nironI haven't tried either of these yet, but the Jotunheim w/ DAC seems to be a better deal for the price and will power a much wider variety headphones & monitors thanks to the balanced connections. Not to mention the ability to upgrade the DAC if/when Schiit makes a new one for it. For now, I'm still happy with my Modi Multibit & Vali 2 stack.
RiflemanFirstYou are totally right (even w/out hearing the two). The quality of the Jotunheim amp w/DAC is ridiculously amazing for the price; probably the best I've heard under $1000 price tag. And the balance connectivity is sublime. Either way, it will sound as good with the Modi Multibit option you have.
nironI would eventually like to try my HD650s with a balanced cable & amp and the Jotunheim is definitely something I considered. I would most likely buy the Jotunheim without a DAC and use my Modi Multibit since it is definitely a cut above the AK4490 DAC that Schiit currently makes for the Jotunheim. For the time being, desk space is a concern until I move out of my current apartment later on this year.
dactylusBetter sound, better quality, balanced connections, multiple options with/without a DAC or Phono modules. More versatile and enables future upgrades.
nironThanks for the reply. Have you compared the two side by side as phono preamps? I have been a user of Grace Audio gear for many years in the portable audio amp realm and their quality and service in that realm are topnotch. Really not familiar with their $500 phono preamp offering, but their m920 all in one is on my wish list.
dactylusThe Jotunheim is also much more powerful for harder to drive headphones too.
For example, the Grace m9xx outputs 950mW at 32 ohms (in high power mode) while the Jotunheim outputs 5000mW with balanced connection and 1500mW for the 1/4" connection.
nironI agree with your assessment. Just ordered a Jotunheim with DAC instead of this to drive HD6XX headphones. Looking forward to using it with ZY balanced headphone cables and 100% shielded Gotham 4/1 balanced cables to my JBL LSR305s. The high quality of the Jotunheim preamp with low THD and fully balanced outputs are compelling features to me.
nironBetter sound and better quality is not fact. I found Schiit to be very poor quality in my experience and sound quality is arguable. There are many who prefer Grace.
SparqxI received my Jotunheim with DAC module and am delighted with it. Using balanced cables to JBL LSR 305's, and a ZY balanced headphone cable to Senn HD6XX. Eliminated all floor noise I heard before--turn it up to max with no input and hear only silence. Critical listening is awesome. Based on owner comments, this Grace Design M9XX DAC/Amp is excellent as well, but I really wanted a powerful preamp and to use balanced interconnects all around. Jotunheim matte black colorway perfectly matches the JBLs.
KITTYWhen placing the order, I was surprised there was an option of a choice of black or silver enclosures. They didn't even have a picture of the black enclosure on their website, so I wasn't sure how it would look. I ordered it only a couple weeks ago, so figured it was a new case option. The unit is a nice matte black with a silver knob as shown in the picture. Lettering looks dark in the picture because the lighting wasn't very good when I took it.
KITTYSchiit originally had black chassis covers because of a vendor mistake. Now they occasionally offer small batches of their products with black covers because there is a demand for them. The Modi Multibit is also being offered in black currently.
SparqxHi there,
I have received my amplifier (only) 2 days ago and I am thinking on return it. I have Senn HD600 and I noticed that I lost resolution, volume compared to my pc card (SoundBlaster) I lost some instruments.... still have punch but is not much as Chord Mojo whish is more refine and detailed at all... Not enough power using standard connection... I don't have balance connectors and I can't tell about it...
elbebe1000Also, let me add that Crack (Tube amp) from BottleHead has more power and definition... you heard more instruments and high are excellent.... Schiit JT looks good and feel good but has poor sound caracteristics.
elbebe1000Although I don't own a tube amp, I know they can offer lots of power and also have a "warmer" sound, at the expense of much more THD. Many people love the sound coming out of tubes. I like the incredibly accurate amplification and super low THD of the Jotunheim, and haven't found it to be lacking in any respect. It sounds excellent to me.
SparqxWhich headphones are you using? Provably Senn HD600 are not the best much for this amp. I have a Koss Porta Pro headphones and sound great with the Jotunheim have a lot of open sound and warm mids... Also, I have only Schiit Jotunheim amp.
elbebe1000My go to headphones are the Senn HD6XX (650), and the Joti is perfect. It has the power and reserves needed to adequately drive 300 ohm and above headphones. No distortion or petering out, and lots of power. I got it specifically for the Senns and love it.