Schiit Magni 6 lets you leave your headphones plugged in

Schiit Audio announced the Magni 6 desktop headphone amplifier on October 30, 2026, with immediate availability. For a desk shared by headphones and powered speakers, it brings a welcome convenience: independently switchable preamp outputs let you move between the two without unplugging your headphones.

Two configurations, only one with a DAC

US pricing is $99 for the amplifier alone or $169 with the optional Mesh 2 DAC installed, before shipping and applicable taxes. The lower price does not include a DAC.

A DAC converts digital audio into an analog signal; the headphone amplifier then supplies the power to drive your headphones. The amp-only Magni 6 can work with an existing external DAC or another analog source. The Mesh 2 configuration puts both jobs in the same enclosure.

Switch outputs from the front panel

Front-panel buttons handle input selection, gain and preamp output control. The preamp outputs can be turned on or off independently, making a headphone-and-speaker desk setup easier to manage.

Those speakers need to be active or powered models with their own amplification. The Magni 6 is not a power amplifier for passive speakers.

Its amplifier uses a fully discrete, DC-coupled current-feedback circuit. Schiit rates output at 3 watts per channel into 32 ohms; that figure alone does not establish better sound or equal performance with every pair of headphones.

What the 4.4mm Halo output does

Halo is a feedback system intended to bring the connected headphone driver’s behavior into the amplifier’s feedback loop. It operates only through the 4.4mm Halo output; the conventional 6.35mm output works without it. A 4.4mm socket should not, by itself, be taken as evidence of a conventional balanced amplifier circuit.

According to ecoustics, Schiit acknowledges mixed results in its own Halo testing. An audible improvement has not been independently established, leaving a useful listening question for anyone curious about the two outputs: whether Halo makes a discernible difference with their own headphones.