Mola Mola

Kaluga is based on world's most sought after class-D technology: Ncore'. Unprecedented low distortion, noise and output impedance combine into what scores of enthusiastic users unanimously describe as 'no sonic signature at all'. Just music, glorious music. For instance, the two supposedly unassailable strongholds of class-A amplifiers are linearity and output impedance, at high frequencies. Plotted on next page are the output impedance as a function of frequency and the output spectrum in a high power (400W), high frequency IMD test. In both cases Kaluga outperforms any power amplifier, regardless of technology, operating class or asking price, of which such test results are available.The amplifier board is a Mola Mola specific design. The audio circuitry is trimmed to the bare bones and board-to-board connectors are eliminated in favour of soldering star-quad cables directly into the circuit board for the cleanest, lowest impedance connection possible. The input stage is implemented on a separate circuit board that uses the same discrete buffers as those found in the Makua. The output filter sports monolithic capacitors whose dielectric stability is reflected in an impressively neutral and poised rendition. The days of compromising power efficiency for audio performance are finally over: the Kaluga delivers definitive audio performance with power efficiency thrown in as a bonus.

The standalone version of our well-known archival grade Phono stage features three single-ended inputs and one balanced input. It has a balanced output as well as a single-ended output. The Lupe with its dedicated power supply, k and the added "subsonic filter" provides the discerning record aficionado with the most accurate set-up for recreating the magic of the turntable as it was intended. The display of the well-known "half sized chassis" Lupe offers at a glance information on the settings.What was conceived as a simple RIAA add-on for the Makua Preamplifier (also available in the Kula Integrated amplifier) has quickly spiraled into the quietest and probably most versatile phono stage ever built. MC/MM input stages are optimized for current noise and voltage noise respectively. Unlike the more common arrangement of an MC head amp feeding into the MM stage, the two stages are fully independent, realizing an equally short signal path for both. Input gain is switchable in 5dB steps over a 40dB range. Input resistance and capacitance are individually switchable. Available EQ settings cover practically all known cutting curves including 78 RPM.All settings are software controllable, either on the fly using a smart-phone or tablet via the Mola Mola Remote app or directly stored under the preset buttons. Digitally controlled all switching is done in the analogue domain. The Lupe can be configured to route any of the four inputs through the phono stage, this allows you to have multiple turntables and/or cartridges connected.

The Mola Mola Remotes are designed to go with the stylist approach of the Mola Mola electronics. The simple designs are made to the highest standards possible. Milled from a single block of aluminium just like the Makua, Kaluga and Tambaqui the aesthetic design oozes quality! The Mola Mola remotes are available in a premium and a standard version. The standard remote is provided with Makua, Kula and Tambaqui.

The Mola Mola premium remote is designed to go with the stylist approach of the Mola Mola electronics. It is a simple design made to the highest standards possible. Milled from a single block of aluminium just like the Makua, Kaluga and Tambaqui this aesthetic design oozes quality! Mola Mola Remote appFor Android® and iOS®
Use the Mola Mola Remote app, for smartphone and tablet, to view and control the settings of your Makua, Kula and Tambaqui devices. Functions of the app includes:
Volume control
Preset selection and configuration
Phono stage parameters View DAC status and firmware versions
Firmware update

The integrated that truly belies its size!Imagine a sleek, compact design that oozes class. Imagine an amplifier design that packs enough power to comfortably handle even the most demanding of loudspeakers. Imagine a complex yet agile and easy to use fully transparent line stage. Imagine every possible Phono EQ setting available from the comfort of your listening chair. Imagine a highly acclaimed discrete DAC boasting the best specs and sound around. Imagine, combining all of the above! Reality. Is. Kula! Kula is an a la carte modular design creating a fusion of highly technical previous accomplishments. The chassis itself is borrowed from the acclaimed Makua preamp, as is the line stage section and its optional phono stage with independent adjustable settings and up to 6 separate inputs. The optional DAC section which also is available in the Makua, is identical to the world-class Tambaqui stand-alone unit and features 5 digital inputs including Roon endpoint and Bluetooth. Additionally, the Kula incorporates a Mola Mola exclusive amplifier which boast an output of 150 Watts @8Ω, doubling into 300 Watts @4Ω. Clearly enough power to drive any speaker with ease. I/O3 balanced and 3 unbalanced inputs, selectable by switch and software
2 Pairs of Furutech binding posts. Directly connected to the amplifier PCB using Kubala·Sosna cable. All inputs routable through optional processor boards like the phono stage
Processing balance and input gain offset
Phase invert and mono sum
Full software control of routing and processing 
Mastering mode PerformanceMaximum input level: 20dBu (7.75Vrms) 
Input impedance: 100kohm 
Unweighted Signal/Noise Ratio: 113dB 
2x 150W/8R @1% 1kHz, 2x 300W/4R @1% 1kHz 
2x 100W/8R @0.0005%, 2x 200W/4R @0.00075%, 1kHz 
Output Impedance: 2mΩ – 7mΩ (20-20kHz) (measured directly on binding posts) 
Bandwidth 50kHz @ -3dB 
Gain resolution:

An archival grade phono stage What was originally intended to be a simple RIAA add-on for the Makua Preamp has quickly spiraled into the quietest and probably most versatile phono stage ever built. MC/MM input stages are optimized for current noise and voltage noise respectively. Unlike the more common arrangement of an MC head amp feeding into the MM stage, the two stages are fully independent, realizing an equally short signal path for both. Input gain is switchable in 5dB steps over a 40dB range. Input resistance and capacitance are individually switchable. Available EQ settings cover practically all known cutting curves used, including most 78RPM.

All settings are software controllable, either on the fly using a smart-phone and tablet via the Mola Mola Remote app or directly stored under the preset buttons. The preamp can be configured to route any input through the phono stage, this allows you to have multiple turntables and cartridges connected. Key features PerformanceInput noise (MC): 0.35nV/rtHz 
Input noise (MM): 0.9pA/rtHz 
Sensitivity: variable from 30uV to 5mV
THD, IMD: not measurable 
RIAA conformance: +/-0.1dB Available time constantst1: 200, 250, 318, 400, 450us
t2: 50, 64, 75, 100us 
bass shelf: 14, 18, 20dB

Future-Proof by being far aheadWe decided to design, from the ground up, a discrete DAC whose unbeatable staying power results simply from being more than 10 years ahead of the performance curve. To put it into perspective: today’s best DAC chip available, claims no better than 22 bits’ worth of dynamic range and only 20 bits’ worth of linearity. High resolution music deserves better than that. To accommodate this, Mola Mola’s DAC is designed using circuits and digital algorithms that were entirely developed in house.
The converter is a two board stack that fits into one of the option slots in the preamp. On the first board, all incoming digital audio is upsampled to 3.125MHz/32 bits and converted to noise shaped PWM. On the other board are two mono DACs, in which a discrete 32- stage FIR DAC and a single-stage 4th order filtering I/V converter, convert the PWM into analogue with a breathtaking 130dB SNR. This is near the theoretical limit for 24-bit files and far beyond that of even quad-speed DSD. Uniquely, distortion remains below the noise floor even for full scale signals. A quick look at current and historic trends of high-end IC’s indicates that for the foreseeable future this kind of performance will remain unavailable to manufacturers forced to rely on the same “chip du jour” that also powers their competitors’ products. Even by today’s exacting standards, extraordinary care has been taken to deal with jitter. Mola Mola’s DAC uses a home-grown asynchronous upsampling algorithm whose input frequency measurement slows down rapidly until after a few seconds of lock, the frequency ratio measurement is frozen. Frequency stability is then wholly determined by the internal clock, a laboratory grade 100MHz SC-cut oscillator. This is effectively an atomic clock sans the physics package (which contributes nothing to spectral purity but quite a lot to cost) Key features I/O AES/EBU (XLR) Optical (Toslink) USB type B Bluetooth (SBC, AAC, APTX, LDAC) Ethernet (Roon Ready) Supported formats PCM up to 384kHz/32 bits (>192kHz and >24 bits via USB and Roon only) DoP and Native DSD up to quad speed (USB and Roon only) Performance Full-Scale Output Level: 20dBu Signal to Noise Ratio: 130dB THD, IMD: not measurable (estimated -140dB) Bandwidth: Up to 80 kHz (apodizing response) Integrated jitter:

Responding to popular demand, Mola Mola launched the famous discrete DAC from the Makua as a separate unit. Mola Mola’s Tambaqui DAC is the perfect upgrade for owners of complete high-end systems who want to retain the characteristic sound of their existing preamplifier whilst lifting their digital sources to another level. The converter is a two board stack. On the first board, all incoming digital audio is upsampled to 3.125MHz/32 bits and converted to noise shaped PWM. On the other board are two mono DACs, in which a discrete 32- stage FIR DAC and a single-stage 4th order filtering I/V converter, convert the PWM into analogue with a breathtaking 130dB SNR. This is near the theoretical limit for 24-bit files and far beyond that of even quad-speed DSD. Uniquely, distortion remains below the noise floor even for full scale signals.With the addition of a lossless digital volume control and headphone outputs, it is also the ideal control hub of a minimalist audio system for music lovers who have moved on to a digital sources only system. This DAC, combined with a pair of Mola Mola Kaluga monoblocks constitutes the finest digital replay chain available, irrespective of price.Operating PrinciplePWM DAC with 32-stage discrete analogue FIR output stage. Avoids “sigma delta” tones and “R2R” glitch and low-level linearity errors. Asynchronous upsampling to 3.125MHz/32 bit. 7-th order noise shaper clearing 80kHz band. Each input rate has an optimized upsampling filter chain.I/OOptical (Toslink) S/PDIF (Cinch) AES/EBU (XLR) USB type B Ethernet (Roon Ready) Bluetooth (SBC, AAC, APTX, LDAC) I²S over HDMI Balanced output (XLR) Headphone output (6.3mm Jack, Balanced XLR 4pin) 2 programmable trigger outputs (3.5mm Jack)Processing balance and input gain offset Selectable output levels Phase invertSupported formatsPCM up to 384kHz/32 bits (>192kHz and >24 bits via USB and Roon only) DoP and Native DSD up to quad speed (USB and Roon only)PerformanceFull-Scale Output Level (XLR): 18dBu Full-Scale Output Level (headphone): 18dBu Signal to Noise Ratio: 130dB THD, IMD: not measurable (estimated -140dB) Bandwidth: Up to 80kHz (apodizing response) Integrated jitter:

The Mola Mola Perca is a stereo power amplifier in our well-known half size chassis. Capable of delivering 150 Watts into an 8 Ohm load and doubling down to 300 Watts into 4 Ohm, it will drive any loudspeaker with ease, refinement, and clarity.The ultra-low distortion class A input stages are implemented on a separate board, together with their own high performance voltage regulation. Taking the NCORE® technology from our mother company Hypex Electronics as a reference point we set out to refine our Class D, self-oscillating principle and feedback concept, resulting in our proprietary Mola Mola Trajectum platform which is also applied in the Mola Mola Kula integrated amplifier.To cater to a wider range of applications a new gain selection feature is added which enables switching between 22dB and 28dB. The Mola Mola Perca features selectable balanced and single ended inputs, Furutech binding posts, and an on/off trigger connector.

With the knowledge in hand to design minimally invasive electronics without needing to be minimalist, we decided that our preamp should be complete. Very complete. The basic Makua is an extremely transparent gain stage and a programmable routing matrix. The chassis has ample room to fit optional extras, most notably a DAC and a phono stage. The 6 preset buttons are programmable via USB or Bluetooth to access any combination of channel, processing and routing. In a system with mainly digital sources, the preset buttons would be programmed to select between them. Vinl lovers on the other hand might want to use several buttons to select the same turntable but with different EQ settings to suit their large collection of historic LP's. All five inputs are switchable between XLR and floating RCA connections, and all can be assigned as either phono or line. All stages in the Makua use discrete amplifier modules in a little known topology called “single-ended driven differential”. Compared to doubly executed signal paths, this structure prevents noise from propagating all the way through.  The Makua is amazingly immune to influences like mains quality and choice of interlinks. The relay-based volume control directly controls the gain of the output stage. Dynamic range and linearity of this arrangement is much greater than those of stepped attenuators. Operation is smooth and entirely glitch free.I/O* 5 balanced and 5 unbalanced inputs, all routable through optional processor boards like the phono stage.* 2 parallel outputs for bi-amping.* 4 programmable trigger outputs.Processing* Balance and input gain offset.* Phase invert and mono sum.* Full software control of routing and processingPerformance* Maximum input/output level: 20 dBu (7.75 Vrms)* Unweighted noise voltage at unity gain: 1.9 uV* Input impedance: 100 kohm* Output impedance: 44 ohm* Distortion at maximum signal level (THD, IMD): not measurable, estimated around -150dB.* Bandwidth >200 kHz* Gain range: -70 dB to +15 dB.* Gain resolution: