[nomis3613]

Glad to have the Lokius feedback from this thread! Just bought one based on your comments. I also have a Loki Mini original
which I have found very useful, but wanted the extra two bands. Will be using the Lokius with a "daily driver" Schiit system:
Schiit Modius, Lokius, Jotunheim 1 with both single ended and balanced headphones. Thanks for all of the useful input about the
Lokius on this thread!

You're most welcome. Have fun twiddling the dials... errr, I mean making carefully considered adjustments to the frequency response!

 

[Lvivske]

Contradicting experiences indeed. anyone else compared the Loki and Lokius ?

ST33L's impressions were identical to mine (page 1)

I find that the knobs are not as responsive / granular as the Loki-1. For example, the 6 and 16k knobs can be +/0 neutral quite a few degrees and leave me with no audible difference - the band changes are more prominent sweeping to the extremes. On my [Loki 1], every tiny nudge mattered. This lets me down, because I felt by paying double for 50% more control, I wouldnt be giving up control. I also find the 20hz knob is much less meaningful than the older model, and all the bass magic now happens on the 120hz (this results is better, punchier bass, refining a more significant band IMO).

 

[Jimmyblues1959]

ST33L's impressions were identical to mine (page 1)

As a Loki Mini classic owner and soon to be Lokius owner (just ordered a Schiit B stock unit this past Friday), I appreciate seeing these observations regarding some of the differences between the Loki Mini, Mini +, and Lokius. I got started in this
hobby as a teenager back in the mid 1970's when graphic equalizers were quite popular. Then came the 1980s when they
fell out of favor and all but disappeared from the audio scene. Now, we see graphic equalizers staging a real comeback
in the headphone community, as enthusiasts find them to be very beneficial in tailoring the sound of their own headfi
systems.

I know I have found my Loki Mini to be very beneficial in doing so. I'd like to give the Loki Max a try but it's out of my price range.

 

[Derek Dean]

Well, I've had the Lokius for a week now, and I'm really diggin it. I found the on-line videos which showed graphs of how each knob effected the frequency ranges, to be of great help in having a starting point for my tweaking. I think many folks might be missing out by discounting the 20Hz knob, as I've found that, in conjunction with the 120 Hz knob, it can be quite powerful.

I had started by using only the 120 Hz knob to elevate the bass frequencies, but that seemed to overly effect the mids, so I tried working more with the 20 Hz knob as the primary, setting it at 2 o'clock, and then just slightly tweaking the 120 Hz knob to 1 o'clock, and have found that gives me a very evenly elevated bass that is still clean, clear, and articulate.

Finally, with just a tap to 1 o'clock with the 2 KHz and 6 KHz knobs, and bingo, I'm in the zone. By the way, I'm very impressed with how transparent this EQ is, with zero noise and no changes in the soundstage. Mighty nice. I'll report back in a month with an update.

 

[nomis3613]

Good stuff. It's great to hear that you've found the settings which suit your taste.

I agree that making smaller adjustments over a wider range gives smoother results than a big adjustment of a single band. (But for the opposite situation when extreme adjustments are needed in a single band, personally I find it helpful to slightly drop the adjacent bands. This compensates for the big adjustment "bleeding" into other bands.

 

[Derek Dean]

Good stuff. It's great to hear that you've found the settings which suit your taste.

I agree that making smaller adjustments over a wider range gives smoother results than a big adjustment of a single band. (But for the opposite situation when extreme adjustments are needed in a single band, personally I find it helpful to slightly drop the adjacent bands. This compensates for the big adjustment "bleeding" into other bands.

Yes, lowering some bands, rather than simply raising all bands is definitely good eq etiquette.

 

[bigjako]

I used to own a Loki Mini, and just got my Lokius in today. The Schiity wall warts don't play well with the layout (and limited number) of power outlets on my Furman Elite. Has anyone used a replacement or a LPS with the Lokius? Or can provide a suggested alternative to the wall wart brick? They don't sell Cthulhus anymore, I regret selling that off.

 

[SolaVirtus]

I've had luck using the short monoprice extensions that take up a lot less outlet space.

 

[bigjako]

I've had luck using the short monoprice extensions that take up a lot less outlet space.

Do you mean these?

 

[rhart00]

Do you mean these?

I use something like this (although I have a different brand that isn't stocked anymore). Haven't noticed any noise or other issues with them.

 

[SolaVirtus]

I use something like this (although I have a different brand that isn't stocked anymore). Haven't noticed any noise or other issues with them.

Yeah, more like those. Heavier gauge, similar to the typical ones for PCs, monitors, etc.

 

[bigjako]

I use something like this (although I have a different brand that isn't stocked anymore). Haven't noticed any noise or other issues with them.

Thank you, these worked perfectly and - even more amazingly - it’s also made the Mani’s PSU hum disappear.

 

[emorrison33]

I use something like this (although I have a different brand that isn't stocked anymore). Haven't noticed any noise or other issues with them.

So this replaces the Wall mart? Or your just plugging in the WallMart to the extension? Sorry if this is a stupid question, but my thinking is the wall mart does all the power conversion stuff

 

[bigjako]

This just plugs into the wall wart so that it doesn't have to cover multiple outlets on your power bar. The happy side effect for me was that extra bit of distance also removed hum and I don't need to spring for an LPS.

 

[thefitz]

I just love the Lokius - it has fixed the LCD-4 as far as I am concerned. A controversial thought in the LCD-4 thread, perhaps not here!

I'd be more than happy to use it as a balanced converter on it's own - my turntable preamp is now as loud as my digital sources, and my Valhalla is fed a nice and hot signal no matter what.

What's so wacky about the Lokius is how freaking wide the bands are of each EQ. I've seen a bunch of measurements, but I think each knob impacts (in some small or large way) a full octave in either direction. So, for example, 400Hz will touch 40Hz-4000Hz, with the frequencies in the centre getting boosted at a higher rate relative to the rest of the frequencies as you increase the knob past 3:00. Anything less than 9:00/3:00 is a wholesale cut/boost (respectively) of 2 octaves which, after you wrap your head around it, is the exact kind of EQ that will work well for every headphone. No need to worry about unit-to-unit FR deviation or anything like that, or carving out narrow spikes in the signal - just embrace the headphone's timbre and get the entire signal to a spot you like it.

The trick for me was embracing the huge amount of overlap between the frequency bands - the 20Hz bass control is basically a "Harman knob" that does the trick and doesn't require a boost with the 120Hz knob, which can get honky if you're boosting the 400Hz or even 2kHz bands.