fosi-audio-schiit-audio
Fosi Audio MD3 MagDac; Schiit Audio Vestri
Fosi and Schiit launch portable DAC/headphone amps
The two compact USB devices address the same wired-listening category from different design positions. Fosi focuses on phone-mounted use, while Schiit brings its USB and digital-filter platform to a small portable headphone DAC.
Georg S. Kuklick
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Fosi Audio and Schiit Audio have added new portable USB DAC/headphone amplifiers for wired headphone use with phones, tablets and computers. Fosi’s MD3 MagDac is built around magnetic attachment for MagSafe-compatible iPhones, while Schiit’s Vestri marks the company’s move into the dongle DAC category.
The MD3 MagDac is aimed at a phone-mounted use case. Its magnetic back attaches to a compatible iPhone, with a short USB-C cable handling the digital connection, and Fosi’s product page lists pass-through charging and a rear display for volume and audio-format information.
Vestri takes a more conventional compact dongle form. Schiit’s product page describes the model around its Unison USB receiver and Mesh D/A conversion, with touch controls for volume, Loudness, invert and NOS modes, plus individual LEDs under glass rather than an OLED display.
Key specifications
Fosi MD3 DAC chip | ESS Sabre ES9039Q2M |
|---|---|
Fosi MD3 amplification | Four ESS ES9603Q amplifier chips |
Fosi MD3 outputs | 3.5mm single-ended and 4.4mm balanced |
Fosi MD3 output power | At least 80mW x2 at 32 ohms from 3.5mm; at least 180mW x2 at 32 ohms from 4.4mm |
Fosi MD3 USB audio | PCM up to 32-bit/384kHz and native DSD256 over UAC 2.0 |
Fosi MD3 dimensions | 70 x 45 x 12 mm |
Fosi MD3 weight | 50g, excluding cable |
Schiit Vestri output power | Up to 400mW through balanced output |
Schiit Vestri platform | Unison USB receiver and Mesh D/A conversion with time- and frequency-domain optimized digital filter |
Schiit Vestri manufacture | Made in the USA on Schiit’s SMD assembly line in Corpus Christi |
Schiit Vestri warranty | 2 years |
Fosi lists the MD3 MagDac at $149.99 for the standard Galaxy and Obsidian variants and shows it as available now. Schiit announced Vestri at CanJam Singapore on May 15, 2026, opened pre-orders for shipments beginning May 28, and lists the model at $99 through schiit.com.
Sources
- Darko.Audio - Does your dongle dangle?
- ecoustics - Schiit Finally Goes Portable With $99 Vestri Dongle DAC
Key specifications
Sources
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