14 October 2015
Premiere: Chord MOJO makes mobile high-end sound affordable!
With the enormously successful Hugo, the inventors from Maidstone, UK have already proven that their superior D/A converter technology can impress on the go. The sound of the pocket-sized headphone amplifier made such a lasting impression on hi-fi fans around the world that the small mobile DAC was increasingly being used in stationary systems as well. This wasn’t really what the developers originally intended, but what are you supposed to do when the handy Hugo outperforms much larger and more expensive converters, time and again?
Chord responded quickly to this surprising development and released the Hugo TT ("Table-Top"), a larger version designed specifically for stationary use. With identical converter technology but more elaborate analog electronics, the TT took the sound quality up another notch compared to its little brother and is therefore also very popular. But back to the Hugo and its originally intended mobile use. On closer inspection, its size is already at the upper end of what many people expect from a portable add-on device. And while the price of almost 1,800 euros is almost a bargain considering its sound capabilities, it is still out of reach for many headphone fans.
Chord recognized this situation and now has a surprising solution: the new Mojo. Mojo stands for "Mobile Joy" and that's exactly what it's all about: the ultimate in mobile music enjoyment! The ultra-compact housing is unmistakably a real Chord device and, just like the Hugo, is made of premium aluminum. But with dimensions of just 8.2 x 6 x 2.2 centimeters, the Mojo now fits into any pocket.
Don’t be fooled by its small size—inside the little Mojo beats a powerful heart, capable of driving most headphones on the market (4-800 ohms) with authority, and two headphones can even be used in parallel. The Mojo weighs just 180 grams.
The true revolution, however, lies in the converter electronics. The Mojo uses the latest Xilinx Artix-7 FPGA chip, which is even more powerful than the previous generation used in the Hugo and Hugo TT. The result is highly precise digital-to-analog conversion at a level that would do credit to stationary devices costing many times more. Via micro-USB and the electrical digital input (mini jack), the Mojo happily processes music signals up to a staggering 768kHz/32bit and DSD256!
Many music fans already own a mobile hi-res player, and there are now apps for most smartphones that can play high-resolution music files. And with the Chord Mojo, there is now an ultra-portable DAC and headphone amplifier that gets the very best out of these high-quality recordings on the go. And the best part: This modern piece of technology, made entirely by hand in the UK and technically and sonically far superior to most stationary high-end converters, is offered by Chord at a truly competitive price. The Mojo is set to cost just 599.00 euros, setting new standards for price-performance in this segment. Curious? You can find more information directly from the manufacturer.
