[Jman999]

Do any others besides Marantz have a good headphone out? I have a Sansui 771, it is possible that it has a quality headphone out, one superior to my Onkyo HT-R410's headphone out?

Thanks, Jonathan.

 

[OneMalt]

The proof is in the pudding. What do your ears tell you?

 

[Jman999]

Don't have a good set of headphones yet with which to test it. I was just wondering because I am probably buying a pair of Senn. HD555 or possibly a Senn. HD 25-1.

 

[Lazarus Short]

This is something I have ranted about before, and the reason I bought a headphone amp. Too much gear has the volume preset for the headphone jack, and that is unacceptable to me. If your gear has adjustable headphone volume/gain, count yourself lucky/smart.

Laz

 

[bln]

I recently bought an older Kenwood integrated amp (late 1970s) because I've switched over to a speaker system. Thus far, I think that headphone output is actually quite nice, even in comparison to the high-end headphone-only amplifier I owned previously. Nice, big volume knob too; I think it might be a stepped attenuator.

 

[mkmelt]

The Sansui 771 receiver was sold from 1974 to 1976 at a retail price of $430 US. Power output was rated at 45 Watts per channel RMS into 8 ohms. BTW, $430 in 1976 dollars is equivalent to $1400 in current dollars.

Here is a link to information about the pre-1980 Sansui products:
http://www.classicaudio.com/value/san/index.html

Here is a photo of the 771 receiver:
http://www.classicaudio.com/value/san/771.html

The headphone jack is almost certainly powered by the same 45 watt/channel amplifier as the speaker terminals. Resistors are wired into the headphone circuit to drop the output level at the headphone jack so that you can comfortably control the volume using the main volume control, and there is not a huge difference in output when switching between the speakers and the headphones. The only way to find out how a particular vintage amplifier or receiver will sound with a model of headphone is to try it and decide for yourself. Most work quite well.

 

[merlock]

How about vintage Preamps? I was thinking about getting a vintage Preamp to use as a head amp. Is it better to go with a vintage intergrated?

merlock

 

[Lazarus Short]

...headphone outputs. Of those that do, most probably do not have adjustable gain to that output. My own preamp does not directly support headphones, and I only keep it for the phono section. Happily, my Stax and my Yammies have their own amps with their own gain adjustment. I think a dedicated headphone amp is the only way to fly...

Laz

 

[mkmelt]

[How about vintage Preamps?]

It is an interesting question. I only have one preamp with a headphone output (Hafler DH-110) and it can drive high impedance phones. I never thought that the sound from the headphone jack was lacking, just not very engaging.

You will find that most vintage tube preamps do not include a headphone output, as they are designed to provide buffering (impedance matching) and gain (voltage) but little in the way of current capability and therefore power to drive headphones. The classic Marantz 7C all-tube preamp does not provide a headphone output, while solid-state Marantz 7T (The "T" stands for transistor) does provide a headphone jack. Originally these two Marantz products were sold at the same retail price. Today, however, a nice example of a model 7C preamp will cost more than $2,000 US, while the 7T can be purchased for under $300.

 

[johnjac]

Quote:

Originally Posted by merlock How about vintage Preamps? I was thinking about getting a vintage Preamp to use as a head amp. Is it better to go with a vintage intergrated? merlock

Way back when(late 70s;early 80s) I owned both NAD1020 preamp and a Marantz 1090 integrated which IIRC both had excellent headphone outputs. In fact IIRC one of the British mags rated the NAD1020 headphone better than several higher priced preamps of that era

 

[vrao81]

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnjac Way back when(late 70s;early 80s) I owned both NAD1020 preamp and a Marantz 1090 integrated which IIRC both had excellent headphone outputs. In fact IIRC one of the British mags rated the NAD1020 headphone better than several higher priced preamps of that era

I also used to own a NAD1020 preamp. Excellent headphone out, worked well with the Senn HD580. It developed problems though (channel imbalance) so I sold it off. But when it worked I preferred to the MG Head I also owned at the time. I am getting a Sansui 4000 receiver soon so I'll be able to compare it to my marantz 2230.

 

[BigD]

I use 1974 Mcintosh C28 preamp for my home rig. Strange enough this unit has headphone amp built-in. Works great with akg k501 which is very demanding cans. Even better than perreaux sxh/k501 combo. K501 sounds fuller, richer, warmer. Well sxh has more power, but c28 provides better synergy. I believe Mcintosh are also great vintage amp/preamp.