[GeraltDHowl]

The Ares 2 with the Mjolnir 3 was a very exciting pairing when it came to staging and imaging. Unfortunately, it revealed the lack of great bass extension with that DAC as well

If i May wich headphone did you use? Dammit if It lacks the bass extension it's a deal breaker for me.

 

[PopZeus]

If i May wich headphone did you use? Dammit if It lacks the bass extension it's a deal breaker for me.

When I had the Ares 2, I was using the Meze Empyrean and Sennheiser HD660S2. Currently I still have the HD660S2 and am now running the Audeze MM-100. For my DAC, I’m using the Bifrost 2/64, and while that DAC has better bass presence than the Ares, I miss the staging and precision of the Denafrips. I know I’ll eventually get an endgame R-2R DAC for the Mjolnir. I wouldn’t be surprised if something like the Musician Pegasus, Gustard R26 or Ladder Schumann might be the best fit if you want bass AND a wide, deep stage.

 

[GeraltDHowl]

When I had the Ares 2, I was using the Meze Empyrean and Sennheiser HD660S2. Currently I still have the HD660S2 and am now running the Audeze MM-100. For my DAC, I’m using the Bifrost 2/64, and while that DAC has better bass presence than the Ares, I miss the staging and precision of the Denafrips. I know I’ll eventually get an endgame R-2R DAC for the Mjolnir. I wouldn’t be surprised if something like the Musician Pegasus, Gustard R26 or Ladder Schumann might be the best fit if you want bass AND a wide, deep stage.

Thank you! It was really helpfull because i was set on the Ares like this i'll skip a passage and try to find a used r26 i Will give an update once i try the pairing

 

[Currawong]

How do you guys burn in your Mjolnir 3? Push-pull activated? Using low or high impedance headphones?

By leaving it switched on. I've never found that music needed playing in electronics. I believe that "burn-in" is almost entirely from the heat.

For what its worth, I tried mine as a pre amp on my Denon PMA A110 and the Mjolnir pre is to my ears about the same laegue as the pre on the Denon integrated, I can't distinguish the two in a blind test..(I use Harbeth SHL+ 40th speakers)

My impressions of Denon are extremely negative. For example, I went to a local dealer to try ELAC speakers, which I'd previously heard sounding absolutely amazing, and the dealer set them up with a Denon integrated. They sounded like crap, until I asked them to try with a better amp. You can get far better amps for similar money from Schiit or Audio-gd.

I need people to stop making me think of the Lokius.

No you don't, you want a Lokius if you're primarily a headphone listener and you listen to a variety of genres. The way to go is: XLR from an Yggy or similar to the Mjolnir direct, then RCA to the Lokius to the RCA inputs of the Mjolnir. Then, you get the best SQ direct via XLR for the music that you want to hear the most subtle nuances of, and RCA when you say, want to turn up the bass and knock the treble down a notch on that old pop or rock tune you like, where the slight loss of detail wont matter.

Oddly enough, although you being in IT it won't help, someone on these forums made a similar comment about the Bifrost. They said the Modi Multibit 2 was less wall-of-soundish...

Any preference in terms of warmth?

I found the Bifrost to be sensitive to USB input quality. It sounds a bit hard and harsh direct from my Mac Mini server vs. S/PDIF from a high-quality converter or streamer.

When I had the Ares 2, I was using the Meze Empyrean and Sennheiser HD660S2. Currently I still have the HD660S2 and am now running the Audeze MM-100. For my DAC, I’m using the Bifrost 2/64, and while that DAC has better bass presence than the Ares, I miss the staging and precision of the Denafrips. I know I’ll eventually get an endgame R-2R DAC for the Mjolnir. I wouldn’t be surprised if something like the Musician Pegasus, Gustard R26 or Ladder Schumann might be the best fit if you want bass AND a wide, deep stage.

Budget for all the audio rabbit hole stuff, like a high-end DDC, HQPlayer, etc. if you do go that route, IMO.

 

[PopZeus]

Thank you! It was really helpfull because i was set on the Ares like this i'll skip a passage and try to find a used r26 i Will give an update once i try the pairing

Just to be clear, I've not heard the R26 so I'm only speculating. The Pontus or Venus from Denafrips might also bring a more low-end heft to the source chain from what reviewers have said. Also, I've heard some folks say that the R26 was bright but also that it had good bass. Not sure who to trust in these cases, so ymmv ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[GeraltDHowl]

Just to be clear, I've not heard the R26 so I'm only speculating. The Pontus or Venus from Denafrips might also bring a more low-end heft to the source chain from what reviewers have said. Also, I've heard some folks say that the R26 was bright but also that it had good bass. Not sure who to trust in these cases, so ymmv ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The r26 Is a dac that i want to try from a while, what was helpfull was the feedback on the Ares because you are not the First Person Who told me that It has great imaging and separation but lacks on the bass (the main reason i went with the bifrost) or i could go with the Ares and a lokius too many choises.

 

[Erick Muller]

Just to be clear, I've not heard the R26 so I'm only speculating. The Pontus or Venus from Denafrips might also bring a more low-end heft to the source chain from what reviewers have said. Also, I've heard some folks say that the R26 was bright but also that it had good bass. Not sure who to trust in these cases, so ymmv ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Maybe stupid question regarding these relatively new R2R DACS, I'm very interested on the Ladder Schumann, but I've heard from reviews that it's only good for critical music listening and not for general use like watching video content and the like because there's too much latency, is this still hold true for all R2R DACs or if I want one, I will have to use another source if I plan to consume other kind of content besides music listening?

 

[Hypops]

Maybe stupid question regarding these relatively new R2R DACS, I'm very interested on the Ladder Schumann, but I've heard from reviews that it's only good for critical music listening and not for general use like watching video content and the like because there's too much latency, is this still hold true for all R2R DACs or if I want one, I will have to use another source if I plan to consume other kind of content besides music listening?

Audio latency is system and listener dependent. I have a Denafrips Ares II in my living room speaker setup. For movie/video watching, I send audio via Airplay to an audio streamer (pi2AES) which then goes through the Ares II. I don't notice any obvious audio lag. I'm sure it's there, but not to the point where I or anyone else in my household has ever noticed.

Unless you're super strict about video sources, playback software, and refresh rates, there are so many other (much worse) timing issues going on all the time with video streaming that a bit of audio lag is just a tiny piece in a very, very imperfect puzzle. There are far worse timing issues happening to the video signal already, and you probably haven't even noticed them. My two cents: don't worry about it.

 

[jinu117]

Yup I wouldn't worry about delay on at least ARES 12th-1. I have it running with IRIS-12th which supposedly could introduce more delays but I don't notice any syncing issues with videos, etc. As for working with MJ3 on current setup... still waiting for MJ3 portion of story. I've had Aune S9C and S17Pro and hope to give not quite accurate A/B comparison (very loose comparison from memory by the time whenever MJ3 might show up).

 

[PopZeus]

Budget for all the audio rabbit hole stuff, like a high-end DDC, HQPlayer, etc. if you do go that route, IMO.

Yeah, finding the right gear to complement the Mjolnir is going to be a long term project. As far as DACs go, I'm ultimately working up towards the Holo Audio Spring unless I get steered elsewhere. There's a version that comes with a built-in DDC. But right now I think I need a better digital source than my Mac Mini. The Cayin DAP I have is actually a fantastic USB source but it's a waste of that portable device's battery. I'm waiting to hear more about the FiiO R9, so that's maybe the next big upgrade.

The r26 Is a dac that i want to try from a while, what was helpfull was the feedback on the Ares because you are not the First Person Who told me that It has great imaging and separation but lacks on the bass (the main reason i went with the bifrost) or i could go with the Ares and a lokius too many choises.

I don't know if EQ is the answer in this case. You might want to just look into a DAC with better bass presence for around the price of an Ares and Lokius. I think Ladder Schumann would be on my shortlist but I haven't heard it first hand myself, same with the Musician DACs. Cayin has a tube buffer DAC coming out soon too. Lots of options!

Maybe stupid question regarding these relatively new R2R DACS, I'm very interested on the Ladder Schumann, but I've heard from reviews that it's only good for critical music listening and not for general use like watching video content and the like because there's too much latency, is this still hold true for all R2R DACs or if I want one, I will have to use another source if I plan to consume other kind of content besides music listening?

Not heard much about the Ladder Schumann other than it's supposed to be quite good and detailed but euphonic. Sounds interesting to me. Fwiw, Denafrips has fixed the USB delay in their lineup with the latest firmware updates, After I upgraded my Ares 2's firmware, I didn't notice any lip synch issues via USB from my Mac Mini.

 

[Erick Muller]

Yup I wouldn't worry about delay on at least ARES 12th-1. I have it running with IRIS-12th which supposedly could introduce more delays but I don't notice any syncing issues with videos, etc. As for working with MJ3 on current setup... still waiting for MJ3 portion of story. I've had Aune S9C and S17Pro and hope to give not quite accurate A/B comparison (very loose comparison from memory by the time whenever MJ3 might show up).

Looking forward for your comparisons between the MJ3 and the S17 cause I also have an S17 and I'm thinking if is worth the upgrade to the MJ3, also interested to see if the MJ3 can run Tungsten better that the S17, I'm almost sure that the S17 can run them, but not close to their full potential.

 

[ohcrapgorillas]

R26 is an amazing DAC that I can heartily recommend, it bests the Bifrost 2/64 in just about every way. I'm using it with a Jotunheim 2 while I wait (rather impatiently) for my MJ3...

 

[artur9]

R26 is an amazing DAC that I can heartily recommend, it bests the Bifrost 2/64 in just about every way. I'm using it with a Jotunheim 2 while I wait (rather impatiently) for my MJ3...

It better, it's like 3 times the price :-O

 

[Erick Muller]

It better, it's like 3 times the price :-O

More like two times, but still for twice the price I would expect significantly better performance from anything, not linearly, but noticeably on a first listen.

 

[GeraltDHowl]

R26 is an amazing DAC that I can heartily recommend, it bests the Bifrost 2/64 in just about every way. I'm using it with a Jotunheim 2 while I wait (rather impatiently) for my MJ3...

Would love to hear a feedback when It arrives and how It pairs with the gustard r26!