[RoninDiesel]

are all headphone outs on receivers the same? Or does a certain brand have better quality/output/etc. over another?

 

[Kali]

Avoid the lower-end Marantz receivers, my sr4200 is very annoying through the headphone out, with a constant buzz and noticeable interference.

 

[markl]

It is a myth on this board IMO, that all jacks on non-headphone amps suck. In short, a headphone amp is nothing but a pre-amp by a different name. If you have a high-quality pre-amp, or a component with a high-quality pre-amp section and a headphone jack, chances are you will have a good headphone amp. Many of the better headphone amps also function as pre-amps. Many of the best headphone amps *are* pre-amps with headphone jacks.

I own a Denon AVR 5800 receiver, Denon's former top-of-the-line showcase product, and its headphone jack is fantastic. I also used to own a Marantz AV9000 HT pre/pro ($1800). I found its headphone jack to be prefereable to the older version of the Headroom MOH.

I realize these are both relatively expensive pieces of equipment. It is unlikely that a $500 receiver is going to have a great pre-amp section and headphone jack. It is also unlikely that the headphone jack on any source component (CDP, SACDP) of any cost will be any good compared to a dedicated headamp.

However, my point is that if you have an expensive pre-amp or component with nice pre-amp section, a headamp may be redundant for you. If not, you should look into a headamp.

Mark

 

[lini]

Kali: Oh, that sucks. Especially as the headphone jacks on Maratz' stereo amps and receivers were always more on the good side.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

 

[RoninDiesel]

congrats markl...haha you just confused me, or I must have confused you. my question is, such brands as sony, yamaha, kenwood, pioneer (best buy brands), which has a stronger, cleaner headphone out, if any difference at all.

 

[markl]

I see. Well, I still expect most answers will be knee-jerk "all non-headamps suck". I've never seen much focus or attention paid to the entire topic of headphone jacks in other non-headamp products, except to repeat the usual mantra about them being sub-par, which in most instances, I can see being a pretty reasonable assumption. After all, "good headphone jack" is going to be on the feature priority list at nuber 2113. The receiver has an awful lot of jobs to do, there's a ton of technology crammed in there that make up the bulk of the cost. Wheras a dedicated headamp is made for one purpose only-- your purpose. But that's not to condemn all receivers, as I've heard at least 2 exceptions to the rule (granted at very high price-points).

Still, you won't find reviews written about them, or anything like a general consensus that "most Denon receivers have good headphone jacks", or some other such wisdom. I think, for the most part, it's a crapshoot, although, I'm certain that it's safe to assume that, in general, the better the quality the receiver, the better the quality of its headphone jack.

Mark

 

[papabear]

I have been lurking for a week or two trying to find a thread of this nature. I own an B&K AVR202. I need to get headphones since my family is growing (a two year old and a new one due any day now). I'm wondering if the headphone jack will be adequate to drive HD 280 pros or even 580's.

B&K is definitely bordering hi-end in the receiver market, but since I've never dealt with headphone amps before I was hoping to either find a headphone easy to drive by the receiver or one easy to drive by an entry-level amp.

Any more insight would be appreciated.