Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards Weren't I wrong when bought 250 Om headphones for my DP?

The recommendations on the box (I've got a little bit another model - DT990 2005 edition) tell that 250 Om is the best for hi-fi devices. While 600 Om for hi-end. So, I think that no DPs, including the best hybrids, are matching hi-end level. Hope that it reaches hi-fi, at least. Cause, as I read in one article, 60%-70% of DP's price is keyboard. 15-20% for cabinet and speakers. If you have 1500$ DP, it's only 150-300$ left for DAC, processor and all the digital stuff. So, it'll be good if it's a little bit better than in mediocre smartphone.
So, what do you think, friends? Can digital pianos be considered as hi-fi sound sources? Or it depends upon the model, may be?

P.S.: I bought 250 Om headphones for my previous DP Roland FP90. Ordered LX-706 recently.

That's not really what it says.
It's not "these phones are the best for high-end systems".
It's "you probably need a high-end system to get these phones to work properly".

Regarding your question: "Can digital pianos be considered as hi-fi sound sources?"
The proper question is "Can my piano properly drive these headphones?"

That depends on the headphones and on the headphone amplifier in the piano.
The only information given is that the phones can be bought in 32 ohm, 250 ohm, and 600 ohm varieties.

But that's only half of the headphone story. The other half is: What's the sensitivity of these phones? It doesn't say. (But their web page might tell you.)

Then there's the other half of the story: What's the output impedance of your piano's headphone amp? And what output level is it capable of?
No one knows. The specs are not published.

Given that ... why does Beyerdynamic offer these (and other) phones at two or three Z values? It confuses the uninitiated, and does little for the initiated.
The other makers offer multiple Z choices less often (or not at all). Bravo to them.

Conclusions:

1. You cannot reach an analytical conclusion given that you're lacking most of the necessary information.

2. The best you can do is go by some general guidelines.
- - a. The 32 ohm phones will work. With any piano.
- - b. The 250 ohm phones might work, but it's possible you'll need an outboard headphone amp. You can only find out by trying for yourself ... or by finding someone else who already has.
- - c. The 600 ohm phones likely will not work unless you add an outboard headphone amp.

Oh, I see.... Thank you, MacMacMac!

The main piece of data missing is the voltage gain at the headphone jack. As MacMacMac points out, you can find additional data on the headphones online and the critical other piece of data you need on the headphones in addition to impedance is sensitivity. With impedance, sensitivity, and voltage gain at the headphone jack, you would have all you need to determine what maximum sound pressure in dB the piano could drive your headphones to.

I say bravo to BD for offering multiple impedances more often than the others.

Greg.