| Specialist Retailers Headroom (USA) Meier Audio (Germany) Able headphones (USA) Headphone Amplifier Kits Has a fully class A kit available in the form of the EB602/210 and a hybrid MOS-Fet/Valve headphone amp in the forma of the EB804/421. Please send any factual corrections, dead links, information and/or links that you feel that should be on this page to the page maintainer but please note that I do not have an Internet access at the moment so there may be some time before I can answer.
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Under Construction
Current Headphone Manufacturers
Please note that only Hi-fi headphones are discussed and listed here. Caveat : Do not use standard hi-fi headphones with the line output of a device such as a soundcard, while this works the high resistance of the headphone will over time dim and eventually kill the output. There are headphones and adapters made especially for this purpose, so rather buy a budget multimedia headphone especially for this usage or when purchasing speakers for your computer simply make sure they have a proper headphone output. Also note when choosing a headphone for a personal audio device take a look at the sensitivity information supplied by the maker of the headphones, quality hi-fi headphones appear perfectly serviceable for use with such devices but the low power output of many personal audio devices means that they often have difficulty in driving headphones with high resistance, this is in particular the case in Europe where overall sound pressure of headphone devices is actually limited by law so audio devices sold in Europe often have lower outputs than the same devices sold elsewhere. All the major manufacturers have variations of their headphones especially designed for use with portable audio devices and there are no problems in using them with home audio so it makes much more sense to buy one of those if your primary use is with a portable device, portable headphones are usually not as comfortable for long term listening however.
Acutex
Makes low to mid end headphones.
Advent
Makes a few models of wireless headphones.
Aiwa
Makes a range of headphones and earphones, we have not had the opportunity to test most of their range but their budget closed models are strangely loud on the outside.
AKG
Makes a large range of headphones, anything from budget hi-fi and multimedia headphones to top of the line units like the classic K 1000. Traditionally AKG has been strong in the field of closed models intended for professional use in studios and suchlike. You can find more info on their line here.
Altec Lansing
Makes a range of multimedia headphones intended for computer usage mostly.
American DJ
Has a range of DJ and consumer orientated models such as the DJH-150 closed model and the DJH-Superbass, a similar closed model but with bass boosting.
Antonio Precise
Makes a large range of budget and multimedia headphones.
Audio 2000's
Makes a range of headphones for semi-pro and pro applications.
Audio Technica
Has a range of headphones, many of the geared toward professional use in studios etc.
Azden
Makes a wide range of headphones, earphones and transducers, mostly sold to OEM's.
Behringer
Has a range of closed back headphones intended for semi professional or pro usage such as Djing, studios etc., while those products are not the same class as the other German designed pro-audio headphones they have retail prices that can only be described as mind boggling, they start at well under 15€ (or 10£) if you shop around.
Beyer Dynamic
Makes a range of both open and closed cans, their closed models are very popular in recording studios.
Bang & Olufsen
Has a small range of some really good head and earphones but it can be a bit difficult to find info on them on their homepage.
Coby
Has a range of budget headphones, mostly intended for use with pesronal audio.
Coles Electroacoustics
Makes the CE127 studio headphones, these were designed by the BBC and see a lot of use there.
Dowumi
Makes an interesting range of bone conducting headphones under the Vonia name, the transducers on them do not make the air vibrate like normal headphone but rather vibrate on the chin bone to excite the Aanvil in your ear. This means you can listen to music on headphones without being subject to the hearing damage so often associated with heavy headphone use and obviously in a working situation this means you have full use of you ears even when listening to music or vize versa. Has also found a niche with secretaries and people with similar functions that need to be able to do transcriptions while they are performing other duties as well such as manning a reception desk or such.
Earhugger
Earphones, no headphones.
Ergo See --> Precide
Etymotic
Makes high end earphones.
Formost Electronic
Has a HUGE range of head and earphones available, you have probably owned a headphone from this company at one time or another since they are mostly an OEM.
Fostex
Makes a line of low impedance, closed cans intended for studio and other recording use, lighter than many other similar designs and of special note is their T20RP.
Fujicon
Has a range of headphones both intended for personal and home hi-fi.
Future Sonics
Makes skin coloured earphones called Earmonitors that are extremely small, used by TV news rooms and in similar situations were discrete monitoring if of importance.
Garwood
Manufactures "in-ear monitors" or high quality earphones intended for on stage monitoring purposes etc., also has wireless transmitters and receivers for that same purpose.
Gemini
This DJ equipment manufacturer has at the least 1 model of the closed variety.
GLI
Has a range of closed budget phones, intended for DJ use.
Grado
Makes mid to high end headphones, their cheapest models such as the SR60 and the SR80 are extremely good value and have a wonderful retro-chic (and sound), but their more expensive models such as the SR125, the SR225 and the SR325 are less convincing and not really up to the standards of the competition in terms of sound quality.
Jaytech See --> Reloop
JB Systems
Has a range of budget closed headphones intended for DJ use.
Jencklin Float See --> Precide
Jensen
Make a large range of head and earphones, mostly low end models.
JVC
Makes low and mid priced phones.
Koss
Long running headphone specialist, make anything from cheap earphones to audiophile cans. Many of their classic and more upmarket designs are closed in contrast to the better European models that are usually open.
Lake Technology
The company manufactures a rack mounted headphone processor and cans for studio monitoring of surround sound.
Ministry of Sound
Manufacture a range of headphones most are closed back designs with bass boost intended for DJ usage rather than hi-fi but a couple of their models have a respectable specification, they also have an in-ear model and a open back backband model.
Nakamichi
Has one model of a mid end headphones called SPK 300, this is a closed model initially designed for studio use but popular in Japan with department stores etc. as a demonstration model, not surprising perhaps since the company is one of the biggest manufacturer of "listening stations" or CD/DVD demonstration modules.
Numark
Has a range of closed headphones mostly intended for the DJ market.
Omnitronic
Make quite a few headphones, most of them are closed designs intended for the DJ market along with a few single-ear models and specialised foldable cans, but a few of their models are suitable for general use. Try here for more info on their range.
Philips
Not perhaps the first company that you think of when headphones are mentioned, but they have a wide range of designs including wireless and surround sound models, and some of their wireless models in particular can be good value. Also have been making noises about their recent Neodymium drivers that they call Clarity an can be found in the more upmarket headphones such as the HP-890.
Pioneer
Has a range of open and closed types, from budget DJ models to fairly high end hi-fi models.
Precide
Makes high end headphones under the names Ergo and Jencklin Float.
Prefer
Makes 2 models of headphones, the budget HPR-35 model and the high impedance HD-66V. More info on both models can be had here.
Reloop
Has a range of headphones intended for DJ use, mid end under their own name and budget versions under the Jaytec brand.
Sennheiser
The worlds largest manufacturer of Hi-fi headphones, has a range that goes from inexpensive lightweights all the way up to dead expensive electrostatic cans, and quality stuff to boot and usually an enormous bang for the buck. And this has been going on for more than 30 years, it must be something in the water. Anyway the company has just released a new range of low/mid price headphones including the 477 and 497 (but also some cheaper models), all parts of the headphones are user replaceable like with previous 4xx models from the company, are slightly lighter than the range that it replaces (at around 130grams or so) and at the least the 497 model that we tested sounds even better than earlier designs.
Singvox
Makes a large range of budget earphones and headphones both the normal and the multimedia kinds along with headsets etc.
Sony
Makes a wide range of headphones from budget earphones to top of the line studio cans in the form of the MDR-7509, the professional studio models have been manufactured unchanged for a number of years and are all quite similar in outward design being closed back models but vary enormously in price and specifications, the cheapest model is the MDR-7502 taht typically only retails for USD 50 or so but has specification more in line with something that you get free with your cassette walkman and is probably better suited for undemanding usage such as DJ work than for monitoring, the MDR-7505 is much more like it but it should be noted that the RRP for that model is USD115 (retail prices are lower though) but for only 15USD more you can get the MDR-7506 that not only sounds better despite having a very similar 40mm diaphragm (but constructed somewhat differently leading to a different response characteristics) but is also sturdier, foldable and is shipped with a case, definitely worth the small extra outlay, the 7505 is actually an old DJ model from Sony that has been redressed in a black livery to match the rest of the professional line which explains why it is the only 7xxx model to feature swivelling. The aforementioned 7509 sounds much better than the next model below it but then again is twice the price but as one of the best sounding closed back models out there is worthy of an audition if you are in the market for a mid/high end pro headphones, you can find more information on the MDR-7500 here, on the MDR-7506 here, the MDR-7505 here and the MDR-7502 here. Some of the more interesting models from Sony are the noise cancelling models. For movie fans the company also makes one model of Virtual dolby sourround headphone system.
Specialthing
Has a range of budget headphones.
Stanton Magnetics
Has a fairly big range of models, all are of the closed variety and are intended for DJ use, but a few models are generic enough to be of use with a normal hi-fi or portable.
Stax
Makes some of the best headphones in the world and is the company that invented the electrostatic headphone in 1960 with the SR-1 model after having been making electrostatic loudspeaker elements for a few years, or rather the "earspeakers" as they want their products to be called, they even have an in-ear electrostatic (!!??).
Tonsil
Makes mostly budget headphones, but we have not been able to find any online information on them.
Ultrasone
Makes mid to high end headphones, one of the few headphone specialist manufacturers left in the world.
United
This budget brand is popular in Eastern Europe, makes a wide range of headphones including open, closed and quite a few wireless models.
Vestax
Has one model, a stick type 1 pad unit for DJ etc., more info here.
Vivanco
Has a range of headphones, has been getting good reviews for their recent models in the European press, cost effective, this link is in German nb, I could not find an equivalent English page.
Yamaha Corp.
Apart from having a range of headphone for home and portable use the company makes one model of "monitor headphones" (studio headphones) named RH5A.
Noise cancelling headphone models
The noise cancelling headphone is something of a misnomer since it is not strictly intended to cancel out noise but rather to cancel out any sounds external to the headphone, so the usage of the term "noise" is a matter of perception. How this is archived is simple, there is a tiny microphone on the outside of the headphone that picks up the external sounds, this is fed to a signal processor in the headphones that decides what part of the signal is strong enough to penetrate through and simply plays a copy of this out of phase to the headphones and thus cancels the extraneous sound. The signal processing part can be archived by analogue or digital means but analogue is more common due to speed requirements. Most NC headphones appear made with the travelling market in mind and thus most of them are foldable and come with pouches etc. In almost all cases there is an option for turning the noise cancellation off in which case the unit will work as a normal headphone.
Sony
Makes the MDR-NC20, a closed back model than is foldable, the element has a much better specification than similarily sized models in the Sony professional range (from which this model is derived) and sounds quite good with the noise cancelling turned off, much better than the average NC headphone, but the quality of the NC is not the best in class.
Info on headphone amplifiers
A headphone amp is an alternative to a standard home hi-fi amplifier for those that use headphones a lot, the main advantage of a headphone amp is that since the power requirements of a headphone are quite small the designer can usually spend quite a bit more on the amplification components than he can when designing a normal amplifier, meaning that for something like 100 to 300 € you can get a sound quality that really approaches high end ideals. Equally, a well designed headphone amplifier should also drive headphones that cheaper amps and systems have problems with and have a reasonable damping factor which is often more important for headphones, resulting in a vastly improved sound. And please note that a headphone amplifier is not to be called a Head Amplifier.
A headphone distribution amp however is intended to drive a number of headphones, usually in a some sort of a professional situation such as a recording studio or a language lab etc., the emphasis in the design of a distribution amp is usually more on cost per channel that on sound quality although there are some excellent quality distribution amps out there designed for use in recording studios.
1388 Technology
Makes an interesting and unusual devise called the Bit 88, it's a headphone amplifier and signal enhancer, the signal enhancement side has both a valve based "enhancer" and more conventional SRS based IC's.
Antique Sound Laboratory
Makes 2 valve based headphone amplifiers, the MG Head DT that has a class A based circuit and the UHG Signature.
Boostaroo
Makes a product that they call a headphone amp but is actually a signal booster and splitter, useful nevertheless but not for purists.
CEC
Has a lovely little full class A amp called HD-51 that is unusual in that it has 2 output channels each with it's own volume control and has balanced input in addition the usual RCA's, also unusually since the circuit used was a fairly powerful or 8w the designers added loudspeaker outputs, very odd for a headphone amp, but it means that if you have very efficient or small easily driven speakers it can utilise them. This model is designed for the Japanese market in mind and I have not seen it for sale in the US or UK but a few shops are starting to carry it on mainland Europe since this unusual feature set is just what some people are looking for and it also has an unusual and reportedly good sounding amplifier topology.
David Berning
Makes the microZOTL a low power valve amp intended as a headphone amplifier.
Edcor
Has a range of headphone amps and distribution amps.
Graham Slee Projects
Has a small cost effective amp.
Fostex
Makes the PH-50 a 5 channel amp that sports balanced inputs.
Heed Audio
Makes the keenly priced CanAmp, it's actually quite flexible, not only can it work with almost any headphone, have a pure class A topology (with an output power of a whopping 1w > 8ohms) but it also has a line output meaning that it can be used as a preamp or as a tape output in an amplifierless setup.
Musical Fidelity
Has an unusually good range of headphone amplifiers, those are upgradable to a better spec at a later date.
Opera Audio
Makes some yummy valve based amps.
Professional Sound Corp. (PSC)
Has at the least one model of a headphone distribution amp.
QED
Makes the budget MB45 amp.
Rudi Stor
This Italian comany has a interesting lineup of .
SM Pro Audio
Has the HP4, a 4 channel headphone distribution amp.
Sound Valves
Makes a nifty valve based headamp named Glory.
Sugden Audio Ltd.
Makes the Headmaster amp.
??!! SH4DRY
Er....Namewise we are not sure but there is a gentleman selling headphone amplifiers on the Norwegian QXL auction site, these look terribly DIY but have interesting specifications and a keen price (600 NKR which should be 50 - 60 € depending on exchange rate). Interestingly it's designer claims that it can work both as a home hifi amplifier (it comes with a PSU) and as a battery driven portable amp (it has a belt clip), although judging by the specifications this is more a unusually high quality booster than a pure headphone amplifier per se.
Info on discontinued headphone models
Headphones are actually as old as reproduction of sound itself but they remained a mostly professional tool right up until the 1970's apparently since musical reproduction was more of a social phenomenon than it is today. Apart from a minor fad in acoustic headphones for use with gramophones in the 1920's, the first headphones actively marketed to consumers where actually intended for use with early television sets, these early models where intended more to isolate the first generation of TV addicts from the rest of the family than to provide high quality aural experience to the end user, this was obviously before TV became the family life, and this isolation factor is what drove headphone design for the next couple of decades. High end electrostatic headphones intended for music reproduction where introduced in Japan in the mid 50's, with dynamic stereo cans pooping up in the USA at the end of the same decade and in a similar time frame high end professional units intended for studio work start being produced in Europe, however these where all closed back models that ultimately sacrificed sound quality and wearer comfort in favour of maximum attainable isolation from their immediate surroundings and it is not really until the introduction of the revolutionary Sennheiser open models in the late 60's that we start to see headphones as a popular hi-fi or a personal audio phenomenon.
Infinity
Made the ME10D combination of electrostatic headphones and energiser that was connected to the speaker terminals of an amplifier and could drive a pair of headphones, all of the examples I have seen of this unit have had the energiser in an excellent condition but the headphones themselves have all been degraded fairly severely considering the age of the product (ca late 70's). In particular the headband, which typically has lost most of it's plastic covering on top as on the bottom so this is not an indicator of wear, the ear pads have also been bad although they look fine there has been so much degradation of the padding inside the pads that they are uncomfortable and the isolation they offer is minimal, the latter affecting the sound quality.
Micro Seiki
Made a small range of electrostatic headphones, while high quality these were expensive when new and are difficult to get hold of second hand.
Nad Electronics
Often forgotten that this company used to be a supplier of high end headphones in the 70's, they had a range of 5 models in 1976 and the most expensive of those was the Model 20 e which had a RRP of close to 50£, considerably more than most people spent on an amplifier in those days.
Oktava
Was for a long time the only manufacturer of quality headphones in the USSR, exited the market in the 90's but has a nice page detailing their old headphone products.
Revox
Has through the years had quite a few models on the market but as far as I can gather none of them were made by the company itself, some 70's models were rebadged Precide models and later ones like the RH 3000 were actually top of the line Sennheiser models and I do seem to recall a model that appeared to be made by AKG.
Sennheiser
Well the HD-450 was never a top of the line model, nor in fact anything near it, but like the current models from the company you could buy it almost anywhere, and one day in the late 80's I was in a small recording studio in Iceland that had on one hand a pair of massive JBL monitors that made every track sound like Sly'n'Robbie and on the other hand the horribly tinny Yamaha NS-10 nearfields, and all mixes were going wrong. I needed something more neutral and I needed it at once and I ran out (studio time costs money you know) and found a electric household store nearby and bought the most expensive model that they stocked. The resulting mixes were so good that I started to take those cans with me everywhere, mind you the 450 was not a perfect design by any standards, it could be more efficient for one thing (perhaps a good thing for my ears that it's not), but it has turned out to be absolutely bullet-proof, it has taken abuse that I have seen no other device take, repeatedly walked on and thrown about in addition to having travelled with me wherever I go, in fact the mechanical design is so good that while I would not buy it in preference over the current line-up I consider it to be preferable since the phones collapse under stress, the current models have just 1 cord leading to the unit this means that they cannot be taken apart completely, while this is ergonomically better it also means that they are not as resilient.
Stax
The Unofficial Stax Homepage has information on most of their vintage products, note that although the main page is in Japanese the more interesting units also have an English description, and the company itself has a nice history page that has technical info on some of their older headphones, note also that although the company currently only makes electrostatic models they had cheaper electret models on the market in the 80's and early 90's and while old electrostatic models are well supported and often represent a good second hand buy you should watch out for individuals trying to peddle the inferior models as electrostatics.