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Do AMPs actually vary in sound signature or is that snake oil? (alien.top)

submitted 1 year ago by General-Wrap-7858@alien.top to c/headphones@hi-fi.community

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I've seen people state both that they so not influence the tuning as long as they deliver the same power and others stating that they can make headphones "sound warmer" or "brighter". I don't see how that would happen though and a lot of audiophiles just hear things that I feel aren't there, like some noise difference between the Apple DAC Dongle and a 500 EUR DAC using an off the rack chip.

Take this comment from ASR:

Amps are more likely to make an audible difference than most DACs, but that certainly doesn't mean there are audible differences between most amps

I'm talking purely about AMPs here, not a DAC combination.

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[–] lemon_stealing_demon@alien.top 1 points 1 year ago

When people switch between solid state amps and they say "oh it sounds xyz" it's not the amp, it's the output impedance and the gain most likely. (Which is the amp but you get what I mean)

My old amp had 5 gain (no gain switch). My new one 0 gain. Sooooo much better like damn. (Which is why I got a new amp. Anyone want a magni 1st gen? I spent like 200 bucks on my new amp tho, no need for ultra fancy gear)