MSB's new Premier Headphone Amplifier

CKKeung

Well-Known Member
Jun 17, 2011
3,061
3,199
1,410
Hong Kong
A prototype has been made and demoed in Japan :

e0267928_19535054 (1)-1.jpg
e0267928_19535529 (1)~2-1.jpg

The black colour headamp in the above photos is the Premier Headamp prototype.
It's said to be superior to most headamps in the market, except its two elder brothers.
:cool:

BTW it has one very intriguing feature : it does NOT have a volume control!
:oops:
 
  • Like
Reactions: Addicted to hifi

Addicted to hifi

VIP/Donor
Sep 8, 2020
4,610
2,039
265
52
Australia
A prototype has been made and demoed in Japan :

View attachment 82198
View attachment 82199

The black colour headamp in the above photos is the Premier Headamp prototype.
It's said to be superior to most headamps in the market, except its two elder brothers.
:cool:

BTW it has one very intriguing feature : it does NOT have a volume control!
:oops:
Nice.how does it work without a volume control?
 

Mike Lavigne

Member Sponsor & WBF Founding Member
Apr 25, 2010
12,593
11,677
4,410
BTW it has one very intriguing feature : it does NOT have a volume control!
:oops:
Nice.how does it work without a volume control?
MSB Headphone amps are designed to be integrated into the MSB Dacs, which do have a volume control, a very very fine one. it's a one button toggle (can be done with the dac remote) back and forth outputting to my speaker pre or the headphone amp. very slick interface as you would expect from MSB.......nothing clunky. my guess is no headphone amp has a volume control on par with what the MSB dacs have.

i have my Select Electrostatic Headphone amp integrated with my Select II dac.


you can use MSB Headphone amps without an MSB dac but need to supply a separate volume control. there are multiple ways to do that, here is one.....which i decided to buy. but have not yet used it. i was going to use it when i wanted to listen to my laptop through my headphones, but i found another work around, i input my laptop into the analog inputs my MSB dac and switch inputs on the dac passive pre. i could also use a USB from my laptop into another digital input on my dac for even better sound. but then i would need a second MSB Pro input module which i could also do but have not yet. lots of choices.


hard to beat the system integration choices with MSB. not cheap, but they cover a lot of bases at a high level of performance and their investment can be justified.
 
Last edited:

CKKeung

Well-Known Member
Jun 17, 2011
3,061
3,199
1,410
Hong Kong
Mike is 100% correct.
Pairing it with MSB dac which all got excellent volume control is the intention of MSB.
The Japanese who listened to the prototype thought that the absence of the volume control has made the Premier Headamp to give better sonic performance.
 

CKKeung

Well-Known Member
Jun 17, 2011
3,061
3,199
1,410
Hong Kong

CKKeung

Well-Known Member
Jun 17, 2011
3,061
3,199
1,410
Hong Kong
msb_technology_premier_headphone_amp_review_matej_isak_mono_and_stereo_2021_2022_2023_2024_10.jpg
msb_technology_premier_headphone_amp_review_matej_isak_mono_and_stereo_2021_2022_2023_2024_11.jpg
msb_technology_premier_headphone_amp_review_matej_isak_mono_and_stereo_2021_2022_2023_2024_3-1.jpg

msb_technology_premier_headphone_amp_review_matej_isak_mono_and_stereo_2021_2022_2023_2024_12.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: bryans

CKKeung

Well-Known Member
Jun 17, 2011
3,061
3,199
1,410
Hong Kong
This is interesting :

Premier-Headphone-Amp-Audio-Output-Transformers-900px.jpg
 

bryans

VIP/Donor
Dec 26, 2017
920
876
250
The premier headphone amp is one serious piece of gear. I don't own headphones but if I did, I would have to give it a run.
 

bryans

VIP/Donor
Dec 26, 2017
920
876
250
One thing I noticed is the DAC and headphone amp have their name engraved on the front. I guess this is a new change to the DAC. Premier-Series-Stack-White-Front-ISO-Gallery-1200px.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Young Skywalker

About us

  • What’s Best Forum is THE forum for high end audio, product reviews, advice and sharing experiences on the best of everything else. This is THE place where audiophiles and audio companies discuss vintage, contemporary and new audio products, music servers, music streamers, computer audio, digital-to-analog converters, turntables, phono stages, cartridges, reel-to-reel tape machines, speakers, headphones and tube and solid-state amplification. Founded in 2010 What’s Best Forum invites intelligent and courteous people of all interests and backgrounds to describe and discuss the best of everything. From beginners to life-long hobbyists to industry professionals, we enjoy learning about new things and meeting new people, and participating in spirited debates.

Quick Navigation

User Menu

Steve Williams
Site Founder | Site Owner | Administrator
Ron Resnick
Site Co-Owner | Administrator
Julian (The Fixer)
Website Build | Marketing Managersing