Amps & DACs
HeadRoom Portable Desktop Amp
Complete professional audio listening station plus high-end headphone system, all in a sleek and rugged black anodized aluminum enclosure you can slip in your satchel. Replete with multiple analog and digital connections to the outside world, the Desktop Portable Amp/DAC has at its heart an elegantly designed, discrete-component output amplifier for that 'straight pipe' listening experience.
Features include: line input and a volume-controlled line output; USB computer, and optical and coax S/PDIF digital inputs to the built-in digital to analog converter (DAC) stage; both 1/4" and 1/8" headphone jacks; HeadRoom's famous crossfeed for excellent headphone imaging; 3-position gain control to precisely match headphone efficiency; two massive rechargable batteries for 10-12 hours of high-performance listening.
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Product Features:
- Delivers high-end headphone audio with class-A biasing and Jung diamond buffer output amp.
- Includes high-performance DAC card for USB, optical, and coaxial digital audio input.
- Improves headphone imaging with HeadRoom's famous crossfeed circuit.
- Gain switch optimizes amp for headphones of different efficiencies.
- Switches between two analog line inputs, and three digital inputs.
- * Includes volume controlled pre-amp out for desktop speakers.
Applications:
~FREE rechargeable lithium battery replacement (first time only) in OR out of warranty!
The latest in our nearly 20-year quest to build the world's finest portable headphone amp, the HeadRoom Portable Desktop Amp is equally comfortable nestled in your big rig at home, or on the tray table in front of you at 35,000 feet. It's perfectly happy being fed a signal from practically any audio source, be it an ultra high-end $10,000 CD player, a laptop computer, or an iPod / iPhone / iPad / MP3 player device. This sleek black piece of audiophile instrumentation will drive your high-quality reference headphones or earphones with full authority and accurate timbral precision while it coats the inside of your head with the vibrant colors of the music, oh, so very sweetly. Feed the HeadRoom Portable Desktop Amp/DAC a non-compressed audio source through your favorite upscale cans and you'll think you've snuck your big stereo rig onto the airplane!
Power Source
The Portable Desktop Amp/DAC uses a powerful internal 4-cell lithium "smart charging" rechargeable battery supply which conservatively provides about 10-12 hours of battery run-time per charge. You may listen to the amp while plugged in for recharging if so desired. As befits our top flagship portable product, HeadRoom will provide one (1) free rechargeable battery replacement at any point during the Portable Desktop Amp/DAC unit's lifespan, either in OR out of warranty. The unit must be returned to HeadRoom Service Dept (at customer mailing expense) for eventual lithium battery replacement. All parts, labor, and return shipping back to the owner is no charge!
You'll find the Portable Desktop's DC-input jack and the 'charge status' LED indicator on the far right of the rear panel. The Portable Desktop Amp is meant for superb high-end mobile listening use so always fully charge the lithium batteries for best sound quality performance.
Features
To the far left of the Portable Desktop Amp/DAC's rear faceplate is a set of RCA analog stereo inputs AND one mini-plug 3.5mm for the analog inputs; so you can use either the RCA connectors or the 1/8" [3.5mm] stereo mini-jack as your line input. These connections are in true parallel with each other. Please use one at a time, do NOT plug inputs into both jacks simultaneously! Also on the rear you'll find the USB, and optical and coaxial (using a mono 3.5mm mini-plug) S/PDIF digital inputs, and digital input selector switch. You may have all these connected simultaneously and switch between them with a rear panel 'Digital Input' selector switch.
The front left panel of the HeadRoom Portable Desktop Amp/DAC sports on/off power switch and both full-size 1/4" and mini-plug 1/8" [3.5mm] stereo headphone jacks. Just right of center are three switches: the 'analog/digital' selector switch, a Crossfeed switch to provide more natural imaging on headphones, and the 'Gain' selection switch which lets you set the overall volume control operating range for headphones of differing impedances/efficiencies. The volume control knob is at the far right.
Build
The Portable Desktop Amp/DAC utilizes a deep Class-A biased 'Home' electronics module for the analog amplification stages. The Portable Desktop topology design also includes a slightly modified version of our DAC (Digital-to-Analog Converter) circuitry featuring a superb voltage preregulator to ensure the amp draws current from both sides of the power supply rails perfectly evenly.
In terms of mobile audio sources, sadly there are few portable CD and no MP3 players around these days that still have digital outputs. However, nearly all modern portable DVD players will play most CD formats and many are outfitted with digital optical or co-axial outs that can operate under battery power. You'll probably be amazed at the quality of sound that can materialize in your headphones using a high-end portable DVD unit to play your CDs. Of course, a laptop is a fabulous music source while on trips; play some music while surfing the web or getting some business done --- quite nice, really. And if you haven't yet tried watching movies on your laptop computer using WinDVD software with 'Dolby Headphone' processing through a really good digital amp like the Portable Desktop then, boy, are you in for a major soundtrack treat!
All HeadRoom Portable Desktop Amp/DAC units are exclsuively hand-built in Montana, USA.
Dimensions
The Portable Desktop Amp measures 6.25" x 6.25" x 1.75" (not including volume knob) and weighs in at approximately 28oz of audio wonderfulness.
Save with our Portable Desktop Packaged System.
Specifications:
- Amplifier Group: The Desktop Line
- Weight: 28 oz, 1.75lbs
- Frequency Response: 10–50k, ±0.3
- THD at 1V output: <.002
- Input Impedance at 1kHz (ohms): 70k
- DAC option: yes
- Portable: yes
Additional Resources:
- Product Manuals
- Portable Desktop Amp Manual
- Product Info
- Portable Desktop Amp Set Up
- Product Reviews
- PositiveFeedback; Max Dudious
Average Rating
Posted by Road Warrior from Chicago on 2010-01-15
Recommend Product: Yes
Pros: Great sound. Digital and Analog inputs. Good battery life.
Cons: Volume knob loosens.
Great product with great sound.
5 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Did you?
Posted by Adam from Sunnyvale, CA on 2010-01-15
Recommend Product: Yes
Pros: Sounds nearly as good as my Desktop Ultra
Cons: The battery electronics could use an upgrade, the switches sometimes get flipped in my bag
I've owned this little gem for a few years, and have never regretted the purchase. I spend a lot of time in a cubicle environment at work, and this amp creates a tiny island of concentration and wonderful music.
I most commonly pair this with my Westone 3 IEMs at work, but also use a bunch of other 'phones on an occasional basis: Sennheiser HD580, HD600, HD650, HD800, Shure SE530, Etymotic ER4 and ER6, and a few others over the years. It drives them all effortlessly, and produces a very nice soundstage. I'm a fan of the crossfeed circuit, which is not easy to describe, but does provide a noticeable improvement in imaging. The DAC is great, and works very well when paired with lossless audio from a computer. Some manufacturers have trouble with USB, but I've noticed no problems with my Headroom gear.
The one downside is that my batteries went out about two months before the warranty expired. Headroom support was wonderful, and had the problem diagnosed and repaired very quickly. The amp died again two months after it came back from repair, so I sent it back again. The second time around, they tracked down a bad capacitor that caused the battery problem, and the amp has been fine ever since. This may sound like a drag, but Headroom was wonderful through the experience, and I can't recommend them highly enough. A big thanks to Mike Olson for all of his help.
My only suggestion for future iterations is to improve the intelligence of the battery system. The batteries themselves are great, and provide a decent amount of listening time between charges, but the amp doesn't provide much in the way of overcharge protection. The recommended best practice is to fully discharge the amp between charges, and to unplug it as soon as a charge is finished. I've found it difficult to integrate these rules into my listening habits. These days, there are intelligent charging circuits that help with "battery hygiene," so I expect that they'll fix these problems in the future.
I consider these to be minor blemishes on an otherwise excellent experience, and would highly recommend this to anyone in the market for a headphone amp.
13 out of 13 people found this review helpful. Did you?
