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Notable mainly because it’s a compact all-in-one Schiit DAC/amp setup with the ESS chip, and the US$115 ask sits just under the US$127 median and above the US$110 25th percentile, so it reads as a fair-to-good buy rather than a steal.
What makes it worthwhile is the usual Magni appeal: clean, straightforward desktop performance, plenty of power for most headphones, and a practical single-box solution if you want to keep the chain simple. At this price, a clean unit with the original power supply and no output issues is easy to justify; just confirm the DAC input works properly and that there’s no channel imbalance or scratchy volume pot if it’s seen heavy use.
Independent perspective — not a price guarantee. Always verify condition, accessories and provenance before purchase.
ESS is best known as ESS Technology, a U.S. semiconductor company founded by Forrest Mozer in 1983 as Electronic Speech Systems. It began in California and grew from speech and multimedia chips into a specialist in audio conversion silicon, with its later identity strongly tied to digital audio technology rather than finished consumer hi-fi products.
The company’s core focus is audio DACs and ADCs—especially the SABRE family—used by manufacturers in audio, mobile, automotive, and professional equipment. In hi-fi terms, ESS is not primarily a maker of amplifiers, speakers, turntables, or headphones; instead, it supplies the conversion chips that sit inside many third-party components.
In the market, ESS has a technical, high-performance, component-supplier reputation rather than a consumer brand identity. Among informed audiophiles it is often associated with high-end and upper-mid-tier digital playback, while also being somewhat niche because its name usually appears inside other brands’ products rather than on the front panel. It is a respected engineering brand, but not a vintage collector name in the usual sense.
See all ESS listings on RADAR.
