Schiit Mjolnir headphone amplifier - Page 105

Quote:

Originally Posted by longbowbbs 

Before there was Halo there was Norse mythology...It is both a collection of names with a common theme and, hey, they are cool....

 

 

Mjolnir, the mighty hammer of Thor....

There was no life before Halo.

I like those pendants shown on the wiki page, I think Schiit should have one etched into the amp, like right next to the name. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Solude 

No because the noise is doubled too ;)  That said the output level of balanced input is the same since the Bryston drops the negative leg.  Ie 3 pins enter, two get grounded, 1 continues through the amp.  I'd have to look again but its also possible Bryston sums the input, same difference.

Not quite, most dacs ive looked at that have extensive specs listed, show the balanced output having at least a couple db higher SNR. Like my D2 for instance, 123 vs 126 db single ended vs balanced outputs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Solude 

No because the noise is doubled too ;)  That said the output level of balanced input is the same since the Bryston drops the negative leg.  Ie 3 pins enter, two get grounded, 1 continues through the amp.  I'd have to look again but its also possible Bryston sums the input, same difference.

According to the BHA-1 schematics both XLR pin 2 (+) and pin 3 (-) go to the input buffers (pin 1 is connected to ground). When using the SE inputs the input buffers negative input is connected to ground. Balanced input should normally mean double voltage swing into the power amps compared to SE input (even though the signal is always SE between the input buffers and the power amps). So for HE-6, use the balanced input (driven from a balanced source, of course).

Quote:

Originally Posted by CanDude 

 

According to the BHA-1 schematics both XLR pin 2 (+) and pin 3 (-) go to the input buffers (pin 1 is connected to ground). 

But riddle me this.  Where does it go after that if the volume is single ended ;)

Anyway enough derail... back to Mjolnir.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Solude 

 

But riddle me this.  Where does it go after that if the volume is single ended ;)

it could be that its a differential input stage, so its outputting a single ended signal regardless to go to the voltage gain stage?

It is tied to the output of the input stage, the other end is tied to ground

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dj HyPe 

why do schitt use halo armour names? are halo armour names german or something?

No offense intended.

Nordic mythology!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Solude 

 

Which makes sense since its a bridged amp, not a differential one.  Ie, single ended input doesn't result in balanced output.  WA22 has the same limit ignoring its output is always single ended :p

Exactly. 

I'm talking about bridged here.  You have twice the voltage gain because you amp both the positive and negative taps.  Both sides have their own noise contribution, its not like just because you bridge an amp that each side becomes less distorted.  Kevin got into it with Ti back in the day because outside of power gain and slew rate, a bridged amp measures worse in every way.  Higher noise, higher output impedance...  But in the end agreed that the measurements on the B22 were so good that it was academic ;)

Quote:

Originally Posted by longbowbbs 

Before there was Halo there was Norse mythology...It is both a collection of names with a common theme and, hey, they are cool....

 

 

 

Mjolnir, the mighty hammer of Thor....

Sometimes I worry about the future of humanity.....sometimes I don't and simply accept we're in deep Schiit....

^^

(Dang....where is....) Hey! Found the snare drum!.....

Seriously, was that a troll or what?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Solude 

I'm talking about bridged here.  You have twice the voltage gain because you amp both the positive and negative taps.  Both sides have their own noise contribution, its not like just because you bridge an amp that each side becomes less distorted.  Kevin got into it with Ti back in the day because outside of power gain and slew rate, a bridged amp measures worse in every way.  Higher noise, higher output impedance...  But in the end agreed that the measurements on the B22 were so good that it was academic ;)

Just to be clear, Mjolnir isn't a bridged amp. It's a circlotron--an inherently balanced, differential in, differential out stage that automatically converts single-ended inputs to differential, thanks to the magic of an input differential amplifier. Yes, lots of differential there.

Bottom line, Mjolnir doesn't have the "only one leg driven" problem of some amps you're discussing, nor does it have to compromise by summing everything down to single-ended, then running through a volume pot, then applying the signal to two separate stages, like other amps you're discussing. It's really an elegant solution--the only catch being the complexity of the power supply.

I know I'm being pedantic, but people get strange ideas, especially when the thread title is "Schiit Mjolnir Headphone Amplifier." Just a little disambiguation among friends.