Which headphone amplifier with balanced input?

I have the Grace 901 headphone amp which includes balanced inputs, but it's beyond your budget. I think there are a few Headroom amps that include balanced inputs, but same price issue. I wouldn't worry too much about making sure it has balanced inputs.

Also, there are many amps available in your price range. I would go to Head-fi.org for suggestions. If you can swing it, the new Emmeline XP-7 headphone amp is supposed to be great ($495, also available with a power supply for $695).

I would post this question on www.head-fi.org. I was in need of a headphone amp and I learned quite a bit from this wonderful web-site. After I read and learned, I decided to order from www. jmtaudio.com a Meta-42 based home headphone amp. Links on Jon's web-site will direct you to other builders as well. Good luck w/your search.

2 agreements: head-fi.org (also check out headwize.com), and the XP-7 from www.raysamuelsaudio.com

I got it. It is superb ! Balanced, organic (NEVER thought I'd use that term) sound, detail galore, even some good in-skull soundstaging !

OK, single-ended only, but you don't need balanced with this baby.

Hey, it's nice to see all of the referrals to head-fi, which is definitely the best place to ask this sort of question but it's always nice to hear from the Audiogon crowd on headphone-related matters as well.

Depending on your budget, I wholeheartedly agree with the XP-7 recommendation. It's hard to believe that this is a $495 headamp because the soundstaging it produces in awe inspiring - and it's a small portable headamp! I just got mine this past weekend so I'm still in the honeymoon stages with it, but it's leagues ahead of my Creek OBH-11SE or Antique Sound Labs MG Head. My first impressions are that the XP-7 may just compare favorably with well respected headamps in a slightly higher price category such as the David Berning micro ZOTL or the Sugden Headmaster, but I have not done any A/B comparisons yet. Ray Samuels is a great person to work with as well (as is David Berning).

As another suggestion, a head-fi member named Mikhail also produces some excellent tube amps in all price ranges that are a great bang for the buck. The company name is Single Power Audio, and I'm sure he could include balanced inputs in the design if you so require.