SCHIIT Mjolnir 3 Twittering Machines Instruction Manual

: June 12, 2024
: SCHIIT

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION
CONNECTIONS
OPERATION
FAQ
WARRANTY
N THE BOX
Customer Support
References
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SCHIIT Mjolnir 3 Twittering Machines

INTRODUCTION

Small, cool, light…none of these words describe Mjolnir 3. Come on, it’s Class A. It’s dual mono. It has 2 giant chokes. It’s fully discrete down to the power supply. There’s no microprocessor. Every switch is solid and mechanical. It’s big for a desk, it runs hot, it’s definitely not for everyone…but it may be just the thing if you want a truly insane headlamp.

The following is required by the roughly 9,542 government agencies and regulations we have to comply with. If you have some common sense, they should seem pretty straightforward. In any case, read these instructions before proceeding farther, follow all instructions, and heed all warnings. Or else!

If you don’t know how to install audio devices, get a qualified professional to help.
Never use this device near water, and clean only with a dry cloth.
Assure adequate ventilation, do not block any ventilation openings, or place near heat sources.
Use only the supplied power cord or suitable replacement. Route cords away from traffic areas and protect them from being pinched. Unplug the cord from the outlet if the apparatus is unused for a long period of time.
To prevent electric shock, do not use the plug with an extension cord, receptacle, or outlet unless blades can be fully inserted.
Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel. Service is required when the device has been damaged, including cord or plug damage, liquid has been spilled or objects have fallen into the device, the device has been exposed to rain or moisture, does not operate normally, or has been dropped.

WARNING: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS DEVICE TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.

CONNECTIONS

Balanced input. Connect to any component with balanced outputs using XLR cables. There won’t be any conversion to SE inside or any other funny business.
Single-ended input. Connect any SE source with RCA cables. They’ll automagically be converted to balanced thanks to the differential input stage.
Balanced preamp output. If you’re using powered monitors or external speaker amps with balanced inputs, connect them here with XLR cables.
Single-ended preamp output. No balanced inputs? Connect to your powered monitors or external speaker amps from here with RCA cables.
Power switch. Up is on, down is off. Sound only comes out when it’s on.
AC input. Connect the supplied AC cord here, or you won’t get any sound even if the power switch is on. You can even use a fancy power cord if you like; not that it’ll make any difference.

OPERATION

Input select. Up for balanced XLR, down for single-ended RCA. Simple as that.
Preamp enable. Up to enable the preamp outputs, down to disable them. Useful for when you’re using both headphones and powered monitors or speaker amps.
Volume. Turn up for more, down for less.
Everybody knows this. Or, well, maybe not in the future because touchscreens are everywhere. Then again, we may all die in an accident while trying to turn on our wipers.
Gain. Up for high, down for low. Changing gain does not change the overall feedback of the amp. There’s another switch for that.
Mode. Up for push-pull Class A, down for single-ended Class A. Single-ended Class A is considered to be the purest form of Class A, but push-pull gives you higher power output. Use push-pull when you need more power.
Note 1: Noise floor will be higher in push-pull Class A mode; best for less sensitive headphones.
Note 2: There may be a small to moderate glitch when switching gain or mode. If you would like to avoid this, unplug your headphones. We do not recommend IEMs with this amp in any case.
Final note: “single-ended” in the context of Class A does not refer to the balanced or SE inputs. You can have a balanced differential gain stage that runs a single-ended
Class A output stage. Yes, we know, engineering sucks and is sometimes confusing.
Feedback. Up to turn on overall feedback, down to turn it off. When feedback is off,
Mjolnir 3 is a no-overall-feedback amp. Turning on feedback lowers output impedance and decreases measured distortion, and may be useful for hard to drive headphones. In any case, it’s your choice—there are no demerits for liking feedback.
Power LED. This is on when the Mjolnir 3 is on, off when it’s off. Simple as that.
SE Headphone Output. Plug any 1/4” TRS terminated headphone in here. We do not recommend the use of IEMs with this product.
Also please note that headphones using adapters to TRRS (typically headphones that have microphones) may be problematic. We don’t recommend those with Mjolnir 3.
Balanced Headphone Output. Connect any balanced-terminated headphone using a 4-pin XLR connector here. The balanced connection allows for maximum power, as well as an overall lower noise floor. Using balanced headphones is highly recommended.

Not shown: heat. This amp runs hot. Very hot. As in, if you’re sitting in an 85 degree F (30C) room and you think it’s comfortable, you may need to point a fan at this device. Sorry, but real Class A is super inconvenient. See why we say this amp isn’t for everyone?

FAQ

I hear hum, what do I do?
The noise floor of this amp may be too high for extremely sensitive headphones. Use the balanced outputs for lowest noise. Noise will be lowest in low gain, single-ended Class A, and no feedback.
No I mean a LOT of hum!
You may have a ground loop. Try a ground loop isolator or a device like the EbTech
HumX to eliminate the ground loop.
I hear a pop when I change modes.
This is normal for this kind of radical mode change (from single-ended to push-pull
Class A). It took some work to get it down to only this level. If you consider it problematic, unplug your headphones before switching modes.
There’s no sound after I turn Mjolnir on.
Mjolnir delays the output for 15-20 seconds after turn-on to allow it to normalize.
No I mean there’s still no sound.
Make sure you’re using the correct input, and, if you’re using the preamp outputs, that the preamp outputs are turned on.
Does Mjolnir convert from SE to balanced?
Yes. It is a differential amplifier, so SE inputs are naturally converted to balanced.
Balanced inputs are maintained balanced all the way through with no conversion. Can I use both balanced and SE outputs at
the same time?
Most of the time, yes. If you have products that short the input when turned off, then that can cause distortion.
This thing, like, vibrates a bit.
You’d vibrate a bit if you had two big transformers and two big chokes inside you. Seriously, that’s the chokes, doing their job. Totally normal (if a bit strange).
Sounds like a lot of caveats, what gives?
What gives is that this is the best we can do with an old-skool, choke-input, no-IC, real Class A design. It’s not for everyone.
It doesn’t turn on, what do I do?
Plug it in to a different AC socket. Ensure you are not currently in a blackout. Then email us if it still doesn’t work.

WARRANTY

Schist Audio warrants to the original purchaser that this product shall be free from defects in material and workmanship for five (5) years from the date of purchase. If a defect covered by this warranty occurs during this period, Schist Audio will repair the defective product, free of charge. Date of purchase will be based on customer receipts, otherwise date of manufacturing will be used.

If you believe you need warranty service, contact us first. Schist Audio products sent back to us without a Return Authorization (RA) will be returned to the sender without repair. To contact us and obtain an RA, email info@schiit.com.

Warranty Limitations. This warranty shall not apply if a product: (a) is modified or tampered with; (b) is damaged by negligence, accident, unreasonable use, or other causes unrelated to defective materials or workmanship, or (c) has had the serial number altered or removed.

Any implied warranties, including warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, are hereby limited in duration to the warranty period of 5 years. In no event shall Schist Audio be liable for consequential or incidental damages resulting from the breach of any implied or expressed warranties. Some states do not allow these limitations, so they may not apply to you. You may also have other rights which vary from state to state or province to province.

N THE BOX

(1) Mjolnir 3
(1) Power Cord
(0) Cool running class D modules
(0) Small, desktop friendly form factors
(0) 100% “the amp for everyone” claims
(Various) Stickers and stuff
(Infinite) Appreciation from the whole Schist crew in Valencia, CA and Corpus Christi, TX
(Even more) Thanks from our chassis and PCB guys in
California, Nevada, and Utah.

This product is in compliance with standards and regulations of the European Community