Introduction
"Jotunheim is one of the nine realms in Norse mythology. It is the home of the giants, or the jotnar, who are fearsome and often must be confronted by heroic gods such as Thor. Jotunheim literally means "giant home." It is also Schiit Audio's foray into the mid-sized balanced amp market, this is the second iteration of that amp, and while I haven't heard of the first one I have owned a couple of Schiit Audios gear in the past ( Lyr, Bifrost, Asgard, Valhalla). The Jotunheim employs the Nexus gain stage found in the Ragnarok 2, and boasts their new Continuity S output stage. What is continuity S? The continuity S is their way of combatting transconductance droop when an amp switches from class A to class AB to maintain better linearity while having better efficiency, think of it of simulating class A, the amp operates near class A all the time while operating at less than class A biasing, thus less heat and power consumption. It also employs matched transistors, something Schiit claims is a feature only found in $2400 dollar amps, I don't know what that means but if it's better sound quality I'm all for it. The listed price of the lyr is 399 for the black chassis + tax and shipping, you can get the silver chassis for more and you can also opt for the internal dac cards or the phono cards if you want an all-in-one unit but I would advise getting the no module amp only.

Build Quality
I always was fond of the build of the Schiit amps, simple yet elegant looking, with an 'industrial' flair. I personally find it to look more expensive than its peers in the same price bracket, it also feels nicer, I think the silver brushed looks better than the black powder-coated units, but unfortunately, Schiit now charges more for the silver units, I guess they cost more to make, the black paint finish is matte and looks and feels pretty good too but I just lean more towards the silver finish, one thing that irks me a bit is the silver knob with the black units, they should have been all black. the chassis is made of bent steel plates, and the chassis bottom might be stamped steel frame I could be wrong but nonetheless the chassis feels good and the unit itself feels solid and heavy like most of the midsized + Schiit amps. all the knobs and controls feel good and sturdy, the input and gain switches have nice tactility and click to them and operate smoothly, the volume knob is smooth in operation and feels good, all the ports and connections feel nice as well, I found no wobble or other problems of the sort with the ports on the units, one caveat is that the power switch is still located in the back.

Sound Quality
Overall I think the Jotunheim 2 is an amp that is very pleasing to listen to and works with a variety of gear, I would say that it works better with brighter-sounding gear, Currawong had a youtube review of this and I agree with his sentiment that this amp sounds like old school amps, warm, punchy, dynamic and very fun and engaging. One of the strongest points of this amp is Dynamics and Slam, it has a very strong sense of punch to the sound while maintaining good bass articulation, despite it being so punchy it never really sounded wooly, bass was always tight and had a natural timbre. The amp has good detail and resolution but it might not stick out at first because of how warm the amp is. There are a few weak points of this amp but I don't think they take much of the fun out of this amp, one of the major weak points is transparency, I think this is due to how warm and thick this amp sounds, it doesn't come out as very transparent, another caveat would be the fact the soundstage is on the intimate side, it's not very wide (but the jot 2 still maintains decent depth, i.e doesn't sound flat), the soundstage could be a pro to some who want an intimate sound signature. Another thing that I noticed is that, despite the Amp being warm, the treble can in some cases sound a bit hard, not harsh but hard as in the texture of the treble. But overall I would say it is a very enjoyable amp to listen to with excellent slam and dynamics while not losing in the way of micro dynamics.

Value
Sometimes its hard to imagine how this amp is entirely made in the USA while being in the price range of other Chinese-made products, and honestly at 399 it is cheaper than some of those said products, and don't forget this employs a real transformer and linear power supply, I don't care who says what schiit (pun intended) about measurements or whatever, there is always going to be a difference when you use a linear PSU vs an SMPS, I won't go into the details, but it sure does sound better than some of its peers(a90, THX 789), especially in the dynamics department, those amps might do somethings like soundstage and clarity better but the overall experience is better with the Jotunheim 2, overall it feels like a step up from those amps. I think at 399 this is an excellent amp, that gives you a taste of what kind of dynamics you can expect from higher-end amps but falls a bit short on some of the other aspects but hey that's what the higher-end amps are there for right?

Conclusion
Overall I think this is a great amp offering great value, with enough power to drive most headphones, I used my HE-6se and HD6xx for most of the listening that was done and it drove those with ease, I think the pairing with HE-6se was better and I never had to really push the amp, it also was a decent step up in terms of slam and bass against my daily driver which is the liquid platinum, but it fell short in the other areas, the liquid plat is a super amp in the 1000 amp category and has some of that Cavalli magic. I think this is the amp to get if your budget is under 500 and if you need a warm amp with excellent slam and dynamics. You will not regret it.

Really natural sounding and amazing extension in the bass and good texture, soundstage is pretty big. The lower treble is slightly peaky but lacks a bit of presence in the upper treble which causes a slight lack in airiness though imaging and depth is pretty good. The midrange is one of the most natural I've heard, timbre and tonal balance is excellent. To me it sounds a lot like my LCD-2F, but is a bit closed in and less transparent (flaws of being a closed design). But I would say its better than the El-8C I had and also I find this a bit better than the XC from my memory.

Who would have ever thought that cans that cost 20~ bucks could sound pretty good, well some how Superlux did it and this is the result. I have the Presonus HD 7 which is essentially the same headphone 


Build
At the price range I didn't really expect anything great, and not to my surprise they were very cheap feeling all round, they rattled and squeaked, the plastics felt incredibly cheap, they sort of make me cringe, the headband and pads were pleather and unlike high quality pleather they don't even feel a bit like leather. They feel light and flimsy overall, despite all these problems I didn't have any issues with them while I was chugging them around (took them to a few lan parties and tournaments) they held their own despite feeling so flimsy. I think despite the fact they feel so fragile and cheap I think they can take some abuse. The headphone scores a 4/10 in this category, but because of the low price ill bump that up to 6/10.

Comfort
It uses the AKG auto adjust system from the K240 (this thing looks like a K240 knock-off, literally), I find because of that there is uniform pressure on the headband thus on hotspot are present making it pretty comfy for the top of my head and the clamping force is moderate so it doesn't put too much pressure against the ears, they would have been much more comfortable if the phones came with better pads, in terms of comfort the pads are pretty thin and hard making them lackluster for long listening sessions. If it weren't for the pads they would score a solid 9/10 on comfort because of the head band, the low-moderate clamp force and the lightness of the headphone itself makes it easy wear, but because of the hard and thin pads, which cause a bit of discomfort and my ears also touch against the drivers Im taking about 2 points off of it making it a 7/10.

Aesthetics 
 An Akg K240 look alike with cheap materials and horrible pleather make this headphone not very pleasing to the eye, I mean its not ugly but its not really a looker either. A solid 6/10 over here as well.
 
Sound 
This was pretty surprising in terms of over all sound quality , I had initially got this as a replacement for my dying DT990 for use for Counterstrike in lan. Before it was fully burnt in it was quite thin and brittle sounding without much body in the lower end of the audio spectrum, but it had amazing resolution for the money I paid, they also imaged pretty well as footsteps were clear and easy to pick up in CS:GO (sound is very important in this game), slowly after some burn in I started listening to some songs and the headphone started to open up and I have to say that I was quite surprised by the audio quality I got for the bargain basement I paid for it. The bass was present had decent impact and was also tight sounding, didn't extend very well though and I personally would prefer a bit more bass, the mids were a bit dry but had nice detail and air to it, the highs were well extended and a bit emphasized and forward, they had plenty of detail and resolution but did get stirdent if the recording wasn't good and made these cans very revealing. 8.5/10 in perspective with price and 7/10 overall.


Conclusion
 
If you look beyond the terrible feeling of this headphone and the creeks and rattles of the poor build, you will find a pretty resolute and detailed sound that does gaming and music pretty well, although this doesn't really play to my preferences as I do like darker headphones I can't help but admit that I did enjoy my time with these and playing Counterstrike was a joy as the lightness of these didn't cause fatigue during long sessions, the pads however were a irritating ( I eventually used my beyer pads from my dead 990). I think these are a superb value and anyone looking for cans under a hundred dollars should definitely give these a try, and Im certain that most won't be disappointed.

Build
I've had a lot of headphones in the past and prior to this I thought in the sub 300 price category the Beyer DT990/880 were the best, they certainly still are at the top of the chart but this x2 is just as good and has a better styling, in my opinion these are one of the the better looking headphones out there. The headband is two metal rods that seem pretty sturdy, not exactly sure what the cups are made of but they seem well built and have a nice feel to them, overall I think these are built to last everything on this phone feels of premium quality. 

Aesthetics
To my eyes these cans are gorgeous, Phillips put some effort into the design of this can. With mostly metal and the use of leather on the headband make it look like a premium product. The cups have a very elegant yet simple design and mechanism used to attach the cups to the headband also look great with the circle ring around the ear-cup, I also think the grills complement the look and really like the pattern of the grill, also the grill being silver compared to the stealthy matt-black color of the phone adds contrast. Overall I think its a very pleasing, understated and elegant design. 

Comfort
Comfort has never been an issue for me as I don't even find the LCD series from Audeze uncomfortable and as most of you may have heard that the audeze's have a terrible reputation when it comes to comfort. Using memory foam pads which are pretty thick and the hammock system makes the phillips an easy and comfy wear, they don't create any hotspots on my head nor do they clamp tight, They feel like a pillow on my head they are extremely comfortable, it is when I wear these I notice that the big planars are uncomfortable. I don't think anyone will have an issue with these cans in terms of comfort, I have heard issues with the velour ear pads being itchy for some, unfortunately I don't have this particular problem with mine, could be me or my pair YMMV. 

Sound
I just adore the sound of these, They sound more like speakers in a room. The bass is amazing on these, although my He-500 and El-8 have tighter bass, this has more impact and a better slam which makes it much more pleasing for me, it doesn't quite have the refinement of the planars (texture and detail) but its not far off you could say its on par.
 
The mids are thick, juicy and very organic, they also sound pretty spacious and not as forward as the el-8, I also find the mids on the x2 very coherent and detailed.
 
The highs are a mixed bag for me, they are a bit laid back, which is what I like but they also have some grain and artificial-ness to them, they aren't articulate or as refined as more expensive headphones but still I find that they are not a big complaint at this price range. 


Soundstage and imaging are great on this phone, I find it better than the venerable HD600/650, and I also think they image and do soundstage better than my el-8 and He-500.

 
 
Conclusion
I think phillips has made an exceptional phone not only at its price range but a great headphone period. I think everyone should own a pair of these and enjoy it, they aren't as analytical or technically superb can as the HD-800 or other high end cans, but I believe that they are very balanced and extremely enjoyable and don't really do much wrong and play well with most genres. At the 500 under price range I don't think there is can that will offer a better listening experience than this, for mixing and other pro audio purposes I think one needs to look elsewhere, they are balanced and neutral but tuned for audio enjoyment rather than monitoring or mixing.