Schiit Modi Multibit 2 Discussion

Discussion in 'Digital: DACs, USB converters, decrapifiers' started by purr1n, Dec 25, 2022.

  1. JK47

    JK47 Friend

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    After a few weeks of listening to the MM2 vs the Modius E, mainly in my headphone rig fed by a pi2AES by way of coax. I'm getting a decent handle on what I like more... It's the Modius E with the caveat that it has to be with the Cinemag DIY XLR/SE box. I keep trying the Modius E SE, but always switch back to BAL with "the box". The box is simple to build, but a pain in the ass to get quiet, and each person's system will probably require a slightly different approach in troubleshooting and wiring. Definitely not for those that are easily frustrated and lash out at the world when they get a hint of the faintest fart in the wind.

    The Modius E w/Cinemag combo has a wow factor when it comes to faster paced music with dynamic gusto compared to the lazier more romantic MM2. The MM2 has a thicker, liquid density in the mids that gets lost in fast complicated sections of certain songs, but that dense tone is also addicting on some tracks.

    For now I think the Modius E w/Cinemag is staying in the headphone rig: SW51+, Piety--> HD600 new/old pads...

    I'll play with the 2ch set up and see where that goes in the next while.

    Mostly listened to my CD rips, my vinyl rips, and bit of Apple music
     
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  2. jowls

    jowls Never shitposts (please) - Friend

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    This journey of self discovery really deserves its own blog.
     
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  3. artur9

    artur9 Facebook Friend

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    Sounds like an MM2 and a Magni Pi might be too romantic?
     
  4. roshambo123

    roshambo123 Friend

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    Unison has a sound. You can search for opinions on the site to find impressions. I find it faster and drier than SPDIF optical and cleaner than Gen 5 USB.

    If you want neutral, clinical, uncolored my non-value suggestion is Chord. Staying Schiit ecosystem, Modius E has a lot of blackground and somewhat untamed highs which you might like.
     
  5. JK47

    JK47 Friend

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    I don't know, you might like it.
     
  6. musiclvr

    musiclvr New

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    How might I determine if my OG Multibit has the OPA2156 implementation?
     
    Last edited: Jan 24, 2023
  7. Senorx12562

    Senorx12562 Case of the mondays

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    I've gotten to the point that with headphones I listen to the Modius E at least as much as the Gungnir Multibit, but about 95 % of my speaker listening is from the Gungnir.
     
  8. Biodegraded

    Biodegraded Friend

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    Open the hood, look at the bottom of the board at positions U17 & U18. See here.
     
  9. musiclvr

    musiclvr New

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    Thank you! I appreciate the info and link. Most appreciated.
     
  10. ColdsnapBry

    ColdsnapBry Almost "Made"

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    Just curious if there's any warmup time nervosa with the MMB2? I ultimately took my MMB1 out of my setup due to my habit of powering off electronics at night. I noticed a large step in sound after a few days of the MMB1 being on. In my setup, probably Modius E -> SW51+ via SE might be my best option here.
     
  11. Azimuth

    Azimuth FKA rtaylor76, Friend

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    About the same as most AD chip DAC’s. It takes about an hour or more to smooth out and not sound strained. Not that it sounds terrible, just not full potential.
     
  12. ssmith3046

    ssmith3046 New

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    I left my MM1 on 24/7 and the MM2 is left on 24/7. It runs much, much cooler than the MM1. I've noticed even if left on it takes 30 minutes or so to reach its full potential.
     
  13. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    It's certainly possible MMB2's sound difference from the MMB1 is partly because of the better jitter performance of Unison (it's really the same implementation throughout all Schiit DACs, although I'm sure the TOTL have more optimizations as a result of more board space) vs. the MMB1s ancient Cmedia USB. Other reasons could be x8 instead of x4 oversampling, new firmware, different IV opamps and board layout.

    I'm actually warming up to the MMB2's sound. I've left it on for about a month now.
     
  14. Azimuth

    Azimuth FKA rtaylor76, Friend

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    4x to 8x over sampling is a huge difference! That will attribute to a bit more sharpness for sure. That is by far what I think is gives it a more “modern” sound. Why does Schiit not publish this spec?

    I am still also cut about the change from the AK4111 to the new Cirrus Logic input chip.

    Because even on optical input, it is still nearly tha same. So not all of it is Unison. Although I never really used the MMB1 with a USB without a de-crapifier.
     
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  15. denny_dow

    denny_dow Acquaintance

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    I am in Germany, my MM2 cost me about 400 EUR all in all, just as I estimated.
     
  16. denny_dow

    denny_dow Acquaintance

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    I'd call it mellow - I rather like the combo. I don't find the sound narrow at all.
     
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  17. M3NTAL

    M3NTAL Friend

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    You know you have to get one and then let me know if it's in our wheelhouse. I lean Vali 2+/++ > π for my purposes and tastes. Those two amplifiers can be recommended to basically anyone who isn't chasing the dragon. I've seen a few people with distinguished tastes put their π's up for sale, but I completely understand their reasoning - they usually already have very synergistic systems and just wanted to dip their toes into price/performance treats.

    P.S. I'm using π because I don't want people to search for that amplifier and think that it is lesser in anyway. That isn't the message - it's just my purpose and tastes as stated above.
     
  18. JK47

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    Well, I've been messing around with the MM2 in the 2ch setup. I previously had the OG Modius (Mod-pooius), with a Lokius feeding my amps (Pioneer M22 and Cambridge Audio 640A1), feeding DIY Fostex BLH/Viawave GRT-145-8 ribbon tweeters (L-pad for treble) combo, and JBL4312G (mid and hi knobs) party speakers.

    I left the speakers with their respective knobs as they were, and inserted the Modius E into the mix feeding the Lokius. Hmmm a bit better than the OG. Tried the MM2 feeding the Lokius, meh, but better than the AKM Mod-pooius for me. I tried all 3 with the Lokius, with and without EQ engaged.

    Now I tried completely removing the Lokius and put the Modius E in to the mix. A bit better than with it in the chain, less constrained if that makes sense. Tried adding the DIY Cinemag XLR/SE box in, and here we go again, a dynamic, open sound, and a more fun listen. MM2 without Lokius also seemed to open up and play nicer music. I feel the MM2 closes the gap in listening pleasure compared to the Modius E with and without the Cinemag box when playing 2ch. MM2 strengths are more apparent and tweaking the speakers helps as well. In my headphone setups it definitely wasn't as close for my taste.

    Different flavors that I need more time to wrap my head around, variables to take into account, but I definitely feel the Lokius was a bottleneck that will not be put back into the 2ch system.
     
    Last edited: Dec 2, 2023
  19. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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    I'm not getting one since I have a OG BF2 on my desk. Also from the other comments it is a little bit heading north on the audio world, which is not my audio preference.
     
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  20. hifiandrun

    hifiandrun Almost "Made"

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    There have been several great reviews in the thread, which helped me made my decision to get one. I will keep this short, focusing on a couple of specific comparisons.

    TL;DR – for someone who is planning to try a versatile and space-saving schiit multibit DAC, I thought it would be safe to recommend the Modi MB2. The Modi MB OG with opamp mods (OPA1656) is more similar than different to the MB2 when uses coaxial SPDIF. The Unison USB on MB2 is a significant improvement over the MB OG.

    I like my MB OG mod (OPA1656) a lot. I like the small size for my user case – a small DAC to pair with the Vali 2+ and a HD650 mod. My streaming device is an iPad mini 6 (USB-C), connected to an adapter for USB-A then to a Schiit Eitr. Recently, I thought to get another setup next to my bed. So I purchased a MB2.

    Setup. DACs: MB OG mod/OPA1656 and MB2, both powered up for a day. Streaming device: for comparison purposes, both DACs were connected to a Pi2AES, one was connected to the RCA output, the other one to the BNC via a BNC-RCA adapter. Same type of coaxial cables was used for digital signal. The analog outputs of the DACs went to a passive volume control as a switcher box (set at max volume), then to the Vali 2+. The tube in the pictures was a 6N3P-E from Reflector factory with an adapter (warm sounding fun tube). However, the tube used for this report was a 6N1P-EV from Voskhod factory.

    Modi MB OG mod/1656 vs Modi MB2, both SPDIF input. Many times, I was confused which DAC was which, when I switched inputs for the Vali 2+ back and forth. If my memory serves, I felt that the difference between the un-modified Modi MB OG and the OG mod/1656 was more prominent. After more careful listening and repeats, I could hear the tiny differences which had been described by @purr1n (Schiit Modi Multibit 2 Discussion) and @Azimuth (Schiit Modi Multibit 2 Discussion).

    The Modi MB2 was a bit cleaner (blacker background). The treble energy was almost identical to the OG mod1656, but a bit sweeter and softer sounding. Marv rated “low” for “digititus” in the comparison table. I couldn’t hear it. I am sensitive to the grainy highs, but the MB2 didn’t have those to my ears.

    The MB OG mod/1656 had a bit wider head stage and sounded a tiny bit of watery or fluidly. But the treble was a bit brighter than the MB2, sometimes I felt it was a bit more than what I’d preferred, thus I have been using a warmer Reflector 6N3P-E tube in my Vali 2+ with it. The head stage of MB 2 was a bit narrower, but it seemed more “real” to me – there were a better sense of continuity of the head stage from left to right. No. I didn’t notice that the MB 2 was louder than the OG mod.

    After I stopped splitting my hair, all I could say was that I’ve heard tiny differences, but no one DAC beats the other. Later I just started to listen to music. It was a surprise to me that I listen to MB 2 more than the MB OG/1656. After an hour or so, all I can say was that, with the SPDIF input, it was a tie. The tonality is almost identical. If I’d have been able to call the MB2 a new Schiit Modi MB “flavors”, I’d dare to say that the differences in the two Modi MB flavors, are much smaller than those differences in Yggdrasil OG and LIM flavors.

    In addition, I briefly compared the two with MP LauX and Audeze LCD2C, all things described above stayed true.

    Different digital inputs. The MB OG USB was fussy and warm. It loses details thus spatial cues. An Eitr or other decrapifier is necessary. On the other hand, the Unison USB on the MB2 was pretty good. Compared to the Eitr + SPDIF, I agreed that the Unison USB sounded a bit dry and clinical. But it didn’t lose details. I wonder if this was the reason for someone who would have described the MB2 as a bit lean and itchy. Franky, the differences between these inputs were small. Although I could sense a bit digititus here, I expected that I could tweak the sound a bit by trying different USB-C cables (it was a joke, but I will try when I bored anyway), or doing some tube rolling. I haven’t been bothered.

    So far, I am more than happy with my purchase. The Modi MB 2 is musical, versatile, and small in size but big in sound.

    [edited, typos, etc.]

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    Last edited: Feb 5, 2023

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