[phandrew]

I want to know how the impudence of a headphone affects the sound quality of a headphone. Say you have Beyerdynamic DT770 at 80ohms and 250ohms, is it better to have high or low impedance?
Thanks in advance.

 

[arande2]

All I can think of is that a higher impedance makes the impedance of the cabling and the output impedance of the amp less important.

 

[ericj]

the impedance doesn't directly impact the sound quality at all.

 

[Uncle Erik]

phandrew, it depends on the output impedance of the amplifier you're using. iPods and computer soundcards have amps, too, and they have an output impedance.

The closer the match between the headphone impedance and the impedance of your amplifier, the more efficiently power transfers from the amp to the headphones. If there is a mismatch, then you will not get the full amount of power from the amp to the headphones.

As for the same model with different impedances, I'm not sure if they sound different. I'd think the difference would lie in different voicecoil windings in the driver.

 

[Nick 214]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Erik /img/forum/go_quote.gif phandrew, it depends on the output impedance of the amplifier you're using. iPods and computer soundcards have amps, too, and they have an output impedance. The closer the match between the headphone impedance and the impedance of your amplifier, the more efficiently power transfers from the amp to the headphones. If there is a mismatch, then you will not get the full amount of power from the amp to the headphones. As for the same model with different impedances, I'm not sure if they sound different. I'd think the difference would lie in different voicecoil windings in the driver.

They would sound different if he's using the same amp. For the reasons mentioned above.

 

[bergman2]

it really doesnt matter....case in point the 32 ohm akg 701's and the 300 ohm senn 650's...both sound great in their own unique way and are reflective of a unique design style with certain cable, amp, dac reqs to optimize THEIR sound...this perhaps best reinforces the adage "there is more than one way to skin a cat"

 

[phandrew]

I can change the ohms on the amp if i have to so it can match the headphone but i don't know if having a low or high impedance would have better sound quality.

 

[Cool_Torpedo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by phandrew /img/forum/go_quote.gif I can change the ohms on the amp if i have to so it can match the headphone but i don't know if having a low or high impedance would have better sound quality.

Just try it, listen and decide for yourself. It depends largely on the phones' drivers and their physical characteristcs. For instance, you may be using a low Q driver which needs a high damping factor on the amp to have the bass controlled. Then you'd experience tighter and more correct bass using a low impedance output amp, but who knows if that's of your liking or not.
On the other hand your phones could have a very damped (high Q) response which might yield an overtaut bass. You might like better the sound using a high impedance output amp despite it's not matching the phones impedance theoretically that well.

IME there's not a direct relation between phones impedance and their sound, not even their sensivity, nor how difficult they'll be to drive by a given amp.

Rgrds

 

[braillediver]

Impedance is resistance to change. A lower impedance headphone might be easier to drive / faster but it then needs to be properly controlled- maybe dampening factor (controlling over shoot of the drivers). I think in general Grados are lower impedance so easier to drive resulting in a faster sounding headphone with more impact. Where Senn HD600/650 are higher impedance a little harder to drive resulting in a warmer sounding headphone with less impact but richer sounding.

I believe the proper way to compare headphones is with each headphone properly driven by an amplifier optimized for each headphone as opposed to 1 amp used with 2 different headphones. 1 amp with the 2 headphones will show you which headphone sounds best with the amp but not necessarily which headphone sounds best to you.

IMNSHO Music is speed of attack, sustain and decay. If it’s a little harder to drive I think the result is a little slower speed of attack resulting in a shorter sustain with a longer decay. There’s actually silence between the notes if the headphone can get you there quick enough. Slapping someone in the air compared to slapping them in the water.


Mitch