Choosing an amplifier
How to choose a headphone amplifier for a mobile phone or laptop.
Summary
Do you want to add wired headphones, or improve sound?
To add wired headphones, pick an amplifier that works with your phone/tablet. To improve sound, you need to spend £20 on a cheap phone, £80 on an expensive phone. After that, up to about £130 will buy an excellent amplifier
Choose the general style of amplifier
Cables are exactly what people want, but cables have no room for electronics and they don’t, for the price, measure or play well. Dongle amplifiers are lumpier, but play and perform better. Battery amplifiers vary in size, and have a battery to replace or charge, but the power helps. Mains amplifiers are the best quality all round, but are not usable while moving about. See our guide.
Pick a price point
Cables cost about £8–£80, dongles $20–£150, desktop amplifiers cost £30–£1000+
Check the amplifier works with your phone
Especially if you have an Apple device
Considerations
Things to consider when choosing a headphone amplifier.
About connections
Most mobile phones use a USB‐C connector for power and audio. Apple phones use a special connector called a ‘lightening’ connector. Most computers use USB‐A connectors. You can buy converters to change between one and the other, so use your phone cable on a laptop. But be careful about connecting Apple devices to non‐Apple devices, and visa‐versa. Some (usually desktop) amplifiers have a USB‐B (the ‘square’) connector. This needs the type of lead used on a printer (a printer lead will work, but you probably want a shorter one).
As for connecting the headphones, most non‐studio headphone connections use a 3.5mm jack.
Most headphones with this plug will work in most amplifiers. However, if you want the switches on a headphone to work, this needs special plugs (TRRRS etc.) and wiring. Best check with manufacturers and reviews.
I use the switch on my headphones!
Several amplifiers can make switches work. Unfortunately, it’s not possible to make a works‐for‐all solution. You must read the manufacturer’s information and recommendations, and maybe reviews.
Are cheap amplifiers any use?
By cheap we mean up to £20–£30. They can attach wired headphones to phones with no socket. We have tried these amplifiers and can confirm that some of them improve the sound on cheap phones.
Are expensive amplifiers worth the money?
£80 should beat an expensive phone. Over £120, hard to answer. Do they sound better? Maybe, but unless you have high quality sources and headphones you may not hear the extra quality.
Are there any compatibility problems—plugs?
Not at the cheap end (the high end is another world).
Are there any compatibility problems—Apple?
Yes. You should always check if the amplifier is made for an Apple phone or not. Ignore suggestions that the amplifier works well generally.
Are there any compatibility problems—source material?
Cheap amplifiers will not recognise different sources, will grind them all down, but will work. More expensive amplifiers adapt to the sources, which is usually reliable. A new format of music file (MQA) is not always recognised—it needs a special decoder.
Are there any compatibility problems—headphones and sound?
HiFi magazines and forum users will tell you that some amplifiers (DACs) work better with some earphones. That is true. But, generally, if you can plug an amplifier in, it will power the headphones. And if the amplifier is better than what you have, it will usually improve the sound whatever.