Should I get an amplifier for Sennsheiser HD 439's?

[Its_Benjii]

I have the Sennheiser 439's, and I was wondering if an amplifier would be beneficial to me at all. Im only just getting into audio, so Im not too sure how much of a difference it will make.. Also, if you have a recommendation for an amplifier under $40, I'd appreciate it.

 

[Cons29]

hi, i have been thinking about the same thing also (i have recently bought hd598), and i only know of one cheap but good (as per reviews) amp. it's FIIO e11k, it is fairly cheap, not sure of the current price though, check amazon.

as per your question sorry i cannot help you. if you have a store where you can test that would also help you decide. in my area, there's a store where you can basically test everything before you buy (spent like more than an hour there trying to decide which IEM to buy lol). They even let you try the expensive amps/dac that they have.

 

[RazerZ]

Why do you feel you need an amp? Lower end headphones tend to be easy to drive, same goes for your HD 439. With a 32 ohm impedance and 112db sensitivity you should not need an amp.

 

[Cons29]

for me, i'm hoping to give it a bit more on the low end. also, my phone is fairly weak in output, the volume is nearly maxed out (and no i don't play things too loud)

 

[RazerZ]

for me, i'm hoping to give it a bit more on the low end. also, my phone is fairly weak in output, the volume is nearly maxed out (and no i don't play things too loud)

I would look into the JDS labs CmoyBB for a portable amp. They go for $60 prebuilt, or if you have knowledge of electronics they provide the partlist and schematic on their site.

 

[Cons29]

i will check on that, i think we have JDS here locally. i'll audition if it's available. thanks

any cheap but decent ones for desktop? small foot print only though

 

[RazerZ]

i will check on that, i think we have JDS here locally. i'll audition if it's available. thanks

any cheap but decent ones for desktop? small foot print only though

I doubt the JDS you have locally is the same as JDSlabs. They are a small business with a single store and their products are not distributed to other retailers afaik.

Right now the Fiio E10k amp/dac is $63 on massdrop.

 

[Cons29]

in our local store, they have tons of products, from a few $ to thousands of dollars (headphones, amps/dacs). maybe they import from JDS?
they have fiio, hugo, and other brands that i am not even familiar with hahaha, too expensive for me.

i was thinking of e11k before, but i've heard good things also about jds o2. Also checked that JDS ships here, but our customs suck

 

[RazerZ]

Interesting. The Fiio is a budget option, the O2 can drive higher impedance headphones and is a better amp, but you might not notice the difference b/t them since the 598s aren't particularly demanding. The O2 amp is an open source design posted by NwAvGuy (highly respected audio engineer) and other companies have made their own versions of the amp. The Mayflower Electronics version might be available in your store.

 

[Cons29]

yeah, i have heard of the story about NwAvGuy. i have checked mayflower at amazon but they are a lot more expensive than JDS. and i have checked locally, they don't carry that.
i have checked about jds in their FB page (local store i mentioned) and i think they do order from jds as one mentioned that they have one with 3.5 input and that they will order one with 1/4" (just some old comments)

would you happen to know the pros and cons of portable against desktop amp? like say e17k/e11k (budget) against the o2 which powers from ac (or a 9v)
i like the idea of having some power headroom so it will still be usable when i buy a new hp in the future, with a higher impedance

 

[RazerZ]

A desktop amp in the same price range will be able to drive higher impedance headphones than a portable amp, and will have better sound quality as well. It's like laptops vs desktops, the form factor will affect capability. Generally speaking unless you plan to use your headphones on the go, stick with a desktop amp.

The only benefit of portable amps is the size.

The 598s are very easy to drive, I have the 518s that use the exact same drivers. If you do not plan to upgrade in a while and find the volume a bit low, any cheap headphone amp $50-$100 will provide more than enough power for them. Portable or not, it won't matter since they are low impedance and high sensitivity, but do benefit with some extra power. Don't expect subwoofer levels of bass when amped though...

If you plan to upgrade to headphones that are known to be harder to drive the objective 2 or Schiit Magni/Magni 2 are worth spending a little extra for.

 

[Cons29]

yeah, my next one will most likely be of higher impedance. yes the 598 is only 50ohm.
while i am not a bass head, i would like to have an amp that can boost the low side a bit, perfectly happy with this but i want to try how it is with some boost there.
maybe i'll bring this to egghead(the store i mentioned), i saw they have a test unit for e11k, ill try that. hopefully they have o2 also. portability is the least of my priorities so i guess its desktop amp if i can afford it

 

[Cons29]

i'll be going pc->scarlett solo -> amp -> hp

 

[RazerZ]

Sounds like a plan. Always try before you buy if possible.

 

[Cons29]

yep, i will audition before buying. man, this is a bad thing to get into
i managed to stop upgrading my pc, now this lol.

thanks a lot, appreciate it

 

[shotgunz]

FiiO's ~$25 E06 is enough to wreak your ears with most headphones. Hope you're not already damaging your ears with max volume off your phone.

 

[Cons29]

nah, i'm not the type to pump up the volume. just some decent volume, as years before i have observed some people listening so loud you can make up the lyrics of the song they are listening to. and these are iem's and headphones, nothing open back

just want to add some bass, and maybe improve things a bit (not that i am not happy with it, you know, we always want other things lol)