Sennheiser HD 599 w/ Marantz 2245

Jon Nedyak

Jon Nedyak

New Member
Hi guys. Pardon my ignorance...I am a total noob to vintage electronics. I recently purchased a Marantz 2245 and tried pairing it with my Sennheiser HD 599 headphones. The headphone volume is extremely quiet, even at high volume levels. Any thoughts on whether it’s an issue with my receiver or the headphones pairing? Thx in advance for your thoughts.
 
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Hi Jon. I am using a Marantz 2275 receiver, also from the mid Seventies (a year or so later than the 2245, I guess). It has no trouble with a pair of Beyerdynamic DT-990's (plenty of volume by about
10:00 on the volume control. What impedance are the HD 599 cans? It seems that 32 ohm and lower are pretty easy to drive. 250 Ohm, a lot harder for, say, a typical portable device like a smart phone.
***I would try posting the same question in the Marantz section, where many knowledgeable techs will have eyes on it: they will know the likelihood of a fault in the receiver's headphone preamp, as well as what that headphone preamp should be capable of driving.***
 
I saw the quote below elsewhere.....if his Marantz's from the same period are driving 600 ohm Sennheisers, it would stand to reason that yours should, as well.
I would definitely re-post the question in the Marantz section. Good luck!

the skipper said:
both my 2230 and 2270 drove my 600 ohm Sennheisers with no problem
Click to expand...
 
Thanks guys. I figured out my issue....turns out I had the tape monitor button pressed. Like I said, i am a rookie to this stuff! Appreciate the responses.
 
yeah, that'll do it.

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I own a $2000+ DAC/heaphone amp but guess what the majority of my phones sound just as good if not better on a 70's receiver I restored (rebuilt would be a better term). I restore several vintage receivers every year and Marantz ones I like a lot but my favorite of all 70's receivers is the Kenwood KR-6600. It has a very unique sound signature, hard to describe. It is laid-back without being dark, extremely neutral mids and highs that I can only describe as being "silky". Contrary to brands that catered to the younger crowd at the time (such as the ubiquitous Pioneers) it is not clear to the point of causing fatigue after a few hours, but mellow and sweet at once. The 6600 was an upper-tier Kenwood, third from the top pushing a reasonable 60wpc. It is heavy though (about 55 lbs without a wood cabinet) so I suspect it may be more powerful than what Kenwood claimed. Also, it has a very distinctive look with a sky-blue dial underlined with soft amber dots and the VU-meters are orange-ish amber.

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To those who own Pioneer gear please do not take this as sneering, I actually like 70's Pioneers, they have dynamics to die for and can play very loud without clipping (from the SX-650 and up). If I were a teen or young adult I would certainly prefer Pioneer but I'm not that anymore :beatnik:
 
It relates to this thread in the sense that it pertains to using vintage receivers as headphone amps. That said, you are right, after posting it here I was thinking maybe I should have started a new thread discussing this topic without being tied to a specific brand but by then it was too late the harm was done :(
 
Enjoy your Sennheiser HD599 with your vintage amp!
Truly an amazing pair of cans for its price.

If you are going to use these headphones on a regural basis, then a dedicated headphone ampifier can improve performace further.
Look for units that come with linear power-supply and quality components.

An example of a nice opamp-based design with quality through-hole components and a linear PS, is the Lehmann Black Cube Linear.
Then there are tubes designs and in my opinion are a must for someone listening music on headphones on a daily basis.
 
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