There are numerous reasons why you might be looking to use headphones with a turntable.
Whether you’ve got kids, neighbours or just prefer using headphones to listen to your vinyl, it’s a valid setup either as a standalone or as an addition to your normal speaker setup for late night listening.
But how do you get started?
Luckily it’s relatively simple, here’s our guide to the three main methods of connecting your headphones to your turntable.
Headphone & Turntable Choices
Option 1: Dedicated Headphone Amplifier
This is definitely the way to go if optimal sound quality is your number one priority.
You’ll need a headphone amplifier connected to your turntable via the RCA output.
Then you can plug in and use any wired headphones.
We recommend the ifi Audio Zen CAN analog headphone amplifier which you can connect to your turntable via RCA cable then plug into your headphones.
As for headphones, your choices are now endless as you can connect any wired headphones.
For home listening we’d suggest the Grado Prestige series of open back headphones, they’ll certainly bring your record collection to life!
Option 2: Bluetooth Headphones
You can easily pair a Bluetooth turntable to a pair of wireless Bluetooth headphones to enjoy your record collection.
Bear in mind that you’ll need to be within an 8-10 metre range from the turntable due to the Bluetooth range.
There are a lot of Bluetooth turntable options such as the Teac TN-180BT or the Audio Technica LP60XBT which will allow you to connect to headphones.
Make sure your headphones have built in volume controls though otherwise you’ll be “enjoying” your music at full volume.
I personally tested the Teac TN-180BT with my Shure Aonic 50’s and was pleasantly surprised by the ease of setup and sound experience.
Option 3: Headphone Output On Speakers
If your speakers or amplifier has a headphone output then you can simply plug your headphones into the amplifier and enjoy your record player that way.
Most freestanding HiFi amplifiers should feature a headphone output but it's not so common on powered bookshelf speakers.
Take a look at the Audioengine HD4's as these have a built-in headphone amplifier allowing for versatile listening.
Option 4: Headphone Output On Turntable
Some turntables or all in one record players have a headphone output.
It’s not common though and none of our turntables include this.
It’s a simple plug and play method though so if you happen to have a turntable with a headphone output then you can simply plug in some wired headphones and enjoy your music!
Conclusion
As you can see it’s pretty easy to get setup with headphones and a turntable.
Now you won’t need to worry about waking the kids with late night listening or annoying your neighbours.
If you’re anything like me you have multiple pairs of headphones for different uses so there’s not much wrong with going for multiple options here, i.e option 1 for the HiFi experience and option 2 for casual listening.
Our expert team is on hand to help you choose the best setup and you can find a few headphone and turntable bundles here.
