Chord Mojo(1) DAC-amp ☆★►FAQ in 3rd post!◄★☆

[Mojo ideas]

Gear: Iphone 5 w/cck, MacbookPro, Mojo, 64 Audio ADEL A12

Let me begin by saying that I don't speak fancy audiophile lingo, I'm just a normal guy who's always been into music-more specifically metal(doom, sludge, stoner, black, death, atmospheric and all combinations of the aforementioned styles) as well as classical-but mostly metal.  I've had a few hours with the Mojo now, here are my results:

The first thing I noticed was the detail.  Listening to albums I'd listened to many times before was great.  I heard instruments I'd never heard before, especially when the metal was fast-without the Mojo I never noticed the things i missed but with the Mojo it all becomes known.  Gasps when the singer inhales or someone tapping their foot at a quiet-live performance of a solo artist, all those thing you say people always hear with nice gear-it comes through with Mojo.  I heard people in the audience many times in some of my files when i wasn't supposed to hear them-they weren't meant to be part of the mix.  This is especially noticeable with vinyl, which Mojo has caused me to dislike more.  I alreayd disliked vinyl and if asked to chose between my 16/44 cd rip of Xanthochroid's Blessed He With Boils or the 24/192 with all the pops and clicks-I'll pick the CD version with its pristine sound free of artifacts.  

When I say the music sounds different, it really does.  The track I'm listening to-the vocals are quite different.  Maybe I'm struggling for words here since I don't have the audiophile dictionary in my brain, sorry I can't describe it better.  There is a song by Woods of Ypres called Kiss My Ashes Goodbye, its about 10 mins long.  I've never heard David Gold's voice sound like this, it's like he's singing it into my ear and I can feel it.  In Lightning & Snow from the same album (called Grey Skies & Electric Light) I hear cymbals that I've never heard before during the chaotic moments of the song.  My ADEL's A12's are known for instrument separation so paired with the Mojo (with it's incredible separation) really keeps my brain engaged with the music because there is so much going on where all previously ran together.

To really test the instrument separation synergy with my A12's I chose Archspire's song Lucid Collective Somnambulation.  All I can say is wow.

And my mojo just died, looks like i'm out of battery.

What else should I say?  My A12's are known for the impressive sub-bass, among other things.  I feel like the Mojo slightly lowers this sub-bass in favor of a more neutral signature.  One band that I listen to everyday (one of the best bands I've ever heard) is Beastwars.  Both their albums Beastwars and Blood Becomes fire sound glorious on the A12's from my puny Iphone5.  Beastwars plays doom/stoner/sludge (mostly interchangeable) metal.  This style of metal has a moniker: "Tune low, play slow".  Basically you can expect extremely downtuned guitars with towering and crushing riffs that echo into nothingness.  Especially on Blood Becomes Fire, that whole album really makes the A12's shake with bass.  There is more bass impact with the iphone 5 IMO than with the mojo.  I use the word impact because the mojo still picks up the same low riffage but just with more detail and a hair less "blow your hair back" bass.  I think I'll get used to this as time goes on, brain burn-in and whatnot.  If it is a problem for you, you can always EQ a bit-on my iphone 5 the EQ in both tuneshell and onkyo work fine with the mojo.

Concerning soundstage, all I've ever heard is my A12's and my iphone 5/macbook pro so the soundstage actually sounds larger to me.  Some of the instruments, especially in Chesky's jazz bits sounded like they were outside my ciem's floating in space.  It was an odd sensation and I've never heard it before.

Conclusion:

The most noticeable sound improvement with the mojo is the timing.  All the instruments sound like the band is playing right in front of you.  The music is alive.  From the iphone 5 I have more bass impact but the music is still "just a recording".  Mojo does something to the music that makes it come alive, hard to explain.  It has a neutral sig IMO so if you're into thundering bass it'll deliver the bass just cleaner and with a hair less knockdown.  IMO any bass you sacrifice is worth what you get with everything else the mojo offers.  Treble was great as well.  Nothing bad to say, I'm glad I bought this and I'm done with audiophile gear forever.  I have a completely black background and notice no hiss.  RF inerference can be an issue with Iphone 5, use airplane mode.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFb607Y49X0

Are you going to post this in with the other rewiews I'd like to see it there are I feel you capture the true spirit of our Mojo in relatively few words

 

[headwhacker]

the HD800s are a great pairing for the mojo. I sold 2 dac amps within a fortnight of buying the mojo it was a no brainer. And the mojo works as a line out for an integrated amp and a pre amp for a power amp if you ever wanted to see what it could do using just the dac part.
As a standalone dac it is also superb

Yes it does, a month of trying different headphones with Mojo. HD800 + Mojo combination is my favorite so far. My cans that need separate amplification when paired with Mojo like SR-507 and HE-6 doesn't sound as good with Mojo than HD800 direct to Mojo. 

 

[Takeanidea]

HE-6 / Mojo / Mini Beast - my ultimate combination. Maybe my endgame combination hardware wise

 

[headwhacker]

  HE-6 / Mojo / Mini Beast - my ultimate combination. Maybe my endgame combination hardware wise

 
I am currently using the stuck pleather pads with HE-6 and I don't like how it sounded with Mojo/Marantz PM5005. Sounded thin ands too bright than I remember with the Focus Pad-A.

 

[nntnam]

Just received my Mojo this morning.
 
First impression: no hiss at all! Tested with Fitear 335 which is extremely sensitive. It hisses with almost every sources I tried.
 
Need more listening time to comment on the sound quality .

 

[gavinfabl]

I have the DX80 and mojo, the dx 80 has both optical and coaxial so u can use the cable that comes with the ibasso if u get an adaptor, or u can get a 3.5-3.5 coax made by noon audio or other custome cable making companies.
I love my DT 1350 with my mojo, have not tried my w3000 with them yet, but I will shortly.
I would recommend the fostex TH x00 that is in mass drop. If it is anywhere close to the TH900, it will definitely be a winner.
Oh I have use a mini to mini cable to connect the 80 to mojo with great results also.

Which way are you connecting the Mojo to the DX80? What sort of adapter do I need if using optical and the included cable?

 

[x RELIC x]

Which way are you connecting the Mojo to the DX80? What sort of adapter do I need if using optical and the included cable?

What is the optical cable that comes with the DX80?

 

[Hotwire]

I don't own the Mojo yet, but I've got a couple of questions before purchase:
 

1. Seeing that play time is 8 to 10 hours (with a new battery inside), is it possible to upgrade -- either official or DIY -- the internal battery with a higher energy density one? I know the external battery bank solution, but I'd prefer to upgrade the internal one if possible.
2. How do the spherical buttons feel? Do they feel as unergonomic and uncomfortable as they look? Either way, I wish Chord had just used flat volume buttons, or a nice smooth volume nob.
3. And lastly: I know this has probably been well discussed throughout the thread, but I don't have time to browse through it all, and yet I still have to know the nitty gritty regarding this issue being it an expensive investment for me: incase of EMI, does using a cable with different properties (shield, shorter, etc) solve the issue? Airplane mode is the guaranteed method to solve, I know -- but I'd rather not.

 

 

[Takeanidea]

  I don't own the Mojo yet, but I've got a couple of questions before purchase:
 

1. Seeing that play time is 8 to 10 hours (with a new battery inside), is it possible to upgrade -- either official or DIY -- the internal battery with a higher energy density one? I know the external battery bank solution, but I'd prefer to upgrade the internal one if possible.

 
Nope the battery is not user changeable
 

1. How do the spherical buttons feel? Do they feel as unergonomic and uncomfortable as they look? Either way, I wish Chord had just used flat volume buttons, or a nice smooth volume knob.

 
You'll get to love the buttons. They're different to the normal (boring) stuff and they're colourful. You press them down , they work. You'll have your eyes shut listening to the music most of the time anyway
 

1. And lastly: I know this has probably been well discussed throughout the thread, but I don't have time to browse through it all, and yet I still have to know the nitty gritty regarding this issue being it an expensive investment for me: incase of EMI, does using a cable with different properties (shield, shorter, etc) solve the issue? Airplane mode is the guaranteed method to solve, I know -- but I'd rather not.

 
I've not once had to use my Note II in airplane mode with the Mojo. The supplied cable is super short, if you get an OTG adapter pin for $1 and stick in the front of that you'll be set

 

[Hotwire]

 

Nope the battery is not user changeable
What obstructs it from being changeable?
 
You'll get to love the buttons. They're different to the normal (boring) stuff and they're colourful. You press them down , they work. You'll have your eyes shut listening to the music most of the time anyway
I'll take your word on that. I do sincerely hope you're right. It would be a shame if ergonomics would be a dealbreaker for the highly promising sound.
 
I've not once had to use my Note II in airplane mode with the Mojo. The supplied cable is super short, if you get an OTG adapter pin for $1 and stick in the front of that you'll be set
I previously read that the IEM issue differed per phone. Some phone models caused it, some didn't. Some folks earlier on mentioned that using a different (type of?) cable or some such helped. But I couldn't find a definitive conclusion on that.

 

[Currawong]

@Hotwire: 
 
I'm not hugely knowledgeable on batteries, but I don't think swapping the battery is simply an issue of finding one with higher capacity. The circuitry inside will have been designed to charge correctly the specific battery being used, not overheat, and deliver power efficiently for the Mojo's requirements. 
 
The situation is a common one though: Do you make a device with a long battery life at the expense of headphone drive power, or have a higher power amp with shorter battery life? Very often, people ask for the latter. In the Mojo there is also the consideration of the serious computing built in (the FPGA) that requires a lot of power to run. A typical portable DAC/amp this isn't. 
 
I don't know if it would be suitable for you, but I always carry a battery with me for charging my phone in emergencies. One designed for an iPad or similar should work fine with the Mojo. IIRC the Mojo requires 1A or higher. 

 

[salla45]

 
 
 
Conclusion:
 
The most noticeable sound improvement with the mojo is the timing.  All the instruments sound like the band is playing right in front of you.  The music is alive.  From the iphone 5 I have more bass impact but the music is still "just a recording".  Mojo does something to the music that makes it come alive, hard to explain. 
 
 
 

what you say here is spot on.
 
It is difficult to put into words. The denser pieces of music display the mojo's talents more than simpler ones I notice too. It's almost like you've known there's more for a piece to give, subconsciously, but now you're realising it for real!

 

[che15]

Which way are you connecting the Mojo to the DX80? What sort of adapter do I need if using optical and the included cable?

I am using the stock coaxial cable using and RCA to 3.5 adapter I got in Amazon. I am doing this until I get the coaxial cable that I order from fellow head fier derGaber, which is custome made and very affordable.
There is a picture of one a few pages back in this thread.

 

[spook76]

Yea near the top of my all-time list and they've only released two albums and I sample probably 20 albums a day 5 days a week, done so for years. 

If you haven't heard it, the new Opeth box set remix of 'Deliverance' and 'Damnation' in 96/24 is stunning. With the death growls on 'Deliverance' and Steven Wilson's remix of his original master of 'Damnation' it is like listening to new albums.

 

[catnono]

Hi guys, newbie here need some help. I am using the HTC one M8 phone to pair with Mojo. The phone is stock Lollipop rom 5.0, I am not getting native USB audio out when it paired with the Mojo. Basically, I need to use either Onkyo HF player or UAPP to play my songs. Even worse, I am getting random clicking or shudder noise every 1 or 2 minutes which is not there when using the headphone out. Mojo is fine with PC or MAC. So it is the problem of the phone. I wonder if anybody use M8 here? Any suggestions?