Do i need an amp for the sennheiser pc350se ?

[Petrikov96]

Got some money and decided to get myself an expensive headphone So I pick the Sennheiser Pc350se (since the normal version is no longer been manufactured),and in alot of review the only complaint and sugestion that i will need to buy an amp to make this headset good.

 

Is it true?and if it true then what amp would you guys suggest ? (thank for reading and my apologies for the bad english --)

[LancerBG]

no you dont need one. used those with out an amp for a long time and they sound great. 

[weez]

Wait till you get them and try them out for yourself. Whats the motherboard youre using with them?

[Petrikov96]

Wait till you get them and try them out for yourself. Whats the motherboard youre using with them?

the msi z97-gaming7

[weez]

the msi z97-gaming7

 

That looks good. If I had that board I wouldnt get a new dac/amp

[Petrikov96]

That looks good. If I had that board I wouldnt get a new dac/amp

 

how can you tell ? And thank for the help,i guess i will try them out for myself 

[Petrikov96]

 

That looks good. If I had that board I wouldnt get a new dac/amp

 

how can you tell ? And thank for the help,i guess i will try them out for myself 

 

[weez]

how can you tell ? And thank for the help,i guess i will try them out for myself 

 

I looked at the specs. Thats not a guarantee it will be good but it looks good on paper

[dougoftheabaci]

As a general rule of thumb even headphones that cost several hundred dollars don't necessarily need an amp. Some do, planar magnetics are going to. But most anything with a 3.5mm jack will work fine without an amp.

 

If you get them and feel like you aren't getting enough volume or things are a little flat or dull sounding then you can get an amp.

[creatip123]

Every headphones, headsets, and speakers NEED an amp. Fortunately, most of audio reproduction devices (PC onboard, smartphone, audio player, etc) already have a built-in amp inside them. 

 

Does this headphone need an amp? Absolutely. Does my onboard have an amp? Definitely.

 

So the question is now, 'will my existing amp be adequate or not?'. Think of this question as, 'will my chicken soup be salty enough or not?' What's the best way to answer that? Try it on yourself and see for yourself, naturally. That's the real, most reliable answer. It's case per case. People usually take educated guesses based on general conditions, i.e. the soup got 2 pinches of salt, so it may not be salty enough => this is an educated guess, kinda hit and miss. What if the person in question is overly sensitive to salt? 2 pinches would be salty enough. 

[creatip123]

planar magnetics are going to.

 

If the 'amp' refer/include built-in like in my post above, then yeah, ALL headphones need one. If it's restricted to 'external/additional amp' only, not every planars do. 

 

 

Even LCD-3 was singing beautifully plugged straight to a $40 Nokia candybar dumb-phone

[SSL]

Agree with creatip, also an amp isn't going to make a headphone "good". It's good or not.

[dougoftheabaci]

Even LCD-3 was singing beautifully plugged straight to a $40 Nokia candybar dumb-phone

 

They never sound as full without an amp, not in my experience.

[SSL]

They never sound as full without an amp, not in my experience.

 

Then the amp wasn't very good, at which point it would alter the sound of any headphone.

[dougoftheabaci]

Then the amp wasn't very good, at which point it would alter the sound of any headphone.

 

"Good" is pretty subjective and every headphone amplifier changes the sound in some way. The trick is finding one that changes it in a way you like. I tend to look for gear that expands the sound stage while keeping everything as neutral as possible. Other people tend to prefer amps that make the sound more warm (which is why tube amps are so popular).

 

Headphone amplifiers provide another service beyond potentially adding volume. People don't think about it but the audio section in most consumer devices is designed to work with just about everything. Jack of all trades, master of none. That's what ends up happening. Where a dedicated external headphone amplifier will output a signal that tends to enhance the sound qualities of a specific headphone. That's why not all headphones and amplifiers pair well but some do exceptionally well. Speaking of the LCD-3, they tend to pair unbelievably well with Schiit's gear because Schiit's stuff is specifically designed for things like planar magnetics.

[SSL]

"Good" is pretty subjective and every headphone amplifier changes the sound in some way. The trick is finding one that changes it in a way you like. I tend to look for gear that expands the sound stage while keeping everything as neutral as possible. Other people tend to prefer amps that make the sound more warm (which is why tube amps are so popular).

 

Or not, because that is not how electricity works. Amps cannot expand soundstage; they can ruin it if they have bad phase response, but that's about it. Amps that audibly alter the audio signal are not high fidelity, by definition. People that like "warm" sound should probably take the time to learn about EQ. An amp that alters the sound is crap, tube or not.

 

Headphone amplifiers provide another service beyond potentially adding volume. People don't think about it but the audio section in most consumer devices is designed to work with just about everything. Jack of all trades, master of none. That's what ends up happening. Where a dedicated external headphone amplifier will output a signal that tends to enhance the sound qualities of a specific headphone. That's why not all headphones and amplifiers pair well but some do exceptionally well. Speaking of the LCD-3, they tend to pair unbelievably well with Schiit's gear because Schiit's stuff is specifically designed for things like planar magnetics.

 

Again, no. All an amplifier is supposed to do is add volume. Unless there is an impedance mismatch going on, they will not interact with the load in any way. This all applies to planars; they are still just an electric transducer and do not follow special rules.

[creatip123]

"Good" is pretty subjective and every headphone amplifier changes the sound in some way. The trick is finding one that changes it in a way you like. I tend to look for gear that expands the sound stage while keeping everything as neutral as possible. Other people tend to prefer amps that make the sound more warm (which is why tube amps are so popular).

 

Headphone amplifiers provide another service beyond potentially adding volume. People don't think about it but the audio section in most consumer devices is designed to work with just about everything. Jack of all trades, master of none. That's what ends up happening. Where a dedicated external headphone amplifier will output a signal that tends to enhance the sound qualities of a specific headphone. That's why not all headphones and amplifiers pair well but some do exceptionally well. Speaking of the LCD-3, they tend to pair unbelievably well with Schiit's gear because Schiit's stuff is specifically designed for things like planar magnetics.

 

That's the keyword there. Unless the existing amp is lacking juice or got problems (loudness can't get high enough, distortions, clippings, etc), people are buying external/additional amps to alter/color the sound, not to make them sound better. It's subjective, not objective. It's not wrong, but it shouldn't be categorized as 'need an amp', when it's more politically correct 'want an (particular) amp'. The way the words (need an amp) are spreading around, it's as if an additional amp is mandatory, even if the existing system is working well. 

 

In individual cases, this won't pose a problem. In more global range, it may be misinterpreted by new guys lacking knowledge, misinterpreting 'wanting' into 'needing'

 

Here's an example:

 

A: hey, why do you use an additional amp with your headphone?

B: because I like the way this amp colors my headphone

 

This way, people won't misinterpret it

 

B: because my headphone needs an additional amp (which in reality it doesn't, or not absolutely, depends on the case)

 

People could misinterpret that an additional amp is mandatory, like PC needing a keyboard

 

On another note, about the planars. Older planars are power hungry, because they're low impedance + low sensitivity (horrible combination). My HE-400 is one example, 35 ohms, 93.5 dB/mW.

 

Newer generation of planars are built with much more efficiency in mind. The LCD-3 is 110 ohms, 102dB/mW (https://www.audeze.com/products/headphones/lcd-3). Who told me all these things about planars? None other than Alex Rosson himself. He said, 'they're built so efficient that they can run off of just about any portable audio players. An amp in between could potentially make it sound better (in subjective context)' So in other words, do you need an extra amp to run LCD-3? In most cases, no. Do you want an extra amp to run LCD-3? That's your call. 

 

Check the 'USF field report' on my sig, on the Audeze part. 

[dougoftheabaci]

I'm just going to leave these here:

 

http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/ultimate-headphone-guide-articles-what-headphone-amplifier-and-why-do-i-need-one

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headphone_amplifier#Output_Impedance

 

The short version is that it provides enough stable, clean power that you will hear your headphones to the most of what they can do. That's the idea. Will they sound good without? Of course, if they are good headphones they'll sound good no matter what. Doesn't mean your amp does nothing or just makes it loud. Or just is used to do a bit of coloring.

 

Though I agree, many audiophiles will tell you that you require an expensive amp to even make them worth listening to. I don't agree, I use my Noble 4C's all the time without my amp and they sound great. But I still prefer the sound with my amp.

[SSL]

I'm just going to leave these here:

 

http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/ultimate-headphone-guide-articles-what-headphone-amplifier-and-why-do-i-need-one

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headphone_amplifier#Output_Impedance

 

Niether of those links contradict any of the points made by me or creatip, and they further corroborate my point about impedance mismatch. I'm well aware about the whole issue of 0dBFS vs average volume and I take that into account when I suggest that a source is enough to drive a headphone.

[trag1c]

I had owned a PC360 headset which is the open version of yours, you will be fine with no external amp or sound card.

[Petrikov96]

thank for all the help guys much apreciated