Review and Measurements of Topping A30 and Schiit Magni 3 Headphone Amps

[Roman]

80 ohm Beyer products are not very good. I would get the 250 ohm versions.
770 will be alot more V-shaped and bassy, the 990 is supposed to be neutral / flat.

I love to listen to music loudly.
How topping the A30 to cope with 250 ohms?
For classics, is the Beyer DT770pro or 990 better?

 

[Dana reed]

You should have plenty of volume with the 250 Ohm and the A30. I have plenty of volume using the Amiron Home (250 Ohm) with the Magni3 which is similarly powered. Also, you'll get a better damping factor with the 250 Ohm and the 10 Ohm output impedance of the A30.

 

[TuneInSoul]

1. High gain sounds better (without a technical explanation)

IMO high gain doesn't always sound better, it depends on your system.

2. Using low gain is not recommended once you go past the 12 o'clock setting on the volume pot as increasing volume further can lead to increase in distortion

This also depends on your system.

 

[josepfe]

This is a review and detailed measurements and comparison of Topping A30 and Schiit Magni 3 headphone amplifiers. I own both units and their accompanying DACs (Topping D30 and Schiit Modi 2). The review will be mostly covering the amplifiers but at the end, I will provide a snapshot comparison of both units "as stacks" with their DACs. Hey, that rhymes!

The Topping A30 is available everywhere and as of this writing costs USD $110 including Prime shipping from Amazon. Schiit only sells its products direct and the Magni 3 costs $99 but then you have to pay shipping which would make the cost comparable to Topping.

Both units are desktop sized as you see here stacked on top of their DACs:

View attachment 14666​

While the "design language" is identical between the two Topping products, as you can see in the picture, the two Schiit units have different finishes. What is that about? Did they change manufacturers for one of the units and didn't try to get color matching?

A more relevant point is that on Topping products, all the controls are in front. Schiit as with most of their units, puts such things as power switch and in this case, the headphone gain control in the back. While you can learn to find them by feel, you can't tell their settings by just looking at the unit.

The Topping has two headphone outputs with the 3.5 mm having an inline resistor and triple gain settings. This allows one to nicely match the demands of the headphone to the power the unit produces. There is also a high and amplifier voltage that I did not test. The unit comes with the largest linear wall wart I have ever seen on a desktop product! Luckily it has cords at both ends so you can plug it into any outlet.

The Schiit has two gain settings which while not identical to Topping, they do the job.

I am sure you all are interested in how they measure. I have learned that testing headphones is a bit of nightmare. With multiple gain settings, different loads to test, and position of volume control in testing, the matrix can become infinite. I am still refining what my core set of tests should be for such units. As such, you will not see every combination tested. If you want something that is not measured, time permitting, I can run more tests.

Measurements
Like my DAC tests, I thought it would be good to have a "dashboard" view of the units. Here, I used a 600 ohm load on them as to make them work as little as possible (using 100K load caused the Magni 3 to be erratic in one channel). I also set the units so that they are acting as a "buffer" or unity gain. In other words, they don't amplify the DAC output but rather, allow it to drive much more difficult/real headphone loads at the same output level of 1 volt. This setting provides some of the best performance I could get out of the units.

First up is Schiit Magni 3:
View attachment 14667

We are getting pretty good performance with Sinad (signal above distortion and noise) of almost 100 dB in one channel. The other though is trailing at 97 dB.

Here is Topping A30:

View attachment 14668

We see an improved SINAD of 106 dB and performance of two channels being very similar. We see though that harmonic distortion is actually much better than Schiit Magni 3. The reason SINAD is not even better is due to fair bit of mains noise. Since our hearing sensitivity is much worse in low frequencies, the THD measurement is not a fair comparison of audibility here but we go with it.

Let's load these units with 300 ohms and see where we land:

View attachment 14670

The slightly higher gain of Topping A30 pushes its noise floor higher than Schiit Magni 3. Fortunately it, and Schiit Magni 3 can be driven in low gain mode which lowers the noise floor more.

Powerwise, the A30 runs out of juice earlier than Magni 3, producing 0.18 watt of clean power. Schiit Magni 3 produces more power of 0.33 watts but at 3X higher distortion point than Topping A30 (0.005% THD+N versus 0.001% respectively). Indeed distortion becomes dominant over noise (where the curve tilts up) in Schiit Magni 3 at lower power than Topping A30. This effect is exaggerated when we switch to 33 ohm load:
View attachment 14671

The Topping A30 provides its good performance right to the limit whereas the Schiit Magni 3 starts to distort more at just 2 milliwatts. By the time Schiit Magni 3 is outproducing the Topping A30 in power, its distortion is already up at 0.1% or so which is unacceptable in my book.

Schiit rates the Magni 3 at 2 watts using 32 ohm load. Mine at 1.7 watts using 33 ohm is close enough to say that is a fair rating. Topping rates the power at 32 ohm at 1.5 watts which is more optimistic than the cut off point I use.

Note that due to logarithm nature of the above graphs, there are not that many measurement points at clipping. So the actual point may be slightly higher than shown there. I can run a higher resolution test but it takes much more time.

Let's run an intermodulation distortion test using 50 ohm load for variety:


View attachment 14672

We see that the Topping A30 has a commanding lead in distortion between 50 or so millivolts until clipping. So if that is the region of performance you use, the Topping A30 should sound cleaner.

The achilles heel of Topping A30 unfortunately is its high output impedance:

View attachment 14673

The impedance using the TRS connector is at 10.8 ohms which is the rated spec. The Schiit Magni 3 cleans it clocks at just 0.6 ohms. The higher output impedance of Topping A30 can modify the frequency response of your headphone (for good or bad).

Finally, let's see how good channel balance is as we lower the volume in low-gain mode. First Schiit Magni 3:

View attachment 14674

That's pretty good response with deviation below 0.5 dB until the absolute end.

Here is how Topping A30 did using medium gain:

View attachment 14675

The Topping A30 mutes the output as you get close to the end and hence the drastic cliff. So you have about 30 dB of attenuation. Here is the performance at unity gain setting:


View attachment 14676

Now you can go a bit lower before muting kicks in. Overall, the deviations are less than Schiit Magni 3 until you get at the minimum level.

Stack Test
As promised, this is a snapshot how the combo of Topping D30+A30 compare to Schiit Modi 2+Magni 3 perform. First the Topping stack:

View attachment 14678

Once again we are in unit test mode but at 2 volts because that is what the DAC outputs. Here is the Schiit combo:
View attachment 14679

We see almost 3X the distortion compared to Topping stack. SINAD as dropped from 97 dB to 89 dB.

There is also fair bit of channel imbalance visible even on the scope graph on top left.

The Topping stack is clearly the lower distortion producing of the two.

Listening Tests
For my testing here, I used my HiFiman HE400i and Sennheiser HD-650 headphones. Both units were level matched (to I think 4 volt output) and then driven with a split RCA cable from my Topping DX7s DAC. I then used the volume control on Topping to adjust listening level as needed.

At low, background listening/enjoying level, both units sounded good reflecting the fidelity of the source. No difference in distortion or noise was audible.

Turning up the level from medium to high, caused one of the units to get bright. Identifying that unit showed it was Magni 3. It is ever so slightly brighter which can indicate to some as more soundstage or detail -- none of which are true. The extra distortion generated by Magni 3 increases the high frequency content and hence that subjective impression. No real change was there in any other fidelity aspects no matter how much I concentrated.

I then turned up the levels until the headphone cups were literally rattling. The Topping had clear audible distortion but not as much as the Schiit Magni 3. The Magni 3 had maybe 10% more headroom as far as how loud you could make it but the sound was very distorted and hence, that headroom was not usable.

I could not detect any change in frequency response due to higher output impedance of Topping A30. I need to create better test scenarios to see how audible this is. And yes, the choice of above two headphones may have made this point moot.

Please note that these subjective tests are NOT authoritative. While I control levels and perform the test blind, these are not rigorous tests with many trials and such. Use them as a more reliable listening test than the random nonsense you read in subjective reviews but not enough to trump the objective measurements.

Conclusions
The picture emerging from the measurements is not clear cut. In general the Topping A30 has lower distortion but that is accompanied with much higher output impedance and lower power output.

Both units provide similar enjoyment when listening to music at low to reasonably loud levels (with headphones I tested). Above that both fall apart and can't compete with likes of iFi iDSD Black Edition. I would give the nod to Topping A30 if you listen loud as I do.

Both Topping A30 and Schiit Magni 3 are recommended for budget friendly choices in headphone amplifiers. Let your preferences in looks, usability, etc. guide you in your selection.

-------------

As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

If you like this review, please consider donating funds for these types of hardware purchases using Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/audiosciencereview), or upgrading your membership here though Paypal (https://audiosciencereview.com/foru...eview-and-measurements.2164/page-3#post-59054).

Hi Amirm, thanks a million for your posts, I am just a newcomer here but I have been enjoying your posts for a while, as well as the discussions in this forum. I own the Hifiman 4xx and will receive soon the Senns 6xx, so the fact that you use both HPs for your measurements make them very interesting for me. For the moment I am using the small desktop amplifier SMSL SAP II (1000 mv at 32 ohm, around 130 mv at 300 ohm). When using my Fiio X1II (power output 70 mv at 32 ohm, 8 mv at 300 ohm) with the line out I don´t need to go further than 40% of volume in the Fiio and 12 o'clock in the SMSL to drive the hifiman 4xx to sufficient loud levels. I haven't found any scientific review of the SMSL sap II, so I wanted to ask you whether you know this amplifier. I also wanted to ask you

This is a review and detailed measurements and comparison of Topping A30 and Schiit Magni 3 headphone amplifiers. I own both units and their accompanying DACs (Topping D30 and Schiit Modi 2). The review will be mostly covering the amplifiers but at the end, I will provide a snapshot comparison of both units "as stacks" with their DACs. Hey, that rhymes!

The Topping A30 is available everywhere and as of this writing costs USD $110 including Prime shipping from Amazon. Schiit only sells its products direct and the Magni 3 costs $99 but then you have to pay shipping which would make the cost comparable to Topping.

Both units are desktop sized as you see here stacked on top of their DACs:

View attachment 14666​

While the "design language" is identical between the two Topping products, as you can see in the picture, the two Schiit units have different finishes. What is that about? Did they change manufacturers for one of the units and didn't try to get color matching?

A more relevant point is that on Topping products, all the controls are in front. Schiit as with most of their units, puts such things as power switch and in this case, the headphone gain control in the back. While you can learn to find them by feel, you can't tell their settings by just looking at the unit.

The Topping has two headphone outputs with the 3.5 mm having an inline resistor and triple gain settings. This allows one to nicely match the demands of the headphone to the power the unit produces. There is also a high and amplifier voltage that I did not test. The unit comes with the largest linear wall wart I have ever seen on a desktop product! Luckily it has cords at both ends so you can plug it into any outlet.

The Schiit has two gain settings which while not identical to Topping, they do the job.

I am sure you all are interested in how they measure. I have learned that testing headphones is a bit of nightmare. With multiple gain settings, different loads to test, and position of volume control in testing, the matrix can become infinite. I am still refining what my core set of tests should be for such units. As such, you will not see every combination tested. If you want something that is not measured, time permitting, I can run more tests.

Measurements
Like my DAC tests, I thought it would be good to have a "dashboard" view of the units. Here, I used a 600 ohm load on them as to make them work as little as possible (using 100K load caused the Magni 3 to be erratic in one channel). I also set the units so that they are acting as a "buffer" or unity gain. In other words, they don't amplify the DAC output but rather, allow it to drive much more difficult/real headphone loads at the same output level of 1 volt. This setting provides some of the best performance I could get out of the units.

First up is Schiit Magni 3:
View attachment 14667

We are getting pretty good performance with Sinad (signal above distortion and noise) of almost 100 dB in one channel. The other though is trailing at 97 dB.

Here is Topping A30:

View attachment 14668

We see an improved SINAD of 106 dB and performance of two channels being very similar. We see though that harmonic distortion is actually much better than Schiit Magni 3. The reason SINAD is not even better is due to fair bit of mains noise. Since our hearing sensitivity is much worse in low frequencies, the THD measurement is not a fair comparison of audibility here but we go with it.

Let's load these units with 300 ohms and see where we land:

View attachment 14670

The slightly higher gain of Topping A30 pushes its noise floor higher than Schiit Magni 3. Fortunately it, and Schiit Magni 3 can be driven in low gain mode which lowers the noise floor more.

Powerwise, the A30 runs out of juice earlier than Magni 3, producing 0.18 watt of clean power. Schiit Magni 3 produces more power of 0.33 watts but at 3X higher distortion point than Topping A30 (0.005% THD+N versus 0.001% respectively). Indeed distortion becomes dominant over noise (where the curve tilts up) in Schiit Magni 3 at lower power than Topping A30. This effect is exaggerated when we switch to 33 ohm load:
View attachment 14671

The Topping A30 provides its good performance right to the limit whereas the Schiit Magni 3 starts to distort more at just 2 milliwatts. By the time Schiit Magni 3 is outproducing the Topping A30 in power, its distortion is already up at 0.1% or so which is unacceptable in my book.

Schiit rates the Magni 3 at 2 watts using 32 ohm load. Mine at 1.7 watts using 33 ohm is close enough to say that is a fair rating. Topping rates the power at 32 ohm at 1.5 watts which is more optimistic than the cut off point I use.

Note that due to logarithm nature of the above graphs, there are not that many measurement points at clipping. So the actual point may be slightly higher than shown there. I can run a higher resolution test but it takes much more time.

Let's run an intermodulation distortion test using 50 ohm load for variety:


View attachment 14672

We see that the Topping A30 has a commanding lead in distortion between 50 or so millivolts until clipping. So if that is the region of performance you use, the Topping A30 should sound cleaner.

The achilles heel of Topping A30 unfortunately is its high output impedance:

View attachment 14673

The impedance using the TRS connector is at 10.8 ohms which is the rated spec. The Schiit Magni 3 cleans it clocks at just 0.6 ohms. The higher output impedance of Topping A30 can modify the frequency response of your headphone (for good or bad).

Finally, let's see how good channel balance is as we lower the volume in low-gain mode. First Schiit Magni 3:

View attachment 14674

That's pretty good response with deviation below 0.5 dB until the absolute end.

Here is how Topping A30 did using medium gain:

View attachment 14675

The Topping A30 mutes the output as you get close to the end and hence the drastic cliff. So you have about 30 dB of attenuation. Here is the performance at unity gain setting:


View attachment 14676

Now you can go a bit lower before muting kicks in. Overall, the deviations are less than Schiit Magni 3 until you get at the minimum level.

Stack Test
As promised, this is a snapshot how the combo of Topping D30+A30 compare to Schiit Modi 2+Magni 3 perform. First the Topping stack:

View attachment 14678

Once again we are in unit test mode but at 2 volts because that is what the DAC outputs. Here is the Schiit combo:
View attachment 14679

We see almost 3X the distortion compared to Topping stack. SINAD as dropped from 97 dB to 89 dB.

There is also fair bit of channel imbalance visible even on the scope graph on top left.

The Topping stack is clearly the lower distortion producing of the two.

Listening Tests
For my testing here, I used my HiFiman HE400i and Sennheiser HD-650 headphones. Both units were level matched (to I think 4 volt output) and then driven with a split RCA cable from my Topping DX7s DAC. I then used the volume control on Topping to adjust listening level as needed.

At low, background listening/enjoying level, both units sounded good reflecting the fidelity of the source. No difference in distortion or noise was audible.

Turning up the level from medium to high, caused one of the units to get bright. Identifying that unit showed it was Magni 3. It is ever so slightly brighter which can indicate to some as more soundstage or detail -- none of which are true. The extra distortion generated by Magni 3 increases the high frequency content and hence that subjective impression. No real change was there in any other fidelity aspects no matter how much I concentrated.

I then turned up the levels until the headphone cups were literally rattling. The Topping had clear audible distortion but not as much as the Schiit Magni 3. The Magni 3 had maybe 10% more headroom as far as how loud you could make it but the sound was very distorted and hence, that headroom was not usable.

I could not detect any change in frequency response due to higher output impedance of Topping A30. I need to create better test scenarios to see how audible this is. And yes, the choice of above two headphones may have made this point moot.

Please note that these subjective tests are NOT authoritative. While I control levels and perform the test blind, these are not rigorous tests with many trials and such. Use them as a more reliable listening test than the random nonsense you read in subjective reviews but not enough to trump the objective measurements.

Conclusions
The picture emerging from the measurements is not clear cut. In general the Topping A30 has lower distortion but that is accompanied with much higher output impedance and lower power output.

Both units provide similar enjoyment when listening to music at low to reasonably loud levels (with headphones I tested). Above that both fall apart and can't compete with likes of iFi iDSD Black Edition. I would give the nod to Topping A30 if you listen loud as I do.

Both Topping A30 and Schiit Magni 3 are recommended for budget friendly choices in headphone amplifiers. Let your preferences in looks, usability, etc. guide you in your selection.

-------------

As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

If you like this review, please consider donating funds for these types of hardware purchases using Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/audiosciencereview), or upgrading your membership here though Paypal (https://audiosciencereview.com/foru...eview-and-measurements.2164/page-3#post-59054).

This is a review and detailed measurements and comparison of Topping A30 and Schiit Magni 3 headphone amplifiers. I own both units and their accompanying DACs (Topping D30 and Schiit Modi 2). The review will be mostly covering the amplifiers but at the end, I will provide a snapshot comparison of both units "as stacks" with their DACs. Hey, that rhymes!

The Topping A30 is available everywhere and as of this writing costs USD $110 including Prime shipping from Amazon. Schiit only sells its products direct and the Magni 3 costs $99 but then you have to pay shipping which would make the cost comparable to Topping.

Both units are desktop sized as you see here stacked on top of their DACs:

View attachment 14666​

While the "design language" is identical between the two Topping products, as you can see in the picture, the two Schiit units have different finishes. What is that about? Did they change manufacturers for one of the units and didn't try to get color matching?

A more relevant point is that on Topping products, all the controls are in front. Schiit as with most of their units, puts such things as power switch and in this case, the headphone gain control in the back. While you can learn to find them by feel, you can't tell their settings by just looking at the unit.

The Topping has two headphone outputs with the 3.5 mm having an inline resistor and triple gain settings. This allows one to nicely match the demands of the headphone to the power the unit produces. There is also a high and amplifier voltage that I did not test. The unit comes with the largest linear wall wart I have ever seen on a desktop product! Luckily it has cords at both ends so you can plug it into any outlet.

The Schiit has two gain settings which while not identical to Topping, they do the job.

I am sure you all are interested in how they measure. I have learned that testing headphones is a bit of nightmare. With multiple gain settings, different loads to test, and position of volume control in testing, the matrix can become infinite. I am still refining what my core set of tests should be for such units. As such, you will not see every combination tested. If you want something that is not measured, time permitting, I can run more tests.

Measurements
Like my DAC tests, I thought it would be good to have a "dashboard" view of the units. Here, I used a 600 ohm load on them as to make them work as little as possible (using 100K load caused the Magni 3 to be erratic in one channel). I also set the units so that they are acting as a "buffer" or unity gain. In other words, they don't amplify the DAC output but rather, allow it to drive much more difficult/real headphone loads at the same output level of 1 volt. This setting provides some of the best performance I could get out of the units.

First up is Schiit Magni 3:
View attachment 14667

We are getting pretty good performance with Sinad (signal above distortion and noise) of almost 100 dB in one channel. The other though is trailing at 97 dB.

Here is Topping A30:

View attachment 14668

We see an improved SINAD of 106 dB and performance of two channels being very similar. We see though that harmonic distortion is actually much better than Schiit Magni 3. The reason SINAD is not even better is due to fair bit of mains noise. Since our hearing sensitivity is much worse in low frequencies, the THD measurement is not a fair comparison of audibility here but we go with it.

Let's load these units with 300 ohms and see where we land:

View attachment 14670

The slightly higher gain of Topping A30 pushes its noise floor higher than Schiit Magni 3. Fortunately it, and Schiit Magni 3 can be driven in low gain mode which lowers the noise floor more.

Powerwise, the A30 runs out of juice earlier than Magni 3, producing 0.18 watt of clean power. Schiit Magni 3 produces more power of 0.33 watts but at 3X higher distortion point than Topping A30 (0.005% THD+N versus 0.001% respectively). Indeed distortion becomes dominant over noise (where the curve tilts up) in Schiit Magni 3 at lower power than Topping A30. This effect is exaggerated when we switch to 33 ohm load:
View attachment 14671

The Topping A30 provides its good performance right to the limit whereas the Schiit Magni 3 starts to distort more at just 2 milliwatts. By the time Schiit Magni 3 is outproducing the Topping A30 in power, its distortion is already up at 0.1% or so which is unacceptable in my book.

Schiit rates the Magni 3 at 2 watts using 32 ohm load. Mine at 1.7 watts using 33 ohm is close enough to say that is a fair rating. Topping rates the power at 32 ohm at 1.5 watts which is more optimistic than the cut off point I use.

Note that due to logarithm nature of the above graphs, there are not that many measurement points at clipping. So the actual point may be slightly higher than shown there. I can run a higher resolution test but it takes much more time.

Let's run an intermodulation distortion test using 50 ohm load for variety:


View attachment 14672

We see that the Topping A30 has a commanding lead in distortion between 50 or so millivolts until clipping. So if that is the region of performance you use, the Topping A30 should sound cleaner.

The achilles heel of Topping A30 unfortunately is its high output impedance:

View attachment 14673

The impedance using the TRS connector is at 10.8 ohms which is the rated spec. The Schiit Magni 3 cleans it clocks at just 0.6 ohms. The higher output impedance of Topping A30 can modify the frequency response of your headphone (for good or bad).

Finally, let's see how good channel balance is as we lower the volume in low-gain mode. First Schiit Magni 3:

View attachment 14674

That's pretty good response with deviation below 0.5 dB until the absolute end.

Here is how Topping A30 did using medium gain:

View attachment 14675

The Topping A30 mutes the output as you get close to the end and hence the drastic cliff. So you have about 30 dB of attenuation. Here is the performance at unity gain setting:


View attachment 14676

Now you can go a bit lower before muting kicks in. Overall, the deviations are less than Schiit Magni 3 until you get at the minimum level.

Stack Test
As promised, this is a snapshot how the combo of Topping D30+A30 compare to Schiit Modi 2+Magni 3 perform. First the Topping stack:

View attachment 14678

Once again we are in unit test mode but at 2 volts because that is what the DAC outputs. Here is the Schiit combo:
View attachment 14679

We see almost 3X the distortion compared to Topping stack. SINAD as dropped from 97 dB to 89 dB.

There is also fair bit of channel imbalance visible even on the scope graph on top left.

The Topping stack is clearly the lower distortion producing of the two.

Listening Tests
For my testing here, I used my HiFiman HE400i and Sennheiser HD-650 headphones. Both units were level matched (to I think 4 volt output) and then driven with a split RCA cable from my Topping DX7s DAC. I then used the volume control on Topping to adjust listening level as needed.

At low, background listening/enjoying level, both units sounded good reflecting the fidelity of the source. No difference in distortion or noise was audible.

Turning up the level from medium to high, caused one of the units to get bright. Identifying that unit showed it was Magni 3. It is ever so slightly brighter which can indicate to some as more soundstage or detail -- none of which are true. The extra distortion generated by Magni 3 increases the high frequency content and hence that subjective impression. No real change was there in any other fidelity aspects no matter how much I concentrated.

I then turned up the levels until the headphone cups were literally rattling. The Topping had clear audible distortion but not as much as the Schiit Magni 3. The Magni 3 had maybe 10% more headroom as far as how loud you could make it but the sound was very distorted and hence, that headroom was not usable.

I could not detect any change in frequency response due to higher output impedance of Topping A30. I need to create better test scenarios to see how audible this is. And yes, the choice of above two headphones may have made this point moot.

Please note that these subjective tests are NOT authoritative. While I control levels and perform the test blind, these are not rigorous tests with many trials and such. Use them as a more reliable listening test than the random nonsense you read in subjective reviews but not enough to trump the objective measurements.

Conclusions
The picture emerging from the measurements is not clear cut. In general the Topping A30 has lower distortion but that is accompanied with much higher output impedance and lower power output.

Both units provide similar enjoyment when listening to music at low to reasonably loud levels (with headphones I tested). Above that both fall apart and can't compete with likes of iFi iDSD Black Edition. I would give the nod to Topping A30 if you listen loud as I do.

Both Topping A30 and Schiit Magni 3 are recommended for budget friendly choices in headphone amplifiers. Let your preferences in looks, usability, etc. guide you in your selection.

-------------

As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

If you like this review, please consider donating funds for these types of hardware purchases using Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/audiosciencereview), or upgrading your membership here though Paypal (https://audiosciencereview.com/foru...eview-and-measurements.2164/page-3#post-59054).

Hi, many thanks for your fantastic posts!. I am a new member here but I have been enjoying your posts and discussions for a while. I own the HIfiman 4xx and will have soon the Sennheisers 6xxs, so that your reviews are even more interesting to me. I´m currently using the amplifier SMSL SAP II (1 watt at 32 ohms and around 130 mw at 300 ohm, price around €60). In principle I'm happy with the SAP II as together with my Fiio X1 II via line out, it drives easily the Hifiman 4xxs.
However, I will need a second amplifier as I will use the HPs also at work. I don't want to spend lots of money in equipment and the cheapest options would be FiiO K5 (€99), Topping A30 (€110) and Massdrop Objective O2 (€90/€120 depending on import taxes). I like the design of the FiiO K5 and the possibility to use my player docked; the topping is very powerful and it seems that you did not have any problem with their 10-30 output impedance (I have read that planar HPs like the 4xx are not affected by the 1:8 ratio, is that true?); the Objective 02 seems to be a safe bet with low distortion and good power but the connection possibilities are limited. Also the version available in Massdrop is the one with low gain (x3.3) so I'm not sure whether it would be enough to drive my two HPs. I would be very grateful if you or any member could give me advice on which one of the three amplifiers to choose or whether I should stick to the SMSL. Thanks a million in advance for your advice!.

 

[ColinMacLaren]

Is the A30 still recommended?

Currently I own the following equipment:
Headphones: Beyer Xelento (16 Ohms), Sennheiser HD58x (150 Ohms), Beyer T1 2nd (600 Ohms).
Bookshelf speakers: E-MU XM7
DACs/Amps: Creative X7, Topping D30, Little Dot MK3, cheap Nobsound TPA3116 based speaker amplifier

The X7 is nice, but I really miss analogue Volume control and I hate having to fiddle around with the software so much.

For looks I could pair the A30 with the D30 (which I got for cheap), connect the Little Dot to the RCA out of the A30. The speakers are fine on my onboard sound. Are there better options that are readily available?

I am especially concerned with the output impedance. The low powered output of the A30 has 30 Ohms compared to the 16 Ohms of the Xelentos. I could use an ifi ear buddy to mitigate this, though.

 

[Jimmy]

I guess it depends if you are USA based or not, if you are probably the JDS Atom is a better buy, if you are not the A30 will be cheaper, there's nothing wrong with it, the 10 ohm output impedance shouldn't be a big deal except for IEMs, and the matching looks with the D30 are a plus.

 

[ColinMacLaren]

I am from Europe, so I went with the A30. The Celentos are IEMs, but they are dynamic drivers, so it should not matter too much.

 

[JohnYang1997]

There is a modification can be done to basically null the output impedance.
You need to add two resistors, the absolutely minimum.
Then you may or may not have it stable.
Then you need 4 capacitors and 2 more resistors.
If any of you owners trust me and want to make this modification, i need some of your help.
The result will be a better performing amplifier than atom.

 

[JohnYang1997]

Method 1not guaranteed stability)
2* 1kohm resistors needed
Find the output resistor. Find the end that connects to the output, solder one end of the 1k resistor to that point.
Find the inverting input of the opamp (the corresponding channel). Connect the other end of the 1kohm resistor here.
Same for the other channel.

Method 2: (guaranteed stability)
220ohm resistors *2
1k resistors *2
560p capacitors *4
connect two of the capacitors together to one capacitor(like a 220p capacitor with a middle node)
Connect one end to the output of the 2134 opamp, the other end to the inverting input.
Connect one end of 220ohm resistor to the output end of output resistor described in method1. And the other end to the inverting input of the 2134 opamp.
Connect one end of 1kohm resistor to the middle point of the capacitors and the other end to the amplifier output.
Do the same for the other channel.

Now you have a composite amplifier with opa2134 and tpa6120a2 that has super low distortion and zero output impedance.

Extra: you can use opa1612 or opa2140 or opa2156 to replace the opa2134. There will be even lower distortion and very low output offset.

 

[Trills]

Hey everyone,

Earlier in this thread, someone posted a question about pairing their Aeon Flow Closed headphones with the A30. I am actually in the exact same boat of trying to decide what to do with a pair of my own newly-ordered Aeons. I have a DAC I'm happy with, but I'm in the market for a new budget-friendly amp to replace my 1st-generation Magni.

The previous poster's question was regarding volume, but I have a different concern. The Aeon's impedance is only 13 ohms while the A30's output impedance is a significant 10.8 ohms. Forgive my potential ignorance (I'm fairly new to the technicalities of the audiophile world), but I read in a few places that the general rule of thumb is to pair your headphones with an output device that only has about 1/8th or less the impedance of the headphone. With that in mind, if someone could help with either of the following questions, I'd be very grateful:

1). Should I be worried that the A30's output impedance very nearly matches the impedance of my new headphones?
2). If the answer to #1 is yes, are there any other sub-$300 desktop amps with low output impedance worth looking into? The Magni 3 looks very appealing in this sense, but those distortion numbers look scary . Edit... will the JDS Atom amp have enough oomph to power the 92dB/mW efficiency Aeons?

Thanks for reading.

 

[JohnYang1997]

Hey everyone,

Earlier in this thread, someone posted a question about pairing their Aeon Flow Closed headphones with the A30. I am actually in the exact same boat of trying to decide what to do with a pair of my own newly-ordered Aeons. I have a DAC I'm happy with, but I'm in the market for a new budget-friendly amp to replace my 1st-generation Magni.

The previous poster's question was regarding volume, but I have a different concern. The Aeon's impedance is only 13 ohms while the A30's output impedance is a significant 10.8 ohms. Forgive my potential ignorance (I'm fairly new to the technicalities of the audiophile world), but I read in a few places that the general rule of thumb is to pair your headphones with an output device that only has about 1/8th or less the impedance of the headphone. With that in mind, if someone could help with either of the following questions, I'd be very grateful:

1). Should I be worried that the A30's output impedance very nearly matches the impedance of my new headphones?
2). If the answer to #1 is yes, are there any other sub-$300 desktop amps with low output impedance worth looking into? The Magni 3 looks very appealing in this sense, but those distortion numbers look scary

Thanks for reading.

yes and jds atom
I would also recommend dx3pro from topping.

 

[Trills]

yes and jds atom
I would also recommend dx3pro from topping.

Thanks, appreciate the feedback.

 

[Fabio]

I'm the one who wrote that question and I'll try to elaborate on my experience. A planar drive doesn't care about the output impedance, no matter how high, the FR won't change. And the A30 has about 1w of juice as the atom but the latter is much more clean and a much better first purchase. But it won't be enough if you listen predominantly high dynamic range recordings. This is why I upgrade to thx aaa 786 (lucky me) when I had a chance. And using the xlr output (about 6w in 13 ohms) It does make a huge difference. BTW I picked a used stock HD800 and had falled in love...

 

[JJ2106]

@amirm
I can see you are not fond of Schiit products (this is an understatement).
Yet, I have decided to buy the Magni 3, not because of its high power, but because:
- it is the best deal I can find here in France;
- it does not have a silly plastic package;
- its output impedance is very low;
- it has a preamp function
- the switches are located on the rear oh the unit (they will be useless for me);
- it is made in the USA.
It will run on lo gain, driving an 80 Ohm Beyer headphone (DT 770 Pro) from a 2.1V DAC.
Hence 55mW (2.1^2/80), which is close to the 100mW max acceptable by the Beyer.
By the way, I also disagree with @Jimster480. For me 80 Ohm Beyers are excellent professional gear, which only need to be paired with the right amp.
Their only drawback is that they are closed (but some will see that as an advantage).

 

[Veri]

@amirm
I can see you are not fond of Schiit products (this is an understatement.
Yet, I have decided to buy the Magni 3, not because of its high power, but because:
- it is the best deal I can find here in France

As long as one doesn't mind plastic as you say, I would say the JDS Atom is a better product objectively.
http://www.hifiheadphones.co.uk/jds-labs-atom-headphone-amplifier.html
Also very low output impedance, and would drive a 80 Ohm Beyer effortlessly

But if you like your magni3 that is the most important thing!

 

[JJ2106]

As long as one doesn't mind plastic as you say, I would say the JDS Atom is a better product objectively.
http://www.hifiheadphones.co.uk/jds-labs-atom-headphone-amplifier.html
Also very low output impedance, and would drive a 80 Ohm Beyer effortlessly

But if you like your magni3 that is the most important thing!

Hi Veri,
I am happy to acknowledge the superiority of the Atom with regard to measurements, but I will never buy it because of its plastic package.
Plus, it is more expensive (170€ plus carriage vs 125€ plus carriage for the Magni 3 from schiit europe (a Dutch company).
JDS are obviously not willing to compete in the Euroland.

 

[Veri]

JDS are obviously not willing to compete in the Euroland.

Not sure. they have a few resellers so I don't think it's out of lack of trying, tough market

 

[JJ2106]

I must slightly modify my calcs.
Schiit support told me that lo gain on the Magni 3 was x1.4 (3dB), whilst I thought it was unity.
So, the power into 80 Ohm phones will be:
(2.1*1.4142)^2/80 = 110 mW.
Perfect for the Beyers!
FYI, hi gain is x7 (17 dB), unnecessarily high in my opinion.
So, I share Amir's opinion that high gain should be avoided with the Magni 3.
As far as the Atom is concerned, I don't have the figures.

 

[amirm]

@amirm
I can see you are not fond of Schiit products (this is an understatement).
Yet, I have decided to buy the Magni 3, not because of its high power, but because:
- it is the best deal I can find here in France;
- it does not have a silly plastic package;
- its output impedance is very low;
- it has a preamp function
- the switches are located on the rear oh the unit (they will be useless for me);
- it is made in the USA.
It will run on lo gain, driving an 80 Ohm Beyer headphone (DT 770 Pro) from a 2.1V DAC.
Hence 55mW (2.1^2/80), which is close to the 100mW max acceptable by the Beyer.

I have no love or hate for any manufacturer. I test each product as if I have not seen anything else from them. The data tells the story then as does the feature set, look, functionality, etc. which you all should evaluate as you are doing.

 

[Ross5]

Hi,

Complete ‘noob’ question but... I was just about to pull the trigger on the Audio GD R2R until I saw some of the reviews on here. Now, I’m thinking just maybe get the Modi3 & Magni3 as a combo - I am using a 2015 MacBook Pro with (currently) an AudioEngine D1 and Adam Audio A5X’s (looking to add the Sub 7 Subwoofer) - I’m looking to spend around £250-£300 and only use the monitors for audio mix for videography and Spotify - so the question is - Schiit or Audio GD? Or a better alternative?

Thanks in advance