I never said it was bad. That being said.....why does the hugo sound more open and transparent with more highs if the mojo treble is measured the same? Because the lower noise modulation floor it sounds smoother? there is treble roll off. The whole dac chip, is a bit midcentric without much air at the top and a bit of emphasis on midbass. Sure if this was tuned for iems, sure, i guess the more bassier sound is good because there is so much noise out. Midbass emphasis doesn't allow for bass extension to go as far. Sure it might measure that way, but doesn't sound that way. Even
@Duncan
said that the qp1r has more extension on the top and bottom(albeit not controlled), so yes the mojo does not extend as far. Detail retrieval is great. There is also weird imaging which I found and I was glad that another member
@Whitigir
heard it and pointed out. Instead of a sphere its more of an X with some weird soundscaping. Also with added depth, comes narrow soundstage and less height.
If Mojo was such a transparent amp/dac with such driveability, there doesn't need to be any amps. This is untrue. I followed this forum and tried to drive my he-560 and it sounded far worse from the mojo than the ifi micro idsd, only because of lack of power. I like the DAC section of the mojo better. The mojo while being a marvel in engineering has short comings. I would never dissuade anyone from getting an amp for a HD800 or HE1K and tell them the mojo drives it well enough there will be no increase in sound quality. In a blind test I'm sure people would choose mojo with an amp with many of those headphones.
These are just characteristics of the dac, and if you like it, then you like it. If you don't, then you don't. Just because the masses like something, and award it doesn't mean its great. That reminds me of when my friend berated for not liking beyonce............ I think you know this. This forum is for honest opinions so that people who are looking for impressions can purchase. We aren't looking to fight and put down the mojo. Just try to give an honest opinions and impressions instead of hyperboles.
I read a lot of opinions and bought the QP1R.....people saying it is equal to or much better than the mojo. I find this for myself completely false and prefer the mojo by a mile. Everyone outside the ZX2 thread here said the mojo and qp1r is a step above the ZX2. I do not think so having heard all of them and think for iems, the ZX2(trrs) is better, with much better soundstaging, microdetail retreival(nuances), etc. The mojo does sound punchier and cleaner so it does sometimes make the music feel more alive. For headphones and my studio monitors....the mojo.
People's opinions can different from my own.....but i still respect them and it is their choice of what to think. If they want an amp, let them use the amp instead of being......the mojo has enough power...you just haven't had brain burn in to understand the sound....or you like distortion that is leading to a worse sound. Don't refuse to acknowledge someone else's opinion and keep regurgitating Rob Watt's words like the gospel. Everyone hears differently. If they didn't, CHORD would be the only dac maker and everyone would be left in the dust. Just be happy we have choices.
at 3:00 am the forums are a good form of entertainment and all your points, discussions and suggestions go into the mix for our next steps. It's more than useful, you guys are our guiding light along the rocky path to audio nirvana! Don't mess around with our batteries power supplies though. A lot of thought and knowledge has gone into them to give the best results and keep you all safe and batteries are potentially very nasty if one goes up in flames in your face. 
