[UmustBKidn]

  It's only started as of late, but my longer headphone cords are having a lot of hiss and interference now with my magni. Like any cable longer than 6ft, but anything below that is perfectly fine. Not sure what the deal is, would anyone have an idea?

 
Have you checked the headphone cords with another amp, by chance?
 
Are these cords that you can swap between different cans?
 
It doesn't make sense to me that headphone cord length would cause this. I think there's something else going on.
 
My Magni is dead quiet with music off. Very black background. No complaints there.

 

[Berg]

I get noise when I'm touching Magni's volume knob, and I also get noise from telephone-signals. If I touch the RCA-in or some of the screws while I'm touching the volume knob, the noise disappear. Is it possible to fix those problems?

 

[UmustBKidn]

  I get noise when I'm touching Magni's volume knob, and I also get noise from telephone-signals. If I touch the RCA-in or some of the screws while I'm touching the volume knob, the noise disappear. Is it possible to fix those problems?

 
Stop touching the Magni?

 
It's just ground loops. Check your electrical outlet for grounding issues.

 

[Traum]

It's just ground loops. Check your electrical outlet for grounding issues.

Really dumb question here since I have minimal electrical / wiring knowledge -- how do I check my power outlets for grounding issues? Or is this something that is best left to qualified electricians -- or at least someone who isn't as clueless as I am?

I'm pretty sure I don't want to kill myself... yet...

 

[icomrade]

Some surge protectors will have a light that illuminates when the outlet is not grounded properly.
You can also use a multimeter in continuity mode. put one probe in the ground and another in the hot slot, the narrow one. There should be no continuity if properly grounded.

 

[UmustBKidn]

Really dumb question here since I have minimal electrical / wiring knowledge -- how do I check my power outlets for grounding issues? Or is this something that is best left to qualified electricians -- or at least someone who isn't as clueless as I am?

I'm pretty sure I don't want to kill myself... yet...

 
Easy and safe method: use one of these little devices from Home Depot. Will tell you if there is something wonky or not grounded. There are similar devices elsewhere that will do the same thing. All cost $15 or less.
 
The outlet doesn't need to be equipped with GFCI to use this tester. The lamps on it will tell you if the outlet is not grounded, or if the black/white wires are reversed (very common), and so forth. If the wiring is hooked up correctly then the lights all light up a particular way (indicated on the device). If it isn't, then the light combination will tell you what's wrong with the outlet.
 
If your outlet is in fact equipped with GFCI, then you can use the button on the tester to trip the circuit and make sure the breaker works.

 

[UmustBKidn]

  Some surge protectors will have a light that illuminates when the outlet is not grounded properly.
You can also use a multimeter in continuity mode. put one probe in the ground and another in the hot slot, the narrow one. There should be no continuity if properly grounded.

 
Eh, I would not use a multimeter to test an electrical outlet (even if you know what you're doing). Why? One crack in your probe wires will tell you why

It could be, shall we say, shocking...
 
You also are assuming they know how to handle a multimeter. Did you happen to mention to him that the other ends of the probes plugged into his meter carry live electricity when doing this? If he's got that meter leaning up against his body (or something else that could conduct) when he touches that circuit, he could be hurt, or he could cause a short circuit. Nevermind that people who don't know what they're doing with electricity, generally don't own test equipment...
 
It's much safer, cheaper, and faster to use one of the devices I mentioned in the previous post. A multimeter won't tell you if the leads are reversed, and it could get you hurt or cause a fire if used by someone who doesn't know what they're doing.

 

[Surfaced]

I received my Schiit Stack 4 days ago.
This is both my first DAC and first amp. I am not impressed.
 

 
 
I did some A/B tests between the M/M and my MacBook Pro. I could hardly tell a difference.
 
Feeling quite put-off because I've been hyped to believe a DAC/amp combo would be a revelation.
Granted I am only using Vsonic GR06 IEMs right now. My Denon AH-D2000 is being repaired by PanurgyOEM currently. But the GR06 has kept me reasonably satisfied while the Denons have been out of commission for the past year.
 
Maybe my D2000 will make me hear the difference?
 
Anyone else with IEMs not terribly impressed?

 

[Defiant00]

  I received my Schiit Stack 4 days ago.
This is both my first DAC and first amp. I am not impressed.
 

 
 
I did some A/B tests between the M/M and my MacBook Pro. I could hardly tell a difference.
 
Feeling quite put-off because I've been hyped to believe a DAC/amp combo would be a revelation.
Granted I am only using Vsonic GR06 IEMs right now. My Denon AH-D2000 is being repaired by PanurgyOEM currently. But the GR06 has kept me reasonably satisfied while the Denons have been out of commission for the past year.
 
Maybe my D2000 will make me hear the difference?
 
Anyone else with IEMs not terribly impressed?

 
Doesn't really surprise me, IEMs don't usually need much power Typically the biggest concern (for me) with IEMs is that my source is good and clear, which apparently your MacBook is.
 
Now, when your Denons get back I'd expect you to notice more of a difference, although those are pretty sensitive as well, so maybe not a huge amount.

 

[takato14]

  Now, when your Denons get back I'd expect you to notice more of a difference, although those are pretty sensitive as well, so maybe not a huge amount.

Yes, and no. The Denons are low impedance, and feeding a low impedance can current will make it shine. Sensitivity has nothing to do with audio quality. 
 
I would agree that most IEMs are nowhere even near difficult to power.

 

[UmustBKidn]

  I received my Schiit Stack 4 days ago.
This is both my first DAC and first amp. I am not impressed.
 

 
 
I did some A/B tests between the M/M and my MacBook Pro. I could hardly tell a difference.
 
Feeling quite put-off because I've been hyped to believe a DAC/amp combo would be a revelation.
Granted I am only using Vsonic GR06 IEMs right now. My Denon AH-D2000 is being repaired by PanurgyOEM currently. But the GR06 has kept me reasonably satisfied while the Denons have been out of commission for the past year.
 
Maybe my D2000 will make me hear the difference?
 
Anyone else with IEMs not terribly impressed?

 
If it's within the return period, send them back for a refund. I'm not aware of anyone here who would "hype" you to believe anything. None of the regular members have any reason to convince you to buy anything.
 
The whole purpose of this website is to help people make intelligent purchasing decisions. Sure, there is hype here and there. But in my personal experience, the opinions of the people on this website are far more accurate than the opinions of people who, say, rate their purchases on Amazon.com. The first set of cans I bought ended up being crap, but they looked just awesome if you believe the 400+ reviews on Amazon.
 
Opinions are also totally subjective, and based upon the experience of the reviewer. Someone who has been in the hobby a long time, is perhaps a musician, or maybe owns a whole crapton of gear, probably can be relied upon more than others. But even those opinions are subjective. Some people like bassy cans, some prefer accuracy. Some people like solid state, others like tubes. Some people like IEM's, others prefer closed back full sized cans. Are any of those choices inherently "better" than others? No. It's a matter of preference.
 
The Magni and Modi are the bottom end of the scale in terms of audio quality. They are what some of us call "Budget-Fi" gear. They are quite good (in my opinion), but there exists better gear. You just need to pay for it.
 
Perhaps you really can't hear a difference, for whatever reason (that is possible). If so, consider yourself blessed. Return your gear and be happy with your Mac and your IEM's.

 
I would recommend attending a local meet if possible. You can get a much better feel for what exists in that way.

 

[Surfaced]

Originally Posted by UmustBKidn /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
If it's within the return period, send them back for a refund. I'm not aware of anyone here who would "hype" you to believe anything. None of the regular members have any reason to convince you to buy anything.
 
The whole purpose of this website is to help people make intelligent purchasing decisions. Sure, there is hype here and there. But in my personal experience, the opinions of the people on this website are far more accurate than the opinions of people who, say, rate their purchases on Amazon.com. The first set of cans I bought ended up being crap, but they looked just awesome if you believe the 400+ reviews on Amazon.
 
Opinions are also totally subjective, and based upon the experience of the reviewer. Someone who has been in the hobby a long time, is perhaps a musician, or maybe owns a whole crapton of gear, probably can be relied upon more than others. But even those opinions are subjective. Some people like bassy cans, some prefer accuracy. Some people like solid state, others like tubes. Some people like IEM's, others prefer closed back full sized cans. Are any of those choices inherently "better" than others? No. It's a matter of preference.
 
The Magni and Modi are the bottom end of the scale in terms of audio quality. They are what some of us call "Budget-Fi" gear. They are quite good (in my opinion), but there exists better gear. You just need to pay for it.
 
Perhaps you really can't hear a difference, for whatever reason (that is possible). If so, consider yourself blessed. Return your gear and be happy with your Mac and your IEM's. 

 
I would recommend attending a local meet if possible. You can get a much better feel for what exists in that way.

 
I understand that there is much better gear out there, both for DACs and amps.
 
But I also understand this is a game of diminishing returns, so for my first DAC/amp I wanted something that would give an inkling of what I've been missing. Among D2000 owners there seems to be a common sentiment of "yeah, great headphones, but get an amp and you really unlock their potential". So I will wait until the D2000 gets back for a final decision. 
 
 I am well aware that the Magni / Modi are absolute entry-level. But people have been saying (here, Amazon, and several other places) that the value is nearly unprecedented. I figured this was a reasonable place to start, and I think it was very fair to expect some kind of perceptible improvement in going from paying $0 to paying ~$200. (I would expect less if I went from $200 to $1000). If a curious consumer doesn't feel a beneficial experience from a safe first investment, they probably won't bother investing again.

 

[Defiant00]

  Yes, and no. The Denons are low impedance, and feeding a low impedance can current will make it shine. Sensitivity has nothing to do with audio quality. 
 
I would agree that most IEMs are nowhere even near difficult to power.

 
Fair enough, and I certainly wouldn't claim to be overly familiar with any of the prior Denons (I think I listened to one once at a meet...).

 

[mitsu763]

   
I understand that there is much better gear out there, both for DACs and amps.
 
But I also understand this is a game of diminishing returns, so for my first DAC/amp I wanted something that would give an inkling of what I've been missing. Among D2000 owners there seems to be a common sentiment of "yeah, great headphones, but get an amp and you really unlock their potential". So I will wait until the D2000 gets back for a final decision. 
 

 
 
And welcome to head-fi!

 

[hughscot]

"Surfaced" you are absolutely  correct.  As a long time audiophile the difference is often negligible when you upgrade.  It is amazing what some people claim to hear.  
 
Here's an article everyone should read if you think expensive cables are better than zip cord.  http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm#introduction
 
I will say this the co-owner, Mike Moffat was one of the founders of Theta the ultimate in hi end audio.  He left the company soon after it was started, so the guy probably does know something about hi-end audio.