This $650 gadget makes all my music sound great — no matter what device I use

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Is the Chord Mojo 2 as powerful as a desk-based device? No. That means some of the most demanding headphones won’t be served quite the power they need. The audiophile-approved Sennheiser HD800S, for example, are still not quite given the meaty meal they need to sound their very best from the Mojo 2.

But other headphones that need more beef that’s not pumped out by my laptop or my phone? Perfection. It means you get the detail that the incredibly clear highs of the HD600 and their massive soundstage are perfectly pronounced, as they drink the power the Mojo 2 provides.

I could go on for hours about how impressive it is that the Chord Mojo 2 is as powerful as it is in such a tight frame (which also has to pack in an industry-leading DAC), but I won’t. Because that would be boring — if you want to learn more about that, go and read one of the thousands of other audiophile reviews. I’m here to tell you that almost any headphones you throw at the Mojo 2 are going to run pretty much perfectly.

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Alongside the extremely stout amplifier section of the Chord Mojo 2, there’s a very impressive DAC section to round out the portable experience. Plug in something with the optical port, or one of the USB ports, and it’ll take the top-notch tracks from Tidal, Qobuz and Apple Music to make them sound excellent.

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It sounds so much better than using just your phone and some form of dongle. It makes sure that fine details are translated from those 1s and 0s, and fed to your headphones so that you can hear them. It’s one of the best portable DACs I’ve ever heard, in fact, although you’d hope so given it costs $650.

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This is where I can talk upgrades from the old model. That version, which I have been using for years, only has two 3.5mm connectors, and you can’t charge it with USB-C. The new model now supports USB-C charging, a surprisingly nice upgrade that improves quality of life. Because lets face it, charging with micro USB feels so 2015.

The changing of a 3.5mm to 4.4mm is the real upgrade here. That means you can benefit from a balanced connection with compatible headphones — that means potentially tastier sound quality. Nice.

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Look, it’s not perfect. The 8-hour battery life could be better, although you’re unlikely to be using it for that long while you’re out and about. Still, I’d rather know that I could than try to and then find myself with a dead device halfway through my holiday.

It’s also confusing to use, on occasion. There are loads of different settings menus built into the device, and they’re accessible with the jewel-like buttons on the top. That means that adjusting EQ and the like is irritating. I frequently find myself reaching for the instructions to make sure I’m doing the right thing — and to make sure that I’m not going to change the wrong thing.

Or deafen myself.

Because there’s so much power on tap, it means that some less power-hungry headphones can be made super loud. If you’re going from a pair of impressive headphones to something not quite so demanding, you run the risk of destroying your eardrums — and your headphones.

I find the best way to move from headphone to headphone is to reduce the volume as far as possible, and then raise the volume once you’ve plugged the other headphones in until you get to a comfortable volume. Either way — you’ve been warned.

Got $650? Yes.