[rkindel]

I’ve grown to like the Loki Max more and more over the past week. At first, I wasn’t sure I’d use the equalizer regularly, but now it’s in regular use. I have one setting for my LCD-5 and one setting for my HE-1000SE, with the third preset reserved for baseline. When I’m not using the EQ, I have the pass-through function engaged. I don’t detect any additional noise from using either mode.

With the HE-1000SE, I have the last three knobs turned to 10 o’clock. That adjustment is very useful for all of the poorly-recorded music (read: pop and rock with treble that’s a bit hot) that I have in my collection. It smooths over any treble peaks nicely. With regards to classical music, I’ve used the last two knobs at 10 o’clock to take the edge off the Dunedin Consort recording I have of Mozart’s Requiem on which the sopranos are a bit too in-your-face.

With the LCD-5, I have the first two knobs turned to 2-3 o’clock to give the headphone a boost of warmth with pop and rock and a bit more bass thump when listening to EDM and electronic music. It doesn’t fundamentally change the character of that headphone from its reference-tuned defaults, but it does make the LCD-5 more listener-friendly in those cases.

Other people on this thread have commented on losing resolution when using the Loki Max. I’ve tuned my system to a very resolving baseline. Whatever tiny bit of definition I lose when making tuning adjustments with the equalizer is barely noticeable. Really, I’m willing to sacrifice a few 0s and 1s to make the music I listen to more enjoyable. Isn’t that the point of an equalizer?

As I’ve commented before, having 8 knobs versus 6 for greater granularity would be nice, but this is a very solid and enjoyable Schiit product. I’m definitely keeping mine.

Whenever you reduce high frequency content you will experience a apparent reduction in resolution. That’s inevitable. The trick is to be judicious with your settings. Easy does it.

 

[paradoxper]

Loki fire sale in the classifieds, boys.

 

[Ableza]

Loki fire sale in the classifieds, boys.

What made you decide to sell?

 

[belgiangenius]

Has anyone experimented with placing the Loki before or after the Freya?

My system is Yggdrasil -> Loki Max -> Freya+ -> Yamaha B2 -> Yamaha NS1000M.

I know the Yggy and Freya are fully balanced, whereas the Loki converts to single ended and back to balanced. I wonder if there is an advantage to placing the Loki after the Freya so everything stays fully balanced until it arrives at the Loki.

I have now tried both setups.

Loki in between Yggdrasil and Freya was clearly better.

Loki after Freya introduced some faint hum into the sound.

 

[paradoxper]

What made you decide to sell?

I don't find useful means of use with the 1266 TC which is my most used. SR1a uses filters, LCD-5 won't be here much longer.
Otherwise I do find it an impressive machine for refinement scale.

 

[rkindel]

 

[rkindel]

Loki Max + 1 week
I have spent the last year concentrating on room set up. Inches count with speaker and listening position. For variety I alternate between two different speaker brands. Both sound best aimed directly at the listening chair in terms of soundstage. I have been forced to toe out because both are too bright used this way. Now, with the Loki I can position them correctly using a cut with the 2k control allowing me to preserve air higher up. You can’t do this with a conventional treble control. If I position my chair where the speakers snap into focus correctly I am approaching a bass mode. A cut with the 120hz control tunes this out without affecting the lower bass. You can’t do this with a conventional bass control.
Audiophiles are separated into two camps. Those who strive for neutrality and those who strive for musicality. My system is neutral but I want musicality sometimes. Now I have two tools to achieve this. I can switch to the tube stage of my Freya+ preamp and I can tune with my Loki Max. I have always felt the tube stage was too warm. I can adjust for this now. I can also add a bit of warmth to my preferred passive stage if I want.
If I had to do it over I would order a Lokius as well. It would be interesting to compare the two side by side and return one after. The Lokius looks toy like to me. It’s 5 times cheaper.
I have not found a use for the presets yet as every situation seems to call for new settings. The remote, however, is almost essential for a product like this.

 

[dcguy73]

The Loki Max is perfect for EQing the Sennheiser HD800S. The fourth and fifth dial affect frequencies at 2000 and 6000 kHz, respectively, which is exactly where that headphone’s peaks are. Turning those two knobs a quarter-turn (or so) to the left makes the HD800S much more enjoyable to listen to. I’m listening to some Italian mandolin sonatas right now and enjoying the huge soundstage of the 800S without any peakiness in the treble.

 

[duranxv]

Loki Max landed today. Big thanks to @paradoxper ! Loving it so far combined with Holo Spring 3 KTE, WA22 tube pre into a Sparkos Aries (using a ZMF VC). I'm amazed at how dead silent it is in the audio chain. It just EQ's and stays out of the way.

If Schiit came out with a 8-band or even 10-band EQ, I'd jump on that in an absolute heartbeat.

 

[Sonic77]

Just put my order in for the Loki Max, very excited.

 

[chesebert]

I still think digital EQ that is built into the DAC or streamer is the better approach. There is simply no way (not possible period) to NOT add noise and distortion to the analog signal; whether you can hear it or not with your gear is another matter.

 

[dcguy73]

I still think digital EQ that is built into the DAC or streamer is the better approach. There is simply no way (not possible period) to NOT add noise and distortion to the analog signal; whether you can hear it or not with your gear is another matter.

I agree and disagree with you.

More granular control in the digital realm would be ideal, but analog EQ has been around for a very long time, and there’s a reason for that.

I have a hybrid tube-ss headphone amp that adds “pleasant-sounding” distortion to my system via tubes.

I think that unless you’ve tried the unit in question, you’re not qualified to judge. Measurements are one thing but what the end user enjoys hearing is subjective.

 

[chesebert]

I agree and disagree with you.

I have a hybrid tube-ss headphone amp that adds “pleasant-sounding” distortion to my system via tubes.

I think that unless you’ve tried the unit in question, you’re not qualified to judge. Measurements are one thing but what the end user enjoys hearing is subjective.

I don't need to try to know all analog EQs add distortion and noise - simple electronics 101 stuff. If your goal is to add something to the signal, I would do it at the amp stage or headphone stage rather than at the source. But you do you.

 

[Luckyleo]

I still think digital EQ that is built into the DAC or streamer is the better approach. There is simply no way (not possible period) to NOT add noise and distortion to the analog signal; whether you can hear it or not with your gear is another matter.

Please give us more details regarding your listening session.

Much appreciated!

 

[duranxv]

I don't need to try to know all analog EQs add distortion and noise - simple electronics 101 stuff. If your goal is to add something to the signal, I would do it at the amp stage or headphone stage rather than at the source. But you do you.

The noise is negligible. Schiit did a very good job with the Loki Max's design and implementation in my opinion.

If you can't hear the noise or distortion, then does it even matter? I have a pretty decent set up and I don't notice anything sounding off when I plugged the Loki Max into my chain. And, if you put it in bypass mode, it is dead silent.

My chain is: Holo Spring 3 KTE -> Loki Max -> Woo WA22 -> Sparkos Aries -> ZMF VC