Schiit Mjolnir headphone amplifier - Page 99

I remember the Playstation 2 came with a small stand to allow it to be kept vertically - not sure if you are thinking of something similar.  To give a  bit of perspective I tried the Mjolnir at a local meet and it was about 1/8th the size of one of my AudioGD Ref/Master components,  My desk would have so much more room if I ended up with the Schiit balanced gear  I think the Mjolnir compared pretty favorably as well, more of a different sound signature than a clearly different class of component (for the amplifiers).  One person might prefer one or the other depending on what headphones or musical preferences they have.

Could you elaborate on that a bit more as to different sound signature of the Schiit and Audio-gd amps.

I've got money waiting for the Statement Schiit amp!

It's hard to separate what was down to the Mjolnir I was listening to being not fully burned in , but compared to me Master 6 the Mjolnir had very punchy and well defined bass (maybe a little too insistent), overall a very neutral and trasnparent midrange and treble, maybe even a little more detailed and clean than the M6, but also more edgy and unforgiving.  My guess is that the bass will settle down a little, and the mids and treble become a little less edgy if the Mjolnir follows the typical trend of solid state burn-in.  I will hopefully get a chance to hear a substantially burned in Mjolnir in the future.  The unit I listened to new was probably a little too bright for the HE-6, but also clearly showed promise in the incredible bass performance.  I'm sure it had enough power for the HE-6.

I wouldn't extrapolate that this is a sound signature of Schiit equipment in general, especially as the Mjolnir I was using was straight out of the box, and my Master 6 has many hundreds of hours on it.

If the Statement is even better than the Mjolnir it should be a knockout.  You can tell that there is some serious engineering in the Mjolnir, and if I were sure that the treble and mids would be a little more forgiving I would have no reservations in buying one to use with my HE-6.

Maybe he's waiting for the Statement.

Whoever stated that these Mjolnir impressions are likely heavily influenced by source was spot on. With the Bifrost behind it and the HD800 at the end of the chain I never found the sound grating, but there was a slight etch in the upper registers apparent in some recordings. Depth also did not match the width of the soundstage. The centre image was too upfront and lacked some layers.

These things are no longer evident with the Gungnir in place. The presentation is extended through both extremes of the frequency range, deep and taut through the low end, balanced and transparent throughout the mids and smooth and spacious through the treble. There's now precise placement of elements and gone is the 3 blob imaging. These qualities are in large part due to the Gungnir. I hear these differences through my speakers as well. What's apparent in regards to the Mjolnir though is that it allows all the good stuff through, unaltered. It is not inherently bright or abrasive, flat and lacking dimension.

Question for other owners - would you be content with the Mjolnir as your only amp? (please ignore the must-use-balanced-phones aspect - I'm asking about sound not practicality.) Or, to refine the question, would you be content with the Mjolnir as your only Solid State amp?

x2

If any of the Head-Fi heavy hitters are reviewing the Mjolnir, I hope they use a variety of DACs and/or other sources. I'd especially like to hear from anyone who has paired the Mjolnir with a DAC in the $2K, $5K or even >$10K range.

I strongly suspect that because of its transparency to source, the Mjolnir will make a lot of people unhappy with the rest of their audio chain.

I too replaced a Bifrost with Gungnir, and noticed much the same improvement. No surprise there should be great synergy between two components from the same company. But while most of us are used to mixing brands, the Mjolnir seems to be a lot more picky than usual about what it's partnered with.

Question for other owners - would you be content with the Mjolnir as your only amp? (please ignore the must-use-balanced-phones aspect - I'm asking about sound not practicality.) Or, to refine the question, would you be content with the Mjolnir as your only Solid State amp?

I think Mjolnir is one of the only SS amps I'd want to have. The other being the new GS-X. Other than that, I don't find the B22, Violectric, Burson and so on as good.

Tube amps are a different situation altogether. But I'd surmise it comes down to preferences more than anything.

Mjolnir is currently my only amp. GS-X and statement are on the radar as far as interest. And the ECBA is the most desired amp.

Yes the ECBA is also one the my most desired amps.  As far as the B22, V200 (I assume) Burson amps are concern.  I can only speak for the B22.  It's not a listeners amp by a long shot so it's not going to be a technical master peace so to speak.  Now I assume the MJ is a very transparent, very resolving amp to the point of what the put in is what you get out.  Same goes with the GS-X.  The B2, V200 are more musical amps IMHO meaning a more fun experience - or a more fun amp to listen to.  That's why IMO say the MJ and the GS-X will be a great complement to a B22 or a V200.  

MJ & GS-X = Transparent - B22 & V200, Burson = Colored (warm)

In comparison.

Just drool worthy... haaa

The B22 is more musical and overall it's good. However I find the MJ more than marginally better. And yea, it's a transparent amp, so a musical amp would be nice. 

But at the price of a commissioned build of a B22, I'd go with a tube amp like the Decware or EC super 7.

I think at this point the B22 is just overpriced. But times change, things improve, it's expected. You do get a nice custom build, so there's that side to costs.

Well I have not heard the MJ as of yet.  So your word is good.  Marginally better - I guess  That's why I love this hobby - don't you?

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinyl addict 

I've been reading up on the Mjolnir but haven't come across any comparisons vs. the GS-1.

 

 

The only reason to keep a GS-1 over the Mjolnir is if, one you have no balanced cables, and two you prefer a more laid back presentation.  The Mjolnir bests the GS-1 everywhere, assuming you like an active presentation.  Frankly its not even close.  Hopefully the new modules close the gap.

If you want a better GS-1 that retains its character, get a Soloist.  With any luck Burson wakes up and cranks the bias on it and releases an MkII because although its rated to 4W its clearly only biased to maybe 200mW.  Lots of tolerance for the case to take more heat.  Sorry for the mini rant, just kills me when a manufacturer hobbles their own product for no reason.  Still my top pick for that character of amp, but can only imagine what could have been :(

With any luck Burson wakes up and cranks the bias on it and releases an MkII because although its rated to 4W its clearly only biased to maybe 200mW.  Lots of tolerance for the case to take more heat.  Sorry for the mini rant, just kills me when a manufacturer hobbles their own product for no reason.  Still my top pick for that character of amp, but can only imagine what could have been :(