear with me

With the PM1, at its 102dBL/mw sensitivity, I would stick with single ended : )

 

[musickid]

Yes i've noted that down very carefully and i will only go SE. But it it still doesn't answer why Oppo make a balanced cable for use with the PM1 and their HA1 amp. This is the point i can't understand. How can such a sensitive headphone play balanced? The Oppo headphone amp does up to 3W balanced with my PM1 headphone.

 

[Whazzzup]

i don't know oppo, but it states that its a fully balanced design. I don't see a dual mono block design but there are a few ways to be fully balanced, there fore you should run fully balanced. Including to the HP.
I wouldn't be concerned about using XLR. the detriments are hardly audible if at all. I am fully balanced and love it.

 

[musickid]

It is impossible to run fully balanced with an mscaler and TT2. I do not own a Oppo HA1 amp i am just using it as an example. I will be using a TT2/mscaler from tomorrow.

 

[Whazzzup]

so you are not asking or are you? and why bother then? sure it is you can do anything you want

 

[musickid]

I want to know how a highly sensitive headphone such as mine and quite a few others from other manufacturers can also run balanced and play with power inputs of say up to 3W? How can a headphone with a sensitivity of 102dBL accept up to 3W balanced? The manufacturers make balanced cables for these sensitive headphones so it is possible. I cannot do anything i want as running a headphone such as mine balanced from a TT2 is not advisable at all under any circumstances.

 

[Whazzzup]

well then i don't know your HP, pm1, but if its unadvisable to run it balanced under any conditions... you had you're answer....Or ditch em and get a HP that can run balanced...

 

[Amberlamps]

It is impossible to run fully balanced with an mscaler and TT2. I do not own a Oppo HA1 amp i am just using it as an example. I will be using a TT2/mscaler from tomorrow.

How is it impossible to run balanced on hms & tt2 ?

I thought all you needed to do was plug your headphones or soeakers into the two 3 pin xlr out ports.

Or am I missing something ?

Is your tt2 arriving tomorrow ? If so dude, you're gunna love it.

 

[musickid]

The PM1 has a sensitivity of 102dBL which means it gets loud very easily with little power. But the manufacturer Oppo also make a balanced cable for it for which they intended the PM1 to be used with their HA1 headphone amp which can output up to 3W into the PM1 balanced. I very simply want to know how a highly sensitive headphone like the PM1 can also run balanced with an amp that can deliver up to 3W. I cannot make this any clearer.

Rob has strongly advised against balanced xlr for headphones under all circumstances. The only exception must be the susvara/abyss as they are so inefficient. Running balanced can also mean the whole chain ie from dac to amp to headphone when you think about separate components.

 

[Whazzzup]

Dude try it and find out. Lots of HP like utopia can come balanced, whether its necessary aside, its your option. its referred to as scalability. Either the HP have it or don't. Yes you can hook up a balanced amp to TT via the back xlr, but why bother you don't have the amp...
Unless this is a math question..... then %$#%* the sound of maths being done )&%!(&^$# more maths

 

[musickid]

1) For the 4th time. How can a sensitive headphone like the utopia at 104dBL which means it gets loud with very little power also play balanced? If it runs balanced therefore the amp must be supplying much greater power maybe up to 2 or even 3W than a single ended configuration. How is this possible from a technical perspective? The utopia therefore shares this characteristic with my PM1. I have no intention of buying an amp to use with my TT2. This is just a technical query. If it is something to do with scalability then i do not understand the mechanism at work here. Can anyone help?

 

[Whazzzup]

technically speaking then it depends on your rig.

 

[musickid]

No it depends on the design of the headphone and its power handling characteristics. This is what i'm trying to understand. On paper there seems to be a contradiction but in practice it works. It is how it works which i am trying to figure out.

 

[mlxx]

If I remember correctly, people were asking Oppo for a balanced cable so Oppo made one.
Some amps work better balanced like the Headamp GSXmk2 so they wanted to use balanced.
Balanced or not makes no difference, just don't turn it up if the amp has more power than the hp can handle.