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Originally Posted by nauxolo /img/forum/go_quote.gif
So, what exactly is the benefit of a headphone amp? If I connect my speakers into the jack of my future headphone amp, will it be weird/distort my speakers? would it benefit my speakers or just do nothing?
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Everything depends on your amp and speakers. Some speakers are very difficult to drive, like the old Apogee ribbons. They've been known to melt lesser power amps. The ribbons I built used to make a cheapie 20W amp (I was poor) get pretty damn hot after 30 minutes at moderate listening levels. On the other hand, the ESS AMT-1 speakers I'm running now are 98dB efficient - I run them from a 3W amp without trouble.
Other speakers are highly efficient, like Lowthers and Klipsch horns. Some of those will go over 110dB of efficiency. I think some of the field coil speakers (
e.g. Fertin and Supravox) might be even more efficient than that. If you have highly efficient speakers you can run them from a powerful headphone amp.
Those are the extremes. Today, I got my parents a pair of PSB Alpha B1 speakers for Christmas. Those need about 60W of power to drive. My ProAc 2.5 clones need about 50W-100W to run well. I drive them with a 45W amp which does fine.
Headphones have much smaller drivers and voicecoils than speakers. They need a lot less power to drive, which is why headphone amps aren't designed to drive speakers. There are some exceptions. For example, the AKG K-1000 headphones were designed to be run from a speaker amp and need lots of power. Also, there are a few headphone amps that are designed to drive efficient speakers. But generally, headphone and power amps are not interchangeable.
There is danger is using an underpowered amp to drive speakers. When an amp tries to drive something that's too hard to push, it "clips." Tube amps clip differently from solid state, but either can produce a surge that can damage a voicecoil. You're almost always better off overpowering headphones and speakers. Even if an amp can put out 100W, it almost never does. It will only put out 100W at peak, meaning that the source is delivering 100% and you have the volume turned all the way up. Most of the time, that 100W amp will only be putting out 20W or 30W, so if you're using that 100W amp with speakers rated for 50W, they'll be fine.
Amps are more about control than power. It's like the difference between picking up a 50lbs. bag with one hand and picking it up with two hands. You can probably lift it with one hand, but you'll have a lot more control if you use two. Likewise, a good amp will have better control over the transducer in the speakers or headphones. You can absolutely hear the difference.
For a broad overview of amps, you have tube, solid state and hybrid amps. Hybrid amps have a combination of tube and solid state in the amplification circuit. Each has its advantages. If you're looking for a more solid lower end a solid state amp is usually the best choice. Solid state is better at producing low end power. Tubes will give you a smoother, analog sound with better mids and highs. Hybrids can sometimes give the best of both, but they vary a lot. There are exceptions, and tubes can hit hard down low, but if you're looking for a first amp, try solid state.
