[Ancipital]

Unicornlicious... I like that haha! I don't doubt it's a great sounding amp but more just trying to figure out if a portable amp/DAC would be sufficient to drive the HD650 well enough or if I'm severely missing out on something special.



Some users say it's not that much of an upgrade but then others say it is. If I had any experience with many amps myself I could make my own decision on the subject.

 


Let me add to the noise pollution to say that I wouldn't bother with a portable amp with the 650- many can make it go loud, but few can actually make it sound as good as it should. The 650 sings with a beefy enough amp- hence all the wild-eyed stuff about how it "scales", give it an insane amp and suddenly, all talk of "veil" and a "sluggish" sound becomes a bad memory. Relegating my portable DAC/amp to IEM duty on the move was a good idea, it's a more natural fit.

I made the mistake of trying to use a Mojo to drive the 650, with utterly insipid results. I then tried a Magni 2 (much better results, but still poorly-controlled bass and some lack of detail). The Jot, with the 650, however, really is a nice pairing. Many people find the Jot too unsparing, bringing out nasty treble peaks in some cans, but the 650 seems to work. The treble isn't shouty, the bass is taut and textured, the mids remain lovely and smooth, it's really pleasant- and I'd probably argue that you don't even need to modify the 650 beyond adding a balanced cable.

They're great cans for the money- though a pig to drive properly. It's a fantastic amp for the money, but a touch facist with overly bright/harsh headphones. However, they appear to be a very complimentary match. I have my doubts if you'd find a better combo for that money, currently.

You're right, it's a shame that you can't just listen- ten minutes with your own music through that pairing, and you'd be sold. You won't find a better solid state amp for those headphones without spending quite a lot more. The best part about those two? There aren't many obvious upgrades without big spending- it's quite a safe purchase.

(Of course, you can always fret about your DAC, but a Modi Multibit will probably see you right, and is accordingly sensibly priced, too.)

 

[Mirakoolz]

Unicornlicious... I like that haha! I don't doubt it's a great sounding amp but more just trying to figure out if a portable amp/DAC would be sufficient to drive the HD650 well enough or if I'm severely missing out on something special.

Some users say it's not that much of an upgrade but then others say it is. If I had any experience with many amps myself I could make my own decision on the subject.

 
here lies the root of all (financial) trouble. the wandering.
a great amp is a great amp. comparing the two may yield a difference but will that difference justify the $$ or will it be $$ worth of buyers remorse.
sure, you can resell on the used market but then that's also money lost. List it for $700 (practically new) and i assume most people who can afford that would may as well buy it brand new with free freight, peace of mind and store-rapport  for $799. (list it on ebay and be docked fees in excess of 10%)
 
I see you've owned a range of electronics. being rational, were you able to reliably notice the improvements as you upgraded? Maybe from your first device to your current one, yes, but im guessing the difference between what you have now and the jot is a lesser jump in terms of quality, specs, technologies
 
i sure hope u get the chance to listen to the Jot so that your mind can be at peace.
 
i cant comment on pairings because i no longer have the HD650's
but if the jot can fix the bass roll off and increase treble extension, i'd love to buy another pair!
for me, im not one to beat the dead horse (hd650's) by throwing extra money at it (electronics) to make them sound like the pair of headphones i should've bought

 

[cthomas]

@Ancipital

Thanks, if you could quantify the difference between the Mojo and Jot as a percentage what would that be? I'm just trying to weigh up the convenience of having a portable option compared to stationary sound quality.

 

[leafy7382]

Just out of curiosity. Schiit itself offers a 15-day return policy, does the Aussie distributor do the same or there isn't one at all? If there is, why not just buy it and try it for 2 weeks and decide if you like it or not?

 

[cthomas]

Only one dealer called Addicted to Audio but they don't offer a change of mind return.

 

[joeq70]

  Just out of curiosity. Schiit itself offers a 15-day return policy, does the Aussie distributor do the same or there isn't one at all? If there is, why not just buy it and try it for 2 weeks and decide if you like it or not?

I would guess that shipping to and from Australia makes this strategy prohibitive. That and the restocking fee.

 

[cthomas]

It costs more here too, probably to cover them for shipping back to US if something goes wrong. $499 USD equals around $650 AUD but we pay $799.

 

[Dephezz]

It costs more here too, probably to cover them for shipping back to US if something goes wrong. $499 USD equals around $650 AUD but we pay $799.

In Moscow we have official price of 800$ = 1050AUD. Nice margin, right? Thats how u do business in Russia

 
P.S.: I shipped it for 600$. Nice AMP. Mediocre DAC (but with good value).

 

[Mirakoolz]

buying direct from schiit usa works out to be $770 AUD (approx) including shipping. $799 is a fair deal in comparison to have local support

 

[Frode Roed]

@Ancipital

Thanks, if you could quantify the difference between the Mojo and Jot as a percentage what would that be? I'm just trying to weigh up the convenience of having a portable option compared to stationary sound quality.

Just to say that sometimes my Elear breaks up when driven by the Mojo on moderate to loud levels.
The source volume is set at 100%.

 

[Ancipital]

@Ancipital

Thanks, if you could quantify the difference between the Mojo and Jot as a percentage what would that be? I'm just trying to weigh up the convenience of having a portable option compared to stationary sound quality.

 
Not really, the Mojo simply isn't enough amp for the HD650, it fails to drive them properly, they sound flat, boring and insipid. I simply can't listen to my HD650 from my Mojo, as I know that they're not supposed to sound like that. 
 
Mojo with my IEMs? Fine, decent sound for mobile. Mojo with my HE-560? Reasonable, though not as good as any of my desktop options. Mojo with my HD650? No thanks, I'd rather plug my IEMs in until I can get to a proper amp. Chord fanboys overclaim a lot about the Mojo, which doesn't do it any favours and leads to a lot of people ending up disappointed in the long term. It's a cool device, as long as you play to its strengths.
 
The Jot+Mojo sounds a lot better than the bare Mojo. The Jot+Mimby is an even nicer (and far more convenient/reliable) combo. To get the most from that combo- pick up a spare stock HD650 cable and re-terminate it balanced with a 4 pin XLR (Neutrik plugs are nice)- probably one of the cheapest and easiest ways to re-cable it balanced in a hurry.

 

[cthomas]

Thanks, I'd like to hear the Jot one day.

So since the Mimby doesn't have balanced output does that mean the Jot + Mimby would not be truly balanced?

 

[Ancipital]

Thanks, I'd like to hear the Jot one day.

So since the Mimby doesn't have balanced output does that mean the Jot + Mimby would not be truly balanced?

 
The amp will still be running balanced and driving the headphones balanced, the difference is really minimal. If you find Atomicbob's measurements for the Jot, you'll see that while balanced is marginally better than SE at all points, you don't lose much at all (probably below audible thresholds) by going SE in and then balanced out.
 
Jot doesn't care, it's always balanced, but can always do SE or balanced in and out, in any combo. It's a pretty remarkable amp for the money.

 

[cthomas]

Cool, thanks again.

 

[CarlosUnchained]

Any comparison Jot+DAC with the Grace Design m9XX? We are talking of the same price.
 
More Power and balanced outputs Vs a better DAC?