[Charente]

I ordered mine this morning, and now the wait begins. I am currently using a Soloist 3XP paired with a Bifrost 2/64.

I would be interested to know what you think about the MJ3 vs the Soloist, which I find excellent in my gear chain.

 

[artur9]

Anyone going right into the Mjolnir with a turntable (through phono amp, of course)?

Good idea? Bad idea? I needed a new "stand" for my Mjolnir and a turntable stand was the best option so now I'm vinyl-curious. I have a Mani and a MMF 5.1 gathering dust...

 

[liamo]

Hello...
I am relatively new to the hobby. Purchased my first "high-end" HP about a year ago...
I ordered the MJ3 (Black, 115V) on October 6th. Schiit shipped out October 11th. I received the unit October 13th.
Still auditioning the MJ3... The MJ3 sounds "best" when it gets toasty. The entire unit became very warm to the touch (with the heatsink too hot to touch) after about 2-3 hours of music playing. It also purred (like a sleeping cat)... I think I might come across a special amp...

Current equipments:
DAC: Schiit Bifrost 2/64
AMP: Schiit Vali 2++, Schiit Mjolnir 3
HP: Focal Clear OG, Hifiman HE 1000SE, Audeze LCD-5

Looking forward to your impressions with those headphones. MJ3 has widened my Focal Celestee and given them a wonderful effortless authority at all frequencies and turned my Senn 6xx to a whole other headphone, better in every aspect.

 

[49ersGuy]

Looking forward to your impressions with those headphones. MJ3 has widened my Focal Celestee and given them a wonderful effortless authority at all frequencies and turned my Senn 6xx to a whole other headphone, better in every aspect.

I received the MJ3 6 days ago but only managed to audition it for about twelve hours (been out of town). I listen to solo vocals (main), classical, piano, and EDM (least).

Initial impressions (all with Bifrost 2/64 as DAC):

The MJ3 and LCD5 combo provided a clean, clear, detail, and a more forward sound overall. Vocals sounded natural, neutral, accurate, but a bit lean (when compared to the HEKSE). Sound stage appeared more intimate rather than large. Resolution is excellent with a good amount of microdetails. The combo sounded “fast” with everything felt snappier. Notes appeared to have quick decay. The bass quality of the LCD5 was very good although its quantity was a bit lacking…

The MJ3 and HEKSE combo has been my most enjoyable combo to listen to solo vocals and classical music. This combo managed to do everything as well or nearly as well as the MJ3/LCD5 combo while providing a larger soundstage and “fuller” vocals. Like the LCD5, the HEKSE does not “punch” as hard to say like the Focal Clear OG but they are superior to the Clear in every other way…

I have listened to the MJ3/Focal Clear OG combo on only one EDM song. More on this combo later…

 

[liamo]

Thanks, the HEKSE and Arya Organic are on my radar when the the stars align.

 

[mekap]

I would be interested to know what you think about the MJ3 vs the Soloist, which I find excellent in my gear chain.

I'm also interested in knowing the comparison between MJ3 vs the Soloist

 

[XERO1]

I'm also interested in knowing the comparison between MJ3 vs the Soloist

When I owned a Soloist 3XP, I thought it sounded quite good but it was definitely on the brighter side of neutral. But what was a dealbreaker for me was that I only liked its sound when it was in High gain mode, but in High gain mode there was an audible hiss (high noise floor) when no music was playing and the hiss could also be heard on songs that had any quiet parts in them (i.e. most classical and jazz).

 

[Charente]

When I owned a Soloist 3XP, I thought it sounded quite good but it was definitely on the brighter side of neutral. But what was a dealbreaker for me was that I only liked its sound when it was in High gain mode, but in High gain mode there was an audible hiss (high noise floor) when no music was playing and the hiss could also be heard on songs that had any quiet parts in them (i.e. most classical and jazz).

Are you, therefore, suggesting that the MJ3 is neutral, or on the warm side of neutral, by comparison ? You must have hard to drive headphones ... I only ever need max 25/100 volume on Medium-Gain (Balanced) for any of my headphones to sound good !

 

[mekap]

When I owned a Soloist 3XP, I thought it sounded quite good but it was definitely on the brighter side of neutral. But what was a dealbreaker for me was that I only liked its sound when it was in High gain mode, but in High gain mode there was an audible hiss (high noise floor) when no music was playing and the hiss could also be heard on songs that had any quiet parts in them (i.e. most classical and jazz).

I think that the character of the amplifier's sound depends on which DAC is connected to it.
Hissing is possible because the headphones are more sensitive, then hissing appears.

 

[XERO1]

Are you, therefore, suggesting that the MJ3 is neutral, or on the warm side of neutral, by comparison?

To my ears, the MJ3 is dead neutral in sonic character, but it has the unique and rare ability (at least for a SS amp) to preserve nearly all of the music's natural tonality.

 

[XERO1]

You must have hard to drive headphones ... I only ever need max 25/100 volume on Medium-Gain (Balanced) for any of my headphones to sound good!

I think that the character of the amplifier's sound depends on which DAC is connected to it.
Hissing is possible because the headphones are more sensitive, then hissing appears.

I didn't actually need to have the Soloist 3XP set to High gain with the headphones I was using it with, but I just preferred the way it sounded when it was in High gain mode. When it was set to Low or Medium gain, it just sounded a bit too laid-back and lacking in sonic drive for me. But YMMV, of course.

 

[ckhirnigs113]

I’d be interested to know what percentage of MJ3 owners are preferring high-gain. I usually stick to low-gain with my amps but find myself using high-gain almost exclusively on the MJ3. I can’t even really put my finger on the difference it makes, but I feel more engaged with the music in high-gain.

 

[jonathan c]

I’d be interested to know what percentage of MJ3 owners are preferring high-gain. I usually stick to low-gain with my amps but find myself using high-gain almost exclusively on the MJ3. I can’t even really put my finger on the difference it makes, but I feel more engaged with the music in high-gain.

Is this a Schiit trait? Be it Lyr 3, Mjolnir 2, Valhalla 2 I always preferred high-gain setting to low-gain setting — irrespective of volume level …

 

[49ersGuy]

I’d be interested to know what percentage of MJ3 owners are preferring high-gain. I usually stick to low-gain with my amps but find myself using high-gain almost exclusively on the MJ3. I can’t even really put my finger on the difference it makes, but I feel more engaged with the music in high-gain.

I prefer high-gain on MJ3 when driving LCD5 regardless of volume level... just sonically more "impactful"...

 

[Charente]

Is this a Schiit trait? Be it Lyr 3, Mjolnir 2, Valhalla 2 I always preferred high-gain setting to low-gain setting — irrespective of volume level …

Certainly true for me with the MJOLNIR 2 ... but that's a different beast.