[terminatetrails]

Ha! That was my first ever DAC, I pulled it out and dusted it off the other day to compare to Mojo. Honestly, it sounds really good and not a lot different from the Mojo. Considering it was $300, I should have just stuck with it instead of buying the Mojo. I do think Jot MB will be a noticeable improvement over the Oppo, which is why it sits in my drawer these days.

We all need to keep in mind that these dac/amp comparisons are very hp dependent. You can have amazing sources and not be able to tell much of a difference unless you have invested pretty heavily in hp's. And again, I am very happy while listening to my portable rig with my LCD i4's, so much so, that I hardly miss my other hp's, dacs/amps when I am on the road. It is only when I sit down and compare everything that I notice the subtle differences in sources. My mantra- invest 1st in high quality hp's and then on upgrading sources. FYI, I love my Jot with mb. Blows away the OG 4490.

 

[rkw]

I have a Bimby on the way, I hoping that will tame the brightness of the HD800S a bit.

Lots of people consider Jot to be a bright amp. The brightness might be better tamed with a different amp, not another DAC.

 

[abirdie4me]

Lots of people consider Jot to be a bright amp. The brightness might be better tamed with a different amp, not another DAC.

I agree, and a tube amp is probably somewhere in my future. For now, I have a Bimby on the way that I can also use as a good DAC for my powered Audioengine HD3. For good measure, I also ordered a Loki...between the Bimby and the Loki, the HD800S WILL become less bright, one way or another.

 

[abirdie4me]

We all need to keep in mind that these dac/amp comparisons are very hp dependent. You can have amazing sources and not be able to tell much of a difference unless you have invested pretty heavily in hp's. And again, I am very happy while listening to my portable rig with my LCD i4's, so much so, that I hardly miss my other hp's, dacs/amps when I am on the road. It is only when I sit down and compare everything that I notice the subtle differences in sources. My mantra- invest 1st in high quality hp's and then on upgrading sources. FYI, I love my Jot with mb. Blows away the OG 4490.

Totally agree that dac/amp combinations can provide wildly different results for different people, depending on the entire chain and the user's hearing capabilities and preferences. I started off with HD600 and quickly realized I needed an amp..hence the Oppo HA-2 SE purchase. Then I had the misfortune of coming across Head-Fi, and the disease set in. Wanted to see if Mojo was so much better than Oppo, according to many opinions on these forums I expected to hear 'sonic bliss'. When I didn't notice huge changes, I thought it must be the cans....on to HD650, TH-x00, Elear, LCD-3 (briefly), and now HD800S. Somewhere around the TH-x00, I thought I needed better dac/amp and found a good clearance deal on a Rega DAC..and then Schiit happened.

Of all these changes, the biggest jump in SQ came from getting that first Oppo HA-2 SE instead of listening straight out of my android phone. Everything since then has been subtle differences rather than improvements in sound. Lots of fun, and I am a much better listener than I was a couple of years ago. I love the hobby and hope that I will be able to afford a much nicer setup someday that will provide that elusive 'sonic bliss'.

 

[Bullishbear]

Ha! That was my first ever DAC, I pulled it out and dusted it off the other day to compare to Mojo. Honestly, it sounds really good and not a lot different from the Mojo. Considering it was $300, I should have just stuck with it instead of buying the Mojo. I do think Jot MB will be a noticeable improvement over the Oppo, which is why it sits in my drawer these days.

Thanks!!! I think Jot MB will be my endgame dac/amp for a while, have you heard the Questlye CMA400i?

 

[the finisher]

I really like the Jot in my studio setup, certainly punches above it's cost.
Leaving it always on has smoothed it out on top.
Not feeling any urge to upgrade it. Kind of unusual for me.

 

[abirdie4me]

Thanks!!! I think Jot MB will be my endgame dac/amp for a while, have you heard the Questlye CMA400i?

I haven't heard the 400i, but the 600i sounded really good on my Elears.

 

[GoodRevrnd]

Anyone know where I can get a 1/16" tamperproof allen wrench to open this thing?

 

[terminatetrails]

Anyone know where I can get a 1/16" tamperproof allen wrench to open this thing?

No doubt, I had to break out a HUGE toolbox to find something that worked!
PS- good to know there are other goodrevrnds out there who like good audio!

 

[O.C. Audiophile]

Anyone know where I can get a 1/16" tamperproof allen wrench to open this thing?

I assume you're talking about a wrench to remove the set screw holding on the volume knob. I didn't need any special tamper proof wrench when I installed my MB DAC Module. Mine was just a standard allen wrench socket. You can pick up a set of wrenches at a Lowe's, Home Depot, Menards, Ace, or whatever hardware store you have in your area.

 

[hikaru12]

Anyone have any impressions on the LCD 2 with the Jot? I’d be just using the amp. I always get balanced cables because I prefer them. I have a feeling that the Nordost 1/4 adapter is adding a little bit of glare but I’m used to harsher treble. Adds a good energy but can get a bit much at night when I’m trying to relax. Running straight balanced with some Earth cables would be ideal.

 

[EtRec]

For anyone interested in a (none expert ears, but great music lover) comparison between the original and new AK4490 DAC Module for the Jot. I have been the happy owner of the Jot+ original AK4490 dac card for over a year. Not one of those who thought the DAC card was bad. I had, and returned the Multibit Bitfroast after 2 weeks. Yes it sounded better, but not $600 better, for my purse strings. Besides I don't like owning to many possessions. The new AK4490 card does seem to improve on the old one to my ears. I'm using the JOT with my beloved Audioquest Nightowl with balanced cable. A headphone that already has wonderful bass and treble (some call them dark, I don't, just the Nightowl's smooth clear sound) just got better, less V shaped. The bass especially improved to my ears. probably would have gotten better separation (very good on the Nightowl's anyway) with the Multibit card. Here are my reasons for choosing the AK4490 card instead. 1. hardware balanced as opposed to cheap-ass balanced (Schitt's words}. 2. 24bit over 16bit multibit 3. the occasional ringing going on in mutibit . Please take all this with a grain of salt, since I have no intention of opening the Jot chassis again, just to try and compare cards. Enjoying the music and a cold beer, on a very hot day as I type. Cheers all.

 

[psuKinger]

Apologies in advance for what is likely a beginner question, but I just recently bought my first pair of "high impedence headphones" (Sennheiser HD 6xx) and now need to purchase my first "real" desktop DAC/AMP (my portable Fiio Q1 isn't going to cut it). In the past, in other aspects of my tech/gadget life, I've made purchases in "multiple rounds" after discovering that I really enjoy/like something and didn't get *enough* the first time around (my first subwoofer, my first pair of tower speakers, my first 2 AVRs, my first two "big screen TVs", etc). So while I don't need balanced inputs/outputs yet and think I would probably be just fine (for now) with a Modi2/Magni 3 "stack", I'm very tempted (leaning towards, in fact) to just pull the trigger and buy this Jotenheim with one of the two (probably the Balanced) DAC options...

That said, I wanted to better understand how the Pre-Outs work. I know at the 3:00 minute mark of the video on the O.P., it says that this can act in the role of a dedicated USB DAC should I choose to task it to be "just a DAC". That's great news. I'm guessing it does this by passing the now-converted-to-Analog signal out these pre-outs?

I can envision a couple of different ways I may want to use this (in the future). One of which being (and some of you out there might give me a stern lecture for this) I'd like the *option* to *only on occasion* use something like the Schiit Loki (hardware EQ). Is there any reason why I couldn't:
1) come into the DAC from my source (laptop or phone) via USB
2) out of the Jotenheim via the SE outputs
3) into the Loki's RCA inputs and out the Loki's RCA outputs
4) Back into the Jotenheim's "SE Input" for amplification to my headphones



I guess what the question boils down to is, if I have the Jotenheim's input switch set to the bottom (for SE Inputs), will the pre-outs still send a signal from the DAC to an external device?

Thanks in advance.

 

[rutter]

Two important pieces of information. One, I see it repeatedly claimed that the DAC modules that you can buy with the Jotunheim are not good. Despite what Schiit claim about figuring something out with an all in one unit that doesn't appear to be the case in practice based on feedback. Buy a Modi Multibit for $250 (as opposed to the $200 multibit module) and apparently you'll be better off. Two, and this I know from experience, do not buy the Schiit Loki. For half the price when factoring in paying shipping you can get Sonarworks' equalizer app. It absolutely crushes the Loki, embarrasses it. Mind you, it's not about you equalizing your headphone and gives you extremely limited options in that respect, even less than the Loki. What it does is it equalizes your headphone for you. Skepticism is fine, but I strongly recommend you try it. All you need to put in is an email address, there's no activation or anything. The value is enormous, made a much bigger positive difference for me than hundreds of dollars spent on upgrading DACs and amps.

 

[psuKinger]

Two important pieces of information. One, I see it repeatedly claimed that the DAC modules that you can buy with the Jotunheim are not good. Despite what Schiit claim about figuring something out with an all in one unit that doesn't appear to be the case in practice based on feedback. Buy a Modi Multibit for $250 (as opposed to the $200 multibit module) and apparently you'll be better off. Two, and this I know from experience, do not buy the Schiit Loki. For half the price when factoring in paying shipping you can get Sonarworks' equalizer app. It absolutely crushes the Loki, embarrasses it. Mind you, it's not about you equalizing your headphone and gives you extremely limited options in that respect, even less than the Loki. What it does is it equalizes your headphone for you. Skepticism is fine, but I strongly recommend you try it. All you need to put in is an email address, there's no activation or anything. The value is enormous, made a much bigger positive difference for me than hundreds of dollars spent on upgrading DACs and amps.

Hi! Thanks, I really appreciate your input. I've got a decent background and some "nice-ish" gear when it comes to Speakers/Subs/AVR, and what I'd consider a nice "whole home audio" situation as a result, but as you can tell I'm a newbie when it comes to Headphone HiFi and I'm definitely looking for some help/guidance.

tl/dr: Can I use this Sonarworks EQ app on my mobile devices (Pixel 2 phone and/or Galaxy TabS tablet), while also using those mobile devices to select/play via USB music from my Plex server via the Plex app on them? This EQ will work *with* plex as my frontend player-of-choice and can happen BEFORE the digital-to-analog conversion?

Likely unnecessary explanation/background:
Most of my source material is lossless CD rips (not HDTracks or DSD), and I'm playing them back via my Plex server (in large part because Plex supports chromecast, which means it works with my Whole Home Audio). It also means I can access/play all my best source material from convenient mobile devices (phone and tablet) and not just from my Desktop server (located in the storage room/workout room, LITERALLY the "least nice" space to sit back and relax in in the house) or my laptop (a 17" beast that exists more for gaming/video watching then it does for portability).

We just recently did an addition to the house that includes a 14'x14' 4-season sunroom. It's pretty much the only room in the house that doesn't have a TV in it or a sizeable pair or speakers (or both), and so it shall remain... I've got a google home tucked away behind the couch (in part for voice control of the recessed lighting) that I use for "low volume background music". It is here, in this speakerless-sunroom, that I hope to have my DAC/AMP live and a pair of headphones handy to enjoy it with when the wife and kids aren't out there with me...