The finest headphone amplifiers for classical music lovers

What is a headphone amplifier? And what does it do?

Like a stereo amplifier, it converts the sign out of your supply (laptop, smartphone, turntable) to be used with high quality headphones. They additionally embody a DAC which converts your digital information into analogue music and provides considerably higher sound than your laptop or smartphone can handle by itself.

Do I really want a headphone amplifier?

If you’ve invested in a pair of high-quality wired headphones, even an inexpensive headphone amplifier will energy them extra successfully and current new ranges of depth and element in your favorite recordings.

Will a headphone amplifier enhance audio high quality?

Absolutely, however the high quality of the supply materials is important. Compressed MP3 tracks can sound horrible, so that you’ll must play hi-res music information, CD-quality (16 bit – 44khz) or ideally larger (24bit – 96khz/192khz, lossless FLAC, WAV, ALAC or DSD) to listen to the best profit.

What are the various kinds of headphone amplifiers accessible?

Known as DAC/headphone amps, you possibly can select a mains-powered desktop design, excellent for plugging straight into your laptop computer and streaming hi-res, or compact battery-operated transportable designs that plug into music gamers or smartphones. Many additionally include Bluetooth for wi-fi streaming, however audio high quality won’t be nearly as good.

Best headphone amplifiers

Best finances headphone amplifiers

iFi Go hyperlink evaluate

For those that lament the lack of their smartphone’s headphone jack, this ultra-portable DAC/headphone amp extracts a powerful quantity of element out of your digital recordings (as much as 32-bit/384kHz, together with MQA), providing ultra-low distortion, wonderful readability and spectacular dynamic vary. ifi-audio.com

iFi Zen DAC evaluate

£129

The good introduction to headphone amps, this very good worth desktop USB-powered DAC (digital-to-analogue converter) will immediately elevate your laptop’s audio output and profit from a good pair of headphones. A trendy, compact all-metal design, it handles most hi-res codecs together with MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) and you’ll regulate the output energy relying on whether or not you’re sporting in-ear screens (IEM) or bigger over-ear designs.

Cambridge Audio DacMagic 200M evaluate

An wonderful worth DAC for hi-res recordings and headphones. It handles digital audio information as much as 24-bit/768kHz or DSD512, helps MQA and has digital optical, coaxial and USB inputs for connecting CD gamers, laptops and video games consoles.

Buy from cambridgeaudio.com

Best mid-range and top-end headphone amplifiers

Astell&Kern Kann Alpha evaluate

£1,099

A veritable multi-tool for hi-res streaming, this luxury transportable music participant and its twin ESS Sabre ES9066AS DAC has sufficient energy to drive high-impedance headphones, can play from 33 completely different music companies and streams to suitable wi-fi headphones utilizing aptX HD. Plugged into your laptop, it turns into a critically achieved standalone headphone amp, bursting with element, readability and enthusiasm.

Naim Uniti Atom Headphone Edition evaluate

£2,499

This is definitely a fully-fledged audio system, DAC and headphone amplifier in a single. You can plug in or stream from nearly any digital supply and navigate round huge music libraries with ease through the massive show. Once loved, it’s irresistible.

Buy from AV.com

Chord Hugo TT2 evaluate

£3,995

Chord Electronics are the present kings of headphone amplification and have been blazing a path in audiophile circles with their quirky wanting however sensational-sounding merchandise. The pocket-sized Chord Mojo (£399) first confirmed how simple it’s to enhance audio efficiency vastly, however the Chord Hugo TT2 opened my ears to a different world.

At £4,000, we’re deep into audiophile territory right here and lots of 1000’s of phrases have already been written in regards to the custom-coded Xilinx Artix 7 FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) with 86 208MHz cores operating in parallel. But what distinction does all this techno jargon actually make to your listening enjoyment?

Paired with the equally priced Audeze LCD-4z headphones and my MacBook, streaming every little thing from Tidal Master (MQA) recordings to 24bit/192kHz information and uncompressed FLAC, the Hugo TT2 excels in each sense, reminding me of time nicely spent in demo rooms listening to £100,000 audio programs. In quick, it’s merchandise just like the Hugo TT2 that drive folks to make impassioned requests to their financial institution, or alternatively into hi-fi journalism. An actual deal with.

Buy Chord Hugo TT2 from Chord Electronics

Read extra evaluations and recommendation about audio gear