[daddyo1973]

My Mjolnir 2 arrived last night!

After the unboxing I let the MJ2 warm up for about two hours and then came back for a late night listen. Before getting the gear set up I noticed the whole unit really did warm up! The MJ2 gets warmer than I would have expected given it only runs two tubes.

I set up an AQ Forest USB > Mojo > Kimber GQ Mini > Mjolnir 2 w/stock tubes > Audeze balanced cable > late 2016 Audeze LCD-2s for a late night listen. Up to this point I had only ran my LCD-2s single ended and with moderate power. I had always heard they do well off more power so I selected them to use for my first listen and boy what a treat! Out of the MJ2 these things really sing, this amp just flat out makes these headphones so much better. It was several hours later and I finally had to get some sleep, and only then did I realize my initial intentions where to run two other headphones off the MJ2 that night. That right there is a sign of good things to come.

Also I gotta give a shout out to the crew at Schiit and FedEx for doing exactly what they were supposed to do when they said they would do it in order to get the amp in time for the long weekend. That seems like such a small thing but man it just seems to happen less and less lately.

 

[tjl5709]

I have upgraded to the Mjolnir2 now. And when using 1962 Philips NOS Tubes, versus the stock ones, I notice one very peculiar thing: when switching on the MJ2, it hums loudly for some seconds before it goes about quiet. It doesn't entirely go silent. With the stock tubes this doesn't happen. Why is this?
By the way, there is always a little hum. Onaudieble over the headphones! Just the unit itself.

Try reseating them by giving them a wiggle. Older tubes can have alittle oxidation versus newer stuff.

 

[peter1480]

Try reseating them by giving them a wiggle. Older tubes can have alittle oxidation versus newer stuff.

try a bit of DeoxIT contact cleaner on the pins

 

[TK16]

My Mjolnir 2 arrived last night!

After the unboxing I let the MJ2 warm up for about two hours and then came back for a late night listen. Before getting the gear set up I noticed the whole unit really did warm up! The MJ2 gets warmer than I would have expected given it only runs two tubes.

I set up an AQ Forest USB > Mojo > Kimber GQ Mini > Mjolnir 2 w/stock tubes > Audeze balanced cable > late 2016 Audeze LCD-2s for a late night listen. Up to this point I had only ran my LCD-2s single ended and with moderate power. I had always heard they do well off more power so I selected them to use for my first listen and boy what a treat! Out of the MJ2 these things really sing, this amp just flat out makes these headphones so much better. It was several hours later and I finally had to get some sleep, and only then did I realize my initial intentions where to run two other headphones off the MJ2 that night. That right there is a sign of good things to come.

Also I gotta give a shout out to the crew at Schiit and FedEx for doing exactly what they were supposed to do when they said they would do it in order to get the amp in time for the long weekend. That seems like such a small thing but man it just seems to happen less and less lately.

Wait till you hear the MJ2 with your own personal holy grail tubes.

 

[daddyo1973]

Wait till you hear the MJ2 with your own personal holy grail tubes.

I am going to try my best to not open the tube drawer until I have a handle on the amp and what its capable of with the stock tubes. My previous stereo pre-amplifier took 6922 tubes so I have matched low noise quads of JJ/Tesla, Electro-Harmonix and NOS Amperex. Once I form my own opinion on the MJ2 I'll season to taste with tubes headphone pairings. As of now, I have about 8-10 hours on it and feel no need to rush into tube rolling.

In general how does the MJ2 take to tube rolling, does it really let the tubes take over or is it more subtle?

 

[TK16]

Quite noticeable, more so than my Lyr 2. I have a Lite Dac 68 that takes 6DJ8 tubes as well and the Lyr 2 was about 60-65% of the sound vs my dac. With the MJ2 its about 80% of the sound now vs the tubes in my dac.

 

[winders]

I am going to try my best to not open the tube drawer until I have a handle on the amp and what its capable of with the stock tubes. My previous stereo pre-amplifier took 6922 tubes so I have matched low noise quads of JJ/Tesla, Electro-Harmonix and NOS Amperex. Once I form my own opinion on the MJ2 I'll season to taste with tubes headphone pairings. As of now, I have about 8-10 hours on it and feel no need to rush into tube rolling.

In general how does the MJ2 take to tube rolling, does it really let the tubes take over or is it more subtle?

That like driving a sports car with crappy tires. You will never get a feel for the Mjolnir 2 using those crappy stock tubes. Of the tubes you list, I would roll in the NOS Amperex. Which Amperex, by the way?

The Mjolnir 2, in my mind is more reactive to tubes than the Lyr 2. But, it is still a hybrid amp so tubes can only have so much effect. Don't worry, good tubes sound really nice in the Mjolnir 2!

 

[daddyo1973]

That like driving a sports car with crappy tires. You will never get a feel for the Mjolnir 2 using those crappy stock tubes. Of the tubes you list, I would roll in the NOS Amperex. Which Amperex, by the way?

Amperex 7308 gold pin

I guess what I am trying to say is that with several hours of listening on the stock tubes things are sounding really good. If things settle in after several more hours thats a plus. Then I can roll in tubes and thats another plus. So it would seem things are on a path to scale up rather nicely.

 

[neoluddite]

I am going to try my best to not open the tube drawer until I have a handle on the amp and what its capable of with the stock tubes. My previous stereo pre-amplifier took 6922 tubes so I have matched low noise quads of JJ/Tesla, Electro-Harmonix and NOS Amperex. Once I form my own opinion on the MJ2 I'll season to taste with tubes headphone pairings. As of now, I have about 8-10 hours on it and feel no need to rush into tube rolling.

In general how does the MJ2 take to tube rolling, does it really let the tubes take over or is it more subtle?

The MJ2 is a great platform for tube rolling. You can indeed find tubes that will suit your personal tastes. Play around with the stock tubes and try the solid state LISST gizmos, then experiment with tubes. I think you will find very distinct differences among various tubes. You can get much more warmth, treble and clarity vs the stock tubes.

Happy experimenting.

Michael

 

[neoluddite]

Amperex 7308 gold pin

I guess what I am trying to say is that with several hours of listening on the stock tubes things are sounding really good. If things settle in after several more hours thats a plus. Then I can roll in tubes and thats another plus. So it would seem things are on a path to scale up rather nicely.

As for timinng, when I started comparing tubes, I ran them for 48 hours before critically listening. I learned that was not long enough and now let the amp run for ~120 hrs before making and critical assessments of a tube pair.

 

[neoluddite]

That like driving a sports car with crappy tires. You will never get a feel for the Mjolnir 2 using those crappy stock tubes. Of the tubes you list, I would roll in the NOS Amperex. Which Amperex, by the way?

The Mjolnir 2, in my mind is more reactive to tubes than the Lyr 2. But, it is still a hybrid amp so tubes can only have so much effect. Don't worry, good tubes sound really nice in the Mjolnir 2!

Hi Winders,

I believe I recall reading some Schiit material that explains the MJ2 operates in Class A mode until power demands require shifting to AB where silicon plays a bigger role. So, I suppose that depending on how efficient one's headphones are and listening levels, you might be in Class A mode: for a circletron topology, I think that means you are relying on just the tubes for amplification. If I am mistaken, I am happy to learn more.

Michael

 

[Delayeed]

circle Ron topology

Circlotron* LMAO.

Didn't know it could run in both A and AB, that's interesting but I'm pretty sure the MOSFETs are always in use since the pre-amp tubes only do voltage amplification.

Also: The stock tubes suck.

 

[daddyo1973]

Ok, stock tubes suck but at the moment I don't think things sound bad so thats encouraging that it only gets better from here once the good tubes start rolling in.

 

[TK16]

With my Lyr 2 and MJ2 I never even used the stock tubes (heard they are decent), but there are far far better tubes out there.

 

[daddyo1973]

Ok, quick poll for a sanity check. How hot does your MJ2 top plate get to the touch after say 5-6 hours of use?

I listened for about 2-3 hours today and did not power it down right away. When I went back a few hours later to flip the power switch on the back the top plate was way beyond "warm". I put my hand on the top plate and held it there and it was hot.