Please explain 'ohms'...

[Mr Bump]

Hi

I am confused (that's not difficult!).

Basically I am looking to get myself a set of Beyerdynamic DT770's which come with a range of options for the impedence from 32, 80 250 and 600 ohms. In the past 24 hours I have read differing explanations of which I should get; all of which contradict each other.

I will be using them with my iPod, iMac and MacBook and lastly my hi-fi so am unsure which version I need? I understood that the lowest impedence would be better for these sources as they are easier to drive whereas the higher impedence versions may cause these sources to struggle without a headphone amp.

Then someone told me the opposite....

Can anyone give me the definitive?

[dalethorn]

Generally speaking, if you want to maintain compatibility with portable music players, the lower impedance headphones are best for that. They should also work well with desktop equipment, however, higher impedance headphones may (possibly) give better results with some amps because there would be a greater theoretical "damping factor" of amplifier output impedance -vs- headphone impedance.

That said, none of this really matters until you get to actual cases and listen for yourself.

Or you could examine the measurements PDF at Innerfidelity dot com (scroll down to November Update) and see for yourself.