Schiit Audio: Audio Products Made in USA

Insane sound and performance for all headphones. Modular, non-obsolescent design. 100% linear power supply. 50% longer warranty. No off-the-shelf amp chips. Meet the all-new Magni Unity, the only affordable, fully discrete headphone amp and preamp on the planet—with an optional internal Unison USB DAC.

Total Confidence for All Headphones

No matter what headphones you have, you’re set with Magni Unity. It’s dead-silent with the most sensitive IEMs, and has tons of power for power-hungry planars. And don’t worry about your favorite cans—Magni Unity’s overcurrent and DC correction systems help ensure they’re totally safe.

One Box for Your Entire Desktop

With the optional internal Unison USB™ DAC card, Magni Unity is a one-box system for your entire desktop. Plug in via USB-C for ultimate streaming quality, connect the preamp outputs to powered monitors (or a mini speaker amp like Rekkr) and you’re set for both headphone and speaker listening.

New Tech—Proven by Listening

Magni Unity debuts our new super-linear, high-precision current-feedback discrete topology—an exotic, bespoke amplifier stage unlike anything available from the competition. Coupled with the best parts, from a custom, sorted Alps potentiometer to silicon and film capacitors and 0.5% thin-film resistors, Magni Unity delivers better sound, as confirmed by our blind listening panels.

Designed and Built in the USA

By “designed and built in the USA" this is what we mean: the vast majority of the total production cost of Magni—chassis, boards, assembly, etc—goes to US companies manufacturing in the US. Our chassis are made in California. Our PCBs are made in California or Nevada, and it all comes together in our Corpus Christi facility.

3-Year Warranty, 15-Day Easy Returns

Magni is covered by a 3-year limited warranty, and backed by a company that's been making audio gear for 14 years in the USA. And if you don’t like your Magni, you can send it back for a refund, minus 15% restocking fee, within 15 days of receiving it.

SPECS THAT MATTER

Power: plenty for all headphones except a handful of the hardest-to-drive ones (we’re talking HE6, Tungsten, stuff like that)

Noise: inaudible on all headphones and IEMs

Distortion: unmeasurable at normal listening levels; 1000x lower than the typical headphones you're using

Heat: amp gets slightly warm without DAC card, moderately warm with DAC card; this is fine, we have made much hotter-running stuff that lasts farrrrrr past the warranty

Size: extremely desk-friendly

OTHER SPECS

Frequency Response: 20Hz-20Khz, +/-0.01dB

Output Power

Maximum Power, 16 ohms: 3.0W RMS per channel

Maximum Power, 32 ohms: 2.5W RMS per channel

Maximum Power, 50 ohms: 1.5W RMS per channel

Maximum Power, 300 ohms: 415mW RMS per channel

Maximum Power, 600 ohms: 220mW RMS per channel

THD+N

Low Gain: Less than 0.0001% (-116dB) at 2V RMS into 300 ohms

High Gain: Less than 0.0003% (-108dB) at 2V RMS into 300 ohms

IMD

Low Gain: Less than -110dB at 4V RMS into 300 ohms, CCIF

High Gain: Less than -108dB at 4V RMS into 300 ohms, CCIF

SNR

Low Gain: Greater than 122dB, referenced to 2V RMS

High Gain: Greater than 112dB, referenced to 2V RMS

Crosstalk

Less than -80dB, 20 Hz-20 kHz, 300 ohm load

Output Impedance

SE ¼” TRS output: less than 0.1 ohms

Preamp output: 75 ohms

Input Impedance: 50k ohms

Gain: 0.3 (-10dB), 1 (0db) or 5 (15db)

Topology: Fully discrete, DC coupled, current feedback, highly linear open-loop with low loop feedback

Protection: Failsafe DC power input and muting relay, overcurrent sensing and output lift, DC servo

Power Supply: 100% linear supply with “Wall wart” style 14-16VAC transformer, regulated +/-17V rails with over 8,000uF total filter capacitance

Power Consumption: 2W idle, 12W max

Size: 5 x 3.5 x 1.25”

Weight: 2 lb

APx555 Report for Magni Unity

APx555 Report for Magni Unity DAC

Unity? Really? Why “Unity?”
Because now, for the first time since 2017, we’re introducing a single Magni—and it’s also a single-box desktop solution when equipped with the optional internal Unison USB™ DAC. So, yeah, “Unity.”

Is this really different than previous Magnis?

Yes. It debuts our new, super-linear, high-precision current-feedback topology that increases performance by 10dB relative to previous discrete Magnis…aaaand it’s the first modular Magni ever, with an optional internal DAC.

Why this rather than any other $1XX product?

Simple: Magni Unity is the only fully discrete headphone amp and preamp at this price. Fully discrete means no off-the-shelf op-amps; it means our own exotic current-feedback, low-loop-gain architecture that we’ve been perfecting for the last half-decade. And it’s designed to be modular, with an optional Unison USB DAC module, for a single-box, non-obsolescent desktop system.

Translate the above into English. Can you sell me on what’s in it for me?

Sigh. Schiit Audio has exactly zero people with the title of “sales,” and still exactly zero people who have “sales” as their responsibility. So we don’t get very salesy.

Try.

Argh. Okay. Let’s break it down:

Discrete, not integrated—no off-the-shelf amp amp chips here: Magni Unity is the only fully discrete, exotic-topology, current-feedback, low-loop-gain amp selling for 3 figures and starting with a “1.” It uses insanely high grade stuff, from 0.5% thin-film resistors to silicon and film capacitors, and the power output is no joke.
Upgradable, more future-proof design: Magni Unity is the only headphone amp and preamp anywhere near its price using a modular design, with an optional internal DAC card that is upgradable for the future.
Super high power—and not only from a wacky balanced jack: with 2.5W on tap from a standard single-ended output jack, plus three gain levels, including negative gain for IEMs, you’re set for pretty much every headphone out there.
100% linear power supply: no switching noise, total reliability, and a ton of filter capacitance—something many others charge more for!
Complete safety and confidence: the overcurrent and DC correction systems—both, by the way, 100% transparent and out of the signal path—mean your most treasured headphones have the highest level of protection.
Better efficiency and looks: our (USA-made) advanced-form stamped chassis is super-efficient (no piles of aluminum from milling operations), eliminates visible fasteners and looks way sexier–and is now available in brushed aluminum!
Designed by listening: we regularly do blind listening panels, both internally and externally, and they have consistently chosen low-feedback, current-feedback products, including Magni Unity, over integrated and voltage feedback designs.
Longer warranty: 3 years, not 1 or 2. We’ve been in business more than 13 years, we’ve built well over 1 million products, and we stand behind what we make.

Wait. Are you saying it sounds better than op-amp designs?

To us, yes. To many, yes. To you…you tell us.

Wow what a tease.

It’s not a tease. Here’s what we can tell you: in blind listening, our panel consistently picked current-feedback, low loop-gain devices like Magni Unity over op-amp and discrete current feedback designs. This should be looked at with proper skepticism—but hey, it’s the same standard as the pharmaceutical companies use to submit data to the FDA for the drugs you take, so hey maybe not so bad.

Argh why you go so hard?

We really don’t. Here’s the thing: we believe in what we do. We believe in it based on blind listening, testing beyond “one number to rule them,” and some of the most extensive engineering experience in analog audio design in the world. We believe in it enough that we killed Magni Heretic, an op-amp based design, because this measures within 2dB of that product—but with 30dB of feedback rather than 130dB, and because it was consistently chosen as sounding better.

I see this is $119 now. Gonna blame inflation?

Actually, if we went by inflation, a $99 Magni in 2012 (when it was first introduced) is $134 today. So we’re well under inflation. And that’s while adding switchable gain, preamp outputs, and modular design.

Well, it’s $189 with the DAC.

Yep, and a Magni/Modi stack in 2012 was $198, or about $266 today. So we’re saving you almost $80 relative to 2012, for a much better product, in a single box. That’s called “progress.” Something a ton of companies have forgotten.

So is Magni Unity powerful enough for inefficient, planar magnetic headphones?

Magni Unity has tons of power—specifically 2.5W RMS per channel (that’s 2500mW, RMS, both channels driven—check others for “peak” or other sneaky claims) at less than 1% THD.

How is it for IEMs?

With a -10dB negative gain setting, you’re totally set.

What about the DAC card? Is it junky?

No. In fact, it’s a proper Unison USB™ DAC, using our own USB receiver, designed for one thing and one thing only: spectacular USB sound. Backed up by an ESS 9018 DAC, OPA1656 op-amps, and optimized filtering using film capacitors and precision thin-film resistors, it’s in the same class as the standalone Modi+—just with a single USB input.

All right then. What’s this about DC coupling?

Magni has no capacitors in the signal path—that’s what we mean by DC coupling. This eliminates any sonic effect a capacitor in the signal path might have on your system.

So you probably cheaped out and left the protection off these amps, or something stupid like that, right?

No. In fact, Magni Unity has the most advanced protection we’ve ever included in an affordable amp. This includes completely transparent current sensing and overcurrent protection (great when someone accidentally plugs in a TRRS headphone with a wonky adapter) and DC correction, which protects your headphones in the unlikely event of a catastrophic failure.

Magni Unity sounds great! Why would I buy any of your other amps?

Seriously, you really don’t need to. Hence the “no excuses.” But, you know, different people like different things, and they may want to try out tube amps, or balanced amps, or Class A/Continuity™ amps.

I see the aluminum top option is back. Is this painted “aluminum” or real aluminum?

This is real brushed aluminum, not painted, just like the good old days! Thank the stamping wizards in California for figuring out a standardized, repeatable process for such a complex part.

I still don’t like the name “Unity.”

Then call it Magni 5.

Why?

Because it’s the 5th generation. And it’s screened on the PC board.

What the hel is a Magni?

In Norse mythology, Magni was one of Thor’s sons. And you’re mixing your Norse metaphors.

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