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Schiit Modi 3+ Review (Stereo DAC)

Helicopter

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Does anybody actually like the look of Schit gear? I don't like the curved top, the exposed edges and what's with the silver finish? Is silver less expensive than black to make?
The black costs them less to make than the silver. I like the look of Schiit.

MQA is a ripoff.
 

maxp779

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As a desktop dac, imo it is better for them to use the standard usb type-b connector (printer port) or is that pricey too?

A USB B would also have been acceptable to me as an alternative to USB C. Im avoiding micro USB like I started to avoid VGA, Scart, DVI etc when they started to go out of fashion. Even low end phones have been dropping micro USB.
 

Helicopter

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Are you sure about that? They seem to push the silver quite a bit.
Looking again, what I said is only partially confirmed. The silver certainly looks more expensive to me, being brushed and pristine, while the black could easily cover up small metal defects. What Jason Stoddard actually said was that offering only one color reduces their cost and implied this was because they would not have the inventory cost of a second version. There was a reference to his comment here, on ASR, which I had misinterpreted.
 

battopi

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Looking again, what I said is only partially confirmed. The silver certainly looks more expensive to me, being brushed and pristine, while the black could easily cover up small metal defects. What Jason Stoddard actually said was that offering only one color reduces their cost and implied this was because they would not have the inventory cost of a second version. There was a reference to his comment here, on ASR, which I had misinterpreted.

That makes more sense. I think there are a few units that are available only in silver which would be odd if the silver finish was more expensive. I had a silver SYS and could not make peace with the color.
 

3rdShift

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JohnYang1997

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Responding to both of you, do the distributors handle topping's warranty? If so, what's the process?
Just ask your preferred distributor. APOS for example if you are in NA.
 

Spocko

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@VintageFlanker

I know all about it after being for decades on forums. Ofcourse I first want my gear to be well built and good measuring, that’s why I like this site so much. But sometimes there are some subjective thingies that are worth mentioning.
And no shame in admitting that many audiophiles prefer to hear harmonic distortion. Nelson Pass has stated he tunes his amps to deliver the "right" distortion, aka musicality.
 

Andrew LB

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Assembled in the US is not the same as made in USA but close ;)



"Designed and Built in California
By “designed and built in California" this is what we mean: the vast majority of the total production cost of Modi 3+ and Modi Multibit—chassis, boards, transformers, assembly, etc—goes to US companies manufacturing in the US. Our chassis are made minutes from our facility. Our PCBs are done just over the hill from us, or done in NorCal. "
 

DarkLord

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I got the Modi Multibit and it's pretty darn good. I like it better than the Grace SDAC which has kind of a weird sound. Only thing I have to say is that it's a bit too smooth sounding, works good on some music but not all. Overall it sounds pretty natural and true. I know certain songs like the back of my hand and a few tracks took me back to the old days when stereos actually sounded good (almost everything sounds like shit now unless you spend $$$$) This is a rare gem at the price but still lacking the full musicality of a big boy DAC.
 

LTig

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I got the Modi Multibit and it's pretty darn good. I like it better than the Grace SDAC which has kind of a weird sound. Only thing I have to say is that it's a bit too smooth sounding, works good on some music but not all. Overall it sounds pretty natural and true. I know certain songs like the back of my hand and a few tracks took me back to the old days when stereos actually sounded good (almost everything sounds like shit now unless you spend $$$$)
Uh huh.
 

DarkLord

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To be fair it depends on the headphones. With the HD5xx it sounds pretty good, with the HD 660s the flaws show up.

If you are ok with backing off the resolution a bit it is a nice DAC for sure! But yeah, not sure I enjoy it more than the boombox I had when I was 15... sad facts of life... all this science shit is kind of a JOKE LMFAO. (but keep believing it if you want you fucking monkeys)
 

LTig

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May be I should have highlighted what I wanted to complain most about:
... and a few tracks took me back to the old days when stereos actually sounded good (almost everything sounds like shit now unless you spend $$$$)
This is so wrong. Get a good measuring DAC with volume control (no need to spend more than $150 .. 200) and a pair of JBL 305p (less than $250). Compare with anything in the same price range from "the old days".
 
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