Using speaker output's to drive headphones.... and what awesome results!!

[Zombie_X]

The main purpose of this was to save some money as I didn't want o buy another HP amp. I figured speaker outputs on receivers/amps would have more than enough power to drive headphones.

As most of you know, speaker outputs on receivers/amps put out more power than the headphone outs on amps. The headamp section is usually very limited in power, while speaker outs are quite a bit higher in the power/current area. This sparked an idea in my head. Would it be possible to use headphones on the speaker out's of an amp? So I made a DIY connector to do just that. Initially I was worried that the increased power would blow my headphones drivers, and in that thought I pulled out my Ibuds to test it with.

I put the cable I made into my Sansui amp. Surprisingly they worked with no distortion, but a ton of hiss. Now that I know it will work I just went up the chain to a higher impedance headphone. I plugged in one of my HD600's and was blown away. My Sansui drove them nicely, and the hiss was almost completely gone (I think it was cause the headphone was higher impedance). The finaly test was to see it if could power my 600ohm DT880 and it did! The volume knob was not even halfway and they were very loud (well over 100db!!

).

Using the 600ohm DT880 through the headphone out was a pain since they didn't get loud enough nor did they sound good. Then I put the adapter into my Fischer and was bowled over again! Man the speaker outs make a HUGE difference in sound quality/dynamics! The Fischer could now drive the 600ohm DT880's whiel before they were quiet.

So what started out as an experiment turned out to be the best thing I have ever done. I was not expecting the headphone's to work out of the speaker out. Now I will never use the HP output again on my Sansui/Fischer amps.

I would definitely say try this if you can. I would suggest using a cheaper HP when testing since you may blow them if the output is too powerful.

 

[pkrdlr007]

What a cool idea,any chance of pics of the diy connector and cost to make it?.If no pics available a parts list?. Think I would like to try it out too.

 

[scootermafia]

I guess if you want to do it fast/cheap, head down to radioshack, buy some cheap hookup wire, a 1/4" female jack, and 4 spades/bananas/bare wire of your choice.

Then just solder 2 return wires to the ground bar on the jack, and then solder up left/right wires, then on the end of each wire just pair them up so left/right are twisted together with their ground wire. Then, each wire gets its own spade/banana, or else strip it a little and tin it with some solder. Done.

 

[wang228]

You might also wanna try this:

Grado Speaker-headphone adapter.

It should cut down the hiss.

 

[iriverdude]

I'd buy one of those, if it had spades to female 6.25mm jack. I've got a few amps, although only one has switchable, the others aren't so would need to disconnect the speakers whiich is a pain.

 

[Zombie_X]

I think it's worth it. I'll look into the Grado adapter.

Total cost should be around $10. I'll take some picks for you guys when I get the time.

 

[mbd2884]

Hmm a bit afraid to hook up my headphones to an output of 120 Watts/Per Channel.

I'll pass, but interesting idea!

 

[Duggeh]

I run the majority of my headphones from my speaker amplifier. But then most require a bit more power than the average headphone amplifier.

 

[zerodeefex]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbd2884 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hmm a bit afraid to hook up my headphones to an output of 120 Watts/Per Channel. I'll pass, but interesting idea!

I mean, 120wpc for a 4 or 8 ohm load? Your 650s are 300 ohms, so I'm wondering how much power would actually be output?

 

[Duggeh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by zerodeefex /img/forum/go_quote.gif I mean, 120wpc for a 4 or 8 ohm load? Your 650s are 300 ohms, so I'm wondering how much power would actually be output?

Potentially more than enough to fry the drivers.


As long as you watch the volume dial, you're alright.

 

[Punnisher]

Careful of old receivers though. Some old ones that aren't in good shape will output a large amount of DC voltage which is vary bad for headphones.

With that said, I used some old receivers to amp my phones before I got my 2move and Millett. They can be very good sounding for sure.

 

[zerodeefex]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Punnisher /img/forum/go_quote.gif Careful of old receivers though. Some old ones that aren't in good shape will output a large amount of DC voltage which is vary bad for headphones. With that said, I used some old receivers to amp my phones before I got my 2move and Millett. They can be very good sounding for sure.

I'd recommend checking everything out with a multimeter and some resistors first to see what's up

 

[mbd2884]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Punnisher /img/forum/go_quote.gif Careful of old receivers though. Some old ones that aren't in good shape will output a large amount of DC voltage which is vary bad for headphones. With that said, I used some old receivers to amp my phones before I got my 2move and Millett. They can be very good sounding for sure.

I've been doing some research on vintage NAD, Cambridge Audio, Marantz, and Arcam integrated SS amps. Would these have this problem? And is this problem bad for speakers?

 

[Max F]

I would love to try my Panasonic digital amp, but I'm too scared.

 

[ZeNmAc]

This brings to mind an interesting idea...
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