[erik701]

I would be curious how will end comparison of OPPO HA-1 vs Schiit Jotunheim in terms of sound quality. 

 

[cmabooty]

Yeah price is pretty much the only new stuff, but it seems many people downplay/forget the preamp feature. I imagine there are many people at home and studios with decend dac and speakers itching to get this in between. Show me another xlr in, xlr out active preamp under $400 (even without balanced headamp as a bonus)? There's some crap like SPL Volume 2 and that's about it. If I wouldn't have my NFB-1AMP already (which is pretty stellar for $520 I have to say), pretty sure I would consider the smaller footprint Jotty hard.

Emotiva's XDA-2 did all of this, along with multiple inputs (coax, 2 toslink, AES and USB) for less than $300 (I got mine for $200 as they lowered the price near the end)

Granted it was bigger and not upgrade able, but the volume control between the preamp and headphone also had a memory function.

It had balanced in and out, but NOT a headphone balanced out.

 

[hekeli]

Emotiva's XDA-2 did all of this

 
No, it was not an analog preamp, it's a DAC. There's no analog inputs. It's stupidly dubbed "digital preamp".

 

[Vigrith]

I've used the Magni 2 Uber and Vali 2 with my T1 2nd gen and they aren't bright..detailed but not harsh unless the recording is poorly recorded. That being said, i listen to mostly Spotify premium so i'm hardly listening to audiophile material and they do sound nice through the Schiit amps.

 
Thank you for that, I really only stream Tidal hifi so that information's still relevant to me. Glad to hear the T1 don't sound bright/harsh through the magni!

 

[Rossliew]

   
Thank you for that, I really only stream Tidal hifi so that information's still relevant to me. Glad to hear the T1 don't sound bright/harsh through the magni!

You're welcome! With the Vali you can roll tubes to tune the sound a bit. The Jotunheim i hope to have similar sounding signatures but then i have a NOS tubed DAC which can help make the sound more organic and natural. Conclusion : Your upstream source is going to play a big role as well. Good luck in your head-fi journey!

 

[Allanmarcus]

 
Any further information / specs. on the DAC module, Will it suppoert 24 bit / Hi-Res formats? I know Schiit isn't keen on DSD but I have a decent sized collection, interested in knowing if it supports them as well which may clinch the deal for me.

I also would like to know that.

Btw I think Head-Fi needs a separate forum for Amp+DAC devices.

Hell, HF needs a forum for DACs! There are forums for headphone, IEMs, amps, and dedicated source (to me those are DAPs), but no thread for DACs. It's baffling.

They need a thread for amps, one for combo gear, and one for DACs. It ain't rocket science.

The jot would appear in two of those, depending on usage. If I get one, I will use it as a dedicated amp, so that's where I would discuss it.

 

[chowmein83]

   
I really appreciate you taking the time to share such in-depth impressions!
 
I'm slightly wary of the Jotunheim's bright signature however, both Schiit amps I currently own are tube based and whilst I don't find them to be particularly warm (as clearly stated on their website's FAQ, they aren't meant to be tubey sounding) I don't think they sound fatiguing at all and enjoy them very much (even with stock tubes).
 
Would you say the Jotunheim may feel fatiguing with headphones like the standard HD800 or the Beyer T1/T90?

 
If you don't find Schiit's other tube amps to sound fatiguing with the HD800, I don't think you're going to find the Jotunheim to sound fatiguing with that headphone. I didn't think the Jotunheim sounded any brighter than the Vallhalla 2, Lyr 2, or Mjolnir 2 all on stock tubes.
 

In case I missed it, did you have the the two maps side by side to make this "comparison" ?

 
I did not (would have been kind of weird to lug my own amp to the event). However, I did make the disclaimer that this "comparison" was purely based on my experiences with the LC with a variety of gear, so yeah you should take it with a grain of salt. But I don't think I'm totally inaccurate about it (for example, I think it's quite obvious that the Jotunheim is brighter than the LC).

 

[Angular Mo]

Reconsidering the Jotunheim, though I don't care about vinyl it seems to me that;

1. Single-end in and balanced out feature is an entry-level price-point to the balanced world.... Then I would need to spend on balanced requiring and a worthy headphone.

2. The extreme power capability wil make it worthwhile for me to begin to explore high-impedance headphones.

3. My powered speakers I typically use via Bluetooth, but the preamp would be useful as a knob controlled volume which I prefer over the iPhone app-controlled volume control... though I hate losing my iPhone's left-right balance control.

Best of all, I can still feed it my Bimby's output.

 

[Allanmarcus]

I think this is another competitor in this price point

http://matrix-digi-usa.com/m-stage-series/m-stage-hpa-3b

The HPA-3b seems very competitive with the the Jot.

Let's face it, the board mounted DAC or phono pre amp are gimmicks, and Jason would have said the same thing a month ago (in fact, he has said many non-positive things about integrated equipment). The jot will likely be a big seller for Schiit. Might even get them into Best Buy it might make a good second rig for the bedroom or office for the more serious audiophile crowd. It's a great entry level for summit fi headphone buyers, or a good step up from basic entry level.

It will be interesting once reviewed and compared to the matrix, LC, and NFB1 (and others)

 

[xuan87]

I think this is another competitor in this price point

http://matrix-digi-usa.com/m-stage-series/m-stage-hpa-3b

The HPA-3b seems very competitive with the the Jot.

Let's face it, the board mounted DAC or phono pre amp are gimmicks, and Jason would have said the same thing a month ago (in fact, he has said many non-positive things about integrated equipment). The jot will likely be a big seller for Schiit. Might even get them into Best Buy it might make a good second rig for the bedroom or office for the more serious audiophile crowd. It's a great entry level for summit fi headphone buyers, or a good step up from basic entry level.

It will be interesting once reviewed and compared to the matrix, LC, and NFB1 (and others)

 
I think calling them gimmicks are going abit too far. After all, the $99 board mounted DAC is a balanced AKM 4490 (to me, it's the best sounding DS DAC), and like Jason said, the phono add-in will be good for those considering a turntable in the future (I will like to get one after I have my own place like 3-4 years go the road) and vinyl is getting popular again.
 
Also, the DAC and phono add-in might not be the only inserts and Jason hinted as much in his blog (a wifi card in the latest post, and an interest in streaming in earlier post). I might be eyeing the Jotunheim right now solely as a well-priced balanced amp, but I'll be extremely interested in Schiit's future inserts.

 

[xuan87]

I can't remember if I read about it anywhere, but was it mentioned if the user can swap the modules themselves? Or can it be done only back at Schiit?

 

[Vigrith]

 
If you don't find Schiit's other tube amps to sound fatiguing with the HD800, I don't think you're going to find the Jotunheim to sound fatiguing with that headphone. I didn't think the Jotunheim sounded any brighter than the Vallhalla 2, Lyr 2, or Mjolnir 2 all on stock tubes.

 
That's great, I'm not even particularly worried about pairing the Jotunheim with brighter headphones because I barely use my HD800 and Beyers nowadays ever (not particularly fond of that sound signature any more, I prefer musicality) but if I'm buying something I like to consider all options so I appreciate your input. That's very telling to me because I use the MJ2 as my main amplifier ever since I purchased it and I really like it, even with stock tubes though I don't use those any more (using the iFi NOS).
 
Good to know that even though it's a solid state device it's still not brighter or harsher/analytical sounding than their hybrid/OTL offerings.

 

[ThurstonX]

  I can't remember if I read about it anywhere, but was it mentioned if the user can swap the modules themselves? Or can it be done only back at Schiit?

 
I'd guess that it's something you have to order initially, or send the amp back to have added.  My guess is based on the fact that the add-on boards have to be attached to the main board by a screw (see product photo @ schiit.com), and that they are not currently available for separate purchase on Schiit's site.  OTOH, they are not listed as upgrades yet, so WTH do I know.

 

[rsnblmn]

Reconsidering the Jotunheim, though I don't care about vinyl it seems to me that;

1. Single-end in and balanced out feature is an entry-level price-point to the balanced world.... Then I would need to spend on balanced requiring and a worthy headphone.

Best of all, I can still feed it my Bimby's output.

 
Yup, this is exactly why I just broke down and ordered one....I plan to feed it from my Bimby as I can't afford a Gumby / MJ2 setup and don't really have the space on my desk, anyhow.
 
Plus, I like having the option to go balanced to get the extra power for headphones that can benefit, but still keep the single-ended option for my existing headphones that don't really need it, such as my TH-X00. Spec-wise, the single-ended performance looks very similar to my Asgard 2, so if the Jotunheim is at least equal on that front, I will be very happy.

 

[Allanmarcus]

I think this is another competitor in this price point

http://matrix-digi-usa.com/m-stage-series/m-stage-hpa-3b


The HPA-3b seems very competitive with the the Jot.

Let's face it, the board mounted DAC or phono pre amp are gimmicks, and Jason would have said the same thing a month ago (in fact, he has said many non-positive things about integrated equipment). The jot will likely be a big seller for Schiit. Might even get them into Best Buy it might make a good second rig for the bedroom or office for the more serious audiophile crowd. It's a great entry level for summit fi headphone buyers, or a good step up from basic entry level.


It will be interesting once reviewed and compared to the matrix, LC, and NFB1 (and others)

I think calling them gimmicks are going abit too far. After all, the $99 board mounted DAC is a balanced AKM 4490 (to me, it's the best sounding DS DAC), and like Jason said, the phono add-in will be good for those considering a turntable in the future (I will like to get one after I have my own place like 3-4 years go the road) and vinyl is getting popular again.

Also, the DAC and phono add-in might not be the only inserts and Jason hinted as much in his blog (a wifi card in the latest post, and an interest in streaming in earlier post). I might be eyeing the Jotunheim right now solely as a well-priced balanced amp, but I'll be extremely interested in Schiit's future inserts.

Gimmick comes across strong, probably too strong. I didn't mean it negatively. I meant the slot doesn't add value to the serious audiophile and is more of a marketing/packaging vehicle. To those that want just one device on the desk and don't want to worry about extra cables, this is a good amp. To those that like to swap components, mix and match and try new things, this is an amp.

For those that want one device and have a computer and a turntable, the Jot misses the mark unfortunately.

That all said, the jot is primarily a headphone amp. It will be great when the reviews, measurements, and comparisons start rolling in.