Need help picking headphone amp
 

Can anyone recommend a headphone amp for someone with a $500 to $1,000 budget?

Tubes? Solid State? Which headphones?

Prefer solid state. I own a pair of vintage Yamaha HP-1 headphones.

Nice cans!

We all have our own taste and preference so here are a few suggestions in your price range.

For pure solid state my favorite choice would be the Audeze Deckard, sadly it has been discontinued and very difficult to find but look around. It has a DAC.

Next would be Woo Audio WA6 with tube upgrades because I really enjoy cans over tubes. This is my favorite budget tube headphone amp. No DAC in this one.

Or you can go with a Schiit Audio Lyr which you can outfit with a multibit DAC if you need a DAC. Don't let the single 6SN7 tube scare you. They are easy to find and replace.

Thank you for the quick reply. Will do my homework. 🎶🎶🎶

You may want to visit a more headphone dedicated site as well. There are tens of thousands of headphone enthusiasts there with millions of ideas. :D

If you want a ‘straight wire with gain’ the Drop THX AAA 789 objectively outperforms every other headphone amp out there. Hands down. I use one in one of my systems to drive a pair of Audeze LCD-4 planar magnetic phones. It adds nothing, it just drives the headphones really well. It is $400.

It really depends on what features you're looking for and how you want to drive your headphones. Do you need balanced inputs? Do you want balanced output? Do you want any sort of pre-amp or other functions?

As W9TR mentioned above, the Drop THX AAA 789 (or the similar Monoprice THX AAA 887) will offer both single ended and balanced inputs as well as SE or balanced headphone output. They both offer good power and very good, clean measurements. They both run about $400.

If you're looking for something a bit different, the HeadAmp Gilmore Lite Mk2 could be a good way to go. Single ended inputs and output only, but it's a good Class A amp that receives very good reviews. I owned HeadAmp's GS-X Mk2 for a while and it was a great product. Justin at HeadAmp is very responsive, too.

Of course, these are just a few of the many, many options available.

Need help picking headphone amp
 

The more I use the Sugden Masterclass HA-4 the more I appreciate its value.


Discrete Class A design...no frills...built like a tank...but very satisfying.

https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1586366016

https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1586366188

I've been to a few CanJam events and have heard countless headphone amps at every price point. It is a bit subjective but a couple of headphone amps really stand out.

The Schitt Lyr 2 sounded great at only $449. It was a huge improvement over their cheaper amps and I couldn't notice any significant improvement going up the line. They are now onto the Lyr 3 for $499 which I have not heard...

If you are willing to stretch your budget a bit, the Woo Audio WA6-SE is one of my favorite amps. It is significantly better than the WA6 and is $1199. Sometimes they go on sale for 10% off retail. The stock tubes have a reputation for being disappointing so you would also have to budget for nicer tubes as well.

I haven't heard it myself but many people really love the Bryston BHA-1. The retail is $2195 but they can sometimes be found on the used market for around $1000. I think they even have a 20-year transferrable warranty!