, the structures described below are employed in the present invention. A spin valve thin-film magnetic device according to the present invention, comprises a free magnetic layer, a pair of nonmagnetic conductive layers formed on both sides of the free magnetic layer in the thickness direction thereof, a pair of fixed magnetic layers formed on the pair of nonconductive layers, a pair of antiferromagnetic layers formed on the pair of fixed magnetic layers, a pair of conductive layers imparting a sensing current to the free magnetic layer, the pair of nonmagnetic conductive layers, and the pair of fixed magnetic layers, and a pair of bias layers for aligning a magnetization direction of the free magnetic layer, wherein the free magnetic layer is a laminate composed of at least 0L ferromagnetic layers with a nonmagnetic interlayer provided therebetween, the L being an integer of 0 or more, in which magnetization directions of the ferromagnetic layers adjacent to each other are antiparallel to each other so that the entire free magnetic layer is in a ferrimagnetic state; one of the pair of fixed magnetic layers is a laminate composed of at least 0M ferromagnetic layers with a nonmagnetic layer provided therebetween, the M being an integer of 0 or more, in which magnetization directions of the ferromagnetic layers adjacent to each other are antiparallel to each other so that the entire fixed magnetic layer is in a ferrimagnetic state, and a magnetization direction of the entire fixed magnetic layer is fixed in a direction crossing the magnetization direction of the entire free magnetic layer by an exchange coupling magnetic field formed by the fixed magnetic layer and one of the antiferromagnetic layer adjacent thereto; the other fixed magnetic layer is 