Mojo Audio DACs and servers

[zachawry]

I don't see much info about these on Headfi, so I thought I'd start my own thread. 
 
Up until recently I was using a Hugo to drive a Liquid Carbon. Swapped the LC for a MicroZotl2. Eventually swapped the power source for a Mojo Audio Illuminati, with some mods to my MZ2 performed by Mojo Audio. 
 
This got me into a correspondence with Ben from Mojo Audio. I was visiting the US from Japan for a couple months, and Ben asked me if I wanted to audition his Mystique 2 DAC (a R2R NOS DAC). I told him I'd be willing to, but I was very happy with my Hugo and would not likely buy it. Well, he sent it and I fell in love pretty darn quick. I'm going to make a longer review eventually, but going from the Hugo to the Mystique 2 was like pulling a veil from the music. The Hugo is still great for a portable device, but for desktop use, the Mystique brings out so much more detail and dynamics in the music. The Hugo in comparison feels like it has a mellifluous veil...pretty but not completely honest. The Mystique, on the other hand, just presents what's there. It has awesome detail without feeling etched. Suffice it to say, I bought the Mystique 2. 
 
I ended up having lots of conversations with Ben, and again and again he recommended I try a server. I really, really didn't want another computer in my house, especially one just to listen to music. Again, he said I could try it out for a month and send it back no questions asked if I didn't like it. By this time I had built up a lot of trust in him through what he did for my MZ2 and the Mystique, so I bought one half expecting to send it back. 
 
It's hard to explain what the Deja Vu server adds to the music. The Illuminati power source (which now powers both my MZ2 and the Deja Vu) provides a blacker-than-black background. The DAC reveals all the detail and dynamics of the music without being etched. The server feels like it adds body, or 3-dimensionality to the sound. It makes it more palpable, more physical. Running things off my MacBook Pro, it was like watching a movie on my iPhone. With the server, it's like watching on a large-screen TV. All the details (pixels) were present before, but the experience becomes more immersive with the server. Why this is true I have no idea, but it is.
 
Anyway, those are my experiences with the Mojo Audio DAC and server. I'd love to hear from others as well. 
 
Zachary 

 

[Wildcatsare1]

Subscribed, and more to come on the Mystique and other Mojo magic.

 

[TomekZ]

I've the Mystique ver. 1 DAC. I feel it and a Red Wine Audio NOS DAC are the two best I've heard. I favor NOS DAC, having had various models by Scott Nixon and a Peter Daniels model, a Prometheus, and a couple of others. Every time after spending time with an up or oversampling DAC, and then return to a NOS, I sigh, relax and listen deeply to the music. Benjamin of Mojo Audio stands by his products and seems to be an archetypical tweeker.

 

[zachawry]

I agree. The Mystiques reveal then get out of the way of the music. I'm taking possession of a Mystique 3 in a few days--can't wait!

 

[JerryLeeds]

Joining

 

[TomekZ]

The Mystique ver.3 looks stunning. My mouth hung open and started to drool at first site. All musical sources, including the likes of youtube.com, will benefit. I remember decades ago how Linn (of turntable fame) pushed the idea that the source is most important to get right. Benjamin of Mojo focuses on the source. First the power supply, followed by DAC. And of course he knows amps too--modding the microZotl and various others, but his main focus seems to get the foundation right. Distortion is cumulative. Kind of like people: good hearted but ugly faced people have a beauty that glows through the skin. With great makeup anxious or ill tempered,
will at first glance be gorgeous, but live with them and... Well, I've lived with the Mystique ver. 1 and continue to love the music that she sings.

 

[JerryLeeds]

What brand/type of USB cables are you using? Anyone using an Uptone Regen? Or the newer ISO model?

 

[MojoAudio]

Just in case any of you were wondering who else has heard and liked our DACs and music servers...

We just got back from AXPONA and received two awards.

The Absolute Sound awarded us "Best in Show" (cost is no object):

http://www.theabsolutesound.com/art...tal-components-headphones-and-personal-audio/

And The Part-Time Audiophile awarded us "Best Innersound in the Show" (meaning best headphones):

https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2017/04/30/axpona-2017-melodic-love-affairs/

The experts have spoken and they love Mojo Audio

 

[MojoAudio]

In case some of you might think that was a fluke, the last show we exhibited at was RMAF'15.

Yes, that was literally the last audiophile show before AXPONA'17 we exhibited at...I'm disabled and these shows totally destroy me for several weeks.

In any event, at RMAF'15 The Absolute Sound awarded us "Best Sound for the Money":

http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/2015-rmaf-show-report-tube-electronics/

Just want to keep things in perspective

 

[zachawry]

I just took ownership of my Mystique V3 yesterday. It hasn't even really begun burning in yet, but it's already amazing. It's a huge step up from my V2+, and even that was a big step up from my Hugo. The amount of detail the V3 pulls out of my lowly Redbook files (16/44.1) is just astounding. And yet, it's not just about the detail. The background is ink black (not that I didn't think it was black before, but this is another level), and the tones are so clear it's almost hallucinatory. I can't wait to see what happens as it breaks in....

 

[zachawry]

One nice thing about the V3 is that I find myself listening music at lower volumes.

It presents so much more sonic information that you don't need to boost the volume to either hear the details or attain that sonic high us audio junkies crave.

 

[Rhamnetin]

I'm surprised these DACs aren't more popular, especially the V3.

I find myself curious about the V2, and how it compares to the Holo Audio Spring DAC level 3, Chord Qutest, Audio Note DAC 4.1, Schiit Yggdrasil.

 

[MojoAudio]

Hi Rhamnetin,

It's not surprising to me that Mojo Audio products are not more popular.

Simple really. It all comes down to advertising: I'm 58, physically disabled, and can only do a couple audiophile shows a year. And our advertising budget for Internet banners and printed ads is a small fraction of what most of these other companies is.

What many audiophiles don't know is that most of the audiophile publications won't even do a review of a product unless the company is an advertiser, and even then, larger advertisers get more and faster reviews.

Just to give you an example, we've had Mystique v3 DACs with reviewers from well known audiophile publications literally since October of last year (we sent them our demos from RMAF'17), and about half of them have not yet published a review. Seriously.

We've offered our DAC to quite a few other audiophile publications, and they gave us a diplomatic brush off. I'd be willing to bet that if we were to spend $10K in advertising with any of those publications they would have a review of our DAC out in a matter of months.

As for the DACs you mentioned in comparison to our Mystique v2, I can give you a bit of information about that.

Where as our v2 series of DACs have been compared by professional reviewers and customers to the performance of several of the popular big name DACs in the $5K-$7K price range, our v3 has been compared to several popular big name DACs in the $15K-$30K price range.

I'm not allowed to mention specifics, but you can read between the lines

A bit of history: we haven't sold a Mystique v2 since 2015. In 2016 and 2017 we were selling the v2 Plus and currently we're selling a v2 SE. The v2 Plus and v2 SE have been upgraded with quite a bit of trickle down tech from our v3.

Also keep in mind that the Mystique v2 series of DACs were built to a modest size and price, where as our v3 is more than 2X the size, weight, and price. No comparison.

I would strongly recommend purchasing our Mystique v3 to anyone who has spend $5K or more on the other components in their system.

I would strongly discourage anyone from purchasing our Mystique v2, v2 Plus, or v2 SE to anyone who has spend $5K or more on the other components in their system.

I hope you found that helpful.

Like I always say: "If it doesn't come from your source, it can't come out of your speakers or headphones."

 

[smodtactical]

No balanced outputs? Is the RCA output good ?