[D41LYBR34Dm4n]

Recently I got the AKG K271's, and while they sound good for the most part, I've noticed occasionally that they perform worse than expected.

I've had someone told me it could be that my player isn't powerful enough to drive the cans to their potential...what is the likelyhood of this?

Also, I don't know anything about amps for cans...got any recommendations for my scenario?

 

[Kirosia]

Don't know about those particular phones, but if they're high impedance and power-hungry, than the iriver isn't gonna cut it by itself. My IHP can make high-imped. phones fairly loud, but can't feed them enough power to sound the way they should.

 

[D41LYBR34Dm4n]

How can I find out if my cans fit your descriptions?

 

[Kirosia]

Well, headroom says the imp. is 55, which isn't very high. So I think the problem is either they are power-hungry, or that the iriver player's headphone out sucks.
Perhaps a little of both. =) An amp may help solve your problem, but I haven't heard the akg so I can't really say, but I know that a few people here have.

 

[D41LYBR34Dm4n]

Is there any way to tell if it's my headphones or my player?

I tried plugging into my comp but I've done that before also with my Grado's and the sound is horrible for some reason.

 

[recephasan]

Did a set of earbuds come with the player? If they sound reasonably loud and distortion free...

It is the quick demand for power during transients (rises in sound levels) that portables have the hardest time dealing with. Some headphones demand more than others.

Have you checked your player with your Grados?

 

[D41LYBR34Dm4n]

Yeah I did check the player with the Grado's.

With the SR-60's I noticed a much more bright, varied tone, but I think that's what their known for. The AKG's however seemed to have a more tight sound with a more crisp bass, yet they both seem a little flat in tone overall...

 

[ry_goody]

the out on the h120 is pretty horrid for high-end headphones. If the h320 is anything like the h120 in that department then its prolly a very good chance thats where the problem is. You might wanna consider a cheap amp or switching to an iPod.

 

[D41LYBR34Dm4n]

I'm definitely gonna go with the cheap amp. Any recommendations?

Ain't no way I'm switchin' to an iPod, this bad boy plays movies and pics too.

 

[elephant6rawk]

The Super Mini Moy is supposedly the best bang for its buck.

You can get it here.

95 bucks.

 

[commando]

From memory, the 271s improve a little with good amplification over a PC sound card. Try it in your sound card, if it sounds better than the mp3 player, then your answer is yes. If not the 271s might not be for you - they weren't ideal for me.

 

[skyskraper]

i recently got a pair of k240s which are also 55 ohm impedance and i find theyre a bitch to drive. even from my mixing desk the sound just sounds dull and flat. i havent even bothered to try them with my ipod yet.

solution? amp. i have a pimeta i am running them through atm. beautiful, although they require a lot more gain then my ultrasones

 

[Turner_Brown]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ry_goody the out on the h120 is pretty horrid for high-end headphones. If the h320 is anything like the h120 in that department then its prolly a very good chance thats where the problem is. You might wanna consider a cheap amp or switching to an iPod.

I'm not sure what you are basing this on...but I have an H120 powering SR-225's unamped and it sounds really good. Much better than an ipod. (I've tried side by side comparisons with all the EQ settings). You guys are using the headphone jack and not the line out right?

 

[Turner_Brown]

Quote:

Originally Posted by D41LYBR34Dm4n I'm definitely gonna go with the cheap amp. Any recommendations? Ain't no way I'm switchin' to an iPod, this bad boy plays movies and pics too.

What EQ settings are you using? Have you tried adjusting any of the sound settings? I find most of the EQ settings useful except for the WOW or SRS settings (which are atrocious).

 

[Kirosia]

The h.out of the 120 isn't that good IMHO. The forward round coloration (I don't know the words) is quite annoying with good phones. The IHP does seem to synergize w/ grados though, cause of their similar signatures.