build quality, price, compact size, accurate

amp weight, cheap power supply

I've only owned this for a week, so here are first impressions, and first impressions mean a great deal.

ADV: I like the quality of the unit. It seems very well built and sturdy. The price for the amp is rather good compared to the rest of the field. The nearest competitor is the XCans. I do like the compact size, so it fits well on my desk, where I usually listen to music while working.

DISADV: The unit itself weighs very little. I suppose there's nothing to change that because it's just a bunch of electronics on the inside, so nothing to make it heavy. I do wish the construction was of heavier gauge aluminum, however, I believe they intended the thinner walls for heat transfer purposes. The other grip is the power supply, and this is major. I was very disappointed when opening the packaging to find a generic wallwart adaptor. Provided it works fine with the amp, I would have expected much greater care in the power supply, either custom manufactered, or thru OEMs. My impression is that this is a cost cutting measure. However, for $170 I certainly expected more.

COMMENTS/GRIPS: Continuing my grip about the power supply, I don't know the price of a regulated power supply, but I'm sure Creek thought about bundling the OBH-11 with a regulated instead of an el-cheapo unregulated, which prob. costs a couple $$ to manufacture.

Among the nit-picky things about the amp, I found the on/off switch in the back to be inconvenient, as I prefer it in the front. In addition, I would have preferred a rocking switch instead of a retractable switch.

Although I like the pot, I would prefer a larger pot (mine came with the smaller pots) and perhaps with a smoother control. I know, I know, the knob is already very smooth, but I would prefer purely smooth instead of stepped.

SOUND: As I have not used this unit much, I cannot entirely comment on sound, but initial impressions are it's punchy, detailed, bass extension, revealing or accurate (but sometimes too 'brutally' revealing). This also depends on the headphones, however.

DISCOUNTING: Many weaknesses in my testing methodology, the rig itself, and my 'non-golden ears' discount my opinion on the OBH-11. I have to say the biggest limitation in the rig, however.

The point of my discounting is to make the point that I'm just a casual listener like most folks, and I hope to convince the masses that one should seriously consider a headphone amp, be it this particular one, or others. But practically speaking, this is the best value among the field.

So accounting for my weakness, I give the OBH-11 5 for value, but 4 for overall. I am not completely convinced of the vitues of headphone amps for average listeners. But it's an exciting piece of hardware to add to your rig.


APPENDIX:

Recordings used:
Corrs: In blue
Kylie Minogue: Light years
Saint Etienne: Smash the system, too young to die
Ultra Bra: vapaherran elämää, kroketti, kalifornia, vesirettejä
(and couple more pop recordings)

(I do realize I should find more sonically demanding recordings, but I'll just settle on typical pop/indie/dance recordings)

My rig (and don't lynch me on this, cause I don't have a whole lot of money, and I'm not an audiophile by any means):
-JVC-FS5000 (a bit too much bkgd noise for my hearing threshold)
-Sennheiser HD25SP
-Sennheiser HD433 (just in case)

Similar Products Used:

NONE

A followup to my previous review. I have since bought the upgraded power supply (model OBH-2) from hififarm.com, and the difference in sound is pretty impressive: a wider and deeper soundstage, greater dynamics, more "air" between instruments, fuller textures, EVEN MORE detail. In other words, EVERYTHING improved. But the sum total of this is that I'm able to listen for much longer without fatigue or loss of concentration setting in as it did before. The results that can be gotten with the switch in power supply probably vary from system to system, and as other people have commented, the OBH-11 is still cable-dependent. But the bigger power supply (it's larger than the amp!) is a very cost-effective upgrade that helps you get the most out of your Creek headphone amp, and your music.

bass. very balanced sound.

very cable dependent. rather small.

some people say the x-cans are better. some the creek. and then you have the mg head dark horse. it's pretty confusing. i had to try all three of them to decide which one is right for me. and let's face it, one is NOT better than the other. one simply sounds best in YOUR particular system.

for me, the CREEK OBH-11 has the most accurate sound of the bunch. some reviews say that you should go for the creek if you like bass response. i totally agree. the tube amps i've tried simply don't have the bass impact/punch the creek has.

i knew my senn HD580's had deep bass. i heard it when it plugged into my CDP's headphone jack. i did not hear it thru my mg head. it fact, i sold my mg head when i heard rumble on a certain CD of mine. i knew that rumble was there, but it simply didn't hear it on the mg head. that probably sounds weird--but my point is that with the creek, you can hear whatever is on the CD itself! the creek doesn't roll-off any frequency, high or low.

i find that the creek has slightly less treble than either the mg head or the x-cans. i felt like the x-cans does upper-midrange very well, while the mg head does mid-midrange the best. if you're into acoustic piano, then the mg head is for you. the creek does it all well. all i know is that i just don't fell like something is missing when i listen to the creek.

of course, the mids in the creek aren't quite as "rich" as the tubed gear. that's obvious. but for SS, the creek has quite a warm sound.

also, the quality of your interconnects make a night and day difference on the creek. if you only plan on using cheapo IC's, go for a more forgiving amp.

my overall advise is this: if you're used to SS (like most of us) and if you don't want to add brightness to your headphones, go for the creek.

system:
AMC cd8b
DH labs BL-1 IC's
sennheiser HD580's.

Similar Products Used:

mg head, x-cans (demo only)

No noise or apparent distortion

None

I do classical music on headphones 99% of the time and have this set up with a Rega Planet CD player and Sennheiser 580s. Overall, results are better than anything I've had, though somewhat short of all-out mindblowing. This setup will hold me for maybe five years. Then it will be UPGRADE TIME. Next time I'll try not to crash into the glass listening room door at the local hi fi shop. They put some decals on the door that were supposed to clue me to its existence, but they failed to register and I hit my forehead pretty hard. Made quite a racket too, which added to the embarrassment. I asked the manager if anyone else other than a bird had ever done his door like that and he said no. Actually, this was the second time in my life I've hit the glass in a hi-fi shop -- so the score appears to be: ME 2, WORLD 0. Given which history, you might as well ignore advice from me on amplifiers or for that matter anything else.

The Creek OBH-11 is a little black box with a tiny green light that you plug headphones into. It's a necessity for those of us who own preamps with no headphone jack. I bought it for $199 after cruising the net and considering the Musical Fidelity can shaped amp and those from Headroom. The Creek just looked like it belonged along side my other components. What it does is rev up the output from your CD player. It can do it directly or you can hook it up to the tape out jacks of your preamp. You don't even need to turn the preamp on, the signal works its way through the preamp to the OBH-11, and you adjust the volume with the beefy knob. Bottom line...this little amp extracts detail like I've never heard before. Just when I thought I needed to upgrade my CAL AUDIO LABS DX1 and my Sennheiser HD 535's, I find that they both sound spectacular when hooked up to the Creek OBH-11. This unit allows you to fully appreciate the difference that quality interconnects make too. I switched out some entry level cable with Audioquest TOPAZ and couldn't believe the difference.
All in all, a delightful piece of electronic gadgetry, guaranteed to give you the kind of audio experience you yearn for. Balanced. Detailed. Sweet. It allows you to forget your equipment and concentrate on music. I highly recommend it.

Its specification is not spectacular, BUT this little baby headphone amplifier really works! With a good cheap headphone like Grado, you are going to Hi-End heaven!

This is a fine little amplifier. It does everything a a top-flight headphone amp should do at a fair price. It's solidly built and straight-forward in design and function.
I compared it directly to a $1300 HeadRoom headphone amp and still preferred the Creek. It's clear, dynamic, and alive sounding. It's nice to know that great products with realistic prices still exist.

associated gear:
Sennheiser HD-600
Meridian 508.24
Kimber Kable PBJ

I purchased the OBH-11 two years ago and I have very pleased with the amp. It did take some time to burn in but after 20 hours of use and the bass became more revealing. I have been using Grado SR-80 headphones and the pair make a terrific team, the low impedance of the Grado's (32 Ohm's) was handled in stride by the amplifier. The device is very compact and solidly built so I have great confidence that it will be trouble free for years to come. For the relatively low price and its great performance I give it five stars.

Clear and airy midrange.

none

I bought the OBH-11 three days ago and here is what I think.
First off it is the best piece of equipment that I have heard for headphones. No regular headphone jack I have heard even on Rotel equipment which other people have commented on being good compares to it.

Now the bass. The bass compared to my JVC reciever is like comparing apples to oranges. The impact is increased ten fold and there is a sense of ease to it. It doesn't sound restrained like it used to.

The treble is crystal clear. I don't see how other people say it is too harsh. It is so detailed that even at low volumes it is faithfully reproduced. The crash of cymbals, whistles, flutes and other high frequency instruments are played with ease never sounding laid back.

And finally the midrange. Why last? Simple, it is the bread and butter of the amp. It creates an immense soundstage that needs to be heard in order to believe. Guitars sound airy and fluid like. And voices, boy do they sound good. You will actually think you are at a live concert. And you can be fooled. I listened to a certain CD at the store where I bought the amp. The song started off slow and then various instruments started to fill in. I listened to it but there was a problem. Or was there? I thought that a speaker was playing in the background which was interfering with the usual blobby feeling that you get from headphones. So I took my headphones off and guess what? There was no music playing in the background! That's right the amp made the headphones sound like speakers!

Some final thoughts. In some pictures on the Internet I noticed input jacks but no output jacks on rear side of the amp. However mine does. I guess I have a new version so this may be something to watch out for.

Here's what some CD's from various genres sound like.

ZZ TOP Greatest Hits (Rock). Drums, Bass and electonic sounds prevail especially in Legs and Sleeping Bag.

Chemical Reaction (Chemical Brothers) {Big Beat}. Superior Bass and very airy presentation.

No. 1 Sci-Fi Album (Classical) The clash of cymbals and punchy Timpani make it a winner.

Surrender (Chemical Brothers) {Techno}Powerful booming bass. Doesn't go Woooom, Woom Woom like a 70 year old constapated male.

I give this product 5 hooves

Similar Products Used:

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Small, great bass, wide soundstage, very dependent on interconnects, able to make most headphones sound much better

Long running in time, cheap power supply (but effective and silent)

Great little amp! I use this with Beyer DT 931 and the results are outstanding, however, with my Grado SR80 not nearly as good. The volume knob has a very expensive feel to it and is very accurate. Overall, highly recommended!

Similar Products Used:

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