[LouisArmstrong]

Is AK380 vastly inferior to iPhone + Mojo? How about compared with AK100 + Mojo? I think I should trust Chord more than iRiver. Is this a wise choice?

 

[Ruben123]

Is AK380 vastly inferior to iPhone + Mojo? How about compared with AK100 + Mojo? I think I should trust Chord more than iRiver. Is this a wise choice?

IPhone =+- AK

 

[masterpfa]

Originally Posted by LouisArmstrong /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Is AK380 vastly inferior to iPhone + Mojo? How about compared with AK100 + Mojo? I think I should trust Chord more than iRiver. Is this a wise choice?
 
 
It's something only you can really tell. I know it is not always possible to get a side by side comparison.
But in this case we are talking about Mojo at £399 compared to a AK380 at 

£2999.95

Read my views above post #7064​

 

[Mython]

Who makes that orange bicycle band that holds the mojo neatly against a smartphone?

 
 
www.head-fi.org/t/784602/chord-mojo-the-official-thread-read-the-third-post-for-updated-info/3015#post_12034645

 

[Light - Man]

IPhone =+- AK

X + Y = 1 Banana
 
X = Y - 1
 
therefore X = ?
Answers please on a postcard to AK

 
p.s. they deserve nothing for the crazy prices they charge!!!

 

[Currawong]

  Is AK380 vastly inferior to iPhone + Mojo? How about compared with AK100 + Mojo? I think I should trust Chord more than iRiver. Is this a wise choice?

These kinds of questions are never clear-cut. With what music? With what headphones? What music format? Only CD quality or high-res? Do you want or need the features of the AK? Is putting music on to the player and/or micro SD cards suitable or a hassle? Are you willing to re-terminate all your headphone to the AK balanced system for best results?
 
I realise your situation is in reverse, so the best I can suggest is to audition one and compare it with your AK380 with your headphones and decide for yourself.

 

[Ruben123]

X + Y = 1 Banana

X = Y - 1

therefore X = ?
Answers please on a postcard to AK

p.s. they deserve nothing for the crazy prices they charge!!! :wink_face:

???

There's no audible difference between iPhone and AK when your earphone's a good match.

 

[x RELIC x]

The "need" for a dedicated home setup is vastly overrated. As long as you have enough power to drive your headphones it's OK.

Now the thing. Why is this Mojo so famous? Do they apply some sort of DSP effect or equalizer?

Currawong made a great suggestion in his Mojo review and that's to read Rob Watts posts to get an understanding of what his goal is when designing a DAC. I'm pretty sure it's anti-DSP. You have to understand that his DACs aren't just off the shelf designs but have taken him 30 years to get to this point. Trying to wrap my head around the technicalities I'm beginning to understand why his DACs are so good but I'm no where near knowledgable enough to explain it. Quite simply, as Chord has stated in this thread, the Mojo is technically thousands of times more capable than off the shelf DACs. Or, to put it another way, it digs deep in to the recording and plays music with all the detail and proper timing for our brains to make good sense of it easily. It's the ease of which the Mojo presents the music that I really like.

 

[x RELIC x]

Doesn't Rob Watts prefer Optical input for its lack of RF noise. Personally, I find that with capable sources that decode the files well I'm hard pressed to hear a difference between inputs.

 

[dacari]

About Windows driver.. I've to install first the drivers (mojo windows driver.exe) before or after the first plug to the computer?
 
The manual recommeds the automatic installation once unziped the files driver after the promp menu, locate the files...etc...but the driver is an .exe so I assume it will install directly the driver.

 

[Light - Man]

Doesn't Rob Watts prefer Optical input for its lack of RF noise. Personally, I find that with capable sources that decode the files well I'm hard pressed to hear a difference between inputs.

Relic, Interesting to hear your views from your first hand experience.
 
One issue is that optical outputs on Dap's are not that common, AK and maybe the Ibasso DX 80?
 
From reading this thread and from some pm's - most guys believe that the digital coax input is not as good as the USB input and therefore the benefits of all the hassle of carrying a stack are difficult to weigh up against the simplicity of a decent DAP. 

 

[x RELIC x]

Relic, Interesting to hear your views from your first hand experience.

One issue is that optical outputs on Dap's are not that common, AK and maybe the Ibasso DX 80?

From reading this thread and from some pm's - most guys believe that the digital coax input is not as good as the USB input and therefore the benefits of all the hassle of carrying a stack are difficult to weigh up against the simplicity of a decent DAP. 

Well, I can't speak for other people, just that the Mojo sounds pretty much the same to me through USB, coaxial, and optical. I tested the inputs extensively with my best cans so I would feel comfortable with whatever input I would feed the Mojo. Of course this is Head Fi...... Others will disagree.

 

[Currawong]

Doesn't Rob Watts prefer Optical input for its lack of RF noise. Personally, I find that with capable sources that decode the files well I'm hard pressed to hear a difference between inputs.

IIRC yes. The Hugo is sensitive to USB noise, more than it ideally should be and I recall that is where his preference came from.  I was using it with an Audiophilleo 1 with Pure Power into the coax input of the Hugo for a while, then switched to a Schiit Wyrd instead with much the same level of improvement. The best results from the Hugo I got from a Soundaware D100PRO server via coax. Funnily enough, the Audiophilleo 1 I thought wouldn't benefit from any special USB treatment, but the Schiit Wyrd brought it a bit closer to the Soundaware. With the Mojo I'm just using the Schiit Wyrd and an ALO Audio Green Line USB cable and I felt that none of the above devices that benefitted the Hugo benefit the Mojo at all, even the Soundaware server. The usual disclaimer applies about all this stuff being quite subtle and probably not worth making a fuss over.  

 

[x RELIC x]

IIRC yes. The Hugo is sensitive to USB noise, more than it ideally should be and I recall that is where his preference came from.  I was using it with an Audiophilleo 1 with Pure Power into the coax input of the Hugo for a while, then switched to a Schiit Wyrd instead with much the same level of improvement. The best results from the Hugo I got from a Soundaware D100PRO server via coax. Funnily enough, the Audiophilleo 1 I thought wouldn't benefit from any special USB treatment, but the Schiit Wyrd brought it a bit closer to the Soundaware. With the Mojo I'm just using the Schiit Wyrd and an ALO Audio Green Line USB cable and I felt that none of the above devices that benefitted the Hugo benefit the Mojo at all, even the Soundaware server. The usual disclaimer applies about all this stuff being quite subtle and probably not worth making a fuss over.

Exactly. I guess for that 1% that someone values it could make a large difference to them. I try not to fuss that much about it.

Of course many users with different USB, coaxial, and optical sources and cables can make more of a difference than just the type of input. A poorly built optical cable will cause dropouts, a bad coaxial implementation will not sound good, an noisy USB computer source can ruin the quality. But, if the audio chain is clean then the input should make little difference IMO.

 

[salla45]

@Currawong made a great suggestion in his Mojo review and that's to read @Rob Watts posts to get an understanding of what his goal is when designing a DAC. I'm pretty sure it's anti-DSP. You have to understand that his DACs aren't just off the shelf designs but have taken him 30 years to get to this point. Trying to wrap my head around the technicalities I'm beginning to understand why his DACs are so good but I'm no where near knowledgable enough to explain it. Quite simply, as Chord has stated in this thread, the Mojo is technically thousands of times more capable than off the shelf DACs. Or, to put it another way, it digs deep in to the recording and plays music with all the detail and proper timing for our brains to make good sense of it easily. It's the ease of which the Mojo presents the music that I really like.

I must agree with you when you say "Or, to put it another way, it digs deep in to the recording and plays music with all the detail and proper timing for our brains to make good sense of it easily. It's the ease of which the Mojo presents the music that I really like." Spot on.
 
I usually also find that this attribute is hard to put a finger on in a listening test comparison. One needs to relax and get lost in the music to get the true effect, rather than listening critically for differences. It sort of creeps up on you.
 
Another thing I would say is that having the mojo has really made me appreciate basic CD-rip FLACs. I don't feel anywhere near as much need to get DSD or HD versions anymore. Differences between masters is another matter...