[raduray]

I have an old Marantz 1060 that I got in my college days in the 70's that I use in my office to drive a couple of bookshelf speakers and I also use the headphone output to drive my HD-650's with Cardas cord. Normally, when listening on the headphones, the volume is between 9 and 10 o'clock, so there's lots of headroom on the volume left.

I don't have lots of experience, or trained ears, so I'm wondering if any of you have had experience with this amp and can tell me if the sound would be improved by getting a dedicated headphone amp.

BTW, I like the way it sounds, but I have nothing to compare to.

Radu

 

[Cadillacjack]

I am also using a 1060. I think it sounds fine, but also do not have a separate head amp to compare it to. I do have a Head Five on order, so hopefully it will be an improvement.

Cadillacjack

 

[raduray]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cadillacjack I am also using a 1060. I think it sounds fine, but also do not have a separate head amp to compare it to. I do have a Head Five on order, so hopefully it will be an improvement.

I hope you post your findings when you get it. I'll be looking.
Radu

 

[funch]

I used a 1060 for quite a while as a headphone amp with HD 600's. The only dedicated 'phone amp I had at the time was a C-Moy, and felt the C-Moy sounded as good as the Marantz. I also felt the 1060 was a little harsh sounding. Now I use an M3 and feel it is far superior to the Marantz. The 1060 is good for what it is - a 70's built-hell-for-strong mass market unit, and it's nice to have the phono pre and input switching, as well as the tone controls. The headphone out is connected directly to the amp output through some 2-watt resistors, so it'll drive anything, but you can do much better IMHO with a dedicated headphone amp.

 

[augustwest]

"I don't have lots of experience, or trained ears, so I'm wondering if any of you have had experience with this amp and can tell me if the sound would be improved by getting a dedicated headphone amp."

I have a Marantz 2285, and have used the headphone output as well as the speaker capabilities. I have since bought a SinglePower amp. I will have to say in my opinion the Marantz performs superbly as a headphone amp, and stacks up quite well compared to many headphone amps, perhaps surpassing some.

In terms of comparing it to the SinglePower, the SinglePower is clearly better sound wise, but not as versatile. The SinglePower also allows for tube rolling to alter the sound. In favor of the Marantz it has many more inputs, tone controls, and in the case of mine an FM radio section. The Marantz has no problem driving even hard to power headphones like the AKG K1000's. The Marantz, while being a solid state unit, has a very warm sound, which is very lush for a non tube amp. Sometimes it almost sounds like role reversal with the Marantz sounding tube like & SinglePower being faster and more detailed (depending on the tubes I have in it).

I would recommend the vintage Marantz amps/receivers for headphone use to anyone on a limited budget, or who needs a lot of features for the money. You won't be disappointed. If you have the bucks, and only want a headphone amp (or possibly a pre-amp w/option) then SinglePower would be a top choice, along with several others.

- augustwest

 

[mkmelt]

I have been a champion of the Marantz 1060 as a headphone amplifier ever since I began experimenting with various headphone and amplifier combinations in 2002. The Marantz 1060 pairs up well with high impedance phones such as the Senn HD-580, 600, 650. The results with low impedance phones will vary, but in my experience the highs will be rolled off with low impedance phones such as Grados.

The sound of the 1060 can be either revealing or harsh, depending on the source program. I prefer to think of the Marantz 1060 as being very revealing of any shortcomings in the source material. Since the power amplifier stage can be used separately from the preamplifier stage, it was easy to mix and match the 1060 with other equipment. By itself, the power amplifier stage does sound more than a bit harsh, however, when coupled to the preamplifier this harshness is well controlled. The sound of the preamplifier stage, especially the moving magnet phono preamp, is very good in all respects.

The model 1070, a later-model Marantz integrated amplifier would on the surface appear to be superior in most respects including power, distortion, low frequency response below 40 Hz. But critical listening to the 1070 with headphones revealed a veiling of the music that was not heard with the 1060. Also, the Marantz 1060 will pass ambient sound information better than any other solid state headphone amplifier I have heard. Normally you need a good tube amplifier to hear the subtle sounds of the recording studio or hall ambience. After an extended period of switching between these two amplifiers I put the 1070 away and kept the 1060 in my headphone listening setup.

The 1060 is not as smooth as a good tube amplifier, but it does not need to warm up to sound its best and it does not generate any noticable amount of heat. If you like to switch between multiple sources, listen to vinyl, and even use tone controls then the Marantz 1060 is worth checking out. To be sure, you can buy a better sounding dedicated headphone amplifier if you are willing to spend at least 2X or 3X the price. I have not kept up with prices on these, but $80-$100 was the going price several years ago. At that price it is a genuine audio bargain.