[ckhirnigs113]

Any new Mjolnir 3 owners out there happen to also have a new Mod House Tungsten? I’m curious about the pairing.

I wouldn’t mind hearing from a Meze Elite owner as well if they’ve tried them on the M3.

 

[honeyjjack]

I can feel your pain.
I was considering the Anni too. I ruled it out for me because the gain only affects the speaker outs and not the headphone out. For more sensitive stuff you will be on a razors edge for volume (or so I've read); the stand they make for the two of them is astonishingly expensive; it has a fan that is always on even if the unit is off and I wanted a preamp built in too.
I have owned the CMA400i and still own a CMA Twelve. I love the fit and finish of it. It feels very good to interact with and has a very clean sound. The feature set is top notch and I've never had trouble out of it but I wanted to go with separates. I've got nothing bad to say about them other than I feel like they weren't/aren't very dynamic sounding compared to some other amps I've had Mjolnir 3 included.
It's a hard choice, especially buying blind.

And now back on topic. Sorry for the derailment.

i actually just sold the cma 12. Loved it too, hence the cma 15. Could you let me know how the cma12 compares to the qutest and mj3? Would help me a lot in choosing.

 

[D Rob]

i actually just sold the cma 12. Loved it too, hence the cma 15. Could you let me know how the cma12 compares to the qutest and mj3? Would help me a lot in choosing.

The CMA12 is sitting in a box ready for sale and the box my Mjolnir 3 came in is sitting in my closet The Qutest lived up to my expectations and the Mjolnir 3 has been as well. This combo has the 12 beat on micro, macro, general dynamics and tone, and that's over the 6.35mm HP out. It a solid upgrade in my book. These two pair together like PB&J.

 

[Kapazza]

I feel like the heat was oversold.

What's your ambient (i.e., room) temperature? I have to keep my house at 78-79 F to avoid $500+ monthly electricity bills...

 

[artur9]

MJ3 in the house. First impressions with my Eta Mini C are favorable, listening to classical music.

Re: the truth table question I asked earlier, well, schiitt, the toggles on the front are a nice little truth table!

I have it hooked to my Linn Akurate DS, balanced. Looks like they were made for each other. In previous testing, could not really identify any differences between it and my Gumby OG. Will redo that thunderdome with the MJ3.

Only downside so far is: Linn's balanced output is on the opposite side of the MJ3's balanced input, so my short XLRs are a somewhat tauter than I'd like.

 

[D Rob]

What's your ambient (i.e., room) temperature? I have to keep my house at 78-79 F to avoid $500+ monthly electricity bills...

I just checked, it says 72° F in my room. I will have to update that though in my final thoughts later. After being on over 24 hours the ambient it gives off isn't an issue still (within 1 - 2 inches of the heatsink), but that heat sink is too hot to comfortably touch.

 

[Phemius]

I just set up my MJ3 and have a few initial impressions. Listening with my Bifrost OG and a pair of Arya V2s, DT1990, and HD650. This amp makes my old Burson Soloist 3XP sound thin and icy. In "Elysium -- A Schubert Recital," the MJ3 reveals not only the piano but the room it is playing in in an almost spooky kind of way, as if I am no longer in my living room but there at the venue. Carolyn Sampson's voice is fuller, more lifelike -- truly beautiful. On an old Jacqueline du Pre album, her cello sounds fuller, the decay of the strings is more noticeable on the MJ3, while on the Burson Soloist it is more aggressive and impactful but thinner. On Julian Lage's "View with a Room," the bass notes are much more believable than on the Soloist which again is more impactful but also more plastiicy. In short, the MJ3 just imparts more realism in everything I have put through it so far. Also the sense of room space it provides is astonishing. I find this amp to work well with high treble headphones like the DT1990 and Arya, it tames them back just a bit and allow them to reveal all the detail this amp passes through without any treble bite that the DT1990's can sometimes give. Also, with the Arya V2, which only sound good with a ton of power behind them, I find the MJ3 makes them sing in full single-ended Class A with no feedback on high gain just as well as the Burson Soloist which is an 8 watt powerhouse. This makes me think the MJ3 can drive anything quite handily.

 

[Melting735]

I also picked up MJ3 today.

Very busy night with Yggy OG, RME ADI-2/4, MJ3, FV, LCD-5, Utopia OG, and HD820. I'm quite happy with MJ3 by far. More detail and transparent, making it a good complement to FV. It indeed ran very hot. FV was hotter on the top surface, but MJ3 was much hotter on the bottom surface. When running all these together, I started sweating in my basement which is usually quite cool in summer.

 

[artur9]

Linn Akurate DS streamer/DAC -> MJ3 -> Eta Mini C

• bal in
• preamp off
• high gain
• se mode
• feedback off
• vol 7-8
• headphone cable came with Mini C, balanced cables are nothing special other than actually colored red/white.

Tonally, this is really spot on. Piano sounds a lot like the one over in my living room
Soundstage is wide, but not bigger than my head. There's a vertical dimension to it that I've rarely experienced. It's kind of like a singer is sitting up high on a chair while the rest of the band is somewhat lower. The background reminds me of a SET amp I heard at a meet where it's so deep and silent it almost hurts.

Listening to hi-res Hadestown can really hear the difference amongst all the percussions instruments: woodblocks, different drums, etc. Loving the saxophones (one of my favorite instruments).

Brass In Pocket Pretenders Isle of View Live images fantastically, everything is fixed to a location and stays there. The thump of the drum is very palpable.

My torture track for imaging/staging is Bach - Double Concerto For 2 Violins, Strings, And Continuo In D Minor, BWV 1043 from The Club Album, Live from Yellow Lounge. Gotta be able to hear the 2 violins as distinct instruments in different locations. MJ3 passes this test with flying colors, never heard the 2 violins so distinctly. On other tracks from that album, the front to back placement of instruments is outstanding.

I love the playing on Studio Live Session Liechtenstein but Edwyn Collins' voice is usually more than I can take. This setup actually makes it almost good

The Infernal Dance Of All Kastchei's Subjects from Firebird has gotta be heard. Every, and I mean every, instrument group is individuated(?) in a way I've never heard on any system. Additionally, it sounds like you're only a few feet from the drums (kettle? tympani? I don't know the names).

Ok, one more for imaging. Joe Stilgoe's Almost Like Being In Love.(spotify link, I have a high res version). He repeats himself a few times before starting the song. The second time, 3-5 people clap, and you can hear where each of them is in space. I feel like I can hear the individual strings on the double bass.

A bass test I use is Wrapped Around Your Finger The Police: Every Breath You Take (The Classics) as lesser systems tend to make the bass sound like an inchoate buzz. Here, it's clearly a bass and I could also hear some castanets (?) I've never heard before. (edit) listening louder (8:30) it's actually cymbal brush work...


Lastly, when I told my better half that I had a new listening station because (long story) with headphones, the response was, "You mean you play your music now as loud as you like and not disturb anyone else? What a great idea!" -- I fear for my speakers now....

(edit) Pix or it didn't happen:

 

[ZoNtO]

I also picked up MJ3 today.

Very busy night with Yggy OG, RME ADI-2/4, MJ3, FV, LCD-5, Utopia OG, and HD820. I'm quite happy with MJ3 by far. More detail and transparent, making it a good complement to FV. It indeed ran very hot. FV was hotter on the top surface, but MJ3 was much hotter on the bottom surface. When running all these together, I started sweating in my basement which is usually quite cool in summer.

What are your thoughts on Mjolnir 3 with the Utopia specifically?

 

[Deckard916]

Mine is coming tomorrow, been reading all these posts and I'm super excited!

 

[Melineous]

What are your thoughts on Mjolnir 3 with the Utopia specifically?

Going to add my Utopia experience here. I find that some amps have a small, and deep stage. While other amps have a wide, and flat stage. MJ3 has a small, and deep stage which can make the Utopia very intense to listen to. So it doesn't sound bad, but (for me) Utopia synergies better with wide and flat staging amps. Unless you want really aggressive sound. Then MJ3 would be perfect lol.

 

[Melting735]

What are your thoughts on Mjolnir 3 with the Utopia specifically?

Utopia was good on MJ3, but FV has a wider stage than MJ to my ear and it sounds lusher overall. If I have to pick one, I will pair it with FV because I listen to pop music more. Human voice sounds better on FV, but MJ3 is no slouch at all.

 

[Charente]

I just set up my MJ3 and have a few initial impressions. Listening with my Bifrost OG and a pair of Arya V2s, DT1990, and HD650. This amp makes my old Burson Soloist 3XP sound thin and icy. In "Elysium -- A Schubert Recital," the MJ3 reveals not only the piano but the room it is playing in in an almost spooky kind of way, as if I am no longer in my living room but there at the venue. Carolyn Sampson's voice is fuller, more lifelike -- truly beautiful. On an old Jacqueline du Pre album, her cello sounds fuller, the decay of the strings is more noticeable on the MJ3, while on the Burson Soloist it is more aggressive and impactful but thinner. On Julian Lage's "View with a Room," the bass notes are much more believable than on the Soloist which again is more impactful but also more plastiicy. In short, the MJ3 just imparts more realism in everything I have put through it so far. Also the sense of room space it provides is astonishing. I find this amp to work well with high treble headphones like the DT1990 and Arya, it tames them back just a bit and allow them to reveal all the detail this amp passes through without any treble bite that the DT1990's can sometimes give. Also, with the Arya V2, which only sound good with a ton of power behind them, I find the MJ3 makes them sing in full single-ended Class A with no feedback on high gain just as well as the Burson Soloist which is an 8 watt powerhouse. This makes me think the MJ3 can drive anything quite handily.

Good impressions

Given how the MJ3 sounds with your headphones, I wonder how Meze Empyreans might sound, which are a bit warmer ?

Has anyone tried that pairing ?

 

[D Rob]

There's maybe one hour a day where the sunlight reaches my desk. I give you the Mjolnir 3!