A headphone impedance adapter can be useful to (effectively) attenuate the signal voltage. You might use one with sensitive headphones or IEMs where you either hear background hiss, or only a small range of the volume control is useable.
They can be had for under US$3 on Aliexpress, or you could pay £49 for the iFi Audio iEMatch+ (which has two settings, so compare with buying two Aliexpress $3 adapters).
A couple of questions:
- When the output impedance of the DAC/amp is relatively high and headphone impedance is low, I understand sound quality can be affected. Would using an impedance adapter help by making the load as seen by the amp have higher impedance?
- The adapters are available with different ohm ratings, e.g. 30, 50, 75, 150, 200, 400, 600 ohms. Does higher ohms mean greater attenuation?
They can be had for under US$3 on Aliexpress, or you could pay £49 for the iFi Audio iEMatch+ (which has two settings, so compare with buying two Aliexpress $3 adapters).
A couple of questions:
- When the output impedance of the DAC/amp is relatively high and headphone impedance is low, I understand sound quality can be affected. Would using an impedance adapter help by making the load as seen by the amp have higher impedance?
- The adapters are available with different ohm ratings, e.g. 30, 50, 75, 150, 200, 400, 600 ohms. Does higher ohms mean greater attenuation?
