Headphone amp for bass slam

Hey guys, i am looking to upgrade from a Schiit Modi 3+ and Magni Heresy Stack.

My current cans are a Fostex Ebony and an Audeze LCD-X, i also have a few IEMs such as the Dunu Zen and the Mangird Tea.

My preferred sound signature is warm with LOTS of bass slam / punch that is why i got the Ebony and the LCD-X. I EQ all my sets to something like a harman target but with some extra bass.

I am thinking on going with a Schiit Modius and an Asgard 3 but I hear mixed opinions regarding this upgrade, some say i will hear no difference at all and some say it will be very noticeable, so i think it is time to try it for myself.

Is the Modius + Asgard 3 the best i can do in this price range if my focus is that bass slam? I don’t think the Modi + Heresy is doing a bad job at all but i also have no other references. Btw my focus is the bass slam but i am not a hopeless basshead who only cares about bass, it would be great if the upgrade was significant for all other aspects such as soundstage, detail retrieval, etc…

Also worth mentioning that i don’t really care about going balanced, i actually prefer staying on SE to save me some money.

Cheers

I think the combo you mentioned is the best you can do in the price range. I’m just wondering if you’re expecting too much difference from your chain in BASSSSS.

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Just a thought,
Have you considered keeping the Asgard 3 and updating the DAC to a Bifrost 2?
I ran Modius/ A3 and then swapped the modius out for a BF2 and like - it was WOW!
I really liked that setup with my Lawton modded D5000 and Hifiman Edition X V2.

I still regard the Bifrost 2 as one of the best DACs for Punch/Slam.
And the A3 is a diamond for the money.

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I am honestly expecting ZERO difference! lol, but some people i respect say there is a big one so i need to hear it for myself :slight_smile:

Oh i would love to get a Bifrost, but it is way too expensive… I can get the Asgard + Modius for $400.

I’m sorry I glazed over your post and missed that. I thought you had already Modius & A3…
Then yes, the Modius and A3 will do you very well, and you have a solid upgrade path for if/when you are ready.

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Holy Schnikies more bass than a Fostex Ebony ? My Fostex Drop x00 or whatever they were called were bass monsters. ( I sold them due to comfort issues.) Maybe a Jotenheim2. Before I would do that I would also play with crossfeed since there are psychoacoustic benefits to bass impact.

I am actually 100% happy with the Fostex’s bass, what i want to see is if i can get the LCD-X to slam a bit harder, it is really not about quantity but about character. Some people say my DAC and amp are the weakest components of my chain and i would benefit from this upgrade when it comes to bass slam.

You could get the Asgard 3 and pair it with the Zen DAC in order to pump the bass boost through the Asgard. That should bring the bass in a big way. I’ve thought about doing this myself as an ultimate guilty pleasure bass setup.

I did just that at one point in time A3+Zen Dac + True Bass. It worked great with the Elegia I was using, but really muddied up the LCD-2PF & HEXv2. So, it is something that IMO needs to be tried on a case by case basis.

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That totally makes sense. The Elegia responded very well to the bass boost on the Hip DAC so that’s no surprise.

Actually boosting the bass is not a problem since i use EQ APO, but i heard that the way the bass is delivered can change depending on DACs or amps, so i want to heard the same bass quantity coming from another chain, using the same EQ.

Hey @M0N i read in another thread that you recommended the Asgard 3 for more bass slam, if you find some time would you please give your 2 cents on my scenario here? Cheers

@luizgarcia have you checked this out yet?

I assume you’ve been thru this but in case not
https://forum.hifiguides.com/t/schiit-asgard-3/4398

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Yep, those are really good threads. Because of those my main plan is the Asgard 3

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I just wanna say the MT-602 with Sylvanna 6k5’s is euh… Is very bassy xD

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Jotunheim 2

The Jotunheim is not nearly as powerful as the Asgard in SE though, 2w vs 3.5w @ 32ohms.