reamping coming from headphone/line out?

[colonel_claypoo]

hi all,

instead of using a dedicated reamp box, has anyone ever tried to just come out of the headphone output of your interface instead?

I haven't tried it yet because I'm not sure it's safe.
I have a RME Babyface and the headphone and line out both have an output impedance of 30ohms (manual) / 50ohms (measured).

so what do you think?
is there anything to gain from trying it except not damaging the equipment?

thanks

 

[colonel_claypoo]

ok, well, at least let me know if it's possible to do or please let me know why it isn't.

 

[bryan_kilco]

No, but back in the day before I even owned an audio interface, I ran right out of my computers headohone jack and to 1/4" adapter and into my amps....it worked....and at the time I thought it sounded good....hahaha!!

 

[PaoloJM]

It's perfectly safe.
Line level signal is much hotter than instrument, so you need to take that into account.
Line outs are usually balanced mono outs, amps are unbalanced mono in, there may be noise issues depending on how your go about it.

 

[olif8]

My advice is...wait until an experienced forum member chimes in (no offense to PaoloJM) before trying anything as this is potentially a very expensive experiment.

 

[MartijnPaauwe]

Depends on the interface i'd say. But i reamp all the time with my Focusrite Saffire Pro 40 via Line-Out and it works like a charm. I'm not so sure about the headphone outputs

 

[Jarkko Mattheiszen]

It's completely safe to reamp from a line out without a reamp box. I've done it dozens of times. Use a pedal with a buffer stage if you have one.

 

[colonel_claypoo]

thanks so far.
if I remember correctly, isn't there some debate from time to time about reamping with or without a dedicated reamp box?
some people strongly advise to use a reamp box whereas others say it doesn't really make a difference.

where do you guys stand?
I'm not looking to start a new debate, I just want to learn about the benefits. impedances for example is an issue right?

thank you

 

[Triscore]

thanks so far.
if I remember correctly, isn't there some debate from time to time about reamping with or without a dedicated reamp box?
some people strongly advise to use a reamp box whereas others say it doesn't really make a difference.

where do you guys stand?
I'm not looking to start a new debate, I just want to learn about the benefits. impedances for example is an issue right?

thank you

Need to know too!!

 

[Jarkko Mattheiszen]

Try it. Nothing to lose there. If it sounds good, it's good, that's all there is to it, really. A Reamp box adds the nifty ability to cut the ground to reduce possible noise problems which is why I use one.