Amplifier Impedance matters! Why it is important to have a low output impedance (explained)

[@pauliewalnuts1024]

Thank you very much for the real info here. I had enough of "warm", "dark", "juicy" as amps rewiev conclusions...

[@BojanBojovic]

Idiots. Their subjective perception of reality means nothing to all of us. Measurement units are a must in this kind of review.

[@MorningNapalm]

You don't like warm, dark, juicy??? Sounds perfect to me.

[@tao7795]

Hey man, I'm new here too. I suggest you to read up on the definition of "warm" sound and "bright" sounds. Since they are common terminologies audiophiles use.

[@BojanBojovic]

@@tao7795 Those therms mean nothing. Professionals use measuring units, audiophiles just listen to music, they are not professionals nor musicians.

[@tao7795]

@@BojanBojovic Ture. Data is more convincing. I just cannot understand yet lol

[@disco.jellyfish]

It's actually incredible how informative this video was. As a beginner audiophile all of this science is a lot in the beginning, which makes it quite a bit complex. But you explain it so well that I instantly got why what happens. Thank you so much.

[@bhudere]

I'm not an audiophile or sound enthusiast, I just really like the sound of your voice. I appreciate the interesting niche your content falls into, and your commentary on audio stuff.

[@ABC-ip6jq]

hahahahahahahha

[@premiere3610]

I read a lot about impedance and i can't really understand the significant of it. This video totally crushed the impedance to the ground for the common people. It's so easy to understand. Thank you very much

[@CaseyFronk]

Super useful info in all of your vids. You're the guy I think of now whenever I want real information on anything. Everyone else gives their opinion, while you just give the facts. Good stuff!

[@united100]

Thank you very much, I finally understood why my headphones boost the bass on some amplifiers

[@mendeldrive]

This channel is quickly becoming my favorite. Great information presented in a way we can all understand.

[@mandomandorukot]

Finally! Enough of those "audiophile" headphone impression. We need to be more scientific to get the best out of our gears! Cheers for making this video

[@darensweeney5925]

This is the best explanation of high/low impedance and its effects on amp/headphone combinations I've ever seen or read. Thanks!

[@nenadpavicevic5369]

Thank you so much, a really awesome explanation, I have read a lot of online articles/forums from online "audio experts" who post their claims with no arguments whatsoever, but this has clarified everything regarding this topic for me.

[@bertwerbrouck]

Thanks Julian. It's the clearest explanation I found so far as a total newbie. That being said, it's still confusing as hell for me. A lot of people are telling that high impedance headphones need "enough power" to be driven properly and on the other side you say high impedance headphones draw less current, which seems logical because we're talking about resistance (right?). They also say that High impedance headphones require higher voltage sources and low impedance headphones require higher current sources. Maybe I don't understand the difference between voltage and current... I have a DT 770 pro 80 ohms and I don't understand why it sounds so good directly plugged on my laptop and no so good when connected to my h4n phones output and my smartphone. If I had to choose an audio interface I really don't understand how I should understand the output impedance so that it matches my headphones impedance. Can you give me a few insights? Thanks ;) !

[@Terra101]

You would want a headphone amplifier with at most 10ohm output impedance for it to not have an effect on the frequency response of your headphones. Why do you like it in your laptop compared to other sources?

[@MB-st7be]

Short answer: your laptop probably has a lot more voltage available than the h4n and smartphone. Battery devices can't deliver enough voltage for higher-impedance phones, they expect to see ordinary consumer 32 ohm phones. Output impedance is rarely the issue.

[@DarkPa1adin]

Your explanation of impedance is the best! Because you use the verb impede and tell us what it impedes!

[@giff74]

That last minute of the video was the best explanation I have heard about how to relate your amp and headphones!

[@JoshuaBenitezNewOrleans]

Can we all pause just to appreciate Julian Krause tutorials. If video games modeled theirs after Julian, I wouldn’t skip them so often, and when I don’t skip them, I wouldn’t be miserably bored 🤣😂 Julian has mad head sway, smooth voice, and great pacing. 100/100 I wouldn’t NOT like to skip tutorial “press X to replay tutorial” Xxxxxxxxxx

[@MahiruSenarathne]

I am using SSL 2+, DT 990 pro, and HA400 headphone amplifier. What is the most effective method? Going with a high gain from the audio interface and a low gain from the amp, or a low gain from the audio interface and a high gain from the amp? Thanks

[@d0nj03]

What's missing from this explanation is to show how much the actual sound output from the headphones changes when the amp's Z-out doesn't respect the 1/8 rule and is e.g. comparable to the headphones' Z. This and a few more details can be found in Solderdude's article "resistance, impedance and other issues" - basically it's not as simple as "lower Z-out is always better", nor as strict as "if Z-out is higher than 1/8 it will sound bad". Could be that Z-out as high as 1/2 of the headphones will produce an inaudible FR difference in most cases.

[@ansonhuang21]

This is a fantastically clear and concise video explaining the importance of impedance matching between headphone amp and headphones. Great job Julian, keep em coming! Gained a subscriber. 👍🏼

[@blinkingmanchannel]

Super useful! Just to confirm: I will get a really low cost audio interface and then a Beyerdynamic DT 990 to monitor with... That oughta work, right? Say, what are you using to measure with? I would happily do that if it's not crazy $ to consider... What gets measured gets improved, right?

[@JulianKrause]

Hey, thanks for the donation! Yes, the DT990 are not particularly hard to drive and cheaper interfaces should be fine. But I wouldn't go too low, otherwise you might have other issues like background noise or not enough power to dive the headphones. But for the most part, anything at about the 100 dollar mark should be capable of providing an excellent audio quality with the DT990. If you are wondering how I made the measurements, I used a dScope M1 audio analyzer. But you can so the same measurements with a simple audio interface and free software like REW.

[@christianjorgensen249]

Once again Mr K, you hit it out of the park! I always enjoy the education and information I get from you! Thank you!

[@MichaelBeeny]

A good and accurate explanation that most people should be able to understand.

[@JStationC]

After binge watching your content, I decided got 120 ohm headphones to match my i/o and I just noticed your background music

[@lepeher3179]

Amazing info, Julian. That's actually what I was looking for. Thank you for that. I understood everything after I reviewed this at second time :) I have a question for you. So, if the lowest amp's output impedance is the best and the most universal, why are not every single amp is designed to have as little output impedance as possible?

[@JulianKrause]

Hey, it is more difficult and usually more costly to build a well performing headphone amp with a low output impedance. That's why you can often find high output impedances on cheaper equipment.

[@lepeher3179]

@@JulianKrause got it. Thanks for such a fast response

[@MarcusHutsell]

Hi Julian. Thank you for this video, I didn't know that output impedance could affect frequency response. But, that leads me to a question. 1. I have an Original Mackie Big Knob (the 1st model that came out in 2004), and I still use it to this day. 2. It's Headphone output impedance (per the user manual) states that it is 150 Ohms. And it has (2) headphone jacks, each with their own attenuator/volume knob. 150 Ohms seems very high relative to what you're stating headphone amp impedance *should be to drive headphones properly. 3. I mostly use the following headphones: - Sony MDR 7506 - 63 ohms - Shure SRH440A - 40 ohms - Beyer Dynamic DT770 - 80 ohms I've been using the Big Knob so long I've just never paid any mind/attention to any impedance differences.....I assumed 19 years ago that the Big Knob was a Pro(sumer) device, it had dedicated headphone outputs, so they should be able to do what they were designed to do. And, the Sony MDR-7506 has been around a long time, so they were definitely around and with the same specs (63 ohms) when the Big Knob came out. I've never *noticed any difference in audio quality or frequency response of my headphones when using ANY of these headphones in different outputs: Mackie Big Knob. Directly out of laptop. Audio console (X32, Yamaha QL5, Allen and Heath QU32), or when using any of my headphones when monitoring ANY audio output from other things like Atomos Ninja/Shogun, Whirwhind DA-2, etc. So, my questions: 1. Wouldn't Mackie have known this potential impedance mis-match when they put out the Big Knob? It's never seemed to cause any issues. 2. Is the 150 ohm impedance on the Big Knob REALLY affecting my headphone frequency response? I enjoy your videos and have learned a lot from them! Keep it up, I'm hoping you can help me with my conundrum here. Thank you Julian

[@JulianKrause]

Hi Marcus, glad you enjoy my videos 😊 1. Yes, many manufacturers are aware of this but it is usually a tradeoff they are willing to take because with a higher output impedance the amount of power that is delivered to different headphones is more consistent. This means, there is a much higher chance that you always get to use the full range of the volume dial. If the output impedance is low, then you might only turn up the volume a bit to already get low impedance headphones to very loud listing volumes while with high impedance headphones you need to use the full range of the volume dial. Also, there was a standard defined in 1996 which stated a standard output impedance of 120 Ohm but I’m not quite sure how that made it into a standard. So, manufactures are aware this topic but often trade frequency response accuracy against the convenience of being able to have a more consistent range available on the volume dial. 2. If the output impedance does have a negative impact, depends heavily on the particular pair of headphones you use. If the impedance of the headphones varies heavily, the frequency response is going to be much more negatively impacted compared to headphones that have a more consistent impedance value. For example, planar magnetic headphones usually have the same impedance across the frequency range and because of that their frequency response are hardly impacted by a higher output impedance. Impedances across the frequency range for dynamic drivers on the other hand can vary quite a bit and that’s the problem with a high output impedance, it can have negative effect but this must not always be the case. So, you end up with a huge uncertainty and it’s impossible for me to say if there is an audible impact in your case.

[@MarcusHutsell]

​@@JulianKrause Hi Julian. Thank YOU for your very speedy response, I know it took me a while to get back to you, but I really appreciate your input here. I'm still using and will continue using both my Mackie Big Knob and my trusty Sony MDR-7506 headphones.....and I'll have to read up more on headphone impedance. Thank you again, cheers!

[@pecapanjama]

dude I found you through the ssl 2 audio interface review. I am really surprised how much detail and accurate information you put into there videos. Cheers from Stuttgart ;)

[@somenuttysquirrel]

I have the MOTU M6 audio interface in my cart along with a few pairs of headphones. (I hear the MOTU M6 headphone amp provides 190mW @ 55ohms). A (seemingly wise) KZbin audiophile told me to "pair the M6 with 80Ω headphones". ...but a MOTU sales rep said that "headphones over 200Ω is optimal". Julian says that you should x8 the amp impedance with headphone impedance. ...but another tech KZbinr said to _match_ the amp/headphone impedance. _WHAT GIVES!?_

[@IgnacioVS]

This whole vid is so much gold if you're doing music stuff! Schools should by this video! Thanks again mister Krause

[@brandnewage1]

taking a dry subject and making it dryer,lol, but alot of good information !!!! tx julian

[@joaopina5156]

Finally I could figure out properly the output impedance and load impedance....thanks a lot, it was still a mess in my head...now how DAC works.

[@djmcclurg]

A positively great video - I didn't really understand the relationship between headphone and amp impedance, and this is the best explanation I've found. I have a Zoom H4n and it got me wondering about the headphone impedance and output voltage for it, but I can't seem to find that information anywhere online.

[@xXavorx]

You're really good at explaining things man. Keep up the solid work. Definitely subscribed!

[@BxrHavik]

This was a perfect video. I didn't understand anything before watching this video and now I understand everything. Some people just cant explain things well but you're very good at it (: Liked and Subscribed! (:

[@Venomforyall]

Fantastic channel, real knowledge here, none of that warm, punchy, dark, bright voodoo nonsense, real numbers and facts.

[@chasecoleman232]

Thank you! I am new to sound recording and you made this confusing (explained by manuals and other pros) issue perfectly clear. I will be back here when I need recording questions answered.

[@javsnmusic]

Thank you very much. This made a lot of sense

[@thomaswidter]

Thank you, really helpful buying advice. I was considering 2 identical headphones, the only difference was the impedance.

[@kresnaputra]

Thanks for the great explanation! Finally i know why my ATH E40 (12 ohms IEM) sounds wrong/fatiguing in the 2k when paired with my Focusrite Scarlett Solo 2nd Gen, but it sounds beautifully flat when plugged directly to my laptop, never had this issue before with my old ATH M40X.

[@SianaGearz]

Well 99% of laptops and such also have 10 Ohm output impedance just like most Focusrite interfaces. The popular mainboard Realtek chips need that series impedance to keep the outputs from oscillating and very nearly committing suicide, you don't wanna go touch them when that's missing, ouch ouch ouch. Focusrite must be doing it for arbitrary rather than purely technical reasons.

[@marciosouza8656]

@@SianaGearz Siana do you know if Scarlett Solo 3 Works fine with a 32 ohms headphone??

[@marcchapleau8343]

What a fantastic tutorial on how to pair proper amp to proper headphones!

[@dannymelgarejo8805]

I love your videos and your knowledge. Can you make a video on the Crabborn EC-1 min pre’s please

[@yorickwolter]

Hello Julian! Can you please make a review on the Soundcraft Notepad-8FX Mixer?

[@hawkenfox]

Thanks very concised and clear information that are necessary without too much complicated jargons and technical babble.

[@bank8489]

Incredibly helpful. You deserve more views

[@Xamy-]

This was fantastic mate, subscribed

[@JoshuaBenitezNewOrleans]

Wow. I’m now retroactively thanking all the sound engineers I’ve employed over the years

[@usikpa]

Great video. I wish, though you would provide more ACTUAL set ups like if I happen tp have dt770 80 ohm than my sound card device should have no more than this or that amount of ohms of impedance< like fore example this Roland / Steinberg/ Focusrite/ whatever make of brand ... There is a lot of beginners / enthusiasts in sound production watching you with their mouth agape :)

[@cjay2]

I think what you really want to be calculating is the damping factor (DF), which is the ratio of the output impedance looking into the amplifier output, to the load impedance, at given frequencies or over a range of frequencies. There are more refined versions of this definition. The higher the damping factor, the better the damping of excessive loudspeaker movement by the output impedance of the amplifier. A DF of 1000 is considered very good, and high-end and professional PA amps usually have a DF of up to 10,000. The DF is set by various factors in the design of (mainly) the output stage of the amplifier. An amplifier with a high DF will minimize frequency response variations of its load, leading to better sound and higher power-transfer efficiency from amp to load. Unfortunately, most headphone amplifier outputs are not specified regarding their damping factor, and few are specified for their output impedance over frequency. Your approach is also a very good way of explaining the issue.

[@JulianKrause]

Good call, with a low output impedance you ensure that you always have a relatively high dampening factor, regardless which headphones you use.

[@cjay2]

@@JulianKrause Exactly, and it's more critical the lower the load impedance. A high impedance phone (300-600) draws less current and damping factors will be high by nature, but those high-impedance loads don't even require a good DF. The low impedance loads are the most sensitive to the DF, as they draw more current, thus making the DF more relevant.

[@06szymonszymanski]

Amazing video! By far the best on KZbin. What software have you used for measurements?

[@JulianKrause]

Thanks, I used a Spectral Measurement dScope M1 for the measurements.

[@Leo-mv7vh]

@@JulianKrause what was the output impedance of the amps you used for the examples?

[@lucasvieira1805]

This is the best audio channel

[@PerEng2405]

Quite interesting, thank you. I still find that there is a discrepancy between what the 'output' vendors announce as opposed to what the 'input' vendors announce. There is not single lookup table saying with this amount of mW, Ohm, V, dBu and dBV output you can connect input devices with these specification (x, v, z with a nominal SPL maximum of xxx) not to mention the 'actual' mW to 'actual' Ohm relation/calculation. Could just be me. I need and would very much appreciate your input. I am in the process of finding headphones I can use with both my field-recorder and DAW. It looks on paper as if the field-recorder can feed the headphones (its the +7.8dBu that throw me a bit off) or if I should choose headphones with a lower impedance (80 Ohm). Field recorder Stereo Out: 3.5mm TRS stereo unbalanced, 500 ohm output, +7.8dBu max output level Headphones Out: 3.5mm TRS stereo unbalanced, 300mW + 300mW, for use with any impedance headphones Headphone Impedance: 250 Ohm Nominal SPL: 96 dB Power handling capacity: 100 mW Much(!) appreciated. /Per

[@rtyzxc]

So based on this, on motherboard audio (high impedance), headphones with high impedance would have more correct response? However, people always say that high impedance headphones are more difficult to drive and need an amp, which kinda contradicts it. Or does it mean that even though the response curve is better, there won't be enough power and the headphones will be too quiet?

[@quadrannilator]

Thanks for the enlightenment! While I am aware of the electrical relationship of input and output impedance and power transfer, Didn't much think of it in the context of audio gear. If I ever purchase a high grade audio amp, I'll keep this in mind so that I can use the same equipment effectively across various devices and see how they compare. While slightly off topic because it wasn't covered in this specific video, amps scale differently when it comes to drawing power, moving loads, based on the load's own impedance and the amp's as the audio signal moves across different frequency+volume change - the transient response and dynamics, gives a headphones and amp combination its unique nature that should provide a nice synergy.

[@Diegosaurio]

GREAT info. I can´t find the impedance value of the hp amp on my saffire 6 anywhere on the internet.....

[@MrMaTGone]

Excellent!!!! Very Much Thanks to you and your work!!! Finally I've understand the importance of Impedance in relation to headphones and amps!

[@82abn34]

All good points. Thank You. Now let's think about the amplifier's voltage output.

[@piersnorton7658]

Very clear explanation, thanks. But it leads to the inevitable question 'why do high impedance headphone amps exist?' or put another way, 'What is the advantage of a high impedance amp?'

[@JulianKrause]

Well, it is often down to cost. Designing a proper low impedance headphone amp is typically more expensive and complex. For example, if your amp delivers a very high amount of power and has a low output impedance, there is a risk that you can fry sensitive headphones. To prevent this, you would have to deploy current limiting of the amp which not necessarily easy to do. Or you could simply slap a resistor of e.g. 20 Ohms in series with the output. This is what you can see in many cheaper headphone amps. This of course increases the output impedance but it also protects sensitive headphones and is very easy to do.

[@piersnorton7658]

@@JulianKrausethanks for the clarification. okay, so H.I. amps maybe cheaper, and safer to use and match, but do not 'scale' as well as L.I. amps, with regards to headphone Impedance?

[@Isaacthompson]

Great video! Thank you! Blessings..

[@rkumarblr1]

For what you state in the conclusion it seems it would not be good or the best to have a amp impedance of 8 ohms to drive a speaker impedance of 8 ohms. So if there is a option. To set the amp impedance to 4,6 and 8 ohms what impedance should one chose to use on the amp to drive a 8 ohm speaker ?

[@rolandwehlend]

Greatly appreciate your videos! Reading through the comments, I wonder if it wouldn't be better if the audio interface manufacturers simply state the headphone "sweetspot" specifications. That way people can use that information to get the headsets that work best for their particular interface. My thinking is that the manufacturer knows exactly what will work best with their interface, so why is it that they don't document that? Seems quite odd to me :-) Cheers, Roland

[@bigtastyben5119]

Good video Julian, keep hitting these bangers my dude

[@TheFactoryOfMusic]

Wow! Finally an explanation that makes sense. 👏 Kudos!

[@LoffysDomain]

I learned so much about things that I had wanted to know more about for a long time. And you narrative style is super! Thx for making and sharing your highly educational, entertaining, and informative youtube videos.

[@laieauxdaims]

This is really very interesting. Are you aware that you say the exact opposite of what about 90% YT videos are saying ? Most say a high impedance headphone will need MORE current (I). But I have this feeling you might be right against all the others since you really seem to know what you are talking about (and your demo sets proves what you are saying). Thanks a lot ! So, I have a T+A headphone amp that has: - 8 Ohms impedance and - can give 200mA current (class A). I am hesitating between: - Sennheiser hd800s (300 ohms) and - Hifiman Arya Organic (16 ohms). I understand the best fit for my amp would be the hd800s. (Just talking current matching). I understand personal acoustic choice is something else.

[@One-Two_swift-kickbox]

Headphones that have low sensitivity need higher current

[@adamgreenhill110]

Thank you for the clear explanation! I need to ask, why do some premium amps have 100 Ohms impedance? Some headphones are made to sound 'best' with these amps. Beyerdynamic is one example, their 250/600 ohm headphones are made for their 100 ohm amps.

[@zbyszekolko3998]

They probably can deliver huge voltage so they are equipped with serial resistor to "flatten" a loudness difference between high and low impedance hp.

[@BruceLeedar]

Invaluable information. Cherry on top would have been to see some 'proof'/elaboration for your 8x rule of thumb, e.g. frequency chart(s) with intermediate amp/hp impedance ratios, rather than just the very good and very bad case.

[@brianbaldwin2072]

Awesome, finally I understood whats going on with impedance. Thank you.

[@nomojo1110]

Excellent. I required a refresher and this was just about perfect. Thank you.

[@lepeher3179]

Since you’re responding pretty fast, I’d like to ask one more question to you, Julian. I want to sort out with integral audio interfaces’ headpnones amps and headphones matching. I’m wondering if the interface I’m working with (Focusrite Saffire Pro 26) would give enough clear sound to Beyerdynamics DT 770 Pro 250 Ohm. I was searching for such info all around various forums. And all the explanation I found there looks like “yes, this interface will drive these cans” or “no, it won’t “. I’m writing you, because I know you get into details. I want to know something like a formula that would say if a pair of headphones X would sound its best if connected to the headphones output of the audio interface Y. Yes, in this video you told there should be a certain relation between the amp’s output impedance and the headphones’ impedance. But what about the sensitivity of headphones? It also can differ from one pair to another. In a nutshell, my question is how to 100% define if a pair of headphones will sound its best with an audio interface. Thank you in advance.

[@beatsbycolorblind2]

sir did u choose ur amp or interface cuz um planning to buy same headphone. Hope u got ur answer

[@lepeher3179]

@@beatsbycolorblind2 yep, I bought Motu M4 and DT 990 Pro. Sounds great to me. I’ve quit trying to dig as deep as possible into the theory and decided to trust my ears and stick rather to practical results

[@beatsbycolorblind2]

@@lepeher3179 did u calibrate or eq them ?

[@lepeher3179]

@@beatsbycolorblind2 no, I use them as is. Sometimes I apply the Sonarworks Reference 4 plugin.

[@NicksStuff]

Great! Do you have a video on impedance matching? (I want to plug a low impedance pair of headphones to a high impedance airplane audio panel)

[@vitalWord]

I have Audient ID4 (an output impedance from the specification is

[@kabed9413]

I've just ordered a pair of the 770 bayerdynamic 250 ohms and I have a Scarlett 2i2 , so if I understood properly your video ,I've made a good choice? Thanks for the video btw I think is the best on this matter on the entire KZbin

[@jorgeguitar2540]

How do does sound?

[@kabed9413]

@@jorgeguitar2540 good 👍

[@250rman1]

I own the Audient ID4 which I believe has an output of 30 Ohms. Would 250 Ohms Headphones be the perfect match for this Audio Interface? Do you also have a recommendation for Studio Monitor Headphones in the $100 - $150 range?

[@RetroPlus]

This demystifies this stuff so much, excellent

[@pinnkola]

Julian. Can you type your amplifer with High Output Impedance you've used in the video? 20 Ohms? 50? 100? 200 Ohms? I want to buy an audio card with Output Impedance 22 Ohms and use 48 Ohms's headphones with her. Will I hear difference in spec? And how much dBrs I'll get on 100 Hz and Hi Freqs? Will it so critical? Thank you

[@JTCPingas]

Don't know how this one missed my sub box. Great explanation!

[@colinli7906]

Concised and great! Thank you! So does high impedance amps have some advantages?

[@Mr.C0ffee]

Great video! Could you eq the altered frequency of you headphones?

[@MichaelWynneCAS]

Excellent video Julian! Really useful info here.

[@Finians_Mancave]

I haven't seen anyone ask this, and it seems rather important. If you happen to own one of the interfaces with a high impedance headphone output, wouldn't it be worthwhile to purchase a dedicated headphone amp (for example the Mackie HM-4 which has a 3 ohm impedance) and insert that between your line outs and headphones?

[@MrDragos360]

I just bought a Cambridge Audio DacMagic 200M and just today I found out it has 50 ohms as ouput impedance for the headphones output. My headphones are Shure 1840 that have 65 ohms impoedance. Now I worry, did I made a mistake buying the DacMagic ? Do I need a new amp, something like Schiit Magni - END-GAME HEADPHONE AMP WITH MODULAR DAC OPTION ? Would a low output amp make a great difference ? This is stressfull. I got the dacmagic due to having a very good experience with the older dacmagic 100 in terms of driver and software support.

[@Leo-mv7vh]

I know this video is old. but i have a question. could a preamp with low output impedance fix the problem with the high output impedance of the steinberg ur22mk2?

[@sdweston8]

And this is what most subjective mumbo-jumbo comes down to: impedence matching or a lack thereof!

[@ПётрБ-с2ц]

I went from K240 Studio which has that significant impedance bump at 100 Hz to DT880 250 Ohm which has almost flat impedance graph and I was surprised to hear that bass boost became even worse. It's a mystery to me.

[@DarkPa1adin]

Can you do the same for amp and passive speakers please? Along with series or parallel config and 2-6 speakers? Thank you very much!

[@livenzev]

Dear Julian, first of all compliments for the quality of your videos...top! ...Now let me ask you... . What if you have a audio interface with high impedence headphone output? Can you lower it somehow? If not what to do?! Maybe get a separate headphone amply and connect it to the headphone out of the same interface? . I have a ur22mk2 that has an output headphone imp. of more than 80ohm, But probably a 640ohm headphone would be very quiet an it....or not? it looks like its impossible to use reliably and at decent volumes headphones on this interface. There must be a way arround. . Thank you and take care.

[@nyanpasu64]

How do you measure the output impedance of an amplifier?

[@ddrum121]

Awesome explanation, could you do a video explaining tube amp impedance?

[@RASDKB]

Gut erklärt, d.h. eine output impedance des ID4 mit

[@tonyvalenti6614]

Great videos! I’m new and confused. I have an Avid MBox Studio Interface that has a headphone output impedance of 32 ohms. When I plug my 250 ohm Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro headphones in to it, they work, but the volume even when maxed out is not very loud. I was told that my interface could not handle the headphones, so I bought a Schiit Magni+ Amp with higher impedance and I get louder volume with more headroom. Am I missing something?

[@JoseCastillo-qq3hx]

Excellent explanation of a subject I have seen addressed nowhere else. I am putting together a modest home recording rig and purchased the Arturia MiniFuse 2. I have yet to purchase my headphones, so I'm glad I found this on your channel. Per your rule of thumb, since the Minifuse has an output impedance on the phones jack of 10 ohms, the impedance of any headphone set I connect to it should be 80 ohms or higher, correct? So far, I haven't been able to find any over 32 ohms that weren't more expensive than the MiniFuse. Have you reviewed any headphones that meet those criteria? Any suggestions?

[@baymax001]

Audio interface with channel balance of 1.05 dB - Is the imbalance problematic?

[@JulianKrause]

Hey, it depends. Usually, channel balance becomes worse with lower volume settings if the playback device has an analog volume control. If you use headphones that need a lot of power to be driven, then you are usually at a high volume setting and then the imbalance is not that high. But if you use more sensitive headphones which need less power, you need to use a lower volume range and then the channel balance could be worse. 1.05 dB is not a hughe imbalance and I would argue that in most cases you wouldn't notice it. But it should not be much more than one dB of difference otherwise the left and right side will have a noticably different volume.

[@northox]

Great video! Is this the same of normal speakers? Why is it better to have low impedance speaker (4 instead of 8) for home speakers? Do this means standard home power amplifier have very low impedance (half a ohm)?

[@JulianKrause]

Hey, it's basicly the same for speakers. Amplifiers have a very low output impedance, 0.1 Ohm is not too uncommon. But if you should use 4 or 8 Ohm sspeakers would have more to do with the power handling capability of the amp.

[@Nao-bh5dj]

To get a neutral frequency response and a transparent sound from the headphone that they were designed by using low impedance output. So what's the point high impedance output then? im confused.

[@schrodinger6393]

I was confused about whether my scarlett 2i2 3rd gen could drive my 250ohm headphone (BD-770-pro)? Help would be appreciated.

[@mitchellcoote]

Thanks for the great info. I have the Sennheiser Momentum 4 noise cancelling headphones which havehave an impedance 470 Ohms (Active) 60 Ohms (Passive). I'm kind of struggling with what this means when I'm choosing an audio interface. Should I be looking for an audio interface with less that 1/8th the impedance of 470 or 60?

[@javidavi]

So, does this mean that "corrective" software like Reference by Sonarworks could (or should) also take into consideration the headphone amp you're using? (not just the headphone model)

[@JulianKrause]

That's an interesting point. In theory this should be doable if Sonarworks knows the output impedance of your HP amp and the impedance curve of the headphones. But the easiest way to handle it is by simply buying an HP amp with a sufficiently low output impedance so that you don't have to correct the response afterwards.

[@javidavi]

@@JulianKrause Thanks Julian. Awesome work, by the way!

[@sandipcreation9499]

You use your monitor as a light and text background. Good 👌

[@babyslickj]

This is so helpful, you are very good at explaining things clearly

[@AlbertJaron]

Is that mean that my 62ohm headphones will sound bad with 30ohm output impedance interface?

[@JulianKrause]

Well, the sound will not necessarily be terrible but it might artificially boost the bass and treble. This can noticably color the sound.

[@micktheobald1835]

Love your vids Julian! Got an EVO 4 recently but I can't find any 150 ohm headphones. Got any recommendations?

[@V-kj8to9]

I'm currently using my zoom h4n as a dac/amp, it has a LINE Output load impedance: 10 kΩ or more Rated output level: -10 dBmPHONE: 20 mW+20 mW (into 32-Ω load) i want to know if its good enough to pair it with Sundara headphones (Sensitivity: 94 dB. Impedance: 37 Ohms.) or if there will be a noticible difference with another amp. love your explanations man!

[@zimonslot]

I dont get how the lower frequencies get a boost if that is where the impedance increases. If the impedance increases around 95hrtz, then the voltage is lower at 95 hrtz, resulting in lower audible bass frequencies... right?