Schiit Magni 3+ and Heresy Headphone Amp Reviews

[pcdinh]

Excellent!!! Very good products by Schiit. Definitely very good buy

 

[pcdinh]

I wonder which one runs cooler over time? My guess is that simpler opamp design requires less energy to run, so cooler.

 

[trl]

Schiit measurement from the PDF datasheet (probably done at 1V RMS)

vs.

Amir measurements (2V RMS)
​

We can all see the resemblance between the two measurements done with the same APx555, so I guess Schiit datasheets for their audio gear could be trusted and used as reference and for future compare with other measurements as well.

I see the same inflection points in the harmonics profile, although Schiit's measurements shows a more pronounced background noise, probably due to the 1V RMS measurements instead of 2V RMS.

 

[amirm]

They are using less averaging and smaller FFT which causes some distortion products to be lost in the noise.

 

[half_dog]

(It was supposedly to be the postscript...) Many may have said it already, but I´d like to thank Amir (WolfX-700) and everyone who make this forum possible. This make me face my "fear" to communicate in english. As introvert and non native english speaker it´s a big accomplishment for me... Thanks again

And about these headphone amplifier, am I the only one who miss IMD measurement?

 

[makmeksam]

Is it too much to ask the IMD and multi-tone test?

And about these headphone amplifier, am I the only one who miss IMD measurement?

Below plots [1][2] are from Schiit measurements for Heresy. There is a small rise of IMD in [1] when frequency rises. I think it is nothing to be concerned. But Magni 3+ does not have it here.

And in [2], the shape is just a bit unusual. Again, nothing to be concerned I guess. However, it would be great if we could see IMD and multi tone test (multi tone is so cool) from @amirm.

[1]

[2]

 

[JohnBooty]

Again, other companies do it right the first time. And at similar price points.

Which companies, though?

There aren't a lot of companies directly comparable to Schiit in terms of audiophile-focused DACs and amps in their price range.

JDS Labs might be the closest comparison, though they have a smaller lineup. I don't have any direct experience but as far as I know, they have a track record second to none in terms of performance and customer service. Although, it's worth noting that they sort of launched on the back of NwAvGuy's work.

AudioQuest's portable DACs have been good performers in a similar price segment, but the rest of their product lineup reeks of snake oil and I don't find them to be an ethical company.

Chinese companies like Topping, SMSL, and Fiio come to mind. I would consider their track records similar to Schiit's. Although with Schiit you don't get that exciting fireworks display you get when you plug an SMSL product like the SA-50, SA-60 or SA-98 into the outlet. Topping probably has the best record out of the three but they have had some issues.

I'm probably forgetting some obvious contenders.

So, who are you thinking of? Which companies "hit it out of the park" on their first tries, at prices similar to Schiit?

 

[solderdude]

I wonder which one runs cooler over time? My guess is that simpler opamp design requires less energy to run, so cooler.

Most likely the design with the lowest idle current (is measurable). Consider that most folks using these amps for headphones usually are not drawing more than 1mW to 10mW on average. The output devices would be dissipating 0.03W to 0.3W in such case (outside of the idle current). This won't heat up the amp that much. I reckon the total idle power consumption will be the largest portion of the warm-up over time
Unless you are driving the HE-6 of course.

 

[JohnYang1997]

I really want to see the thd vs frequency with 32ohm load. I guess it will have rise at high frequency.
I really don't see the benefit over njm4585 + 4 njm4556. Maybe time to start some diy projects?

 

[bboris77]

I wonder which one runs cooler over time? My guess is that simpler opamp design requires less energy to run, so cooler.

I measured both units with an IR thermometer. My room temperature was 22C and the Heresy top cover was around 28C after about 30 minutes of running time while the Magni 3+ top was at 32C. It is worth mentioning that the Magni 3+ was stacked on top of the Modi 3 so that may have raised its temperature a bit although the Modi 3 is generally very cool to the touch.

 

[ClosDeLaRoche]

Holycrap, thanks for the tip -- I didn't know about those. They look much classier than the little chunks of electrical tape I've been using.

Yep I have LightDims on all of my audio gear, and most definitely my Schiit gear. I love those stickers! Makes watching a movie much nicer without all of the glaring bright LEDs from my stereo

 

[dukanvadet]

I dont want to ruin the party but everyone is super happy with getting samples directly from the company that was giving golden samples to reviewers? Did I miss something or?

I really hope this is the beginning of a new era but it gives me a funny feeling

 

[Ratatoskr]

I dont want to ruin the party but everyone is super happy with getting samples directly from the company that was giving golden samples to reviewers? Did I miss something or?

I really hope this is the beginning of a new era but it gives me a funny feeling

What you are implying is that Schiit "cherry picked" the Magni 3+ and Heresy amps sent for review. If that was the case why would they send units with some minor solder splatter on the PCB boards? The measurements also agree. If @amirm feels comfortable that the units sent for review were random production samples you probably should be also in my opinion.

 

[dukanvadet]

What you are implying is that Schiit "cherry picked" the Magni 3+ and Heresy amps sent for review. If that was the case why would they send units with some minor solder splatter on the PCB boards? The measurements also agree. If @amirm feels comfortable that the units sent for review were random production samples you probably should be also in my opinion.

What does the measurements agree with? They are not tested against a product sold to customers. I am not saying that they did or that they didnt just that it seems like they did before and i dont know what changed to make everyone trust them. Thats all.

 

[solderdude]

There are other measurements of Magni3+ and Heresy as well which all show similar performance.

 

[MustBeDeaf]

I dont want to ruin the party but everyone is super happy with getting samples directly from the company that was giving golden samples to reviewers? Did I miss something or?

Schiit could have picked the best out of the bunch but then we would see no solder splatter in the teardowns Amir posted.

 

[T.M.Noble]

I dont want to ruin the party but everyone is super happy with getting samples directly from the company that was giving golden samples to reviewers? Did I miss something or?

I really hope this is the beginning of a new era but it gives me a funny feeling

I grabbed two units off the shelf that were just tested. We wrapped them up and sent them. However, if you are worried about cherry picking a device, I imagine you are worried about every other company that sent @amirm units on loan, correct?

 

[Swtoby]

Which companies, though?

There aren't a lot of companies directly comparable to Schiit in terms of audiophile-focused DACs and amps in their price range.

JDS Labs might be the closest comparison, though they have a smaller lineup. I don't have any direct experience but as far as I know, they have a track record second to none in terms of performance and customer service. Although, it's worth noting that they sort of launched on the back of NwAvGuy's work.

AudioQuest's portable DACs have been good performers in a similar price segment, but the rest of their product lineup reeks of snake oil and I don't find them to be an ethical company.

Chinese companies like Topping, SMSL, and Fiio come to mind. I would consider their track records similar to Schiit's. Although with Schiit you don't get that exciting fireworks display you get when you plug an SMSL product like the SA-50, SA-60 or SA-98 into the outlet. Topping probably has the best record out of the three but they have had some issues.

I'm probably forgetting some obvious contenders.

So, who are you thinking of? Which companies "hit it out of the park" on their first tries, at prices similar to Schiit?

My remark on "getting it right the first time" doesn't refer to lemons off the assembly line. It refers to what appears to be an issue with build across the line. An institutional problem if you will. The soldering and grounding issues have been exposed here in other reviews. My research into the issue began with my own issues with buzzing when touching the volume control on the amps. I could tap the volume control and get a buzz. My own body was creating this. It wasn't just weird, but annoying. Amir's work here seemed to expose this as grounding issues. Other users in other forums, such as Head Fi, had the same problem. Jason Stoddard's suggestion was to "not hang on the volume control." To me, that's not helpful and an attempt to ignore it and sweep it under the rug. Regarding measurements, some Schiit gear is in the $4 figure range. Not cheap and the results reviewed here not good. So a wider net could be used to include those companies getting it right. Benchmark always seems to get accolades, as an example.

 

[T.M.Noble]

My remark on "getting it right the first time" doesn't refer to lemons off the assembly line. It refers to what appears to be an issue with build across the line. An institutional problem if you will. The soldering and grounding issues have been exposed here in other reviews. My research into the issue began with my own issues with buzzing when touching the volume control on the amps. I could tap the volume control and get a buzz. My own body was creating this. It wasn't just weird, but annoying. Amir's work here seemed to expose this as grounding issues. Other users in other forums, such as Head Fi, had the same problem. Jason Stoddard's suggestion was to "not hang on the volume control." To me, that's not helpful and an attempt to ignore it and sweep it under the rug. Regarding measurements, some Schiit gear is in the $4 figure range. Not cheap and the results reviewed here not good. So a wider net could be used to include those companies getting it right. Benchmark always seems to get accolades, as an example.

I am curious if you contacted customer service. We are happy to help people when they have an issue. Also, when did this problem happen? If you are finding a problem with one of our units, I would like to address it.

 

[Swtoby]

I am curious if you contacted customer service. We are happy to help people when they have an issue. Also, when did this problem happen? If you are finding a problem with one of our units, I would like to address it.

Yes, prior to the thread on Head Fi I referred to:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/off...di-2-uber-thread.748067/page-14#post-11351523

The Schiit tech seemed to imply it was an isolated problem. The Head Fi thread showed it wasn't.

I no longer have the Schiit gear. I'm afraid my experience and the findings here soured me to the brand. But I hope your interest suggests a turnaround for the better. If so, my door remains open.