hello people,
Recently my Shure SRH-940 broke and I’ve started to look up some new headphones to mix and master with in my home studio.
I’ve decided to go with the AKG k702 but I saw that a lot of people said they need a good amplifier with them to really use them to they’re full potential.
So I started to look up some amps and then i saw that they need a DAC to connect to my PC which i’m using to make music, and some people said just upgrade your audio interface instead of investing in an amp and a DAC.
i saw somewhere that I need to have a mixer to connect the amp and audio interface, so i got lost and i don’t know what i need to get and how i need to connect everything.
Do i need only the amplifier and should i try to connect it to my audio interface?
Should i get an amplifier and a DAC as well?
Does the amplifier and DAC replace my audio interface or should i get all three of them together?
Do i need a mixer to connect everything to my Audio interface?
I’m using the Steinberg UR22.
I’m really lost here and i would appreciate some guidance with explaining those fundamental things before i make such a big purchase.
I’ve already tried used it with my Shure SRH940 and it worked fine but when I turn on the headphones volume knob the sound distort a bit, that’s why I thought I need a headphones amplifier.
And I heard that “the UR22 outputs 6mW at 40 Ohms over its phones output port” and that its not good, can someone explain this to me please?
ChoPraTs…
Not sure if you actually need a headphone amp but if you do, the PreSonus HP4 is a pretty good one for the price. You can connect up to (4) headphones to it. Basically the HP4 (or any headphone amp) gets connected between the UR44 and your studio monitors. So you would just connect the HP4 to your main outputs 1&2 on the back of the UR44. Then connect the HP4 to your studio monitors. The HP4 has a mute button to stop sound output to your monitors when appropriate. Nice.
If you use Cubase’s control room then you would connect it to the UR44 line outputs 3&4 or 4&5 and use the control room to send sound to the HP4 or to your studio monitors. If you use this method then make sure to setup the UR44 outputs you use as output busses in the Cubase VST connections section.
There are better/lesser quality and more/less expensive headphone amps out there but, imo the HP4 is pretty good for the price. Very easy to use.
I’m considering the Presonus HP4, seems very good. But I’ve also seen the SPL 2Control. This is a lot more expensive! But I’m not sure if it will be the best solution for me, because where I work I can’t mix/master with Monitors and the SPL 2Control seems to have an option (Crossfeed) specific for this. There’s also the SPL Phonitor 2 with more options and adjustements, but it’s crazy, too expensive…
In another site I’ve read good reviews of a lot of other headphone amps and brands (Matrix M-Stage, JDS Labs O2, Musical Fidelity, Icon Audio) but I’m not sure if they are recommended to studio uses, because people that are using them seem to be demanding audiophiles…
That SPL looks impressive (and like you said expensive).
Just an FYI… the HP4 will allow you to mute your monitors and always work through headphones if that is your concern. When you shut off the “Monitor Mute” function sounds go to the headphones and monitors.
I don’t know about the UR22 but I use the UR44 and the built in headphone amp (x2!) is pretty grunty - My 250 ohm Beyerdynamic DT90 PROs are (usually) quite hard to drive (and much less sensitive than AKG k702s) but the UR44 manages to drive two pairs comfortably at high volume without distortion.
Hey I have a UR22 and a set of K702’s and am running them that way just fine. The thing is like many higher end phones the 702’s take more power in to make the same amount of sound come out of them. Less sensitive is the actual term. Some people think that means “not as good” but they are mistaken. In the design process AKG traded efficiency for better overall performance. As noted this means that you need a more powerful headphone amp to drive them to the same kinds of volumes as you would get out of other phones. The thing is that most phones driven at full power handling level are pretty deafening. I have to run the output hot (2 O’ Clockish) but I get a comfortable amount of volume out of the UR22 (first gen) just the way it is. It is loud enough that at times I find I have to turn them down a bit. If I am a little silly I can also clip the output of the amp but that is easily solved. In a perfect world I would have a better headphone amp for them and may well do that someday but I would not buy a cheap one just because it is louder. I would only spend the money to make it sound better and a straight up more powerful amp just won’t do that. All that to say you will probably be just fine with it the way it is. The mic pre in the UR22 is pretty decent as well but there are better mic pres out there too.
I wonder how well the new UR-RT would work. It uses the same pre (which BTW Yamaha makes some pretty serious consoles and as I understand that this preamp design is the same as all of there higher end desks.) It is worth a look.
On a side note I had the K501’s before the 702’s and I have always liked the accuracy of this line. My current 702’s are starting to fall apart. I use them a lot. I know I can get parts but I am contemplating replacing them. It will probably end up being whatever the new AKG replacement is.
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