Headphone Amplifiers

Ok, I admit it. I am trying to sell you a headphone amplifier so beware. But if you are going to do headphones,- do them right. The right way to do it, is, to have a separate headphone amplifier. In this way, you get the maximum fidelity from the cash you spent on the headphones. There are exceptions, where stand alone headphone amps are embedded into products. For example, the Shengya S10CSII, The Shenda Music Van and the Classic 16.0

Headphone amplifiers come in all shapes and sizes. If you want to drink from a washing machine hose of information, then go to head fi where, I am sure, they are marshalling through the rinse cycle of the headphone amplifier du jour with threads the length of Chicago Irish parades. I am here to talk about our headphone amplifiers, so the drink will be a little less pressurized.

We have tube headphone amps, solid state headphone amps, hybrid headphone amps, headphone amps that moonlight as DACs and integrated amplifiers that moonlight as headphone amplifiers. Whew!!

If you want a tube headphone amp, then you need to be prepared for a little noise. Not that these amps are noisy per se, but tubes are. I for one, do not mind the noise because I cannot hear it once the music starts. Plus, with the right tubes, it is just so darn tantalizing I just cannot put the phones down. Grados and low impedance phones work best with all tube amps: the Doge 6210, the Ming Da MC84C07, the Trancendere and the Timester. The Ming Da, for some reason, also sings with AKGs and Senns – go figure, I guess there is not a general rule.

Hybrid amps, like the Bada PH-12 and the Bada PH-31, work best with high impedance phones. Probably because there transistorized amps can handle the impedance loads, The Bada PH-12 is the de facto standard for AKGs – so this is what I use with these phones. The 6SN7 tubes paint a warm inviting sound stage while the Mosfets pass the resolution to the phones against a dead quite background.

Solid state amps are the enigma wrapped in the mystery. The Audio gd amps are class A amps, so they sound very un-transistorized and the BL Audio moving coil amp is a beast all its own. These silicon salamanders sound like the Bizarro of transistors. Warm midranges, deep bass yet articulate, but not to point of being annoying. These work well with a variety of phones – from the low to high, and unlike some other amps, you do not need a high / low switch like you do with the tube amps.

We have not heard a DAC/Headphone amp that we like – including the Benchmark or any of ours for that matter. The neutral Yulong is your best bet if you want to go this route.

If you want to start low cost, my pick is the Audio gd ST-3. You cannot go wrong with this amp if you are just getting into headphone amplifiers. You will be amazed at its resolution quality. The Ming Da MC 84C07 is a bets buy – it is great with headphones + you are getting a little amp all your own. The crème de la crème is the mainstay Bada PH-12, now in its 5th year with us, is a must for those who want the best out of their Senns or AKGs. For you tube lovers, the Doge 6210 – roll the tubes and you will be in for a treat.