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NITSCH x Schiit Pietus Maximus Release/Impressions Thread
Mar 10, 2024 at 2:49 PM Post #406 of 462
I didnt post any comments in the review with my Rad 0's....listening right now with them....OMG good pairing with the ESS dac version.
The Soekris 2541 is still a tad better than the internal ESS or MB version to my ears...
But if your on a budget the internal dac cards will get you almost there...
Alex

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Mar 10, 2024 at 3:09 PM Post #407 of 462
Thought I would share this picture:

Its where the volime pot had to be set to match levels for all three gains, low, medium, high etc.
Measured SPL level with a 1 khz tone in the earcup of a headphone with an acoustical coupler.
Quite the difference between the MB and ESS dac cards.

You would think that for both dacs the volume pot position for the same gain selection would be the same or really close.
In this case they are not. With the same cans going back and forth from one unit to another there is a noticeable volume level difference. Human ears seem to like the louder sound...level match and things become more difficult to differentiate...

Show IMO the importance of level matching before making judgements etc..
Alex

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Mar 10, 2024 at 6:32 PM Post #408 of 462
Mar 15, 2024 at 1:22 AM Post #413 of 462
I can give my 2c on the internal Unison Multibit DAC. The dac sounds "digital", diffused, grainy, lacking macro and micro dynamics, lacking resolution, sound stage shape, placement and depth, lacking weight. Compared to my other dacs, this one sounded like AM radio and a hard pass for me. I ran the internal dac from MBP M2 USBC output. I think the dac might have done better if I could use my good streamer with it. In any case, the internal dac is far far far away from what I am used to in terms of dac.

The amp portion is promising. Right now using it with NewOntech dac7 (better than Bricasti M3, Jeff Rowland Aeris and other mid-priced dacs)

Pairing so far:
Grado HF-2: Excellent
Grado HP1000 (HP2): Excellent
Focal Clear OG: Very good
Focal Utopia OG: Okay
 
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Mar 16, 2024 at 10:28 AM Post #414 of 462
Hyde00 said:
Okay here's some update! My MMB2 arrived yesterday and I did some testing and listening.

First thing first, volume pot hum.

As previously mentioned it only happens when hand is touching volume pot, if you let go then it's fine. I also noticed that it only happens if I have RCA plugged to a USB powered source that's plugged into PC.

i.e. SDAC = USB Powered, iFi Zen Air Dac = USB Powered.

Then if I unplug RCA and just run the ES9028 Dac Card directly it's fine. But if I plug in RCA, even if PMax is switched to read Dac Card, you still get hum. So make sure you unplug RCA when not in use.

UNLESS....... you're using MMB2, then I get no hum no matter what. My guess is that MMB2 has its own power source (not from USB) so maybe it's fine??? It was late at night I didn't bother to test any further. So this is my initial assessment LOL.

So based on this I'm assuming if you use USB power, maybe use a USB Hub with its own power?

Now back to sound......... I find only SDAC sounded pretty terrible on PMax, ES9028 Card, MMB2, Zen Air Dac all sounded pretty good. Each has its own flavours and pros and cons. But they all sounded good more or less.

I'll compare MMB2 to ES9028 since most people probably would be using either of those.

MMB2 vocal has more subtleties, ES9028 vocal is more detailed but edgier.
ES9028 vocal surprisingly to me is a bit...... closer....??? Maybe because shallower depth overall.
MMB2 is wider sounding, imaging also better.
ES9028 overall sounds more detailed.
Treble/Mids/Bass balance to be honest didn't feel too different. At least upon the quick 1 night listen I couldn't tell a huge difference. There is a difference, just not huge.
Bigger difference lies in the Multibit vs Delta Sigma sound.
Overall MMB2 presents things a bit softer but more 3D while ES9028 are a bit sharper edgier but also higher resolution, but sounded flatter.

I'd say they all sound nice but just really depending on preference.

Let me know if you guys have any questions.
Click to expand...

Thanks!
 
Mar 16, 2024 at 1:03 PM Post #417 of 462
Freia said:
Curious if you find the HF2 not having enough soundstage or tense with the Pietus. I do like the amp but at times a bit claustrophobic if that makes sense.
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HF2 sounds fairly open with good sized soundstage and instrument placement and in between space rendition. On very closely miked vocal and instruments they will sound like they are right up against your face (but not between your ears). Only on rare occasions with some recording (hard pans) you will feel like the sound is right next to your ears and not some distance outside or around you. This can’t be avoided completely even with the best system - even HE1.

So that’s a roundabout way to say I do not find HF2 claustrophobic. Given that the only difference between our gear is the dac I would look at that as the likely cause of your problem.
 
Mar 16, 2024 at 1:12 PM Post #418 of 462
NewEve said:
Amazing write-up, thank you!
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adydula said:
Just posted my experience in the reviews section:

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/nitsch-x-schiit-pietus-maximus.26889/reviews

Alex
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I think the score is optimistic. The fact that I have already found 1 out of 3 cans not being a good match means this amp is headphone dependent. I suspect the amp will only drive most high sensitivity dynamic drivers reasonably well and will not be suitable for other cans. I will have to test my other cans when I get around to them to confirm. Don’t get me wrong, it does really well with the cans that are suitable.

Edit. I want to clarify when I say drive well I mean the kind of effortless, transparent and musical sound people associate with high end amps.
 
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