[MissionPossible]

Hi dude.

I need help... I wanna buy a pair of Senns HD 600 but I don't know if my ampli will be right.
I have a Teac PLS-85D, and I think is a piece of crap (I've tried to find any info on google without luck).

It seems good for my old Sennheiser HD-575, but these headphone have a really low impedance.
Any help ?
Thx in advance and sorry for my English, I know it sucks.

Bye

 

[ooheadsoo]

I think this depends on how far you are willing to go to get good sound. If you are considering the HD600, then I must assume you are willing to go to considerable lengths to get good sound. I've heard a teac minisystem at goodguys, I don't know how similar it is to the one you have. I don't know the model number of the one I heard, but I think it was a fairly small minisystem with a aluminum face plate and wood finish on the speakers. If yours is anything like the headphone output on that, then in my opinion, it will be able to drive your HD600 better than a portable. It won't sound empty and hollow like the sound you will get straight out of your average portable. On the other hand, it's a terrible waste of a great set of cans because it won't sound like things should sound either

Everything will sound much more full, balanced, and realistic on a better amp.

For good sound for little money, try an amp built by JMT or one of the other DIY people around here. The cmoy and meta42 are both relatively inexpensive. For the less discerning, I've heard that the cmoy will do you plenty good. Personally, I have a JMT built meta42 and am very pleased with the sound and build quality. There are also commercially available amps. The Airhead variants available on www.headphone.com are popular, and the portacorda amps, available by Jan Meier's company (look at the index page of head-fi to see the link) are even more popular among the lower priced amps. The meta42 can potentially sound better than the Total Airhead and Portacorda, but it depends on how much money you put into it.

I have no experience with better amps, or even the two commercial amps I mentioned. The comparison between the meta42 and the porta/TAH is pure hearsay, albeit my sources are good (use the search function to find more info on these amps.)

This is of course all based on conjecture that the teac you have is similar to the teac I heard. One other option you might want to try is a cdplayer with a good headphone output.

Btw, your english is pretty good

 

[Joe Bloggs]

For what it's worth, your minisystem should perform better with high impedance headphones like the HD600 because of impedance matching issues.

You can improve things further by building the Impeder (see signature below)

Then you can maybe decide whether an amp is a good investment for moving up the scale by going to a Head-Fi meet in your area?

 

[Alex Altorfer]

MissionPossible,
You may save yourself a great deal of money by choosing the HD 590 instead of the HD 600. The HD 590 reportedly sounds very similar to the HD 600 but benefits from a lower impedance. It is certain to sound much better from your TEAC's headphone jack. Of course, you should audition it before you buy it.
Cheers,
Alex Altorfer

Edit: Corrected nickname mistake from MissionImpossible to MissionPossible...

 

[Joe Bloggs]

The 590 are cheaper than the 580 now?

And like I said, the high impedance output of the Teac should match better with high impedance headphones unless something is done about it.

But all that is moot if you decide to get a dedicated headphone amp.

But the 580 generally held in higher regard than the 590 regardless.

 

[Alex Altorfer]

Joe,

I was not aware MissionPossible's Teac features high impedance headphone jacks. If that is true then the 580s are likely to sound better and cost less. Still, most receiver headphone jacks are built with lower impedance cans in mind. It is still true that the HD 590s sound much better than the 580s/600s out of most headphone jacks out there. MissionP is interested in getting a pair of HD 600, which cost more than the HD 590s. Ultimately the HD 600 will cost even more after you add the dedicated headphone amp and cable upgrades. Well, by then we will all be sorry about MissionPossible's wallet...

Cheers,
Alex Altorfer

Edit: Sorry about name confusion. I guess I've been watching too many Tom Cruise movies...

 

[wallijonn]

MP,

or you could try to get a Marantz 1060 from Ebay for $75 to $100. It should drive the HD600 until you have enough cash to buy a dedicated HA, like the Gilmore, Meta42, RKV, etc.

btw, "Welcome to Head-Fi. Sorry about your wallet."

your wallet will not be hurting too much if you get a Marantz 1060, Crown D60, Technics, Onkyo, Pioneer, etc. vintage receiver.