Battle Of The Flagships (50+ Headphones Compared)

[sandyk]

Hi Chris

Unless the headphones used were fed by an amplifier that had the correct output impedance to suit the headphones, as well as suitable voltage and current capabilities, then I would treat the published results with a healthy dose of scepticism.

Many headphones, including the AKG K701, ATH W1000 and many others, were designed to be driven from a 120 ohms output impedance as specified by International standard IEC61938. His poor impression of the 5000 makes me wonder if he has done this.Many valve amplifiers, and lower voltage SS HA's are simply not capable of getting the best out of many headphones, especially the higher impedance ones.. The AKG K701 is very picky in this respect, and also needs an amplifier with high voltage supply rails such as >+and -15V , as well as the specified 120 ohms output impedance to really shine, otherwise it can sound quite aggressive with HF material, and very fatiguing for longer listening periods.Some valve amplifiers may compensate for headphones such as the K701 to a limited degree, due to their higher HF roll off.

 

Kind Regards

Alex