Long earbud cables.

[Denio]

Hi,all!
Here is the question:I would like to run a long cable(roughly 7m) from the headphone out on a mixing desk to a set of earbuds.The idea is to use the earbuds as monitors.
So here is the thing:
1.Are these long cables going to cause any signal loss?Am I going to need a headphone amp?
2.Does the cable need to be shielded(this might be a bit of a dumb question but I felt it necessary to ask)?

Big thanks!

[bloxstompboxes]

You may have some slight signal loss but probably nothing that noticeable. Wouldn't hurt for the cable to be shielded. If not, you might get some buzzing if it drapes near certain appliances.

[Denio]

Thanks a lot,pal!So it I'll see how things will turn out and I'll build a headphone amp if needed.

[aron]

Should work fine.

[PRR]

Should work fine.

(I have studied this at-length, hundreds of feet.)

Don't wrap the cord around your arc-welder or Tesla coil, you will be fine.

[Denio]

Thanks PRR!

[Mark Hammer]

I'll add a wrinkle and note that earphones, whether of the bud or over-ear variety, can vary considerably in impedance.  Some are 8R per earpiece, and some are as high as 64R or more.  Unlike power amplifiers that will need to have something very close to their stated optimal load to deliver decent sound and not melt, earphone amplifiers are generally designed to cope with that degree of load variation.  They may not deliver as loud a sound as you'd like in a live sound reinforcement context...but they won't melt or blow up.

I guess just keep in mind how much series resistance the connecting cable is going to impose.  It shouldn't be all that much, but adding 10R to 32R earbuds might not provide the sorts of level you need.

[MrStab]

Super-exciting anecdote:

I had headphone wires induce feedback in a studio once because they were dangling right in front of my pickups. i was leaning forward so didn't feel the need tuck it behind the neck.