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DIY Stompboxes => Building your own stompbox => Topic started by: WhenBoredomPeaks on December 30, 2009, 04:24:30 PM

Title: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: WhenBoredomPeaks on December 30, 2009, 04:24:30 PM
Hi guys, i can't play guitar through an amp in my apartment, so i need a headphone solution.

I already have a hi-fi headphone and a matching headphone amplifier. (the headphone amp is used for receiving line voltage from a soundcards output)

Should i build a preamp section of an existing amp (it could output about line voltage after adjusting an 1M vol pot) and use a cab sim (R.O.G Condor?)

or the Condor in itself would be enough? (guitar--->pedalboard--->condor--->headphone amp--->headphone)
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: bancika on December 30, 2009, 04:51:30 PM
I have the same situation here and I'm using a similar solution: wah -> tube preamp -> graphic eq -> delay -> palmer pdi-09 sim -> boss micro br -> sony headphones .
I'm using micro br as headphone amp, and it's handy that it can play backing tracks and record everything. Works quite well
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: WhenBoredomPeaks on December 30, 2009, 05:02:41 PM
Quote from: bancika on December 30, 2009, 04:51:30 PM
I have the same situation here and I'm using a similar solution: wah -> tube preamp -> graphic eq -> delay -> palmer pdi-09 sim -> boss micro br -> sony headphones .
I'm using micro br as headphone amp, and it's handy that it can play backing tracks and record everything. Works quite well

it means that i gotta make some sort of preamp between the pedalboard and the cabsim?
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: jkokura on December 30, 2009, 08:56:45 PM
I built one of these, and it sounds awesome.

http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=73&Itemid=26 (http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=73&Itemid=26)

Jacob
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: Processaurus on December 30, 2009, 09:10:35 PM
Quote from: WhenBoredomPeaks on December 30, 2009, 05:02:41 PM
Quote from: bancika on December 30, 2009, 04:51:30 PM
I have the same situation here and I'm using a similar solution: wah -> tube preamp -> graphic eq -> delay -> palmer pdi-09 sim -> boss micro br -> sony headphones .
I'm using micro br as headphone amp, and it's handy that it can play backing tracks and record everything. Works quite well

it means that i gotta make some sort of preamp between the pedalboard and the cabsim?

The cab sim is the main thing to have good headphone sound, maybe just try that?  A headphone amp on a pedalboard would be pretty cool.  Or, one could just build an opamp based headphone amp right into a cab sim.  Add a DI output and you'd have a great pedalboard accessory...

Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: WhenBoredomPeaks on December 31, 2009, 07:25:51 AM
Quote from: Processaurus on December 30, 2009, 09:10:35 PM
Quote from: WhenBoredomPeaks on December 30, 2009, 05:02:41 PM
Quote from: bancika on December 30, 2009, 04:51:30 PM
I have the same situation here and I'm using a similar solution: wah -> tube preamp -> graphic eq -> delay -> palmer pdi-09 sim -> boss micro br -> sony headphones .
I'm using micro br as headphone amp, and it's handy that it can play backing tracks and record everything. Works quite well

it means that i gotta make some sort of preamp between the pedalboard and the cabsim?

The cab sim is the main thing to have good headphone sound, maybe just try that?  A headphone amp on a pedalboard would be pretty cool.  Or, one could just build an opamp based headphone amp right into a cab sim.  Add a DI output and you'd have a great pedalboard accessory...




Ok then i gonna try it. I have an other question. Using booster type effects whit this setup is not a good idea right? It would just push the j201 to overdrive i think.
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: petemoore on December 31, 2009, 10:21:04 AM
  Small signal distortion.
  No big speaker and related HF or LF rolloff or characteristic responses.
  So the distortion circuit may tend to have greater demand with these frequencies, overall, nicer headphones follow closely [in a hi fidelity kind of way] what is input to them.
  Overdriving a Jfet or Cmos, using ''some filtering for the lows or highs seems a good approach for coaxing headphones to get a more amp with speaker like response.
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: mac on December 31, 2009, 10:42:20 AM
Be carefull with headphones since they can cause you permanent hearing loss. I suggest you a small amp/speaker combo.

mac
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: Quackzed on January 01, 2010, 04:17:40 PM
Quote from: mac on December 31, 2009, 10:42:20 AM
Be carefull with headphones since they can cause you permanent hearing loss. I suggest you a small amp/speaker combo.

mac
+1
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: PRR on January 01, 2010, 05:25:55 PM
I would not play electric guitar through Hi-Fi amp and headphones (or speakers).

Hi-Fi "never" clips. It has very generous reserve of peak power to cover transients.

It has been 70 years since electric guitar was played to never-clip.

Running simple tones through a Hi-Fi at clipping will melt the speakers/phones and destroy hearing.

Having said that.... try adapting your instrument to the stereo inputs, no preamp. I'm hoping the sub-Volt signal from guitar and pedals gives an audible but not excessive output from the Volt-input phone amp.
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: WhenBoredomPeaks on January 01, 2010, 06:23:59 PM
There is no real hi-fi stuff involved here, that headphone amp is something like a two channel clean boost with very low noise. I fitted it in a 1590B enclosure, it doesn't have any controls, not even volume. (it is made of like 10 components) So i think the same thing is existing around the output of the Condor cab sim only with a bit lower spec. It is not really for boosting the volume, it is just conditioning the signal for more demanding hi-fi headphones (more current, linear gain from like 10hz up to whatever, impedance match etc.)

I could have ask the question like this: Is the R.O.G Condor all i need for playing guitar through headphones or i need some other stuff between the pedalboard and the headphone?
Title: Re: The missing link between the pedalboard and the headphone amplifier
Post by: jkokura on January 01, 2010, 08:46:18 PM
no really, check out that headphone amp from GGG. It doesn't take much to make, and it has a volume control. I you need more tone controls, add a tonestack or something and build it on perf or vero. That headphone amp sounds like I'm playing through a real amp (doesn't clip, but it sounds like a really good clean fender amp).

If your headphone amp is essentially the same thing, that's fine, and I'm sorry. It sounds like it's more of an iphone headphone amp the way you describe it as 'hifi'.

Jacob