Schiit Lokius Review (Equalizer)

[MRC01]

Schiit just released it's bigger brother, Loki Max.

Wow, that's an over-the-top implementation of an EQ. Why would they go through all that effort, then sprinkle the center frequencies with no rhyme nor reason? They should set the center frequencies equally spaced at octave/ratio intervals.

 

[Jim Taylor]

Wow, that's an over-the-top implementation of an EQ. Why would they go through all that effort, then sprinkle the center frequencies with no rhyme nor reason? They should set the center frequencies equally spaced at octave/ratio intervals.

Please allow me to add my two poor, beaten and tarnished cents worth:
In "the old days", recordists were interested in certain frequencies, relating to male voice, female voice, mid-horn, center-octave piano and so on and so forth. The center frequencies for these were not equally spaced.
The reason for this (other than gain-riding) was to produce a certain "style", or a certain "sound", that would sell recordings. It made the recording more "interesting". This attempt to make recordings more "interesting" still persists today ..... in fact, it may be stronger today than it was 40-50 years ago.
Therefore, this style of EQ responds more to industry practices than anything else. Jim Taylor

 

[mhardy6647]

Wow, that's an over-the-top implementation of an EQ. Why would they go through all that effort, then sprinkle the center frequencies with no rhyme nor reason? They should set the center frequencies equally spaced at octave/ratio intervals.

1500 smackers?!?!
Jeepers.

 

[peniku8]

You may still want to give a try to a good old analog graphic EQ.
I'll test this one, one day or another.
It's sounding pretty good.
Does it measure well ?
We'll see.

Finally got around measuring my Rane 30-band GEQ. 99db THD+N, a few db better than this Shiit.
Noise with no signal playing is -110db, dominated by mains hum and its harmonics. Will post a full 'review' in a new thread some time.

 

[Bob from Florida]

1500 smackers?!?!
Jeepers.

Not a bad price when you consider what you are getting. Each band has its own ladder based volume control! A total analog solution with presets! Pre-out to Loki Max in - Loki Max out to power in. Use your smart phone app for spectrum analyzer and use a sweep cd and tweak your bands with the remote and save preset. This could work pretty well....

 

[Shant]

I got the Lokius couple of months ago, mainly to use it with the turntable at night at low volume when the family sleeps. Ended up also using it with digital music, since the analog controls are easier to control than digital controls.

The idea that equalization is bad is a very wrong concept when taken in absolute. Equalization is definitely needed to fix the loudness curve, specially when listening at low volumes.

Now, there was some discussion about the choice of the frequency ranges assigned to the controls. The controls allow emulating the "contour" of the ISO 226:2003 loudness curve with a little over 20db depth. I was able to push the low end of the curve a bit higher by increasing the subwoofer volume.

In addition to the loudness curve, the highs/lows differ from recording to recording, and this is very useful to correct these differences as they are getting reproduced in the room.

I ended up using this only when listening to music from the loudspeakers. Its use with headphones is not that interesting, mainly because the levels with headphones are more consistent.

Sure. Just turn the 500hz control and everything is louder

I ended turning the left 2 all the way up, middle 2 all the way down, and the right 2 adjusted per taste.

 

[Hapo]

...wow...I will just stick with the little Loki...I thnk of it as a tone control...it has been my favorite Schitt so far...

...after reading thisLolkius review I was surpirsed to like the Loki as much as I do...I nearly eschewed Loki behind the amirm Lokius review this but this bit from the conclusion nails it...

"That said, if its functionality and physical aspects don't bother you, and you have a user for it, performance is good enough that I can't dismiss it seeing how there are hardly any options at this price range available."

...I would venture that this is even more true in the case of the Loki...

 

[Mart68]

There's loads of better options if you're happy to buy second hand.

 

[Hapo]

...willing if not happy and open to suggestion...

 

[Mart68]

...willing if not happy and open to suggestion...

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[solderdude]

Behringer ULTRACURVE PRO DEQ2496 processor/equalizer

 

[AVKS]

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Behringer ULTRACURVE PRO DEQ2496 processor/equalizer

Those are in no way practical or applicable to a typical desktop/headphone/stereo setup use case. Any suggestions taking reality into account?

 

[solderdude]

I use it this way....

 

[AVKS]

I use it this way....

Which is not a typical use case; thus my question. Fantastic to have such capability available though.

 

[solderdude]

The Lokius is a tone control. The DEQ2496 can do infinitely more. But you may need to convert balanced to RCA to make it work.
Another option is to buy a second hand graphic equalizer. Chances are potmeters and or switches may need servicing.

When you just need tone control the Loki or Lokius are fine. You can't correct headphones or speakers with it.

 

[AVKS]

The Lokius is a tone control. The DEQ2496 can do infinitely more. But you may need to convert balanced to RCA to make it work.
Another option is to buy a second hand graphic equalizer. Chances are potmeters and or switches may need servicing.

When you just need tone control the Loki or Lokius are fine. You can't correct headphones or speakers with it.,

Agreed, but still separate use cases and space/cabling requirements, which is the point of my initial question. A 2u rack unit (or 1u for that matter) is not practical or feasible for I daresay the vast majority of users out there, and users considering a Lokius aren't trying for precision.

 

[Mart68]

Those are in no way practical or applicable to a typical desktop/headphone/stereo setup use case. Any suggestions taking reality into account?

They also do a 16 band which is half the size

it's cheaper than the Loki and way more flexible, likewise its digital equivalent.

Sorry, but I don't get this 'I don't have the space' thing. I've lived in 7' by 10' room, still had a full set-up with a turntable and big floorstanding speakers.

 

[AVKS]

They also do a 16 band which is half the size

it's cheaper than the Loki and way more flexible, likewise its digital equivalent.

Sorry, but I don't get this 'I don't have the space' thing. I've lived in 7' by 10' room, still had a full set-up with a turntable and big floorstanding speakers.

Then sharing that unit would be a better comparison to the Lokius rather than rack gear; again, your use case places high value on audio regardless of the space and complexity. Your average user is not that way, so the recommendations shared in these recent posts are not all that helpful to someone looking at a Lokius. If they were concerned about other uses, they would likely already be pursuing those options. I'm a longtime audio person and recording musician but I sure don't have the room for or want a 2u piece of rack gear on my desk, which is where my (and I daresay is true for the majority of other users) Lokius is placed, within easy arm's reach.

My point distills down to the notion that the Lokius' size and ease of setup/use appeals to many buyers, perhaps even being a primary requirement. Specific function (number of bands, frequencies, etc) may be secondary. Therefore, the most valuable suggested alternatives will stay cognizant of the Lokius' size and signal chain options.

 

[Mart68]

I don't think an analogue equaliser is hard to use, I'm old enough to remember when even mass-market products had one built in, including personal cassette players and bargain basement midi systems.

Digital EQ is more complex though I agree, which is why I suggested an analogue unit.

 

[AVKS]

I don't think an analogue equaliser is hard to use, I'm old enough to remember when even mass-market products had one built in, including personal cassette players and bargain basement midi systems.

Digital EQ is more complex though I agree, which is why I suggested an analogue unit.

Agreed - I don't think it's hard to use either. I'm saying that a Lokius purchaser probably isn't concerned as much about the precision of adjustment (I know I'm not) and likely highly values form factor and versatility/ease of connection. Effective alternative suggestions that provide better equalization/tunability need to be directly comparable in those areas to be applicable for that segment.