Impedance and Headphones: Difference between revisions
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==Impedance What it is, Why It Matters== | ==Impedance What it is, Why It Matters== | ||
Whatever you are plugging your headphones into, be it a mobile device, computer, Hi-Fi, TV, or a dedicated headphone amplifier, it is important to consider the output impedance of the source, alongside the nominal impedance of the headphones. Impedance is expressed in ohms (Ω). | |||
Whatever you are plugging your headphones into, be it a mobile device, computer, Hi-Fi, TV or a dedicated headphone amplifier, it is important to consider the output impedance of the source, alongside the nominal impedance of the headphones. Impedance is | |||
If the headphone impedance is too high compared to the output impedance of the amplifier, this may result in a very low-level audio, a lack of volume in the headphones. This is especially evident in mobile devices, where there is simply not enough voltage available to drive a higher impedance headphone. For this reason, typically, headphones designed for portable devices have a lower impedance of 16Ω to 64Ω (16 ohms to 64 ohms). | If the headphone impedance is too high compared to the output impedance of the amplifier, this may result in a very low-level audio, a lack of volume in the headphones. This is especially evident in mobile devices, where there is simply not enough voltage available to drive a higher impedance headphone. For this reason, typically, headphones designed for portable devices have a lower impedance of 16Ω to 64Ω (16 ohms to 64 ohms). | ||
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If the headphone impedance is lower than the output impedance of the device they are plugged into, this lowers the damping factor, which may result in a significant change from the published frequency response and also cause distortion in the headphones. | If the headphone impedance is lower than the output impedance of the device they are plugged into, this lowers the damping factor, which may result in a significant change from the published frequency response and also cause distortion in the headphones. | ||
Generally, in ear headphones and small portable headphones are low impedance as they are designed to be used with portable devices, so whilst they will usually work with a headphone amplifier, they are not ideally suited to this application and may give disappointing results. | Generally, in-ear headphones and small portable headphones are low impedance as they are designed to be used with portable devices, so whilst they will usually work with a headphone amplifier, they are not ideally suited to this application and may give disappointing results. | ||
Conversely, some large over the ear headphones are generally designed for Hi-Fi or professional monitoring applications, where the use of a dedicated headphone amplifier will generally offer improvements in the audio quality reproduced by your headphones. | Conversely, some large over-the-ear headphones are generally designed for Hi-Fi or professional monitoring applications, where the use of a dedicated headphone amplifier will generally offer improvements in the audio quality reproduced by your headphones. | ||
Older HiFi devices in particular often require (much) higher impedance headphones, e.g. 600 ohms. | Older HiFi devices in particular often require (much) higher impedance headphones, e.g. 600 ohms. | ||
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Keywords: Work, Headset, Wired, Headphones | Keywords: Work, Headset, Wired, Headphones | ||
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