Schiit Asgard: Unboxing and First Impressions - Page 5

Jude,

Really appreciate you taking the time and trouble to write up your impressions.  These products have generated a good deal of interest based on the good looks and low price.  Impressions of the amp in relation to the amps would be helpful as well.  I really enjoyed the unpacking and product pics and I look forward to your continuing perceptions of the product.

Thanks!

x2

Yes.

Thank you, Jude.

For others with a more liberal budget, is this better than, say, the Gilmore Lite or GS-1? Will it compete with the Concerto? Luxman?

I have the Gilmore Lite (more money) and the Little Dot MKIII (less money). Both are excellent amps. Are the Schiit amps going to trounce the competition into the ground or be a nice alternative to a very competitive market? As they say... Time will tell.

A quick fix if the mechanical noise bothers some folks is to buy a rubber spacer for the traffo ( depending on the type of traffo) isolate the bolts holding that unit in place from the chassis bottom plate with a cork/rubber spacer and tighten the bolts down (not too much, just good and snug). The mechanical noise should be lessened considerably.

Maybe Schiit can look into a small option in this regard or factor in the pad(s) into the price. Shouldn't add more than 1 dollar to the cost I would think for an effective solution.

Thanks for the impressions Jude !! Nice freaking pics...I wish I could take pics like that...

Peete.

A quick fix if the mechanical noise bothers some folks is to buy a rubber spacer for the traffo ( depending on the type of traffo) isolate the bolts holding that unit in place from the chassis bottom plate with a cork/rubber spacer and tighten the bolts down (not too much, just good and snug). The mechanical noise should be lessened considerably.

I've been contacted and asked for impressions.  I'm swamped at the moment, but here are some bulletpoints:

PROS:

• So far, it easily and very nicely drives all low-impedance full-size headphones I tried with it (SHURE SRH840, Grado HF-2, Grado HF-1, Grado GS-1000, Sennheiser HD380 Pro) very nicely.
• It also drives the Sennheiser HD600/650 very nicely.  The Sennheiser HD800 (which I find to be very amp-picky) is also nicely compatible with the Asgard--that pairing (HD800/Asgard) makes a very nice budget rig (if you can call any rig with a $1400 headphone in it "budget").
• The sound signature is on the smooth side, which I like--still detailed, but on the smoother side.  It has a nice sense of ease with pretty much everything I've plugged into it.  If you want analytical, look elsewhere.
• The Asgard has nice jump--it hasn't felt underpowered at all.  In fact, the Asgard seems to me to have ample reserves of power for most of what we'd use it for (normal non-K1000 headphones).  I've not yet driven it to where it loses any poise--keep in mind that I don't listen loud, so my testing in this regard has been rather transient.  I haven't tried it with my AKG K340 yet, which I've found to be a challenging headphone to drive.
• It is quiet with all full-sized headphones I've tried with it.
• It's $249.00.

CONS:

• It can drive my custom IEMs, but the isolation of the IEMs (plus their sensitivity), does reveal some of the Asgard's self-noise, however low-level.  In short, it's not as quiet as most of the good portable amps I've tried with the same IEMs.  Still, the noise is low-level enough that the Asgard is still very listenable with IEMs.  (But don't make it your first choice of amp if driving UE18 Pros or JH13 Pros is your primary thing.)
• It runs hot.  This doesn't personally bother me, but some consider that a con, so I thought I'd mention it.  If you ordered the Asgard and the heat surprises you, you must've ordered it without seeing their website, as they make clear mention of the copious heat.
• The Asgard emits a very mild mechanical hum (from the transformer interacting with the chassis).  I didn't even notice it until I moved my rig from my work office to my home office (the latter having less ambient noise).  It is very mild, very low level--from where I sit, my laptop's fan kicking up masks it.  The quieter your listening environs, the more likely you are to hear it (obviously).  I want to emphasize that it's mechanical, and does not come through the output (you won't hear it through the headphones).  I'm not bothered by it; but I think part of that is tempered by the low price, and the Asgard's performance otherwise so far.

Also in the pros, the styling is very nice, and I think will find favor with many folks, especially at the price (I still can't believe the price).  One other small con:  I wish the RCA jacks were spaced a bit further apart.  My Cardas Golden Reference RCA plugs are pressing against each other (but they still plug in and work fine).

Again, sorry so brief, but it's still very early with the amp, and I'm simply pressed for time at the moment.

Long story short on the early impressions:  the Asgard is, to my ears, much more than $249.00 worth of amp, in terms of sound quality and versatility.