smandersloot
Joined: 24/01/12
Posts: 4
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Quality headphones and amplification
#966058 - 24/01/12 12:40 PM
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I'm planning on investing in quality headphones, but I can't afford to buy a quality
dedicated headphone amp right away. Any thoughts on using for example the Sennheiser HD650
with a Mackie Onyx Blackjack small desktop interface for mixing and also audio
editing/mixing for video?
Thanks in advance!
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Hugh Robjohns
SOS Technical Editor
Joined: 25/07/03
Posts: 18383
Loc: Worcestershire
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Re: Quality headphones and amplification
[Re: smandersloot]
#966071 - 24/01/12 01:08 PM
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The biggest gain in quality is in buying the HD650s. Well designed dedicated headphones
amps can deliver a small and incremental improvement over most equipment's built-in
headphone amps, but in most cases it's icing on a cake and an expensive luxury that only
the most dediated will be happy to justify.
The HD650 is a fantasically good
headphone and will work very well with your Onyx Blackjack.
Hugh
--------------------
Technical Editor, Sound On Sound
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smandersloot
Joined: 24/01/12
Posts: 4
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Re: Quality headphones and amplification
[Re: smandersloot]
#966085 - 24/01/12 01:39 PM
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hi Hugh,
Thanks for your reply. Glad to hear that buying 'just' the headphones is
still worth the investment. I got scared by a few discussions on the internet stating
otherwise.
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Music Manic
active member
Joined: 20/12/02
Posts: 1890
Loc: London UK
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Re: Quality headphones and amplification
[Re: Hugh Robjohns]
#966126 - 24/01/12 03:46 PM
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Quote Hugh Robjohns:
The HD650 is a fantasically good headphone.....
Hugh
+1
Over the years I have fallen
in love with these 'phones.
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Hugh Robjohns
SOS Technical Editor
Joined: 25/07/03
Posts: 18383
Loc: Worcestershire
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Re: Quality headphones and amplification
[Re: smandersloot]
#966128 - 24/01/12 03:50 PM
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Quote smandersloot:
I got scared
by a few discussions on the internet stating otherwise.
I'm not surprised. There's a lot of BS
about... 
Modern headphone amp electronics are astonishingly good, and the
technical, measurable differences between the ordinary budget stuff and the esoteric are
vanishingly small. It's the law of diminshing returns -- pay more and things get better
because of small improvements in power supplies, headroom, current capability and so on --
but only a tiny bit better. You might appreciate the difference if everything else in the
signal path is perfect, or if the headphones are technically difficult to 'drive', but
generally the improvements are negligible. The HD650 are not difficult to drive...
On the other hand, electro-mechnical devices like headphones are the weak links
in the chain, and spending more money brings very obvious sonic improvements.
hugh
--------------------
Technical Editor, Sound On Sound
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SafeandSound Masteri...
Joined: 23/03/08
Posts: 852
Loc: London UK
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Re: Quality headphones and amplification
[Re: smandersloot]
#966158 - 24/01/12 05:26 PM
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My own experience is that a good headphone amplifier can better the sound by what I would
loosely quantify as 15pct in a worst case comparison (i.e.a JRC2068 run off of a USB power
line), thats a worthwhile difference in clarity for critical audio listening.
I can see where Hugh is coming from because there are a lot of very expensive
"audiophile" type products at £500.00 + but if you are willing to investigate you can
find very good sounding products at around £200.00. Maybe that can be considered later
on.
It is right that the headphones will make the larger difference.
SafeandSound Mastering
-------------------- Mastering online mastering
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smandersloot
Joined: 24/01/12
Posts: 4
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Re: Quality headphones and amplification
[Re: smandersloot]
#970484 - 16/02/12 05:31 PM
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Thanks for all of your advice! Meanwhile I've bought the HD650 and I'm very happy with
them. I will definitely look into more affordable headphone amps soon, have you used an
affordable amp in particular which you can recommend?
Stefan
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Bob Bickerton
active member
Joined: 20/12/02
Posts: 2521
Loc: Nelson, New Zealand
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Re: Quality headphones and amplification
[Re: smandersloot]
#970504 - 16/02/12 07:45 PM
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I recently upgraded to a Lehmanaudio StudioCube which I'm enjoying and is an incremental
step up from the headphone amp I was using in an Alesis mixer and also the headphone amp
on my MOTO 8pre. But as Hugh says, these differences can be minor. Bob
-------------------- www.bickerton.co.nz
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SafeandSound Masteri...
Joined: 23/03/08
Posts: 852
Loc: London UK
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Re: Quality headphones and amplification
[Re: smandersloot]
#970623 - 17/02/12 01:15 PM
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Hi there, the headphone amp I used required some modifications for various reasons so it
is not an ideal recommendation to be honest.
You can also consider running a
DAC/Headphone amplifier which is driven by a spare SP/DIF source if you have one. (though
you then bring the fedelity ambiguities of clocking into the equation)
SafeandSound Mastering
music
mastering
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