Should I get a headphone amp and if so, what would you recomend?

[Theerix]

I recently got these headphones for Christmas. The AKG K553 Pro:    http://www.akg.com/pro/p/k553pro

In my PC I have a sound card called Sound Blaster Z from Creative:   http://www.soundblaster.com/products/sound-blaster-z.aspx

The sound card is said to have a 600 Ohm dedicated headphone amp built in, but in the software and manual I cant find anything to see if it is on or working. 

SOOO, Dose the sound card with the built in amp work or is it too weak to power the AKG's and if so what amp should I think about getting. I know very little about audio. Also it would be nice if the amp was under 120$.

Thank You    ^̮^

 

 

 

 

 

Specs of K553pro

• Manufactured by AKG
• Over-ear, closed-back construction
• Leatherette earpads with slow foam retention
• Individually tested and numbered
• Fixed 9.8 ft (3 m) straight cable with 1/8 in (3.5 mm) jack
• Frequency response: 12 to 28,000 Hz
• Sensitivity: 114 dB/V
• Maximum input power: 200 mW
• Rated impedance: 32 Ohms
• 10.75 oz (w/o cable)

 

[QueenDemetria]

 

I recently got these headphones for Christmas. The AKG K553 Pro:    http://www.akg.com/pro/p/k553pro

In my PC I have a sound card called Sound Blaster Z from Creative:   http://www.soundblaster.com/products/sound-blaster-z.aspx

The sound card is said to have a 600 Ohm dedicated headphone amp built in, but in the software and manual I cant find anything to see if it is on or working. 

SOOO, Dose the sound card with the built in amp work or is it too weak to power the AKG's and if so what amp should I think about getting. I know very little about audio. Also it would be nice if the amp was under 120$.

The Z can drive your headphones, I have the Z(and the Recon3D Fatal1ty) and they have pretty good amps built in.

[FloRolf]

Step by Step guide:

1. Plug headphones into soundcard

2. Fire up some music

3. Are they loud enough?

4. Yes? Nice, keep everything like it is

5. No? Get a new AMP.

-> You are probably more than fine.

[SSL]

• Sensitivity: 114 dB/V
• Rated impedance: 32 Ohms

 

These two specs highly suggest that you do not need an amp.

 

The headphone amp in your soundcard is not "turned on". It's just there. It may be prudent to set the card to "headphone mode" if it has one; otherwise rest assured that it is there and doing its job.

[AnAverageName]

You really don't need a separate amp for these headphones. Looking at the product page, we see that they are, "low impedance, for portable devices." This usually means that the headphones are in the neighborhood of 8-32 ohms, which can easily be driven by computers and phones. With your amp rated at headphones that are 600 ohms, which is quite a bit more than you'll need to get everything you want out of them.

 

Edit: Error pointed out by SSL corrected.

[SSL]

This usually means that the headphones are in the neighborhood of 8-32 ohms, which can easily be driven by computers and phones. With your amp rated at headphones that are 600 ohms, which is orthodynamics level, you'll be more than fine getting everything you want out of them.

 

What? My HE-560 is 45 ohms. The HE-6 is 50 ohms. The LCD-2 is 70 ohms. How is "600 ohms orthodynamics level"?

[Theerix]

Thank you for all the responses!!!

[AnAverageName]

What? My HE-560 is 45 ohms. The HE-6 is 50 ohms. The LCD-2 is 70 ohms. How is "600 ohms orthodynamics level"?

Incredibly sorry, looks like I got the dynamic transducer on headphones like the Beyerdynamic DT 990 confused with orthodynamics. Not as familiar as I should be with transducers.

[SSL]

Incredibly sorry, looks like I got the dynamic transducer on headphones like the Beyerdynamic DT 990 confused with orthodynamics. Not as familiar as I should be with transducers.

 

Sure, but your statement is still somewhat misleading, as impedance is only one term of several in the equation that dictates how loud a headphone will get from a given amp.

 

Note that I highlighted the impedance and sensitivity above. The 114 dB/V basically means that the headphone will get very loud from just about any source regardless of the impedance. It happens to be 32 ohms, but the voltage sensitivity is so high as to make this mostly irrelevant.

[Wingfan]

Ive been looking for headphones that can handle a lot of power, which spec should i be focused on? ohms?

 

thanks

[FloRolf]

Ive been looking for headphones that can handle a lot of power, which spec should i be focused on? ohms?

thanks

Why would you want that?

[Wingfan]

I like very loud music, and cant use my speakers because i live in a condo. Is it wrong to want my music loud?

[SSL]

Ive been looking for headphones that can handle a lot of power, which spec should i be focused on? ohms?

 

thanks

 

You could focus on the sensitivity, max SPL and max power specs. Impedance is of minor concern here. However, what makes most sense is to get the headphone that you like the sound of and get an amp if needed. There is no headphone in existence that is incapable of getting to at least 110dB when amped sufficiently.

 

I like very loud music, and cant use my speakers because i live in a condo. Is it wrong to want my music loud?

 

No, but you should be aware that it is damaging your hearing. How much depends on how loud and for how long you listen.

[Wingfan]

You could focus on the sensitivity, max SPL and max power specs. Impedance is of minor concern here. However, what makes most sense is to get the headphone that you like the sound of and get an amp if needed. There is no headphone in existence that is incapable of getting to at least 110dB when amped sufficiently.

 

 

No, but you should be aware that it is damaging your hearing. How much depends on how loud and for how long you listen.

I have Sennheiser PC350 SE's with a small Pyle PHA40 AMP. At less than 3/4 power of the AMP it starts distorting. These headphones are great for gaming tho.

 

Any recommendations?

 

[SSL]

I have Sennheiser PC350 SE's with a small Pyle PHA40 AMP. At less than 3/4 power of the AMP it starts distorting. These headphones are great for gaming tho.

 

Any recommendations?

 

 

Make a thread with a budget so we don't hijack this fucker's post.