Why no PSAudio Headphone amp?

Curious why PS Audio doesn’t offer a headphone amp? Just to specialized a market?

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They used to, they sold a Gain Cell Headphone Amplifier in that series. I have one–I’ve never used the USB aspect of it, but it’s a warm and powerful amplifier perfectly suited for one of my favorite pairs of headphones, the ZMF Ori. With the Gain Cell front end it is always on and ready to give its best–it’s the nerve center of my headphone only system. I find it considerably better than the headphone amplifier portion of the Stellar Gain Cell DAC.

Paul isn’t much of a headphone guy. He much prefers the large performative aspect of hifi. Scott on the other hand is more of a headphone guy so you never know…

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How about a standalone BHK Signature headphone amp?
We can dream, can’t we? :slight_smile:

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Bascom did design “The King” headphone amp for Audeze. Didn’t realize there was a MKII, discontinued.

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Not to forget the great headphone amp in the BHK Preamp.

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True, but headphonophiles who do all their listening with cans wouldn’t be too keen I’m betting to shell out 6600 smackers for the headphone jack. I could imagine a BHK headphone amp that is just that section of the pre, in a smaller case, with a lot less of the other circuitry necessary for a line stage and at at a lower price they’d go for. I had no clue Bascom did a headphone amp for Audeze. That’s awesome. I’ve just met my goal of learning at least one new thing each day.

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You are definitely correct in your reply. I was thinking of those that already have the preamp. You know how it would go anyway with PS Audio it would probably have a price of a couple of thousand dollars with just a headphone amp!

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Yup. I know guys who love cans who’d fork out a couple of k. Headphone lovers spend a ton on their gear.

…guilty

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My Wife goes to bed early so I have an “excuse”.

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If McIntosh can make a quality fully balanced headphone for $2500 what can’t PS Audio? I heard McIntosh sold 250 units in the first 6 months.

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I used to be all about headphones. I used to spend as much time on Headfi as I do now here. I don’t go there anymore. I listen to headphones every single day. Just never near an audio system. Always when I am mobile. I have fancy gear for that. I just don’t care to discuss it anymore.

I have headphone amps that I have purchased that I have never powered up. Still in the box. But those items are inexpensive, 1/5th the cost of a good power cable. LOL

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That is the sign of a true audio nut. Never open the box. I have a few items like that too. Some more expensive than others. More first world problems. :thinking:

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I do, too, but I suspect on a much smaller $ scale than others here (a pair of Sennheiser HD-600s, a Musical Fidelity tube output buffer stage, and a second-hand PrimaLuna integrated).

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I don’t even want to guess how many Vinyl LPs I have that I haven’t opened yet. Bah.

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Hey it all counts as points toward the disease total.

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I recently opened up a 2-LP set that I bought years ago and forgot all about it. My luck, one of the records is dished. :rage:

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Kind of hard to take it back to Tower Records. :person_shrugging:

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I was only partially interested in headphones, mostly as a novelty. However after adopting Roon and getting acquainted with the cross-feed feature, headphones seems much more attractive. It feels more like listening to speakers.

Fortunately I live in a single family house with a bedroom dedicated to hifi as 2 channel is my preference. There are times hifi reverberating through the house isn’t an option.

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