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Schiit Magni Heresy vs Topping A50s

Draghmar

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Sorry for yet another thread with my buying issues. :p But I just found out that Topping A50s is only a bit more expensive then getting Magni Heresy. I really tried to find some direct comparison but I failed. From the reviews it looks like Topping has some small edge here but I do wonder if it's actually worth anything. The difference in price can be around $10-$15, depending on the current currency conversion and if the VAT will be calculated from the base value or value with shipping. Knowing that I have this pros and cons for both of them:
A50s:
+ I can buy it here, in Poland,
+ which also means I won't get issue returning it if anything goes wrong,
+ it has balanced 4.4mm connector (although I'm not sure if that's really something I need),
- has less power if using unbalanced connector,
- it's more expensive,
- I'd have to get a special cable for Dekoni Blue to actually use balanced output which would make it significantly more expensive (from the quick search I did at least),
- aesthetic is on 'meh' level,
- I can't say I have huge trust in Chinese brands.

Magni Heresy:
+ has more power (and much more power for unbalanced),
+ the look is more pleasing for me,
+ it's overall cheaper,
- no way of getting it in EU, which means I could get issues if anything goes wrong (Schiit claims they will handle the shipping costs but still...),
- there were reports of channel imbalance,
- the volume knob is at weird place and quite "unsatisfying" ;).

Would be so much easier if Schiit would simply send devices to their distributor in EU...sigh...
Anyway those pros and cons are basically technical stuff. I can see that it looks like A50s has more advantage here. I've also seen that I *probably* won't hear any difference in terms of how they sound. So is there anything else I could rely my decision on?
 
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Skinner001

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Well, it is a limited experience and sample size so take it for what it is. I got a Schiit Heresy and the A50(not A50s) and I sold the Heresy because of the volume pot.

There was quite a bit channel imbalance at lower levels, and even if I was not listening at those levels 99% of the time, it was driving me crazy. The volume pot in general. This also made it unusable with IEMs for me (though I rarely use them in the desktop setup).

I liked the esthetic more, and they are both transparent.

A buddy of mine had to get a replacement for the Heresy because of hiss in one channel which got worse the more he played with volume levels.

As I said, take it with a grain of salt since it's anecdotal, but there may be more unit to unit variance when it comes to QC for Schiit - and even if that's not the case, I just don't like the volume pot on the Heresy.
 
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Draghmar

Draghmar

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Thanks!
I've seen reports about channel imbalance before. Also about the fact that it can vary from unit to unit. That's why shipping back is a big factor here.
I've updated my pros and cons with your observations. (also fixed one point being at wrong place)
 
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Draghmar

Draghmar

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Yeah, I was already leaning towards A50s because of that but now things got a little bit more complicated as I found out that the shop I thought had it at the good price (about $199/€174 with free shipping) actually does not. So the new price is $26/€21 higher, which makes Magni Heresy much better in this regard (like $54-$63 better)...

So the current question is: is there really anything "special" about A50s that would justify the price. (Translation: give me the reason to buy it ;))
 
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testek

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reasons i bought it:
- very small square form factor (schiit stackable)
- all metal build (no plastic like L30)
- plenty of power for my 250Ω unbalanced cans
- easily available in EU (not like schiit)
- very clean and neutral sound (confirmed by specs reviews here)
- got a good price at black friday
 

aandres_gm

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Yeah, I was already leaning towards A50s because of that but now things got a little bit more complicated as I found out that the shop I thought had it at the good price (about $199/€174 with free shipping) actually does not. So the new price is $26/€21 higher, which makes Magni Heresy much better in this regard (like $54-$63 better)...

So the current question is: is there really anything "special" about A50s that would justify the price. (Translation: give me the reason to buy it ;))
Unless you can buy the Schiit locally, the risk you face in case of a warranty claim won't be worth the "savings". Why are you looking at the A50s instead of the L30, btw?
 
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Draghmar

Draghmar

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Unless you can buy the Schiit locally, the risk you face in case of a warranty claim won't be worth the "savings". Why are you looking at the A50s instead of the L30, btw?
Not sure. Looks better and build quality seems also better (+ has actually a bit more power). I was also wondering about getting balanced adapter in the future when having amp like A50s (just for the sake of having it - I like having things ;)). Also there's this thing about some electric issue that I've somewhere here and I'm not sure I'll be able to recognize faulty models.
But probably the most notable is the fact that I always try to find the best I can buy because of this saying I have: I can't afford to make mistakes. Which also extends to trying to buy something even better if needed to be better at future proofing. For example I'm still planning to replace my Xonar DX with external DAC. Maybe on my next birthday or maybe I'll wait longer so I'd like to have amp that will survive that time with plenty of headroom.
The huge downside of my approach is how much time it takes for me to buy anything. I can spend months deciding on some crucial things and in case on some smaller ones it will always takes at least few days but most likely it would go into two weeks. And I more than often end up with two devices that I can't find strong enough pros and cons to give the edge to one over the other.

But then again maybe your suggestion is right and I shouldn't spend more money on something that I won't be able to actually take advantage of?
 
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Skinner001

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Not sure. Looks better and build quality seems also better (+ has actually a bit more power). I was also wondering about getting balanced adapter in the future when having amp like A50s (just for the sake of having it - I like having things ;)). Also there's this thing about some electric issue that I've somewhere here and I'm not sure I'll be able to recognize faulty models.
But probably the most notable is the fact that I always try to find the best I can buy because of this saying I have: I can't afford to make mistakes. Which also extends to trying to buy something even better if needed to be better at future proofing. For example I'm still planning to replace my Xonar DX with external DAC. Maybe on my next birthday or maybe I'll wait longer so I'd like to have amp that will survive that time with plenty of headroom.
The huge downside of my approach is how much time it takes for me to buy anything. I can spend months deciding on some crucial things and in case on some smaller ones it will always takes at least few days but most likely it would go into two weeks. And I more than often end up with two devices that I can't find strong enough pros and cons to give the edge to one over the other.

But then again maybe your suggestion is right and I shouldn't spend more money on something that I won't be able to actually take advantage of?
It depends on what your objectives are in this hobby. Are you looking for a clean performing amp that will do what it needs to do and is best bang for your buck? Or are you looking to play around with a bunch of hardware for the sake of playing with it?

You seem to be geared towards making the best buy decision, plug it in and forget about it. In that case no need to overthink it. Something like an L30+E30 combination will serve you well. There's no real future-proofing here, headphone amplification is pretty much figured out - we already have affordable stuff that can run almost all headphones cleanly beyond the point at which you'd damage your hearing.

DACs are a similar story - the only future-proofing has to do with features like Bluetooth etc.

So, figure out what's your objective here and then decide.

Others will correct me but if you're going single ended, the A50s is a waste and the L30 will perform better single-ended with 2Vrms in (which is the probable case). The A50 and A50s are built like tanks - they really do feel nice and perform well but if you can save some money on a L30 you might go for it.

Schiit is probably a no go without any easy way of returning in case of issues (well, that goes for anything really).

This hobby makes is so easy to fool yourself into believing you do need something better - then you get it and then you look for the next thing up etc. - even if you've passed the threshold beyond which you can't tell the difference in sound a few upgrades ago. The process may be fun if you're into it - if you're not into that part of it - save yourself the money.
 
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Draghmar

Draghmar

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Thanks for that insight! I mean, You've basically nail'd it. I'm not looking for hobby "toys" but more for some fancy one-shot toy that I could enjoy having on my desk. ;) That's why it's even harder for me to make final decision - I'll have to live with it. And that's also the reason I'm spending so much time on this forum. :D
The difference in price between A50s and L30 in Poland is about $61/€53 - just so you know. And between L30 and Heresy depends on tax that could change Heresy to be at similar price or higher than L30.

Others will correct me but if you're going single ended, the A50s is a waste and the L30 will perform better single-ended with 2Vrms in (which is the probable case).
How do I know that it's going to be 2Vrms?

It's so annoying that I can't get Heresy in EU. :/
 
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Draghmar

Draghmar

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A50s also only gets warm and not hot.
Yeah, I've seen reports where L30 was said to be quite hot after not so long period of listening. Not sure how Heresy but A50s is much better in this regard.
 

Skinner001

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Between the A50 (non s) and the Heresy - the A50 gets hotter, nothing terrible, but hotter than the Heresy. The Heresy has a less dense build, more air in the case and ventilation holes so it handles the heat better overall.
 
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