The Yamaha AN1x Synthesizer mailing list

Thank you both for your comments. I will try the An1x out with
monitors tonight. It probably is the headphones. I'll let you know.
Shakti


- In AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com, "Mike Metlay" <metlay@a...> wrote:

>
> Bruce Wahler said:
> > Hi Shakti,
> >
> >>Thanks for the reply Jimmy!
> >>
> >>> Are all the patches quiet or just some?
> >>
> >>All patches are low in volume.
> >>
> >>What are you using for an amp?
> >>
> >>I have been using headphones ( a couple different types)
> >
> > It could be a combination of the AN1x and the headphones you are

using. I use

> > a pair of Sennheiser HD580's, and while the volume is adequate,

it's not

> > overly loud. I was prepared for this: All of the reviews said

that the

> > Sennheisers really need a strong amp to drive them, because of

their high

> > impedance.
> >
> > Years ago, most headphones were 8 ohms, and all headphone outputs

on stereos,

> > etc. were set up to handle this load. These days, headphone

impedances are

> > all over the place, from around 30 ohm to tens of thousands of

ohms.

> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > -BW
>
> Sorry but no, you have it backwards, Bruce. Years ago, most

speakers were 8

> ohms, and headphones were designed to be driven by the same amp

circuit that

> fed the speakers without anything getting overloaded (the speakers,

the

> headphones, or most importantly the amp itself, usually tube-driven

in those

> days). To do this they had to have a very high impedance, 600 to

2000 ohms, so

> they could be strapped across the amplifier with the speakers

without

> affecting the amp load much.
>
> When portable cassette players came out and required lower-impedance
> headphones to get decent level from their tiny battery-powered amps

(and

> didn't hook up to speakers anyway), that's when impedances started

to drop.

>
> Many good headphones today still use a 600 ohm impedance, but

others are

> specifically being designed with lower impedances. As an example,

AKG still

> makes the excellent K240 M headphone, a 600 ohm phone that's often

used for

> orchestral sessions where many headphones can be chained in

parallel without

> the net impedance dropping too low (you can chain 75 sets and still

have an

> 8-ohm load). But AKG also recently released the K240 Studio, a

redesigned

> headphone with a 55 ohm impedance.
>
> mike
>
> --
> "Run for your lives! Lofty's figured out he's BIGGER than all of

us!!"

> > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > < > <
> <
> metlay / atomic city / metlay@a... / http://www.atomiccity.com