[GearMe]

So...bought the Magnius to pair with the Modius for my work-at-home station to allow me to play some Senns, Focals and other cans in Balanced Mode which sound very nice.

Am posting this to say don't write off the SE output without giving some of your cans a try. Pulled out my AKG Q701s for Schiits and Giggles...and they sound great out of the SE jack. They seem a little less dry...a little warmer than I remember. Balanced with plenty of the clarity they were known for but somehow more engaging?

Could be that I haven't listened to them in a while and am just enjoying getting reacquainted with an old friend -- who knows. Whatever it is, I'm enjoying it!

 

[Brubacca]

Maybe I missed it, but if someone had $200 to spend on a schiit amp, which sounds better....
Asgard 3 or Magnius Balanced?

 

[emilsal]

Maybe I missed it, but if someone had $200 to spend on a schiit amp, which sounds better....
Asgard 3 or Magnius Balanced?

It really depends on what else is in your chain. If you’re primarily SE then Asgard if balanced then Magnius

 

[Rattle]

Asgard 3 is a much better sounding amp IMO.

 

[taipan254]

In my experience I actually preferred the se over the balanced...with both Focal Clears and Hedds...

Not flat at all.

Alex

Amendment here - I decided to keep Magnius. While I still think it is a little "darker" compared to other amps I have (most notably the tiny Periodic Audio Nickel), I find that this amp is really performing well after break-in. With balanced in from Modius, and balanced out to my Audioquest NightOwl's, I find this amp has significant power / grunt that makes listening to music exciting. Extremely controlled bass that goes low on organ music. Hip-hop also is a lot fun. I am listening on "high gain" mode with volume at around 10 o'clock. I don't like the added resistor in low-gain mode offset by higher volume pot position (IMO, a testament to the good ALPS pot employed... sounds great at lower positioning). I don't particularly like single-ended mode on this amp compared to what I'm hearing on the balanced out. That being said, I'm having fun with it, so it is staying (despite getting the green light from Schiit to send it back!). Ideally I'd love to use my single-ended (and old) HD 555s with them, but I think it makes more sense to upgrade to the latest and greatest comparable Senn's (HD 6xx) and get a balanced cable for them instead!

Lesson: Burn-in mattered for me.

 

[adydula]

Great your liking the Magnius!!
Enjoy!!
Alex

 

[CarlosAudio51]

Anybody try the Magnius balanced headphone output when driven by a single-ended input (i.e from a Modi 3 or Modi Multibit or any other single-ended DAC output)? How does it compare sound-wise to an all-balanced chain (i.e. from a Modius balanced out to the Magnius
balanced headphone output)?

 

[lord_tris]

Anybody try the Magnius balanced headphone output when driven by a single-ended input (i.e from a Modi 3 or Modi Multibit or any other single-ended DAC output)? How does it compare sound-wise to an all-balanced chain (i.e. from a Modius balanced out to the Magnius
balanced headphone output)?

I think that may have to do with what dac is being used and what the specs are. If there is a SE dac that is putting out a high out put voltage same as something like a balanced then the sound shouldn't really matter tooooo much. example If the SE can output 4v and the balanced is outputting 4v and both are the same dac chip then the sound shouldn't be to different ie you better have a set of golden ears to hear the difference.

I have a little dot Dac_1, There is a HUGE difference from the SE to Balanced output on it. Because it is 2v SE for both channels vs 2v per channel balanced. I can not use the SE side of the dac it sounds Horrible. But the balanced side is for its age sounds realllly goood.

 

[CarlosAudio51]

I think that may have to do with what dac is being used and what the specs are. If there is a SE dac that is putting out a high out put voltage same as something like a balanced then the sound shouldn't really matter tooooo much. example If the SE can output 4v and the balanced is outputting 4v and both are the same dac chip then the sound shouldn't be to different ie you better have a set of golden ears to hear the difference.

I have a little dot Dac_1, There is a HUGE difference from the SE to Balanced output on it. Because it is 2v SE for both channels vs 2v per channel balanced. I can not use the SE side of the dac it sounds Horrible. But the balanced side is for its age sounds realllly goood.

I'm planning to pair a future Magnius with a Modi Multibit and balanced headphones. So Modi Multibit with 2VRMS single-ended outputs to Magnius balanced headphones outputs? No good?

I don't have any DACs that will output 4VRMS single-ended. I'm wondering if I'll be missing out too much by not having a balanced DAC as the source.

 

[lord_tris]

I'm planning to pair a future Magnius with a Modi Multibit and balanced headphones. So Modi Multibit with 2VRMS single-ended outputs to Magnius balanced headphones outputs? No good?

I don't have any DACs that will output 4VRMS single-ended. I'm wondering if I'll be missing out too much by not having a balanced DAC as the source.

Why not get a modius.. its 200 bucks vs 250 for multibit modi. and its 4v balanced.

 

[CarlosAudio51]

Why not get a modius.. its 200 bucks vs 250 for multibit modi. and its 4v balanced.

Because I already have a Modi Multibit laying around here. Got it as a B-stock for $199 so that was an excellent deal. I rather not buy another DAC at the moment.

 

[MakubexGB]

I've been running the modius/magnius stack balanced for almost two weeks now. I've tested it with the Hifiman Sundara, Focal Elegia and ZMF Verite Closed. They all sound great but, just yesterday, I noticed that if I have headphones plugged into the balanced output and a cable (even if not connected to headphones) connected to the SE output at the same time, I start getting a lot of noise after a little while. A loud buzzing sound.

So sadly, I think I'm going to return the Magnius before my 15 days from receiving it are passed, which they almost are. I just placed an order for a Topping A90 which I should receive Saturday. Hopefully I won't have issues with this one.

 

[taipan254]

Because I already have a Modi Multibit laying around here. Got it as a B-stock for $199 so that was an excellent deal. I rather not buy another DAC at the moment.

IMO, Magnius is only worth the investment if you go fully balanced from the DAC. I'm not a fan of the single-ended input, no matter if i'm driving the same pair of headphones balanced or single-ended. I'd recommend purchasing a great single-ended amp instead of the Magnius for your modi-multibit. Also, schiit publishes their measurements... they aren't everything, but if you compare the Magnius SE vs. Balanced you'll notice the Balanced at least measures MUUUCH better than the SE. Who knows if the measurements are correlating to my subjective preference for the Balanced section, but, alas, I feel the way I feel.

 

[taipan254]

I've been running the modius/magnius stack balanced for almost two weeks now. I've tested it with the Hifiman Sundara, Focal Elegia and ZMF Verite Closed. They all sound great but, just yesterday, I noticed that if I have headphones plugged into the balanced output and a cable (even if not connected to headphones) connected to the SE output at the same time, I start getting a lot of noise after a little while. A loud buzzing sound.

So sadly, I think I'm going to return the Magnius before my 15 days from receiving it are passed, which they almost are. I just placed an order for a Topping A90 which I should receive Saturday. Hopefully I won't have issues with this one.

If i'm running fully balanced, i do not have a ground noise issue. However, when i run single ended, I definitely have a ground loop somewhere... That being said, I'm really enjoying the fully balanced side, so I don't mind too much!

 

[MakubexGB]

If i'm running fully balanced, i do not have a ground noise issue. However, when i run single ended, I definitely have a ground loop somewhere... That being said, I'm really enjoying the fully balanced side, so I don't mind too much!

Agreed. Fully balanced I don't have an issue. Once in a while I would hear a buzz for like 2 seconds and then it would go away. However, I wanted to be able to switch between my open back and closed back cans easily, which is why I decided to connect the Sundara to the SE output. Honestly, it sounds fine to me and I don't get any noise if I'm only using the SE output (this is all with balanced input). However, the moment I use both outputs, then it's noise city.