Updated October 2026 · status and prices checked Oct 10, 2026.
Status in 2026
Schiit no longer sells the Magni Heresy. Its current site lists one Magni, the Magni (Unity), at $119 or $199 with a DAC card, and says outright that it killed the Magni Heretic. The Heresy, the Heretic and the Magni+ are all gone from the lineup.
That matters if you landed here ready to buy one. New Heresy stock is gone from Schiit, so any listing you find is used or old retailer stock. Below is what to buy instead, then the original review, which still explains why this amp was recommended so often.
Buy Instead
The direct replacement: same size and job as the Heresy, rated at 2.5 W into 32Ω and 415 mW into 300Ω, with an optional built-in DAC.
The other clean budget amp worth buying new. About 2.6 W into 32Ω, sold direct by JDS Labs.
Pick this if you don't own a DAC yet: DAC and amp in one box, with a 4.4 mm balanced output.
| Magni Heresy (discontinued) | Magni (Unity) | JDS Atom Amp 2 | FiiO K11 R2R | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Status | Discontinued | Current | Current | Current |
| Price (Oct 2026) | Used only | $119 ($199 with DAC) | ~$129 | ~$170 |
| Power, 32Ω | 2.4 W (rated) | 2.5 W (rated) | ~2.6 W | ~1.3 W balanced |
| Power, 300Ω | 410 mW (rated) | 415 mW (rated) | n/a | ~220–250 mW balanced |
| DAC built in | No | Optional card | No | Yes |
| Gain settings | 2 | 3 (incl. -10 dB for IEMs) | See JDS Labs | 3 |
| Where to buy | Used market | Schiit direct | JDS Labs direct | Retail |
Specs are manufacturer ratings. The Atom Amp 2 figure comes from published reviews.
Who should still hunt for a Heresy: someone who already owns a Modi and wants a cheap matching amp, and finds a working unit well under the price of a new Magni. Everyone else should buy the Magni (Unity).
Who should skip all of these: if you only use IEMs or easy 32Ω headphones, a good USB-C dongle is enough. See our portable amp guide .
Buying a Used Magni Heresy
Used Heresys show up on r/AVexchange, Head-Fi classifieds and eBay. Before you pay:
- Turn the volume down low and check for channel imbalance. At the bottom of the knob’s travel, one ear shouldn’t be louder than the other.
- Make sure the AC wall adapter is included. The Magni runs from an AC wall-wart, not a USB or DC brick. Don’t substitute a random adapter.
- Check both gain settings and the preamp outputs if you plan to use them.
- Compare with new. A new Magni (Unity) is $119 with Schiit’s warranty. If a used Heresy costs close to that, the new one is the better buy.
The Original Review: Why the Heresy Mattered
The Heresy in the Name
Schiit named the Magni Heresy for the reaction it expected. It was a measurements-first amp built around op-amps with feed-forward correction, from a company best known for discrete designs. That was heresy to part of the audiophile community.
It launched in late 2019 at $99 alongside the discrete Magni 3+. The Heresy was aimed at measurement-focused buyers, including the Audio Science Review community, with a plain pitch: an amp at this price that measures as well as much more expensive gear.
Build and Design
The Heresy used Schiit’s compact form factor: a small aluminium box with a volume knob and a 6.35 mm headphone jack on the front. On the back were RCA inputs, a low/high gain switch and RCA preamp outputs for powered desktop speakers. Owners consistently describe it as warm to the touch after a while, which is normal for the design. Leave it some air.
Measurements
Audio Science Review measured the Heresy in December 2019 at a SINAD of about 119 dB and recommended it. That put it among the best-measuring headphone amps at any price at the time. Schiit’s published specs:
- 2.4 W RMS per channel into 32Ω
- 410 mW RMS per channel into 300Ω
- Frequency response ±0.04 dB, 20 Hz–20 kHz
- Two gain settings
To put that in volume terms: 410 mW into 300Ω is about 11 V RMS. A Sennheiser HD 600 at 97 dB/V would reach far beyond safe listening levels. The Heresy had headroom to spare for 250–300Ω dynamics and for mainstream planars like the HE400SE.
What “Transparent” Means Here
An amp that measures like this doesn’t have a sound of its own in any useful sense. Owners on r/headphones and Head-Fi consistently described the Heresy as neutral and uncoloured, sometimes “leaner” than Schiit’s warmer Asgard 3. That’s what the measurements predict: the headphones and the DAC set the tone.
For the HD 600, the DT 990 Pro or the HE400SE, that’s exactly what most buyers wanted. If you want an amp that adds warmth, a transparent amp like this won’t, and neither will its replacement.
Pairing Notes (Still Valid for the Magni Unity)
- Sennheiser HD 600 / HD 650: plenty of voltage. See the HD 600 amp guide and HD 650 amp guide for current picks.
- Beyerdynamic DT 990 Pro / DT 770 Pro 250Ω: clean and loud. A transparent amp won’t tame the DT 990’s treble. The DT 990 Pro pairing guide covers options.
- HiFiMAN HE400SE: enough current for normal listening. See the HE400SE pairing guide .
The classic “Schiit stack” was a Magni on top of a Modi DAC. In 2026 that means the Magni (Unity) with the Modi 5 ($149), or the $199 Magni with the DAC card built in. Our Modi generations comparison explains which Modi is which.
Verdict
The Magni Heresy earned its reputation: cheap, very clean and powerful enough for nearly any headphone. It’s discontinued, and it doesn’t need to be hunted down. The Magni (Unity) does the same job at $119 with a warranty. If you want a second opinion in the same role, the Heresy vs Atom Amp+ comparison covers how the two budget benchmarks and their successors line up. For more options, see our best headphone amps under $200 .
