[maheeinfy]

Turn off your Magni before plugging or unplugging your headphones.

Thank you. That solved me problem. Just wanted to know from fellow Magni owners if they too have this problem

 

[Centropolis]

I recently got a used Magni and am enjoying it.  However, there is this issue that I have with the gain.  My input to the Magni is from a NAD amp's Tape Out and it seems the input signal is too "hot" and I have no room to adjust the volume.
 
Once I turn the knob just past the point where the L/R imbalance disappears, the volume is a bit too loud for my regular listening.  Part of the problem is that my headphones are pretty low impedance (Grado 60s and Sony 7506s).
 
I am thinking of getting two RCA Y splitters and having the signal from the DAC split one to the Magni and the other to the NAD.  This way I bypass the amp's output.  I am assuming that the output of a DAC will not be as "hot" as from an amp.  Am I correct?  Or this is not going to solve my problem?

 

[Defiant00]

  I recently got a used Magni and am enjoying it.  However, there is this issue that I have with the gain.  My input to the Magni is from a NAD amp's Tape Out and it seems the input signal is too "hot" and I have no room to adjust the volume.
 
Once I turn the knob just past the point where the L/R imbalance disappears, the volume is a bit too loud for my regular listening.  Part of the problem is that my headphones are pretty low impedance (Grado 60s and Sony 7506s).
 
I am thinking of getting two RCA Y splitters and having the signal from the DAC split one to the Magni and the other to the NAD.  This way I bypass the amp's output.  I am assuming that the output of a DAC will not be as "hot" as from an amp.  Am I correct?  Or this is not going to solve my problem?

 
With more sensitive cans like you've got I had the same 'issue' when going directly from the Modi to the Magni. The Magni's volume pot ramps up quite quickly; I ended up turning the volume in Windows down to 25% to give myself some more play on the knob. If you typically listen to 16 bit files then I'd recommend using your DAC in 24 bit mode if it supports it and turning down your source.
 
With that said, removing the NAD from the equation might help (and using splitters would work just fine for that), but it isn't likely to give you a large difference.

 

[Centropolis]

   
With more sensitive cans like you've got I had the same 'issue' when going directly from the Modi to the Magni. The Magni's volume pot ramps up quite quickly; I ended up turning the volume in Windows down to 25% to give myself some more play on the knob. If you typically listen to 16 bit files then I'd recommend using your DAC in 24 bit mode if it supports it and turning down your source.
 
With that said, removing the NAD from the equation might help (and using splitters would work just fine for that), but it isn't likely to give you a large difference.

 
I guess I can connect the DAC to the Magni directly and see if it helps or not.  Take the NAD out of the chain for now.  If it does help, I will get the splitters.  If not, RCA attenuaters would be next I assume?

 

[UmustBKidn]

  I recently got a used Magni and am enjoying it.  However, there is this issue that I have with the gain.  My input to the Magni is from a NAD amp's Tape Out and it seems the input signal is too "hot" and I have no room to adjust the volume.
 
Once I turn the knob just past the point where the L/R imbalance disappears, the volume is a bit too loud for my regular listening.  Part of the problem is that my headphones are pretty low impedance (Grado 60s and Sony 7506s).
 
I am thinking of getting two RCA Y splitters and having the signal from the DAC split one to the Magni and the other to the NAD.  This way I bypass the amp's output.  I am assuming that the output of a DAC will not be as "hot" as from an amp.  Am I correct?  Or this is not going to solve my problem?

 
I've used two DAC's on my Magni. The Modi's output is 1.5 volts. My Pure i-20's output is 2 volts. The Pure i-20 drives the Magni significantly harder, such that the unit really warms up (this does not happen when the Modi is driving it). If you're hitting the Magni with more than 2 volts, then I can see why this is happening. You might want to try to look up the specs for this NAD amp to see what kind of voltage this tape output is producing.
 
I also own a Sony MDR 7506 and have run it on both DAC's with the Magni. The volume knob definitely gets set lower than when I'm driving my Beyer DT 770s, but it's still not that sensitive. The 7506 are 63 ohm impedance cans, which I don't personally consider low impedance. So I'm guessing this Tape Out is probably producing more than 2 volts. A set of attenuators might indeed be the right answer for you.

 

[Tuco1965]

I'd be surprised if the tape out voltage was that high to be honest.  It should be listed in the specs for the Nad.  I wonder what model it is?

 

[Centropolis]

   
I've used two DAC's on my Magni. The Modi's output is 1.5 volts. My Pure i-20's output is 2 volts. The Pure i-20 drives the Magni significantly harder, such that the unit really warms up (this does not happen when the Modi is driving it). If you're hitting the Magni with more than 2 volts, then I can see why this is happening. You might want to try to look up the specs for this NAD amp to see what kind of voltage this tape output is producing.
 
I also own a Sony MDR 7506 and have run it on both DAC's with the Magni. The volume knob definitely gets set lower than when I'm driving my Beyer DT 770s, but it's still not that sensitive. The 7506 are 63 ohm impedance cans, which I don't personally consider low impedance. So I'm guessing this Tape Out is probably producing more than 2 volts. A set of attenuators might indeed be the right answer for you.

 
I cannot really tell the output of my NAD's Tape Out from the spec sheet: http://nadelectronics.com/products/hifi-amplifiers/c-320bee-stereo-integrated-amplifier
 
My DAC's output seems to be 2.1V rms.  http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/media/dacmagic-user-manual-english-1358174393.pdf
 
I did try connecting the Magni directly to the DAC and it seems the output still too hot.  There might be a slight difference but still too hot.
 
On top of RCA attenuators, I think I will end up connecting to the DAC anyway because that I won't have to go a longer signal path and also don't need to turn on my amp when I listen to headphones.
 
Will 12 dB attenuators be too much?  Or will 6 dB be fine for me?  I don't know how to do these calculations.  I just don't want 12 dB ones to completely put me in the other direction....not enough gain.

 

[peter123]

I use 12db attenuators and there's no way I ever go past 12 o'clock with any of my headphones.

 

[mikeaj]

12 dB should be fine or quite possibly not enough. Roughly 10 dB is perceived as twice as loud / soft.
 
Though to get a feel on it, I would open up a music player with a software volume control marked in dB. Turn it down 12 dB and see how much (little) quieter that is. You can do it in foobar and probably a bunch more. Or do it in an audio editor like Audacity.

 

[Centropolis]

  I'd be surprised if the tape out voltage was that high to be honest.  It should be listed in the specs for the Nad.  I wonder what model it is?

It's the C320BEE.  I cannot tell from the spec sheet how much output.  http://nadelectronics.com/products/hifi-amplifiers/c-320bee-stereo-integrated-amplifier

 

[Tuco1965]

Maximum output level Pre-out >12V
Tape >10V
From the owners manual pdf.
 
Pretty damn high.

 

[UmustBKidn]

   
I cannot really tell the output of my NAD's Tape Out from the spec sheet: http://nadelectronics.com/products/hifi-amplifiers/c-320bee-stereo-integrated-amplifier
 
My DAC's output seems to be 2.1V rms.  http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/media/dacmagic-user-manual-english-1358174393.pdf
 
I did try connecting the Magni directly to the DAC and it seems the output still too hot.  There might be a slight difference but still too hot.
 
On top of RCA attenuators, I think I will end up connecting to the DAC anyway because that I won't have to go a longer signal path and also don't need to turn on my amp when I listen to headphones.
 
Will 12 dB attenuators be too much?  Or will 6 dB be fine for me?  I don't know how to do these calculations.  I just don't want 12 dB ones to completely put me in the other direction....not enough gain.

 
Yahoo... well, if this thing is producing 10 volts output at the "Tape Out" jacks, and 2 volts is enough to drive the Magni hard, then 12 dB attenuators are perfect. You want a drop in gain of 4 (12 dB) to get to 2 volts. Yup. Order those 12dB attenuators.

 

[frequencies]

I bought the Magni for my Modi now and I'm very happy with them. I couldn't find this good looking combo (I also like that the DAC and Amp are separate) for this good price without unnecessary features in Germany so I can recommend it to the latter ones and others.

edit: I only don't like the bright LEDs but this is not a real problem.

 

[imackler]

Does anyone have any experience comparing the Magni to the C5? I know its apples to oranges, but I mainly use my ER4S at work where I listen to lots of classical and I'm wondering if its worth dropping $200 on the C5 over the cost of the Magni, if I don't really need a portable amp. The ER4S is interesting because it is 100 ohm impedance, which means I don't really need the sensitivity of the C5. Of course, if I got the C5, I'd be able to use it with my SE535, too, but I don't feel they benefit a ton from amping. 
 
Does anyone have an impression on the Magni with the ER4S? Thanks! 

 

[noobandroid]

anyone using the magni with beyer T1? i need some feedback cause I found a freaked out good deal on the T1, and use with magni