Which DAC should I upgrade to? (minor audiosciencereview rant)

Discussion in 'Advice Threads' started by archerious, Oct 18, 2020.

?

Which DAC should I upgrade to?

  1. Schiit Yggdrasil 2

    5 vote(s)
    16.7%
  2. Denafrips Pontus

    1 vote(s)
    3.3%
  3. Holo Audio Spring Kitsune

    3 vote(s)
    10.0%
  4. Something else - Please leave reply below.

    3 vote(s)
    10.0%
  5. Plz lurk moar

    18 vote(s)
    60.0%
  1. archerious

    archerious New

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2020
    Likes Received:
    16
    Trophy Points:
    3
    Location:
    TX
    Thank you all for replying and giving me excellent advice. This site lives up to its name :).

    I made friends with a fellow in Houston selling a bifrost and had a listen.

    Really liked what i heard, just wanted a bit more detail.

    Researched it more and it seemed the two recommendations would be Gungnir Multibit or Yiggy.

    Just when I was about to go Gungnir Multibit, I noticed Yiggy GS.

    The ability to upgrade to A2 later on for $650 caught my eye and its beauty and craftsmanship stunned me.

    I pulled the trigger on it, and it is amazing. My freya+ with tung-sol tubes adds the warmth and life and the Yiggy Gs just has so much detail and it’s incredible. I hear guitar strings that I didn’t before on my Maggie’s (1.7i).

    Potato pics below:

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  2. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

    Staff Member Pyrate Gearmaster
    Joined:
    Dec 6, 2018
    Likes Received:
    10,826
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    The Complex
    Just be warned that A2 has very different tonal balance compared to GS. The GS with the old A1 cards is like the Gungnir A2; can be cold-sounding and lean in the wrong system. The Yggdrasil A2 is warmer, more akin towards Bifrost 2. Substituting it directly in your system will throw your tonal balance off to a different direction.

    I currently own a Yggdrasil GS and frankly have no desire to "upgrade" to A2. Yes, it might be a bit more resolving and have other improvements, but I'm happy with its sound. Same reason why I won't bother with Unison (that and I have Pi2AES).
     
  3. archerious

    archerious New

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2020
    Likes Received:
    16
    Trophy Points:
    3
    Location:
    TX
    I recall reading it’s warmer didn’t realize the tonal difference was that large.

    Sounds like I made the right choice for my tastes.

    Glad you mentioned Pi2AES, been looking at getting one in the coming months perhaps a new year gift to myself as everyone says Bnc or AES to the Yiggy is superior to toslink. I’m curious how that will effect the tonal signature as right now it’s incredible.

    So damn glad I came to this forum. This is how music should sound, things are so alive, from guitar strings, to vocals, it just has musicality.

    The D90 has none of this.
     
  4. Elysian

    Elysian Friend

    Pyrate
    Joined:
    Sep 28, 2015
    Likes Received:
    134
    Trophy Points:
    33
    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    Schiit doesn't allow upgrades from the Yggdrasil GS to the A2 otherwise people would be able to get to an A2 for cheaper than the price of a new unit. They will allow upgrades from the GS to the A3 or whatever their next revision will be.

    If I could go back in time, one piece of advice I'd give myself is not to spend too much money on a source or cables as I heard a much bigger difference from headphones and amps. Anything digital tends to depreciate far more aggressively than headphones and amps if resale value matters to you.

    The best part of this hobby is the people and you'll meet a lot of great folks if you hang around and keep an open mind. I'm glad you're already finding people to connect with. I made a lot of friends and the memories are a lot more valuable to me than the equipment.
     
    Last edited: Oct 31, 2020
  5. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

    Staff Member Pyrate Gearmaster
    Joined:
    Dec 6, 2018
    Likes Received:
    10,826
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    The Complex
    Very little effect, if any, on the tonality. More obvious things to notice: more resolving (not subtle), stages better, more black in background. Makes it very obvious if I use my PC's USB out.

    From what I've been told you can send it back for them to do it for you, but they won't do it for you out of the factory. However, you can do it yourself if you want (which is what I assumed @archerious was talking about).
     
  6. Elysian

    Elysian Friend

    Pyrate
    Joined:
    Sep 28, 2015
    Likes Received:
    134
    Trophy Points:
    33
    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    I might be citing outdated information as I assumed the A2 upgrade needed to be done by Schiit or an authorized vendor. I was researching this option too before deciding to go for a Gungnir Multibit instead of the Yggdrasil GS.

    https://www.schiit.com/products/yggdrasil-analog-2
    Due to the need for firmware and hardware updates, this upgrade must be done by Schiit, or by an authorized service center such as Electromod in the UK. Because of this, there is no self-install option, sorry. Yggdrasil Analog 1 cards will not be returned from this upgrade.

    https://www.schiit.com/products/yggdrasil-gs
    Hey wait a minute, if I order an Yggdrasil GS and have you do the Analog 2 Upgrade, it's less than a new Yggdrasil.
    Yep, if we would do the upgrade, which we will not.

    Well, I'll buy an Yggdrasil GS and then send it in for the upgrade, what do you think about that?
    We think you should consider how much it costs to send things back to us, as well as return shipping. Sorry, Yggdrasil GS is intended to get you into a great deal on an Yggdrasil, not as a way to try a weird end-run to save a few bucks on a full boat Yggdrasil Analog 2.
     
  7. leafy

    leafy Facebook Friend

    Contributor
    Joined:
    Jul 18, 2017
    Likes Received:
    105
    Trophy Points:
    33
    Location:
    Taiwan
    One can still buy a Yggdrasil A1 and order the firmware upgrade chip to convert it into a GS. Thia should allow maximum flexibility to future upgrades.
     

Share This Page