[Centropolis]

I currently have a Magni and using it for my HD598, Grado SR-60i and Sony MDR-7506 headphones.  The design of the Magni seems to be that it works with efficient and relatively hard to drive headphones.  I had difficulties getting any kind of volume adjustment pass the point of the channel imbalance and then it would go too loud.  All my headphones are not hard to drive at all.  I had to buy RCA attenuators to deal with this issue.
 
I am thinking "side-grading" or small upgrade my Magni with one that is more gain/volumne adjustment friendly for efficient headphones than the Magni.   Will the Asgard 2's low gain setting work better or not enough to make a difference in my ability to adjust volumne without blowing my ears?  Is it the only option?
 
I'm looking for something in the same price range of the Magni but could go closer to $200 is there are no other options.

 

[PurpleAngel]

What source and/or DAC are you plugging the Magni into?
What volume level do you have your source at?
The headphones you have are way easy for the Magni to drive, so it's surprising that your having these issues.
You might consider emailing Schiit to determine if the Magni might be defective.

 

[Centropolis]

  What source and/or DAC are you plugging the Magni into?
What volume level do you have your source at?
The headphones you have are way easy for the Magni to drive, so it's surprising that your having these issues.
You might consider emailing Schiit to determine if the Magni might be defective.

I just have a CD player digital out to a Cambridge Audio DAC Magic (original not Plus), then the RCA outs to the Magni ins.  So I really don't have controls over the input level into the Magni.
 
Isn't the fact that my headphones are easy (or too easy) too drive that's causing the problem with the loud volumne?

 

[PurpleAngel]

 
I just have a CD player digital out to a Cambridge Audio DAC Magic (original not Plus), then the RCA outs to the Magni ins.  So I really don't have controls over the input level into the Magni.
 
Isn't the fact that my headphones are easy (or too easy) too drive that's causing the problem with the loud volume?

Does the CD player have a volume control? normally you would want to set the source's volume to between 75% to 100%
 
It's not that the headphones are too easy to drive, the Schiit Magni with it's low impedance (>1-Ohm) headphone output, is designed to work with your current headphones, that are 32-Ohm, 50-Ohm, 63-Ohms.
If the Magni is defective, then that might be causing the current issue.
 
Your welcome to try a different headphone amplifier, FiiO E11K ($60) or O2 ($130) headphone amplifier.
Both these amplifier have an output impedance of less then 1-Ohm

 

[Centropolis]

  Does the CD player have a volume control? normally you would want to set the source's volume to between 75% to 100%
 
It's not that the headphones are too easy to drive, the Schiit Magni with it's low impedance (>1-Ohm) headphone output, is designed to work with your current headphones, that are 32-Ohm, 50-Ohm, 63-Ohms.
If the Magni is defective, then that might be causing the current issue.
 
Your welcome to try a different headphone amplifier, FiiO E11K ($60) or O2 ($130) headphone amplifier.
Both these amplifier have an output impedance of less then 1-Ohm

No my CD player does not have a volumne control.  It only has one on the built-in headphone jack output.  My DAC also does NOT have a volumne control. 
 
Do you think my Magni is defective?  Maybe I should email Schiit and see what they say.

 

[MindsMirror]

 
No my CD player does not have a volumne control.  It only has one on the built-in headphone jack output.  My DAC also does NOT have a volumne control. 
 
Do you think my Magni is defective?  Maybe I should email Schiit and see what they say.

I wouldn't conclude that it is defective from what you have said. With my PC at full volume listening to my SR125e I don't have the volume on my Magni past 9 o'clock, and all of my music is replay gain scanned and averaged to -20dB. If you are listening to CDs which are probably louder than that, I can see that the volume adjustment could be difficult to get the setting you want. If I disable replaygain and play one of my loudest CDs, somewhere around 8 o'clock the volume goes almost straignt from too quiet to too loud in just a few degrees turn of the knob.
 
You could side-grade to a different amp but that would likely be more expensive and no better than using a volume attenuator between the DAC and Magni.

 

[PurpleAngel]

  No my CD player does not have a volume control.  It only has one on the built-in headphone jack output.  My DAC also does NOT have a volume control. 
Do you think my Magni is defective?  Maybe I should email Schiit and see what they say.

 
Email Schiit, The Magni may not be defective, but they know their amplifiers better then anyone else, so they might have an ideas for solving the issue.