great headphone amplification in vintage gear?


I am currently powering some Denon AH-D7000 headphones with an old Luxman L480 integrated and to my ears, it sounds noticeably better than a dedicated Headphone amp Musical Hall 25! The Luxman has a little more hiss than the MH but only noticeable when music is quiet, still it is so much more musical to my ears!
So I was wondering if there is other vintage preamps, amplifiers, integrated amps or receivers known for having great headphone amplification out there?
Thanks!
csacred

Showing 1 response by shazam

I too have a MH25 and am want for something better. I recently auditioned the Luxman SQ-38u integrated and it was hands down the best "headphone" amp I've ever heard. Even though it didn't work with my speakers (ProAc) I was tempted to buy it anyway to pair with my AKg 702's and change speakers. Alas, the $6,000 price tag dashed those thoughts.

I think the key is that Luxman are Class A amps for the most part (not sure of your L480, but seems likely) where the Music Hall is A/B. I was going to start a similar thread looking for Class A HPAs, but your idea of just looking for a vintage integrated might be the ticket.

If you pick something up, let me know - I'll be curious of your thoughts.