Chord Mojo 2 Beyerdynamic DT700 Pro X System £668
For this brilliant little system, we need to make an assumption: that you own a smartphone, from which you can stream your music on the move. And although phones vary in their sound quality, the wonderful Chord Mojo 2 DAC is going to relieve whatever phone you have of most of the heavy lifting as far as carrying a tune goes.
And the brilliant Beyerdynamic headphones are going to reveal just how remarkable any modern phone can be as a source from which to pluck music from the ether, when used in conjunction with what is a remarkable little piece of kit from Chord. To call it a box of tricks is doing the Mojo 2 a disservice; this is serious technology. And this pairing is an amazing example of synergy in action – a little combination that is hi-fi of a quality that far outweighs the price you will pay for it.
A new processor
The first Mojo, introduced back in 2015, was a real game-changer for music on the go, setting the new standard for quality from a portable DAC. This, the second iteration of the little unit (it’s about the size of a pack of playing cards) may not look much different, but it improves things across the board. The headline development is what Chord is calling the ‘UHD DSP’, supposedly the world’s first lossless digital signal processor – but possibly more practical is the inclusion of a USB-C port alongside the familiar optical, Micro USB and 3.5mm coaxial inputs. This means easy connection to most Android smartphones, Apple iPads and laptops. Apple iPhones do not yet use USB-C, so you will need to connect via a dongle.
There are two 3.5mm headphone jacks, so you can listen with a friend – and if they have decent headphones, they will be grateful for the opportunity. For Chord has taken an already exemplary proposition and advanced it across the board. There is an extra depth and dimension to the sound, and greater resolution too. The leading edges of piano notes on Ludovico’s Rolling Like A Ball in hi-res, for example, are crisper without compromising the flow of the piece, while
