Schiit Magni 3 Headphone Amp and Preamp

What a nice little product. It sounds great, powers my Beyerdynamic DT 770 pro 80 ohm cans easily and without distortion (at least to the volume levels that I can stand...which I've pushed to about 3/4 volume on hi gain).Feels like it's well built - from the metal construction to the nice On/Off and Hi/Lo gain toggle switches on the back.As far as functionality, setup is plug and play. I use it exclusively with my turntable, an AudioTechnica LP-120 (which contains a built-in pre-amp). When not using headphones, the amp acts as a pass through between the turntable with the record player's pre-amp stage set to 'on' (while the headphone amp can boost volume more with the volume and gain controls still being functional, it is not a phono-pre-amp so you'll need one of those still for analog use). When the headphones are plugged in, sound goes to the headphones. When they're not, it goes to the amp - simple as that :)Anyway, would highly recommend this product, very happy so far.

I used to own an Objective O2 ODAC that cost $230 or so. That thing had so many issues with popping, white noise, cutting sound out making me reconnect the USB port over and over to get it to work, and sometimes even crashing my computer while doing it! Lived with it for a year because it powered my Sennheiser HD650’s just fine WHEN IT WORKED, but eventually I got fed up with the issues. Went on Amazon to look for a new DAC/AMP, and found Schiit is finally selling on Amazon. Bought the Schiit Modi/Magni 3 stack immediately. Absolutely amazing difference. Much better sound, no crackling or popping or sound cut off issues AT ALL. So happy with this purchase. Also made my HD650’s come to life so much more I thought I had upgraded headphones. Bought the Audeze LCD-X recently to use with this setup, and wow! I can’t say anything that could describe the sound quality massed; just look at reviews yourself online; they’re everywhere. And they aren’t lying.The ONLY issue I had with this setup was the USB cable that came with the Modi was defective. Windows refused to acknowledge any device with the cable. Fortunately I had the same type of USB cord from my old FiiO DAC and connected the Modi to my computer. BOOM, worked immediately.Fantastic product, I reccomend Schiit to anyone who wants top end audio through headphones of audiophile quality.

I wish someone had helped me / had better info which is why I am posting... I have Sennheiser HD600 headphones (Amazing BTW). This is exactly what you need to power the HD600's. I will say, I like to listen to my music loud, and I find that I do have the volume control almost all the way up with the high gain switch on. However, I don't feel that I need much more kick. If I do, I can always adjust the volume on the music file. One other thing... I did a tremendous amount of research in choosing a headphone amp... the question I also ran into was do I need an external DAC if my source is a Apple MacBook Pro... The simple answer is NO !!! The Apple has a great internal DAC that certainly does an excellent job. I appreciate the details of the music I listen to, but I don't consider myself an audiophile. I'm sure an external; DAC like the Magni companion DAC would be better, but unless you ARE an audiophile, I would argue that you won't be able to tell the difference. Also, I wonder how many audiophiles would actually purchase this amp instead of a higher end amp that costs hundreds more. If you need an amp for high old headphones, I highly recommend this amp.

They say you get what you pay for. In the case of this amp, that only rings true kinda sorta.Overall, the amp is awesome. I would say you really get more than you pay for in terms of overall quality. Paired with a decent set of headphones, it will do its job dependably and with good sound quality. I have not used it as a preamp, but I can't see why it wouldn't perform well in that configuration as well. Some reviewers have suggested this should be in a higher price category; I'm inclined to agree.The volume control tends to be scratchy; this is a common issue. For me, if I clean the pot with contact cleaner, the noise goes away completely for a couple days to a week and then returns. In my case, it only affects the sound while actively adjusting the knob. The company would likely benefit from addressing this problem.In summary, if you want to avoid the flashy gimmickry of other options in this price range and opt for a straight-up solid amp, I would recommend this one.