Total AirHead Frequently Asked Questions
1. Q. How loud should the volume be on my portable source? A. Turn the volume all the way up or one step down from all the way up, depending on the player. If possible, use a line-output instaead of a headphone out. Or get an adapter for your iPod that allows you to send a line-out signal to your amp. Use your best hearing judgement to determine the best combination for you.
2. Q. What is the included audio cable? A. The 1ft audio cable is a short 'mini to mini' interconnect cable with 1/8" [3.5mm] plugs on both ends to hook-up your audio source to the audio input of the AirHead.
3.Q. Will I damage my amp or headphones if I plug them in with the volume up? A. YES, POSSIBLY! The AirHead is a miniature power amp, and is quite capable of blowing its miniature self up if it has to drive the short circuit of not-fully-inserted headphones. Please be careful to have the unit off, or the volume fully down, and see that the plug is fully inserted when connecting headphones to the amp.
4.Q. Can the unit drain the batteries even when it’s turned off? A. No, it will not drain your batteries. If you are storing the unit for a period of time, it is a good idea to remove the batteries to prevent accidental leakage.
5.Q. How long do the batteries last on my AirHead? A. Depending on the type of headphones that used, The AirHead can generally be powered for 40+ hours on 4 AAA batteries. Headphones with lower impedance will last longer than headphones with very high impedance. We have heard some users get nearly 60 hours of battery life with very efficient headphones (such as in-ear isolating buds). Also others have reported 30-35 hours using a harder to drive headphones.
6.Q. Does the AirHead have a separate line out? A. No, it does not have a separate line out. You can use the headphone jack with confidence though; remember that, as a general rule, headphone amp outputs are just like good preamp outputs.
7.Q. What is the voltage requirement of the AirHead? A. The maximum voltage the AirHead will accept is the standard 6 volts from four AAA batteries. When using the available HeadRoom wall-wart AC power supply ($14.95 additional), the AirHead unit can potentially accept a maximum of a CLEAN 9 volts.
8.Q. Does my new equipment require ‘break-in’ time? A. Both headphones and headphone amplifiers require break-in time before they are at their optimal performance. We recommend running your new headphone amp and/or headphones for about 40 hours to allow sufficient break-in time.
9.Q: Why do I hear hiss from iPod + AirHead using multiple microdriver in-ear headphones? A: There could be several reasons. Make sure the amp's fresh batteries are at full strength. Weak batteries will highly increase background noise floor issues. If using a new generation HeadRoom Total AirHead, ensure the amp is set to the low-gain position with in-ears; use the 'high gain' setting for headphones. Turn the iPod/ MP3 player volume level [output] to near max [around 9 out of 10] and then use the TAH amplifier as your 'master' volume control to your earphones. Finally, you may wish to get a SendStation iPod/iPhone line-out dock that allows interconnectivity from the Apple player's pin-out configuration instead of using the low-grade (and noisy!) headphone jack as the connection to the amp. Keep in mind that superb microdriver earphone designs are also very accurate and extremely revealing of any flaws in the audio source!
10. Q:Why do i hear static using the AirHead with my iPhone or Droid? The AirHead is sometimes prone to interference from nearby sources due to to its unshielded nature. If separating the amp from the iPhone or Droid (smartphone) player by a few inches is not possible or feasible, sometimes inserting a slim layer of aluminum foil underneath the battery door does the trick of eliminating or minimizing that phenomenon. Also, ensuring the amp is using fresh, strong AAA batteries can help lower the background noise floor. Finally, placing your iPhone / Droid / smartphone into 'Airline Mode' so there's no outgoing signal to the mobile network often substantially helps to eliminate the potential for audio interference.
