Merrick's Robust, Rambling, Ridiculous Comparisons Thread

Now listening with the LFF Paradox. These things are so power hungry. Using the balanced out in high gain I've got the volume knob at 1 o'clock and I could push it a bit higher still. Momby's been on for about 28 hours. It's still a little sibilant to be honest but I think it's settled into its permanent sound signature. I think @jowls referred to it as sometimes sounding like the Real Player artifact, which actually isn't a bad way to describe it. I definitely need to listen to more recordings to see if it's something I can live with. Otherwise the Momby has terrific tonality.

 

Have you heard a Bifrost 4490 by chance and any comparisons to the built in Jot DAC?

 

I've only heard the Bifrost Multibit, this is actually the first Schiit D/S DAC I've heard. Maybe some others can chime in on that.

 

Don't do it yet, but at some point... you might want to flip the Moby on/off. I've come across a strange artifact that gloms onto the music and it's not subtle (only 3 times so far), and won't go away until a power cycle. It's probably just mine (defective, or a source oddity) though...

 

Hmm, interesting. It's not a constant thing, just slightly sibilant from time to time. I'll give it a power cycle in a day or two to test it.

 

Is this the same bug that the Bifrost Multibit has with different sample rates? Because I've heard that bug and this is not that.

 

This artifact isn't popping up in every recording. Maybe the Momby is revealing flaws in some of the files I have? Everything I'm playing is at least 16/44 if not higher and I try to find the best sounding sources I can.

 

It's not that, this is a very obvious echoy "cricket" like sound, in tune with the music. Once it starts it's on everything you play from then on...

You're probably fine.

 

Sounds similar to the bug on the Bifrost Multibit, I haven't heard anything like that on the Momby.

 

I think it was the specific recordings I was listening to, because others aren't exhibiting that problem on the Momby at all. Unrelated, I can't believe I never thought to use "Take Five" as a test track before.

 

Just to clarify, that's on the Jotunheim? I'm curious to see how much volume the HE-6 need. Although I now listen at obscenely low levels...

 

Yes, on the Jotunheim. I can crank it pretty high with the Paradox.

 

Spent most of today listening to the Momby and occasionally switching to the internal DAC. I think the internal DAC is no slouch, you could do a lot worse for $100 (presuming you were already buying the amp). It doesn't suffer from much digititus. It's clear and presents the music without any major issues. And it's pretty cool to have a dual chip balanced DAC plugged into my amp should I ever need it.

What it's missing is that next level of reproduction, a more textural element that lends weight and dimension to the music. With the internal DAC, I am hearing the music. With the Momby (and Bifrost Multibit), I'm feeling it. With the Bifrost Multibit, acoustic guitars were the easiest way for me to differentiate between D/S and multibit. They had a certain timbre to them that rang true to my knowledge of how acoustic guitars sound in real life. With the Momby, it's drums. I mentioned "Take Five" earlier and on the Momby there's such a terrific sense of depth and impact on the drums, I feel it even though I'm not really in the room with the players.

I'm convinced that I couldn't be satisfied with just the internal DAC as my main DAC until I can get a Gungnir Multibit. So now the question will be will the GO2a be enough to dethrone the Momby?

 

Schiit multibit and drums, I agree sound just like being in the same room/studio. Apart from everything else they do well, that alone to me is worth the price of admission.

 

Wow, the Joti has gobs of power when running an all balanced setup through the XLR ports. I've got the GO2a plugged in right now, running at the 100mW output, and on high gain with the Paradox, which I could easily get to 1 or 2 o'clock on the volume knob using the SE in or the internal DAC, I could only run to about 10 or 11 tops.

 

Also, it's much more difficult to A/B the GO2a and the Momby than it was any of the other DACs, they both sound excellent and right now the biggest difference to my ears is that the Momby has more bass slam than the GO2a.

 

I already thought the GOV2 was a good DAC, and the fact that the GO2a is holding its own against the Momby should tell you how great it continues to be. For a Sabre DAC the sound it produces feels surprisingly analog, more than any other D/S DAC I've personally heard (acknowledging that I've not heard any of the standalone Schiit D/S DACs).

Having gone back and forth between the two a lot today, they are very close. The Momby has more impact in two areas. First is in the bass. It really kicks. The Bifrost Multibit has more bass than the Momby, but the Momby is more tightly controlled, and it does have some serious slam with the right tracks. The GO2a has less of that. The Momby also has a smaller soundstage that focuses the music very directly in front of you, which feels very intimate and immediate. The GO2a has a wider soundstage, so the music is less immediate but also has more room to breathe. Exaggerating for comparison's sake, the Momby is like seeing a band in a club, while the GO2a feels more like a mid-sized concert hall. Each approach has its pluses and minuses, so in effect it's a draw.

If I listen really closely, I feel like the Momby has a bit more realism than the GO2a, but it's very slight and could easily be confirmation bias since I expect that from a multibit.

If I choose to return the Momby during the money back period, I would definitely be happy using the GO2a as a daily driver, but also if I got rid of the GO2a and kept the Momby that would also be great as a daily driver.

I'm doing more listening tests to determine which one I ultimately want to keep. They're so close that I win no matter which one I go with.

The decision may come down to the different features of the units regardless of sound, because the sound is essentially a draw for me. The Momby is multibit and has 5 years of fantastic customer service support. It also has an RCA coax in which I prefer over USB. However it's SE only and while that's not as big of a deal with the Joti, there's something very satisfying to me about having an all-balanced chain. The Momby is also not as easily portable, and in fact I wouldn't travel with it, I would take the Joti by itself and use the internal DAC. With the GO2a, I could travel with it instead of the Joti and get great sound out of the built in headphone outs. And it does let me run a fully balanced chain at the desktop. On the other hand, it's USB only, D/S, and LH Labs does not have my confidence in their customer service.

Decisions, decisions...

 

Don't forget that Momby is only $250....

Enjoying Momby so far, it is slightly inferior to Chord Mojo for 42% of its price. Oh now I know why people talking about "Chord's treble suckiness".

 

If anything the price is a factor against the Momby for me, as I've already got sunk costs into the GO2a (bought it before I had any amps or even my HD600 and then paid for the upgrade), but I agree that for someone who doesn't already have a DAC, or has a bad DAC, the Momby is an amazing value.