Schiit Mjolnir 3 Impressions

I’d also encourage you to just try for yourself. 15 day return policy with Schiit makes it a no brainer as long as you can afford the amp. Marv is second to none at describing sound and sonic memory, but he still can’t account totally for everyone’s individual sonic preferences, points of reference, and different chains.

My chain is pretty different than yours but I can say that my recent switch to GS (A1) from LIM has been a mixed bag. Gain some qualities, lose others, which is why I’ll be keeping my LIM cards for if I just want a different flavor.

 

Reporting back after 3 months since I posted the impressions: https://www.superbestaudiofriends.o...olnir-3-impressions.13699/page-15#post-415835

I had both Hugo2 & Gungnir MB A2 as DACs and Mjolnir 3 & BHA-1 on my desk and got them all connected so I can switch back and forth with my HD650 & HD800S.
Although I enjoyed each of their characteristics and have been rapidly switching back and forth in the first month or two, eventually the Gungnir MB A2 + Mjolnir 3 has been my go to listening setup for now with 99% of listening time.
The resolving capabilities of MJ3 matching with the dynamic capabilities of Gungnir Multibit is just thrilling, boosting the realism factor up.

Maybe other MB dacs would have even better synergy but since I haven't heard any Bifrost or Yggdrasil before, this combination right here (Gungnir MB A2 + Mjolnir 3) really sounds like I'm not missing out too much, gluing me to my desk each time I started listening.

 

I suck at reviews since I am all gut and no terminology. That said, I haven't been this happy since I had my ECP L2 and Gungnir A1. I have been able to listen louder and deeper into the music than I was able to with the Jot 2 and the SW51. I was worried about the borderline recommendations of the BF2 OG and the MJ3, but with the HD800 and the ZMF VC Blackwood, I have loved what I am hearing. Very happy I took a chance. Look for a huge FS thread soon.

 

Honestly unless you go upwards of $1,400 in the used market I stand by the fact that OG Bifrost 2 is unbeatable in regards to price for performance, especially used ($450 to $550). Used Yiggy A2 /LIM / MIB is arguably better, but not 3 times the price better.

I remember buying the OG Bifrost when it first released for around that price. If it sounded as good as Bifrost 2 I probably never would have upgraded. It's crazy how good audio is at lower prices than ever.

 

TL;DR - It was the triangle that did me in. MJ3 Purchased.

Donald Fagan : Sunken Condos : Good Stuff : 4:04 in the song. This song is pure Fagen; driving base, funky riff. But how in the hell is MJ3 delineating a delicate triangle tap right on top of a dominate bass note??

Before I get ahead of myself, here’s my chain:
Mac mini M1 -> HQPlayer desktop -> Spring 3 KTE (USB).
For amp comparison, it was:
Highly customized TU-8900 with LinLai 300B’s (upgraded everything)

Most of my time was spent comparing MJ3 with my TU-8900; which drives the hell out of my Susvara. I have a Folkvangr in rotation, but I save the FV for driving my Maze 109 Pro’s (one hell of a synergistic combo in its own right).

So many songs played (rock, acoustic, jazz - even some of @jexby head banging test tracks ) comparing the TU-8900 and MJ3, both driving Susvara. ~8W (TU-8900 via speaker taps) vs. ~2W with MJ3.

What I expected (with bias), that proved true:

• If I want to lean on the volume, TU-8900 has the balls to get it done fairly cleanly with good staging and detail.
• Larger head stage with TU-8900 (imaging was horizontal and vertical. Think 5th row).
• TU-8900 has a more euphonic presentation. Even order harmonics dominated as you’d expect with a SET tube amp. Not soupy tube shite by any means, but just enough tube goodness.

What I did NOT expect:

• For less than half the price, MJ3 presented (slightly) more detail vs. TU-8900
• ~2W with chokes was indeed more than adequate for driving Susvara with speed, detail and body up to reasonable listing levels.
• Though the MJ3 head stage was smaller vs. TU-8900, it was intimate and accurate; overall projecting a stronger sense of ‘live’.

Other notes:

• Low gain all the way. Depending how hot a recording was, I’d get fairly deeply into the volume pot rotation (~3 o’clock), but sonically that’s not a bad thing. I only did a bit of listening with high gain so I really can’t say it’s sonically inferior - I’m just a believer in keeping gain as low as possible.
• Push-pull vs. SE. With Susvara, the bit of extra power that comes with push-pull increased the body of notes. Seems that SE was very slightly more dynamic, so I’d stay with SE for any headphone that wasn’t as demanding as Susvara. With Susvara, that bit more power was a good thing.
• No feedback. This is how I’ve configured TU-8900. Though I understand the benefits of feedback, sonically I’ve always preferred the more dynamic and natural presentation of no feedback. The ability to turn off feedback is one of the features that attracted me to the TU-8900 and MJ3. Feedback is fine, many will prefer it. To my ears and sensibilities, it dampens the (over) tones that breathe life into music. No thank-you.

Many others called out MJ3's sonic attributes, so I'll not duplicate their good assessments. Sonically, MJ3 is hella compelling across the spectrum.

So it all comes down to that damn triangle. TU-8900 is a solid amp with great performance, but once I hear deeper into the music, there’s no going back.

@schiit - keep it up with these crazy, extreme, unicorn amps. Your mad experiments are doing a hell of a lot right.

Thanks SBAF for the loaner!

 

SFD 1->MJ3->IEMatch (Ultra)->Campfire Black Star

SPL: 94 dB @ 1 kHz: 9.429 mVrms
Impedance: 9 Ohms @ 1 kHz

Surprisingly, great. Thought it wouldn't work at all, but the rug really tied the room together. I follow precaution methods to make sure no 'pops'

 

For the joyfully idle: curious to hear impressions of cold vs. very warm MJ3 performance. About the only thing I can pick up after 8 hours is a tiny bit faster transients. Everything else is just as awesome as it is after 5 mins of warmup.

What am I listening wrong?

 

I’d argue you are one of the lucky ones that doesn’t feel the need to wait to listen to their amp.

On my MJ3, I feel it sounds a little smoother and less etched after 15-20 minutes, but it could all be in my head. I do leave my Yggdrasil on all the time, but I never leave the MJ3 on when I’m not using it.

 

Same, tho to me MJ3 sounds congested and loose when cold. Couple times I've turned it on not thinking about warmup and been like "this really isn't very impressive." Then it runs for a bit and comes alive and I remember you are supposed to wait a bit after turning on.

Definitely improves after 20 minutes, maybe ideal though 30-60 minutes. It seems to take longer than MJ2's tubes, which are pretty good in 15 minutes. I also turn off MJ3 when not home and leave Yggdrasil on full time.

 

My first few experiences were that things sounded a bit more cramped or congested in the first 30-45 min, and so I only start listening after it's been on for an hour or more. (DAC is never turned off.)

Suits my nighttime listening habit just fine since I usually turn it on and then watch something for a couple of hours prior to settling in for the headphones + music.

 

Okay, I’ll give it a shot this weekend. Reading your reports on “congestion” is useful because I can focus on the soundstage and placement. And we do know sometimes better spacing translates to the impression of faster transients, which is what I claim I heard.

 

Brief impressions after two hours of warm up. Deezer lossless PC > USB Bifrost 64 BAL > MJ3 BAL out > Hifiman HE1000se (special edition not stealth edition).

Volume knob feels like shit, it's rough and hard to fine tune with it. $100 chifies ship with better feeling knobs.

Sound is immediately rich and detailed but with compressed sound stage height but it's wide enough and deep enough.

Tonal balance in low gain SE FB off is neutral with a bit of warmth across the FR.

PP mode tightens things up making it less warm but more midbass with edgier transients and slightly better imaging.

FB ON making it even more neutral with blacker blackground with smoother sound overall but at cost of eating up some overtones and slightly compressing the stage even further. (at the end of my listening session I kept it ON for the smoother sound as my ears get tired easily)

High gain I did not like at all with the HE1000se, sound so thicc and busy and confused. Yes it did give it better subbass extension and bigger stage overall but it's not worth it at all. Also the PP and FB switches did not have the same impact while using the high gain.


Overall if this amp got better stage height I would buy and recommend it for even double of the price.

 

I knew something bothered me about the volume knob. So while I don't think it's functionally an issue or hard to fine tune, MJ3's pot is rougher turning and less smooth than my MJ2 pot, which is like butter. This doesn't make a lot of sense because I believe it's exactly the same ALPS pot in both. I assume this is just how the knobs are fitted into the chassis and MJ3 might be too tightly fitted. When I turn MJ3's knob I can hear something lightly scraping, while MJ2's knob is silent. No idea if knob weight is also relevant.

 

I’m not getting that on mine?
Maybe loosen the screw and pull on the knob a tiny bit?

 

@yotacowboy got the solution with a superluxe AN knob for the total experience https://i.imgur.com/7zkHsIQ.jpeg

 

@joch - can you provide a link to that knob? Thanks!

 

Thanks @rlow - pardon my laziness, should read up

 

Wow, with this I could brag about owning a piece of Audio Note gear!

 

Will give it a shot