My Bifrost is Black, my THX is black… I need Lyr to be black!!! And about Loki… I don’t use it so I can either remove it from the team or try to paint it myself.
Yeah my desktop stack is kinda cool as it goes silver, black, silver, black stacked and with my iMac and HD’s being silver, studio monitors black, their stands are black, lastly my turntable is black and silver so it all kinda ties together visually. The Lyr 3 would be for a different area and keeping it all black makes more sense visually.
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Plasti-dip or powder coating is an option… but be careful of thermals and possibly voiding the warranty
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There has to be local shops that can do anodizing, ya? I have about 20 near me according to Google.
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Oh yeah anodizing as well! Good call!
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I have had the beta Unison board with ship level firmware for a few months now and its working out just great, its “my” goto DAC and USB is all I use now. Tested with seperate transport with the digital outs and I could not tell any real discernable differences with my stuff…so with Unison AFAIK this is it for now for a solid interface between the pc and dac…
B2 is on my radar but I keep telling myself “why” what I have is so good to me…%(%#(*)(!
I guess a Black B2 would mate better than the B1 silver…ah such vanity!!
Alex
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Jotunheim R: will show up, question is when.
CD transport: I’d like one being CD only - Curious to hear if Schiit can bring any noticeable improvement to the sound over my Emotiva ERC3 and NuPrime CDT - 8.
Loki 2.0??: Would be nice: maybe 1 or 2 more bands, balanced and SE, but not holding my breath on this one.
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For those listening on phones exclusively rather than a good speaker setup the Yggdrasil even with Unison may not have a huge delta in SQ over the Bifrost 2. Once I get the Unison board in my Yggdrasil I’ll post some impressions.
While it is fun to speculate on future releases and upgrades from Schiit Jason has made it very clear not to expect a major revision to Yggdrasil so @ProfFalkin I would think you are pretty safe buying a new Yggdrasil with the Unison board if you really want one.
Jotunheim R is supposed to show up this month, might be February however. Jason posted they already have the first articles in shop.
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Hi: You make great point regarding IC’s/Discrete circuit design:
" …Now, the IC vs discrete thing is interesting because IMHO discrete doesn’t necessarily offer tangible advantages over IC and imposes quite a few costs, but from an audiophile perspective, discrete implementations are certainly more “special”.
Even more so with respect to ‘digital’ design. Over the years (decades really), I’ve come to realize that digital circuit design is completely distinctive from analog design considerations. Whereas analog appears to have a (general) performance advantage/gain using larger, more robust parts (discrete circuits/power supply) the same does not hold true for digital gear.
In fact, the opposite may be true; there is reason to believe that every millimetre (1/32") -actually
1/25.4" -lol) is of significant consideration.
Examples must surely include Chord DAC’s, and even the humble SBC (Single Board Computer -Raspberry Pi style), both capable of excellent performance in its respective category (DAC and Music Player/Streamer). Other examples surely exist.
Bottom line; today’s premium IC’s can compete with (outperform?) the finest discrete designs -depending on application, naturally.
OK, that’s it for now … (lol)
pj
One could do a lot worse, for sure. BUT, I wonder whether the following sentiments are valid?:
[quote=“EdAInWestOC, post:17, topic:2081”]
" …The very high end Schiit Audio models are rated as among the best components available.
[/quote]"
In the amplifier category, company’s are up against some spectacular names including and specifically Mark Levinson, Classe’ (previous models), Boulder, Pass Labs, SimAudio, etc, etc.
With that said, Schiit’s preamp (tube) appears to set the standard for an affordable budding- high-end preamp with its resistor/relay volume and sensible/flexible gain options.
Clearly there is a respected Schiit DAC following.
All-in-all, Schiit has some commendable products considering it’s humble beginnings -albeit with industry veterans.
The company/products remains a solid choice for those looking for premium performance at sensible prices.
pj
Hi @alhifi welcome! Don’t forget to introduce yourself to the group over here if you haven’t already. New Here? This Is The Spot To Introduce Yourself
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I currently have a standard Modi 3 and am planning a DAC upgrade as I have the headphones and amp dialed in. I’m looking at <$750 price point and am curious about the differences between the Modi 3 MB and the Bifrost 2 w/ MB. I’ve read some folks say the Bifrost 2 sounds better than the Modi 3 MB. Why is that? I don’t need the balanced output / XLR / remote and am currently using S/PDIF (due to issues with my motherboard USB controller), so am wondering if I should just save my money and go for the Modi 3 MB.
I understand the 99 Modi 3 is a great value and Schiit self-proclaimed "possibly the last DAC you will ever need"... but what are the sonic differences/advantages of either the Modi 3 MB and/or the Bifrost 2 over the standard Modi 3? Worthy upgrade? Or better spent going towards a headphone upgrade?
FWIW I listen to Spotify Premium & FLAC > Modi 3 > Bottlehead Crack + Speedball w/ TOTL tubes > ZMF Aeolus. I have a GOTL being built in the next 3-6 months.
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There really isn’t a “Modi 3 MB”. It’s just the “Modi MB”, which I believe has only had two significant running revisions since launch, neither of which were accompanied by a new model number.
Yes, the Bifrost 2 outperforms the Modi MB … both on the bench and audibly.
It has various improvements, higher-resolution converters with better dynamic range, a more sophisticated and capable power-supply, a completely different output stage, and a much better, isolated, USB input.
With the chain you have, however, I wouldn’t switch from the Modi 3 to the Modi MB. The signatures are different enough that, unless you want more warmth and low-end weight to your sound, it’s probably going in the wrong direction.
Minor upgrades are usually more like side-grades - and that would be the case with the Modi MB … different but not necessarily better. So I would either stick with what you have, or make the jump to the Bifrost 2 (or something at a similar level).
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Thanks Torq - super helpful!
Would the BF2 be less warm than the Modi MB? I do prefer the warm sound and like meaty impactful bass over a more neutral presentation, especially since my preferred pad for the Aeolus (universe perf suede) considerably reduces the mid bass. That being said, my top priority in a new DAC is improvement in sound quality, so it sounds like the BF2 is the way to go (unless there’s another <$750 DAC you’d recommend over it).
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Well one of these days I’ll have to have you over so you can try the BF2 
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Schiit’s new Unison USB Interface is now available for all of their upgradeable DACs (Bifrost, Gungnir, Yggdrasil):
Want a USB input that can plug easily into all popular sources without drivers—and deliver performance that can go head-to-head with all the crazy inconvenient options out there? Then you want to upgrade your Bifrost, Gungnir, or Yggdrasil to Unison USB™.
The new Unison USB input board features:
- A completely unique USB input receiver based on a Microchip PIC32 microprocessor with Schiit’s proprietary code.
- Complete electromagnetic and electrostatic isolation.
- Self-power by the DAC for the critical low-noise re-clocking and latching sections.
- Precision local clocks for both 44.1 and 48k multiples.
- NO SUPPORT FOR ANTIQUE WINDOWS. If you’re not on Windows 10, stick to Gen 5.
The new Unison USB board is an upgrade for any Bifrost, Gungnir, or Yggdrasil with the Gen 1, 2, 3, or 5 USB inputs, and now ships standard with every new Gungnir and Yggdrasil. Bifrost 2 uses Unison USB as standard with a unique Autonomy card.
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Did Yggy get a price bump? Schiit.com lists at $2449, and I thought it was ~ $2300 last I looked.
An I nuts and just imagining things?
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It was $2,399 as of the Analog 2 update.
Unison USB adds $50.
Gungnir used to be $849 and is now $899 too.
(And the Unison USB upgrade is $200 instead of $150, or $150 if you self-install).
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Thanks for the explanation! Much appreciated.
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I’ll have mine in before the end of the week! Cannot wait 
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