Schiit MJOLNIR 2 User manual

AUDIO EQUIPMENT
ITEM
FOR
MODEL NO
OWNER’S MANUAL
SCH-05-2
BALANCED CROSSFET HYBRID/SOLID STATE HEADPHONE AMPLIFIERDESCRIPTION
NOTES
REVISION ARANDOM NUMBER 1011101100
MJOLNIR IS THOR’S HAMMER IN NORSE MYTHOLOGY.
MJOLNIR 2 IS A UNIQUELY CAPABLE BALANCED HEADPHONE AMP.
YEAH, NO RELATION.
BUT MJOLNIR 2 DOES HAVE TONS OF POWER.
AND THE ABILITY TO BE BOTH A TUBE HYBRID OR SOLID-STATE AMP.
YEP. IT’S MAGIC.
MJOLNIR 2

ITEM SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS
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!
1. If you don’t know how to install audio devices, get a qualied professional to help.
2. Never use this device near water, and clean only with a dry cloth.
3. Assure adequate ventilation, do not block any ventilation openings, or place near heat sources.
4. Use only the supplied power cord or suitable replacement. Route cords away from trafc areas and protect them from being pinched.
Unplug the cord from the outlet if the apparatus is unused for a long period of time.
5. To prevent electric shock, do not use the plug with an extension cord, receptacle, or outlet unless blades can be fully inserted.
6. Refer all servicing to qualied 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.
Application for Council Directives 72/23/EEC
Conformity declared for EN60065, EN50082-1

Mjolnir is Thor’s hammer. The ultimate weapon to crush
your enemies. Or something like that. We’re from the
USA, so we may not be up on all the Norse mythology,
unless we saw it in a movie or something.
But back to Mjolnir 2. Don’t use Mjolnir 2 to crush your
enemies, use it to take control of the hardest-to-drive
headphones on the planet, or to add new life to ultra-
sensitive cans. Because Mjolnir 2 is flexible. Balanced
out? Sure. Single-ended out? Sure. Gain switchable?
Sure. We even put an input select on. Woo-wee!
And, Mjolnir 2 is the only amp that lets you run tube
hybrid or all solid-state, thanks to the new Schiit LISST
(linear, integral solid state tubes).
Bottom line: this is a serious end-game amp, not just
two of the same amps in a chassis, or a single-ended
amp with balanced connectors, or a balanced-to-single-
ended-to-balanced converting amp with tons of extra
circuitry. Enjoy your time with Mjolnir 2.
ONE Mjolnir 2
ONE Power cord (for, like, well duh)
ZERO Stick-on feet (because the amp already has screw-in
feet—you’ve reached the big leagues now, guys)
ZERO Crystals, cryo-nano-dampers, alien wave absorbers,
or any other magical parts
Mjolnir 2 is an inherently balanced amplier.
Do NOT use any balanced-to-single-ended
converters on the balanced headphone OR
preamp outputs. That’s what the single-
ended summed outputs are for.
So what happens if you use balanced-to-SE converters? It’ll trip the
protection circuits on the amp. Or sound like crap. Or both. Bottom
line, use the balanced outputs for balanced stuff, and single-ended
outputs for single-ended stuff, and everything will be fun and happy.
WELCOME
WHAT’S IN THE BOX
IMPORTANT

GETTING STARTED
Hey, the amp just clicked and I get no sound. What gives?
Mjolnir has sophisticated internal protection for overcurrent and DC?
Or did you try to use a balanced-to-single-ended converter, or try to
drive speakers with the amp? If so, you hit the protection. Unplug the
headphones and turn the amp back on. The protection will reset.
There’s no sound for a while after I turn Mjolnir on. Why?
That’s perfectly normal. Mjolnir delays the headphone output for 30
seconds after you rst turn on the amp.
Can I leave Mjolnir on all the time?
You can, but we really recommend you power down the amp if you
aren’t going to use it for an hour or more. Mjolnir uses a reasonable
amount of power, and runs pretty warm.
Can I power speakers with Mjolnir?
That’s not a great idea—speakers require more current than head-
phones, and you may trigger Mjolnir’s internal protection.
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 call us if it still doesn’t turn on.
I hear hum through the headphones, what do I do?
It’s most likely a ground loop. To x a ground loop, try a GFCI outlet or
a ground loop isolator.
Hey, you know this amp runs pretty warm?
Yep.
FAQ
CAUTION! Dangerous voltages inside. Follow all instructions!
1. Before plugging in the amplier, insert the tubes or LISST.
They’re both the same, so it doesn’t matter where they go.
2. Ensure tubes are well-
seated. Align carefully and
push down rmly.
3. Plug in your amp and
turn it on. The tubes will
glow after a few seconds,
and the relay will connect
the output after 30 sec.
4. Connect your source. And enjoy your music!
TUBES
TUBE SWAPPING
Mjolnir 2 accomodates any 6DJ8, 6922, ECC88, 6N23P, and 6BZ7 tube
types, as well as LISST. To swap tubes:
1. Turn off and unplug the amplier. Wait a while for the tubes to cool.
2. Carefully extract tubes by gently rocking them back and forth and
pulling upwards. Yes, we know it’s a pain in the kiester. Tape helps.
3. Carefully insert the replacement tubes. Align the pins to the sockets
and press down rmly until the tubes are seated.
4. Plug the amplier back in and turn it on.

MJOLNIR 2 CONNECTIONS
2 Single-Ended
Input. Connect your
single-ended source
here using good RCA
cables. You can select
this input from the
front panel as well.
Both balanced and
single-ended inputs
can be connected at
the same time.
1 Balanced Input.
Connect your
balanced source
here, using good XLR
cables. You can select
this source with the
front panel switch.
3 Balanced
Preamp Output.
Connect to external
power ampliers or
powered speakers
that accept XLR
connections, using
good XLR cables.
Do NOT use any
XLR-to-RCA or other
single-ended adapters
on this output!
12345
4 Single-Ended
Preamp Output.
Connect to external
power ampliers or
powered speakers
that accept RCA
connections, using
high-quality RCA
cables, especially for
longer runs.
6
5 Power Switch.
Up for on, down for
off. Very simple.
There are no fancy
“power down” modes
with Mjolnir 2, just
on or off.
6 Power Inlet.
Plug the end of the
supplied IEC cord in
here. You can also
use fancy audiophile
types, but they won’t
really do anything—
what about the
thousands of feet of
crap copper cables in
your walls, huh?

MJOLNIR 2 CONTROLS
2 Volume Knob.
Turn it to the right
to make the music
louder. Stop before
smoke comes out of
your cans. Seriously.
Mjolnir 2 makes a
ton of power, and can
easily light up your
headphones.
1 Tubes or LISST.
Insert standard 9-pin
6DJ8/6922 style
tubes or Schiit LISST
here for solid-state
gain. A full tube list
and tube swapping
instructions are a few
pages back.
3 Gain Switch.
Up is high gain
for hard-to-drive
headphones, down
is low gain for
high-efciency
headphones. Choose
the one that sounds
best to you, or has no
audible noise. Easy,
right?
5 Balanced
Headphone Output.
Connect ONLY
balanced headphones
here using a 4-pin
Neutrik connector.
Do NOT use any
balanced-to-single-
ended converters on
this output!
1
2456
3
4 Input Select.
Up selects the
balanced XLR input,
down selects the
single-ended RCAs.
Yes, Mjolnir 2 is also
a 2-input preamp
and balanced-SE
and SE-balanced
converter. Fun times!
6 Single-Ended
Headphone Output.
Connect unbalanced
headphones here,
using a 1/4” TRS plug.

WARRANTY
Schiit Audio warrants to the original purchaser that the product shall be free from
defects in material and workmanship for ve (5) years from the date of purchase.
Exceptions: Tubes. Tubes are covered by a 90-day limited warranty with the same
terms. If a defect covered by this warranty occurs during this warranty period, Schiit
Audio will repair the defective product, free of charge. Date of purchase will be based
on customer-submitted receipts, otherwise date of manufacturing will be used to
determine warranty period.
OBTAINING WARRANTY SERVICE
If you believe you need warranty service, contact us rst. There may be a simple
solution to your problem. Schiit 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 [email protected]. We will respond quickly to email inquiries.
WARRANTY LIMITATIONS
THIS WARRANTY SHALL NOT APPLY IF THIS PRODUCT: (a) IS MODIFIED OR TAM-
PERED WITH; (b) IS DAMAGED BY NEGLIGENCE, ACCIDENT, UNREASONABLE USE,
COFFEE, OR BY OTHER CAUSES UNRELATED TO DEFECTIVE MATERIALS OR WORK-
MANSHIP; OR (c) HAS HAD THE SERIAL NUMBER ALTERED, DEFACED OR REMOVED.
ANY APPLICABLE IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANT-
ABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, ARE HEREBY LIMITED IN
DURATION TO THE WARRANTY PERIOD (5 YEARS). IN NO EVENT SHALL SCHIIT AU-
DIO BE LIABLE FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES RESULTING FROM
THE BREACH OF ANY IMPLIED OR EXPRESS WARRANTIES. SOME STATES DO NOT
ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON HOW LONG AN IMPLIED WARRANTY LASTS OR EXCLUSION
OF CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS MAY
NOT APPLY TO YOU.
This warranty gives you specic legal rights. You may also have other rights which
vary from state to state or province to province.
Frequency Response: 20Hz-20Khz, -0.1db, 2Hz-400KHz, -3dB
Maximum Power, 32 ohms: 8.0W RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 50 ohms: 5.0W RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 300 ohms: 850mW RMS per channel
Maximum Power, 600 ohms: 425mW RMS per channel
THD: <0.005%, 20Hz-20KHz, at 1V RMS
IMD: <0.006%, CCIR
SNR: >104db, unweighted, referenced to 1V RMS, in low gain
mode
Crosstalk: >-75dB, 20 Hz-20KHz
Output Impedance: 1 ohms (high gain), 0.3 ohms (low gain)
Gain: 8 (18dB) or 1 (0db), via front-panel switch
Inputs: one pair balanced XLR, one pair single-ended RCAs,
switchable via front panel switch
Outputs: one 4-pin balanced female XLR, one ¼” TRS phono, one
pair 3-pin male XLR preamp, one pair single-ended RCA
Power Consumption: 45W
Size: 16 x 8.75 x 2.25”
Weight: 13 lbs
SPECS

EVERYTHING ELSE AIN’T
ITEM OWNER’S MANUAL BACK COVER
GRAPHIC FOR THE BACK COVER OF THE MANUALDESCRIPTION
NOTES
YES, ALL SCHIIT PRODUCTS ARE MADE IN THE USA.
YES, PRIMARILY OF US-SOURCED COMPONENTS.
YES, IT’S PRONOUNCED EXACTLY LIKE YOU THINK.
NO, WE ARE NOT ON FACEBOOK.
NO, WE’RE NOT ON TWITTER.
AND NO, WE’RE NOT ON YOUTUBE.
SCHIIT AUDIO
24900 ANZA DRIVE, SUITE A
VALENCIA, CA 91355 USA
[email protected]
SCHIIT.COM