Phonitor - Headphone Monitoring Amplifier

There is more than meets the eye in working with headphones. For example the  modern audio production is often a decentralized process, maybe recording and track laying in one studio and mixing in another and as a result a production often take place in acoustically questionable rooms. In such circumstances, a mix might occur in an acoustically deficient ambiance (for example, in an extremely modal room), and employing headphones then begins to make sense when a successful mix would otherwise turn out to be impossible.

But another fact is that many musicians or producers might wish to – or be able to – mix at home (to say nothing of having to). Then the headphone becomes a clear must, enabling an evening or late night session that can only take place thanks to its being unhindered by the local acoustic environment.

As many already know, there are clear advantages to monitoring and mixing with headphones, but there are also a couple of disadvantages. The main one being that it is very difficult (if not impossible) to accurately judge room ambience.

Therefore, several years ago SPL began planning the development of a compact, professional headphone amplifier design based on its 120 volt technology. The inspiration came from project manager Hermann Gier‘s desire to eliminate major disadvantages in working with headphones. It therefore meant transferring the essential ambient parameters of loudspeaker monitoring to headphone monitoring.

After several years of development and painstaking optimization, SPL have now introduced the Phonitor, whose name is a derivative of “Headphone“ and “Monitor“.