In case you missed it, we’re currently giving away the new Sony WH-1000XM5 wireless noise-canceling headphones paired with one of our custom Black Dragon Portable Headphone Cables - a $550 value - free to one of our loyal followers! Submissions close on September 19th, 2022 at 11:59 PM EST. Click here for more info: www.moon-audio.com/video-sony-wh-1000xm5-noise-canceling-headphones-review-dragon-cable-giveaway

another thing with this test was that everyone seemed to have a different definition of what "better" was. The ones who voted for the Griffin noted that it sounded more "musical" and "intimate", and to them, that was "better". That's obviously the sound they preferred. Those who voted for the Mojo 2 noted that it was more detailed, analytical, wider, transparent, natural, or "true to life", and to them, that was the definition of "better". So, I guess what I am trying to say is that what this test revealed was really the individual's preference in sound, but what we can get from that is how they described the differences they heard. That leaves us, the viewers to decide which one of those set of qualities *we* prefer and go for that DAC.

I was at Canjam in Los Angeles and listened to all dacs-amps from 3k to over 12K and went back to compare to the mojo 2 and it was best-law of diminishing returns ended at the Mojo 2

The lossless EQ on my Mojo 2 is......irreplaceable. That feature itself makes it so versatile in terms of tweaking for the kind of sound I want (depending on what headphones/IEM's/monitors I am listening to) Crossfeed for headphones is a nice feature as well.

Haven't tried Gryphon but made a video where I compared Mojo to iDsd Signature and it came out on top. You can make the Mojo II more musical by futzing with the EQ and you don't miss out on detail / resolution. Mojo's amazing!

This A/B testing video was simply amazing! I really wish more reviewers would do reviews this way. Pls do more as it was super fun to watch people's reaction. Really gives credibility to the review of the product!

As you clearly stated, this test was on preferred sound alone but as an owner of both Chord and iFi products, I prefer Chord products. In addition I have tried to get support from iFi before on registered products (before Moon started carrying iFi) and they were a disaster. When they gave me answers to questions I didn't ask and didn't answer the questions I asked, I tried several times. The end result is that they quit responding to my emails. That alone would make me look elsewhere. I have the Diablo and the Pro iDSD. Thanks to Moon I have the Chord Mojo2/Poly, M Scaler, Hugo TT2 and Dave. I also have Chord amps (Etude, TToby and Anni) so you can say I am familiar with and like their sound. Thanks for the great A / B review.

Fantastic video, thanks so much! And what a lovely wood shelf for your headphones! :)

iFi Gryphon with Meze Audio Liric are my go to daily set up. I listen to a lot of hard rock and metal. This combo just works amazing for me and my preferred genre of music.

When I get to Drew, I knew right away A is the mojo 2 when he said more detail

Fantastic! I wish more channels would do this kind if thing. And well done for controlling all other variables as best you could. You could maybe do a quick follow up with how they compare with the pentacon thru gryphon, even just your take. Interestingly, the gryphon is $100 more expensive here in NZ. The ability to lossless eq on the mojo would be such a tempting factor for mojo for me cf the bluetooth feature on the gr. Ahhhh!

I value holographic detailed presentation above all else so this test was decisive for me. I'm getting Mojo2. Thank you!

This was super helpful as I am looking into both

I am currently hesitating between both and something changed since the time you published it. Mojo 2 is now cheaper than the Gryphon (at least here in Europe). So it has the best sound and price. I'll go this way.

Mojo 2 is between £50 and £100 cheaper in the UK vs Gryphon. I love both brands. Very interesting to see when people have a preference for one over the other, for the same reason, ie one person thinks one DAC is more natural sounding and another person thinks the other is more natural sounding. I'll stick with my Mojo 2 with minor EQ. After a long journey I think I realise I just love the sound of Chord DACs, despite the fact they are an absolute pain to deal with design wise. Our hearing and our brains are unique, love to see tests like this.

Great test, this should be practiced much more often. But i dont get one thing- why the Gryphon was tested via 3,5mm? Shouldnt be used the best out from each device to show the full potential? For me it makes sense. If Chord doesnt include balanced output, that means they think that they are able to provide best SQ from unbalanced. But IFI has a different approach and using 3,5mm in thi case just bottlnecked the IFI product.

I like the epic rap battles history font for the thumbnail

I would agree with the conclusion, unlike the desktop setting sound quality is not the only consideration in portables. They are not a tube mains powered behemoth and without a balanced out might struggle with some headphones, and BT for me is a must in portable solutions. At least in my use scenarios where portable dac/amps fit a role between a focused listening on a fixed rig and the most casual on a true wireless. In those scenarios I like to be able to switch between USB and BT in order to be able to get up and do whatever I need to around the home and keep listening. But for a more travelling focused use-case with the usage being more tied down to the desk I can see M2 as a better option.

I got the Mojo 2 but I haven't heard from iFi to compare. I also have the Mojo and iFi DSD Macro and preferred the sound and staging of the Mojo. Would be nice to hear the latest iFI DAC

this is exactly like how everyone likes their coffee differently.... each person is saying polar opposite to each other.....

Don't know why there aren't more blind tests on here. Great idea and well done

Such a great video. Very helpful and insightful. Wish more reviews would follow similar protocol. Well done!

Hi.........Which one has better sound quality.........FiiO-Q7 or iFi xDSD Gryphon or Chord Mojo 2 ? (I am a BASS lover)..............

Simply put , I will break it down why the mojo is the bigger winner. The host final analysis should've been like this , all the people who picked B and why and all who took A and why , if you compact both A and B answers you will get , people who liked B , liked concert effect loud in your face and ear yet somewhat clear sound with fullness and bass . The A , to me were people who really are audiophile people , very clear, great space and separation ,very detailed vocals and instruments. So B would be better with hifi system and speakers , while A , with good headphones are much better laid back smooth listening and sounds good via hifi system thru speakers..my score is A 100% to B 85% . I would buy A .

My ears are also aligned with the guy who commented about the bass of mojo . I also found it a tiny bit interfering with the rest of the frequencies.

Most of the descriptions for A and B and the corresponding DACs were very similar and surprisingly consistent. Based on that, I suspect that the last 2 ladies may have gotten their A and B mixed up. They both said they liked B, but described B in nearly the same way that everyone else described A.

May I suggest another A B test ? A decent DAP vs mojo/ifi with lossless streaming using a phone

This was a very good test. A big plus for the Gryphon is gaming compatibility. It works via USB for both the PS4/5 and Switch. The only option on the mojo requires optical which requires extra equipment for the consoles. Also, being an HD800s owner, I think I'd benefit from the bass boost of the Gryphon, but man I love me some details, so the mojo pulls ahead.

My gryphon should be here today. I’m using a set of Focal Bathys. I’ll upgrade the cables and the head phones probably this time next year. $800 for headphone is still a stack of cash. Hopefully i can do a set of dual cable headphones then.

I still prefer Mojo 2 to Gryphon in term of sound quality. I use it to connect with my iBasso DX320 with Focal Radiance headphones.

The advantage of the Mojo 2 for me, besides great sound, is the Poly. The Poly adds streaming which allows me to listen to music from anywhere in my home. In my case, my Poly is a Roon endpoint and I listen to music in a comfy chair rooms away from my Roon core.

To me, it just goes to show how well IFI have stepped up the game. I personally have different IFI's, from the GO Blue, Hip Dac and signature. Might have to add the this new beast as well.

The chord mojo 2 is so much nicer than the gryphon or idsd neo. I’ve auditioned them in a store and the mojo just has more natural tone to me. If they made it with no battery and just an external power supply, i would have bought it. Plus the weird interconnects you would need to make the mojo work. For portable purposes theres no question the mojo would be an instant pick.

In Norway the iFi Gryphon is 33% more expensive. And Mojo 2 has bit perfect EQ and crossfeed. Crossfeed is a must after you've tried it. And then there's the Poly - which makes the Mojo 2 wireless and a network streamer and the perfect Roon companion - without a loss in SQ. An easy choice for me.

If Gryphon had DSP EQ bands and crossover, adjusting them with buttons and seeing screen, would a winner by a longshot.

I have not listened to them but I am going to buy the gryphon

What if the balanced 4.4 amp portion on the Gryphon sounds better than their 3.5 single ended one? It usually does. The 4.4 on the Fiio M11 is better than the 3.5. So, if it is the case with the Gryphon, would it means the Gryphon would score higher than the Mojo 2 if it was compared to the balanced output of the Gryphon? I have the Mojo 2 and I am very satisfied with it. But, as many audiophiles might be, I am always filled with doubts about if I made the right choice. "Is there a better product out there in the same price range" is a question I am always asking myself when I buy an expensive product (the Mojo 2 is expensive for me). My only criteria is sound quality.

This is a realy, realy good way of comparing!! Very good review/comparison! But I have 1 remark; in the the Netherlands the Mojo 2 is like € 100,- to € 150,- cheaper than the Gryphon...

Another great video. I would love to see this type of video for MQA 🤔

I own both the Mojo2 and the Ifi xDSD gryphon. While I do prefer the screen on the Gryphon over the balls on the Mojo2. I still prefer the Mojo2 sound and believe it has better a sound stage, more natural sound, more detail, more separation. One thing that I really like with the Gryphon is when listening wirelessly I switch phones and use my (google pixel 3xl. It supports LDAC, AptxHD etc... and it automatically switches to LDAC when in Bluetooth Mode and streams at 96khz.

I always liked the sound of my first gen mojo but it has broke 3 times now and im slightly jaded when it comes to getting another Chord product. When you turn it on it will cycle through the colors of the lights and click off instantly sometimes or it will stay in and nake this loud clicking noise which will stop at somepoint. Also the usb input no longer wirks and this thing was never noved around which is annoying. I blame micro usb in general for the usb port.

I bought the Gryphon 😮😊 Good Video😊

Great review!

Great video. Clear and concise

For sundara is better mojo 2 o gryphone ? I love vocal and midlle high I dont like invasive bass ..

Fantastic review, wonderfully done, so thank you. Quick question. We say DACs like Gryphon are portable, but ultimately, would its price point make music listening on my phone (Samsung S10 Galaxy) that much better than say a smaller iFi or a dragonfly? Not necessarily 3 times better, but significantly better? Question goes to both Moon Audio and readers please

I want to buy 3.5mm to mmcx cable in India so which cable shall i go for? Please help

Does the balanced mode on the gryphon improve the details and resolution significantly?

Hi and thanks for the awesome video, so I am having a hard time choosing between theses two, (I can't try them). I am very tempted by the Gryphon but I want one of them to use with focal celestee's with bitperfect files,and I heard Gryphon can be sibilent at times, wich wouldn't be a good sinergy for me with the celestee since its an already almost bright headphones and my sensitivity to highs. Filters can be used in bit perfect? do you think the presence eq think would do the job for me or I better take the mojo and just eq what annoys me? Thanks again, have a good one.

Hi, Could you review the X Duoo XD05 Bal. I am using one It Outputs 1w continuous. (can drive almost any headphones). I have (Hifiman Ananda, Neumann NDH20 and Sony WH-100 XM2 for Over head monitoring) and (Fiio FH5, Moondrop CHU, BLON BL-03 and BLON BL- MAX for In ear monitoring). It has Dual ESS Sabre ES9038Q2M DAC Chips. Also it has the option to swap its on board dual op amps. Texis Instruments IC op amps (stock on the unit) and an additional pair of Japan Radio Company IC op amps (in the box). I personally opted to replace the stock pair with Burson Audio - Supreme Sound Hybrid op amp V5I (Dual X 2). It sounds superb in wired mode. Bluetooth connectivity range is a minor issue. Also on the unit there is a Boost switch which I can't figure out any purpose, as its application or exit makes no difference. I innately thought it was for IEM Gain matching but Im not sure right now. I would like to hear your views on this portable DAC. If you could also shed some light on the use of the Boost switch on the unit.

this is the best. DAC battles I have even see I select B . current I upgraded to ifi iDSD Diablo even better

The ifi diablo or the mojo 2?

I believe that when paired with the Poly, the Mojo2 compares well to most portable DAC/AMP out on the market today. If you add in the physical footprint of the Mojo2/Poly I believe you would also agree that this unit is definitely more portable than the Gryphon. The final straw for me was the terrific customer service that Chord adds. When you compare all of these attributes, than the decision becomes quite easy.........you have a winner with the Mojo2!

What's the stereo crosstalk dB with the gryphon in balance mode?

May I know how do you volume match?

Made in China and made in England are the main difference 👌

No I get it why it takes so long to do this comparison 😂 I definitely did not regret buying Mojo 2 before this video posted.

Weirdly in the UK the Gryphon is more expensive than the Mojo 2, which makes the choice between them even more confusing, & I still can’t choose!

can I custom eq on the gryphon?

As much as I believe in Chord and the sound quality of the Mojo 2, I’m going to have to wait for the Mojo 3 which simply must ditch the USB charging system and include Bluetooth.

Why does everyone look at the ground in front of each headphone? I feel like they were told what to say…

It's amazing how many people heard the sound the same way. Shows that snake oil talk out there is not true. People can and do hear differences.

In the UK the Mojo 2 is £100 cheaper than the Gryphon

How to be fair. Is use dont ifi extra feature 4.4 mm jack , XBass , X space , MQA. Is like ask some one to a fight one hand hide behind

It is so hard to decide which one to get, therefore I’ve bought both of them 😂

great test...!!!

Which one has a EQ app for apple devices?

People who claim that there is no difference in soundquality between cables, amps and dacs say that if you do an A/B double blindtest with a large enough testpanel, the result will always be around 50%. 50% means there is no preference or difference. This test also ended in 50% more or less.

No específicas que puerto del iFi Gryphon ocupaste 3.5 mm o 4.4 mm?. Para igualar la prueba supongo que lo hiciste ambos con el 3.5mm porque Mojo2 NO TIENE PENTACON cosa que decanta por completo la prueba ya que la amplificación del puerto Jack 3.5 es prácticamente el doble en el chord....

I would hope $200 more would give you better sound.

Ifi made in 🇨🇳 Moio2 made in Britain 🇬🇧

Violectric chronos portable dac?

Couldn’t agree more and it’s sexier 😂

If you guys use the OG Clear headphone the audiences will like the Ifi better because the MG Clear is infamous for dark and compressed sounding

It’s strange coz in India gryphon sells for 600$ but mojo 2 for 490$ and for that almost 100$ price difference, mojo 2 is. Much better deal

People, all I have is a mobile phone. I'm all day using it for KZfaq, music, games... Now, all I have is Hiby FC5. I'm thinking about focal Stellia in the future... what I heard Stellia is easy to drive, but anyway will be there any benefit to use Stellia with my portable amplifier connected to my phone? 3000€/$ is a lot...

I take it your not a golfer?

mojo 2 499 euro atm gryphon 619..

I prefer Dragonfly Cobalt over iDSD Gryphon. The iFi sounds way too harsh.

Too expensive , i'll wait for Chord to deliver the Mojo 3 ,then mojo 2 will be had for much less .

Topping G5 !

There is a problem with your review. It has been noted that the Mojo 2 has a bit of a mismatch with the Focals. Had you used any other headphone, say a Sennheiser, the scoring would have been much different in fact you would have heard the Mojo trouncing the iFi quite considerably. 🙂

Could of been more interesting if there was a couple of sub £200 dacs thrown in . It would of been even more interesting of a cheap dac won lol

Mojo2 even beat Hugo2

gryphone 根本不好，低音是混在一起的，皇帝的新衣罢了，我买了，后悔

Tested gryphon against mojo 2 today. And Well, Mojo 2 is much better. Things feel like they are more in control with the music.

The second to last lady got the A and B confused