Driving Headphones

Mike,

You're safe with electrostatic cans, which are meant to be driven directly from the output of your amp, and 600-ohm cans, which don't draw enough current to be fried by your amp.

But shouldn't you be asking which cans come with the FEP seal of approval?

Joe

My current cans are Sennheiser HD 330s, but I'll probably upgrade at some point. I'm just weighing my options at the moment. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-

Smilies do not a forum make.

"You're safe with electrostatic cans, which are meant to be driven directly from the output of your amp" - Joe

I thought most electrostatic cans either came with their own heaphone amp (e.g. Stax) or had a transformer sitting between them and the power amp (e.g. Jecklin). Transformers are invariably a problem in terms of performance. The Float electrostats would sound great without it.

Apparently the Precide Ergo electrostatics (AMT) can be used from speaker terminals, and I wondered if anyone had tried them.

Chris,

quote:

---

You're safe with electrostatic cans, which are meant to be driven directly from the output
of your amp.

---

Sorry, I meant to use the restrictive pronoun: You're safe with electrostatic cans that are meant to be driven directly from the output of your amp.

You'd think I'd know better being a righter/editter guy.

Joe

Mike,

I used to drive my Grado SR 225s out of the back of my 180 with a little adapter from rega. It worked great, but the inconvenience of pulling out the speaker plugs whenever I wanted to listen to headphones was too much. I didn't have any trouble here, but I did have trouble with Grados and the Headline. Fortunately I now have HD 600s and a hicap/headline and have never looked back.

Dave

I'm considering using an existing integrated, fed by my 82's tape loop. If I find that I'm listening to headphones "often", I'll get a headline. Since I've currently got two Hi-Caps driving my 82, and I eventually intend to upgrade to a Super-Cap, I'll probably keep one of the Hi-Caps to power a Headline. Until that time, I could probably live with the integrated powering the phones. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-

Smilies do not a forum make.

That sites quite interesting. It will take me a while to digest it all. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-

Smilies do not a forum make.

Mike,

Sounds like a good game plan to me. The CDS2/52/hicap/headline combo is something else. With the HD 600s listening to metallica (and I'm not a metal fan) borders on a religious experience. Who was it that said the CDS 2 lacks PRaT and KLöüT?

DÄVË

Mike,

Providing your headphones do not have too low an impedance, they can be driven from the pre-amp output - Chord Co. produce such a lead I believe.

Headwize is an interesting site, but most of the DIY projects are a little eccentric and strange. If you're into homebrew you may like to keep an eye on the site, as I'm currently writing an article with details on my own headphone amp.

I built ths before Naim created the headline, to satisfy my desire for musical headphone sound, something the existing sockets on my tape deck / CD didn't offer. IMHO it sounds a lot better than the pre-amp output when driving my Sennheisser 'phones.

Andy.

Andrew L. Weekes
alweekes@audiophile.com

...a little gizmo from Radio Shack that goes into the speaker outputs and allows standard phones to be plugged in.

Still gotta unhook the speaker wires if you don't want the whole house to know you're listening and I doubt the Radio Slack solution would gain the FEP Seal of Approval.

- GregB
Freedom is not in finding the Holy Grail but in stopping the search for it

I haven't had a chance to create the necessary cables to hook-up the extra integrated to my main kit yet, so all of this extra info is still helpful. I'm a bit of a DIY-er, so I have no problem soldering cables, but building an entire amp is another level entirely. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-

Smilies do not a forum make.

Anyone got these? Comments, feedback?

I'm looking for a headphone preamp, and like the styling of the MF 'tin can' - it's also been reviewed favourably in a few mags, and it's not too expensive, making it a must-hear. But, before I get my local dealer to get one sent up, can anyone give me a no-holds-barred honest appraisal on this unit?

TC '..'

Top Cat

If you are looking for cans on a budget, the Creek OBH-11 does a fair job, and is priced at around £120. You'll need to buy or make up an interconnect to take the signal from a tape loop on your pre-amp.

Alternately, Mike's solution of using a spare integrated amp my provide a cost-effective solution, depending on your sonic/musical needs.

You gets what you pays for, though... so for more dosh, the Headline is worth considering.

Rico - musichead