[carajean]

Ok i was thinking about getting a receiver to connect to my computer to help better power my DT-770 pro 80ohm headphones. I do currently have a sound card the X-fi Xtreme Music. I was thinking a reciever would power the headphones better than the onboard sound. But also I wanted to get one cause eventually Im gonna get some bookshelves and subs.

I was looking for some feedback on whether this is a good idea and maybe some choices in recievers to get. I would kinda like to get some recievers I could just go to like best buy and pick up no online ordering for this.

 

[carajean]

bump

 

[ozz]

usually the flagships of most brands have a good headphone out
when you go shopping take the music that you listen to and the
phones and demo, i like the integra's ,arcam's and denon's your
choice may vary.

 

[DocHamm]

There is a plethora of good amps out there. I concur with Ozz, take some CDs and headphones with you and go listen, it's the best way. I lean towards Adcom, NAD, Arcam and the like, but the ones Ozz mentioned are great too. It's going to also depend on your budget.

Unfortunately in my area there are very few real audio stores. Finding higher end items to check out first hand is very difficult. Give a good look around in your area so you can look at as much as possible. Nothing worse than finding that dream item shortly after already making a purchase. I missed the Nakamichi Dragon that way.

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

Do you want to go vintage, "last-year's", or new?

 

[Marzie]

My current receiver is a Harman Kardon AVR 245, an older model. It was what fit into my price range at the time. You can find these at best buy, however ordering online (from amazon.com, onecall.com, etc) WILL save you money, sometimes as much as $200-400. The newer model in this category (I believe) is either 246 or 247. This added support for sound through HDMI; my model only switches the video signal to my tv, I have to hook up a coax or optical cable for sound. I know this isn't an necessarily "audiophile" receiver brand, however I feel it is a large step up from the Sony, Pioneer, and Yamaha (most models anyway) receivers that are currently at Best Buy or other retailers. I bought my first Harman Kardon nearly 10 years ago, and I just sold it for 1/3 of what I paid for it. It ran just as well the day I sold it as the first day I bought it. For "higher end" items (by Best Buy standards) they have added "Magnolia" home theater to many best Buys, for me, way out of my price range for most items, but it may be what you are looking for.

One thing to note is that this is primarily a "home theater" reciever. The brands mentioned above by other posters (I don't think) are intended to be used for audio and video, just audio (correct?) I understand this is primarily an audio forum and I am relatively new here, but I have been a member of a home theater forum for several years.

 

[OptionTrader]

One of my sources is a Denon AVR5803 that also has Dolby Headphone. It's actually pretty decent.

 

[skeeder]

I have a yamaha. I've been pleased with the headphone sound...Even a buddy who has the RS-1's thought it sounded nicer.

Depends on yoursetup, but I run speakers (b&w 601's) and use headphones only at night.

 

[infinitesymphony]

IMO, most receivers' headphone outputs sound awful, especially with low-Z headphones. Luckily, the DT-770 have relatively high impedance, so they may sound okay.

If you want the best sound quality, you should build or buy a dedicated headphone amplifier.

 

[OptionTrader]

Quote:

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony /img/forum/go_quote.gif IMO, most receivers' headphone outputs sound awful, especially with low-Z headphones. Luckily, the DT-770 have relatively high impedance, so they may sound okay. If you want the best sound quality, you should build or buy a dedicated headphone amplifier.

Agreed. However, some of the higher end receivers will get you by in a pinch.

 

[porschemad911]

Grab a Harman / Kardon HK3480 if you can find one for a good price. It's a very beefy 2 x 120W RMS high current stereo receiver.

I owned one for a year or so before going headphones only, it really was great with a pair of bookshelves and active sub. The headphone out was actually very decent as well.

 

[santiclaws]

many mid to high-end vintage receivers have a very, very good phono jack because they do not use an op amp. I have a '70s Kenwood which I bought for $30 and has a great jack output. Not exactly portable, but it sounds great and looks pretty cool, too.

 

[vulc4n]

The headphone out on my HK AVR 435 is pretty disappointing IMO.

 

[facelvega]

Quote:

Originally Posted by santiclaws /img/forum/go_quote.gif many mid to high-end vintage receivers have a very, very good phono jack because they do not use an op amp. I have a '70s Kenwood which I bought for $30 and has a great jack output. Not exactly portable, but it sounds great and looks pretty cool, too.

x2. It's not that opamp-based headphone outs are necessarily bad, they're just bad when they're cheaply executed, as they are in virtually every sub-$1000 receiver made since about 1985. Audio companies aren't going to spend an extra ten percent of the production cost on a part most people will never use. Vintage receivers, especially solid state stuff from the seventies, has much better headphone outs. They tend not to have the kind of detail that dedicated headphone amps can offer, but they have plenty of power and tend to be reasonably musical if not precise. This was consistent across the several vintage amps I've tried. The other advantage is that these old amps (Marantz, Sansui, Yamaha, Luxman, Sherwood, Pioneer, maybe some Kenwood, a few others) are pretty cheap now in comparison to their performance not only with headphones but with speakers as well, though they may require some reservicing if their capacitors have dried out.

 

[ozz]

usually but not always if the receiver has dolby headphone the output
will be ok.