Merrick's Robust, Rambling, Ridiculous Comparisons Thread

Aside from the technical qualities of the sound, I'm finding the GO2a is giving me the same emotional connection to the music as the multibits did. Part of me is tempted to keep both but that seems like overkill since they're both plugged into the same amp.

Oh, and I'm not hearing a significant tonal difference between them either. They feel pretty neutral to me.

 

I mentioned that I felt the GO2a had a wider soundstage, which made the music less immediate than the Momby but also let the songs breathe more. For a lot of rock and some jazz I think the smaller soundstage of the Momby works in its favor, it's like seeing a great band in a tiny club. I'm about to load up "Rhapsody in Blue" to see if the wider soundstage of the GO2a gives it an edge.

Very cool on the GOV2+SE, I'd love to hear that one day.

 

So to discuss the soundstage some more, perhaps instead of discussing different spaces, it would be more accurate to say that the Momby feels like you're on stage, and the GO2a like you're maybe 10 rows back from the stage. The music is right in front of you with the Momby, and it's more set back with the GO2a, but that also means the GO2a has better depth to my ears, and each instrument has more room to breathe. This is more apparent with "Rhapsody in Blue" (especially the Living Stereo version I'm using) than it is with most rock.

The Momby has more energy, bolstered by its beefier bass, whereas the GO2a allows you take in the music where sometimes the Momby leaves you a tad overwhelmed by sound.

It's getting to the point where I'm enjoying them both so much I might just have to keep both and switch between them for variety, which is so ridiculous that I shouldn't even consider it, but at the same time I'm not sure I can let them go at this point.

And no matter which one I use, I remain immensely impressed with the Jotunheim, which is allowing me to pick out subtle details and differences in all of these DACs. A terrific amp at any price, but a total steal at the price Schiit's actually charging.

 

Ah screw it, I've been listening for hours, switching back and forth between the Momby and the GO2a. They're both fantastic. I think the Momby edges it out for me because it has a certain urgency to it that the more laid back GO2a does not. I'm not sure I'd call it aggressiveness, because it doesn't feel aggressive (whereas the internal DAC on the Joti does have aggressiveness), more like something in the Momby is causing a more excitable emotional reaction from me when I listen to it than the GO2a does. For that alone I want to keep it.

But the GO2a does so much so well, and is so easy to transport that I'm going to keep that too. It will be easier to travel with than taking the Joti and if I ever wanted to demo the Joti for someone at their house it would make a better source than the internal DAC, but doesn't need warm up time like the multibit DACs do.

That does make the internal DAC on the Joti redundant. I could return the Joti with DAC and rebuy it as just an amp, but when you factor in shipping x3 (twice to me and once back to Schiit), that obliterates any savings I would make by paying less for the amp by itself. And I think it's a cool implementation of an all in one, and if I really had to use it in a pinch it's not bad, just not as fantastic as the Momby or GO.

 

This ultimately settled down on another burnt-in Momby I heard.

 

Mine has settled down too, I just replied to you in the Modi Multibit thread. As I said, I think you may be onto something by playing music for burn in instead of just warming it up.