[Drakemoor]

Thinking about buying a valve headphone amp, the output is specified at 300-600ohms, the headphones i'm intending to use with this thing range from 32-75ohms ...what kind of problems or conflicts will this cause me?

Any help is appreciated!

 

[breakfastchef]

Interesting question; one I look forward to be answered. As I see it, a low ohm headphone will require lots of voltage quickly and may stress an amp not rated to provide voltage at low current. I would certainly ask any manufacturer of a valve amp that interests you as to whether or not they would recommend a specific model for a low impedence can.

 

[breakfastchef]

Dbl. post

 

[Alpha 1 Omega]

from what I have read most good amps tube or ss adapt to most any headphone the only thing that might bee strange is how little you have to turn up the volume with low ohm cans on a amp set for high ohm cans..IMO

 

[cooperpwc]

Quote:

Originally Posted by breakfastchef /img/forum/go_quote.gif Interesting question; one I look forward to be answered. As I see it, a low ohm headphone will require lots of voltage quickly and may stress an amp not rated to provide voltage at low current. I would certainly ask any manufacturer of a valve amp that interests you as to whether or not they would recommend a specific model for a low impedence can.

Electricity and ohms is not my speciality but I think that this is wrong. High ohm headphones require massive voltage swings. That is why OTL tube amps, which produce that, match high ohm headphones so well but are challenged with low ohms depending on the power supply. My understanding is that low ohm headphones require lots of current, not voltage. So, for example, my Earmax Pro which makes my 600 ohm Beyer DT880s fairly sing is not ideal for driving the Triple-Fi 10 Pros. A small battery operated amp is.

 

[Drakemoor]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cooperpwc /img/forum/go_quote.gif Electricity and ohms is not my speciality but I think that this is wrong. High ohm headphones require massive voltage swings. That is why OTL tube amps, which produce that, match high ohm headphones so well but are challenged with low ohms depending on the power supply. My understanding is that low ohm headphones require lots of current, not voltage. So, for example, my Earmax Pro which makes my 600 ohm Beyer DT880s fairly sing is not ideal for driving the Triple-Fi 10 Pros. A small battery operated amp is.

this is the main issue i'm faced with, i'm planning to use this amp with a range of headphones but mainly with my ER4p's ...easy enough to drive but my current source/cmoy combo is making them sound thin like the midrange has literally been sucked out. Was hoping to get a decent DAC and a tube amp to slightly change what i'm getting out of them.

Is this true of all tube amps? low ohm headphones arn't generally suited to them?

 

[Skylab]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cooperpwc /img/forum/go_quote.gif Electricity and ohms is not my speciality but I think that this is wrong. High ohm headphones require massive voltage swings. That is why OTL tube amps, which produce that, match high ohm headphones so well but are challenged with low ohms depending on the power supply. My understanding is that low ohm headphones require lots of current, not voltage. So, for example, my Earmax Pro which makes my 600 ohm Beyer DT880s fairly sing is not ideal for driving the Triple-Fi 10 Pros. A small battery operated amp is.

This is correct. To the OP, It is a bad idea to buy a tube amp that will not handle low impedance headphones, and then try to use them with low impedance headphones. It will not sound good, and you will just be wasting your money.

There are tube amps that are designed to work with lower impedance headphones. And there are lots of nice high-impedance headphones. You need to pair them together properly or you won't be happy with the results.

My experience has been that headphones below 30 ohms don't sound that great even on tube amps that are supposed to be able to handle 30 ohms and above.

 

[wower]

Sky and cooper are right. That is my understanding as well. You have a couple of options for low ohm phones and /I think/ the best value lies in TC (transformer coupled) amps. There are OTL (no transformer) designs that work great with low ohm phones, but they have to produce a lot of current and that gets tricky and pricey to implement. And no one should look down on TC designed amps (if the transformer is of suffienct quality). I love my yammy and even the current top dog amp, the ttvj's 307A, is a TC design. Its all in those transformer windings. I'm actually very interested to know if the 307A is as transparent as its price suggests.

 

[4N6]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wower /img/forum/go_quote.gif ...I'm actually very interested to know if the 307A is as transparent as its price suggests.

Even more so. Compared to all other amps I have owned or heard, the 307A is amazingly transparent.