I think the Magni story is my favorite.

I haven't been active on this thread or Head-Fi generally, but wanted to offer my condolences.  I have been following this thread actively since the start, and have very much enjoyed your writing and my Schiit purchases.
 
I also want to offer one small suggestion.  For those readers who choose to follow the links directly to chapters and not read everything in between, could you edit the original post to add in links to the bonus chapters, and maybe also the posts from Mike and Alex (which offer wonderful additional commentary and insight to the story).
 
 
And thanks again for sharing this story with us.  It's been a real pleasure.

Bonus Chapter: Perspective
 
Author’s Note
 
Hey all,
 
Thank you all for the condolences. I wasn’t in a particularly good place last week. This week is still a morass of things to deal with and unexpected surprises, but I am getting back into the swing of things.
 
So, what does this mean for Schiit Audio, Ragnarok, Yggdrasil, and everything else in general?
 
First, the Ragnaroks are not in the dumpster, and Mike and Dave continue to move ahead. I’m going to shut up on pronouncements about when you’re going to see them…but you will. Mike (Baldr) can provide additional commentary, if he’d like.
 
Second, Mike and Dave are also moving ahead on Yggdrasil. Same here, not gonna promise dates anymore. Ask Baldr.
 
Finally, everything else? Everything else is moving ahead, much more rapidly than you might imagine! Everything else is fun. Everything else has no pressure of artificial launch dates on it, and we can take our time to get it right. It’s a great time to be in engineering at Schiit…because you ain’t seen nothing yet!
 
Yes. It’s a bright future. And I’m going to keep it that way.
 
And so, instead of the next chapter I’d planned to write, I’d going to do something completely different. Here’s a completely unplugged, unfiltered treatise on perspective. Perspective, both in business and personal terms. It’s far too easy for everything to devolve into shouting matches about meaningless stuff like formats and technologies, while the big issues get a pass. So let’s pull the elephant out of the corner and talk about what might be the hardest thing of all: maintaining perspective.
 
All the best,
Jason
 
 
A Prescient Comment
 
“After a few pages of the DSD/PCM/provenance/upsampling/etc debate, do you wonder why so many people think us audiophiles are a little bit nuts?
 
Time to listen to some music, I think. Does it sound good? Yep. Then all is well.”
 
From the Schiit Happened Thread
Posted by Jason Stoddard
July 13, 2014
 
 
The Audio Biz and Loss of Perspective
 
Okay, let’s get some stuff out of the way. In my opinion, we work in an industry with some profoundly broken corners. I’ve mentioned that Mike and I got out of high-end largely because we didn’t want to chase the then-new trend of “superprice audiophilia.” The price escalation for the sake of price escalation, with no new ground broken in terms of technology—that wasn’t for us.
 
And today, it’s a hundred times worse. People argue over $20K+ DACs. Reviews of $40K preamps are common. There are dozens of speaker models with retail prices over $100K. I was told that a “moderate price” system was $250-500K at a recent show, by a guy who said it with no trace of irony in his voice.
 
Let’s be clear. This is insanity.
 
Obsessing over $250K system is out-and-out nuts, no matter how much you make. Period. Get out. Buy a Ferrari. Get laid. Listen to real music. Start a band. Travel the world. This is what people do when they haven’t lost perspective.
 
Similarly, producing products that cater to this uber-priced segment is nuts. It just fuels an additional “my price is bigger than your price,” escalation—and this escalation usually doesn’t result in pushing the limits of actual audio performance, except in a handful of cases where implementation is astoundingly challenging (I’m thinking of discrete R2R DACs, and, to a lesser extent, turntable designs.)
 
Yes, I’m indicting an entire sector of the industry, but that is my honest opinion.
 
And…this is why I like headphone audio. By and large, the “price-is-everything” attitude is much, much less. Yes, there are expensive products. But not orders of magnitude more expensive. And, with a more tight-knit community, products that offer poor value are usually deconstructed pretty quickly. There’s still a reasonable amount of perspective out there.
 
I’m really hoping we can keep our perspective, as personal audio grows up.
 
So how do we do it? Hell, I don’t have all the answers. But I think I can at least outline the signposts on the path to lost perspective, and maybe, just maybe, help some companies and individuals avoid the loss.
 
 
Business Perspective, and Avoiding Devolution into an Algorithmic Robot
 
This is every businesses’ dilemma: how do you avoid devolution from a human business, into a soulless robot driven only by algorithms and metrics?
 
Most businesses start human. People usually don’t start a business only to make money and screw people on customer service. They usually start a business because it’s something they love, and something they believe in. They put their soul into it. And this love and soul is reflected in everything they do. When a business is small, everything happens at a human level. When you talk to them, you’re talking to a real person. When something goes wrong, it’s a personal failure for the business founder, and they scramble to make it right.
 
Then they encounter their first insane customer. Yes, they exist. And I’m not talking about insane in terms of “they didn’t like the product, and returned it,” I’m talking insane in terms of “they scammed you,” or “belligerently tried to take down your business,” or something of the sort. And they are out there.
 
That encounter chips away at that love. That soul.
 
Then they get another. Then they get yelled at for something beyond their control. Then they get dismissed as a hack or incompetent. And every one of those encounters wears away a little more of that love and soul.
 
Warning sign: if you ever start saying, “It’s good enough,” start worrying. You’re starting to lose the love. Yes, even if you have to ship something late.
 
This continues as the business grows. Businesses get scammed by people with bogus credit cards. Or their dealers don’t pay, if they’re silly enough to have dealers and give them terms. They get people who make it their mission to take them down, over some imagined (or sometimes real) slight.
 
And that leads to the first of three phases in becoming a soulless, algorithmic corporation.
 
Retraction phase. This is when you stop caring. When “Good enough!” becomes your mantra. When you start saying things like, “There’s nothing we can do about it.” You’re pulling back from your business, removing the love and soul. When you start bitching about your customers in front of other people in the business, and spreading the contempt. This is a disease. It has to be killed before it spreads. Because, you know what? It’s your humanity that separates you from the rest.
 
Codification phase. If you don’t actively stop the retraction phase, you’ll end up spreading it throughout the company, where it can end up being codified. Your production line will take “Good enough,” and run with it until it isn’t “good enough” to compete. Your engineers will stop caring about what they should be doing, and start copying other company’s designs that are “good enough.” Your customer service will stop answering inquiries quickly, and put in their own rules of “Well, 24-48 hours for response is fine,” or “Put it in the ticket system, we’ll get to it.” Once the company has reached this point, you’re in big trouble. The founders may be celebrating success by buying Ferraris or taking long, expensive vacations, but the end is in sight. Soon, you’ll end up like Time Warner or AT&T, where people only “Like” them on Facebook to bitch about their poor products and abysmal service.
 
Algorithmic takeover. Once it’s been codified, it’s time for the professional managers to move in. These are the number-crunchers, the beancounters, the benchmarkers. They’ll bring in data about how you’re doing relative to other companies in your industry, so you can “improve” your processes. What this usually results in, unfortunately, is usually the same-to-the-penny offerings and beyond-abysmal level of customer service. Because nobody else is doing any better. And it’s very easy to look at a CEO dashboard that says, “Hey, we have a 39% higher customer satisfaction rating than our competition,” without revealing that your competition’s customer satisfaction is at 9%. At this point, congratulations. You’re not a person anymore. You’re a robot, moved only by algorithms. If you’re lucky enough, you may be able to move fast enough to survive.
 
So, how do you avoid this fate?
 
First, by recognizing why you started your business: your love of music, or cars, or code, or whatever—and never forgetting it. If it works to put a banner up on your wall that you see every day as a reminder, do it. Otherwise, make sure you have enough time to sit back and remember.
 
Second, by defining a philosophy. Your philosophy should be a natural outgrowth of what you love about your business. It will help keep you on track. Need another banner? Add it to the wall.
 
Third, by active reflection. Remember the great customers, the wonderful accolades, the moment you first held (or heard) a new product. Take time for yourself. Don’t pack your schedule so full that you don’t have time to sit back and put your feet up. Because your business has many wonderful times. Don’t forget them in the rush to do “What’s next!”
 
Or, as I’ve said before: stay small, stay human.
 
 
Personal Perspective, and Avoiding Mutation into an Inflexible Ass
 
This is a common personal dilemma. Someone buys an expensive product, and is told by someone that it “really isn’t that good,” which then turns into a shouting match about minutiae that no sane person really cares about. Or they buy into an ideology that must be The One Right And True Way, and begin inculcating everyone around them into that Way.
 
Add instant, anonymous communication into the mix, and boom! You have a recipe for transforming an otherwise sane and rational person into a didactic, inflexible ass. Now, this doesn’t happen all the time, but sometimes I wonder if the ability to disagree congenially is on life support.
 
And yes, I understand that this inflexibility can be an expression of personal philosophy, or love of an object or idea. That’s cool.
 
But…ask yourself one question before you hit the keyboard: does it matter?
 
Most of the time, the answer will be “no.”
 
Yes, I know, when you love something, or believe in something, it’s easy to take any negative comment as a personal attack. And that might get you going to the point where you want to “educate” the attacker.
 
But will you convert them? No.
 
Some people love French wine. Some people like California wine better. Neither is going to convince the other with words. Some people love Corvettes, and some people love Porsches. Same deal. Some people love Schiit, and some people love other products. Same.
 
DSD vs PCM? Same.
 
Rock vs classical? Same.
 
Objectivist vs subjectivist? Same.
 
You know what, if you love it, then that’s fine. It doesn’t matter what other people think. And if you think you’re going to convert them by pounding a keyboard on an online forum, or writing a book, or yelling at them in person, you’re profoundly overconfident. Or a much better writer or speaker than I am.
 
(And, here’s the thing: the other guy might have a point. Try something new. You might surprise yourself.)
 
So, it’s simple. Ask yourself: Does it matter?
 
And, if you want to get a little introspective, ask yourself: What do I really know? If you’re just parroting marketing blather or some “consensus” opinion you derived from reading two posts, well…you may not know as much as you think.
 
And, if you’re interested in broadening your horizons, remind yourself: Maybe I should try some new things.
 
That’s the path of sanity. Everything else, not so much.
 
And now, time for some music. Probably 16/44. Probably forgot to turn Bitperfect on. Who knows? Who cares? It sounds good. I like it.
 
And that’s what matters.

Good morning Jason!
 
First off, my condolences on losing your father.  Mine passed away 20 years ago and I still miss him often.  The only wish I can offer you is that the pain dulls slightly over time and you are left with all of the good memories of your time with him.
 
Second, good to see you back here!  It means that some healing is taking place, and that is certainly a good thing.
 
I've been following this series as a lurker, but I had to take the time to register this morning and comment on this latest update.  Quite simply, brilliant, and something to reference in the future.  I frequent car forums, and everything you've said is relevant there also.  More importantly, as a partner in a new business (vastly different, but still...) your words regarding passion will help us in going forward.  Thank you for sharing your story, it truly is inspirational.

Welcome back, Jason. Good to see you're regaining your equilibrium after that life-altering event. Your comments on perspective should be read and reflected upon by anyone tempted to take trivial things too seriously. Which is far too many of us, especially on Head-fi. Not me, no, never, really. Take care, and best to Mike, Rina and everyone at Schiit.

I think many people have learned to "not feed the trolls" on the internet, but most continue to feed "The Monster" that is online opinions. You don't want to feed that either.

My basic rule of thumb is to try to contribute something positive and/or contructive. And If I can't, I stay out of it. Every time I break my rule I regret it.

So thank you, Jason, for contributing everything here. Everything has been a good laugh or a good lesson to learn

Jason,
You have a perspective that so many of us can learn from. It almost seems unique to hear from someone in this hobby, let alone an engineer/manufacturer. I really am proud to be an owner of a Schiit product. This is obviously a difficult time for you, yet you still take the time to post here. Don't you know you shouldn't be thinking about us right now! Oh wait, I forgot this is Jason I was referring to. Kudos to you sir!

Sorry to hear of your loss. It is sad when those things happen. Anyway, I really enjoy your writeup. So much so, I ordered one of your DAC's and am looking forward to listening to it.
Jack

I take opinions of my choices like this: there are people who like to torture animals. I sure as hell don't agree with them. Continued success, Jason and gang. I'll see you guys on the 9th.

Best chapter so far.  I really enjoy your writing Jason, and thank you for taking the time every week.  Hopefully the whole thing becomes an eBook when it's done.

Thanks, Jason.  I really appreciate your writing.
 
To further your point about rational internet debate:
 
http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2004/03/19
 
&
 
https://twitter.com/theagilepirate/status/471655978468122625/photo/1

Good Schiit ,
 
For some time now I haven't been able to discover anything that outperforms my Asgard 2 .   I have a long career in HI-END Audio that reaches back to Tube Fisher stuff - thru the Linn LP12 / Koetsu era to today's broad range of super expensive equipment .   I've gone back to my "stored" Gold Standard reference pieces ( for comparisons sake ) to discover the reality that the Asgard 2 is simply outstanding , nothing I own surpasses it's beautiful result . 
 Putting things into context here I'll say that this last Sunday I went to a live Jazz Festival , paid more in tickets than the cost of the Asgard 2 and heard performances that didn't measure up to my own iTunes playing the likes  Gene Harris , Krall , Joni Mitchell and a few others .  
   Probably the PA system wasn't all that great ( a medium  sized JBL system ) but I remained mobile and tried many listening positions , still the venue never quite sounded very-good , certainly not close to great or outstanding , even when I got up close ( 10 feet from the artists ) , no big deal here , it just wasn't all that great of sounds , the musicians were all virtuosos , they played well .    This is no different than days of old , Live concerts were the best we had and our own personal music systems were much worse but approaching better .
   However , now , today ,  I have bit-perfect Lossless 16/44.1 , a very good rendering DAC an Asgard 2 , and Sennheiser HD580s "Consistantly" delivering musical nirvana at the flick of a switch , oh-my , this is what we've been waiting for all-these-years !!!  I'll add that a pair of Emotiva or Adam Active Loudspeakers will enlarge this experience for a living room full of dinner guests . 
  On the matter of the R/2R DACs that Sir Jason hinted to I will "State" : the Ladder resistive Dacs are in fact a whole level of improvement in faithful musical renderings .  They are astonishingly expensive : a basic MSB Labs Analog Dac is $10,000 , their better versions reach to the $50,000 level .  One can only hope that Moore's law takes hold firmly to bring these price levels down to "affordable" range .  Still , if you have a closet filled with "Vintage"  ARC Tube "Reference" pieces , Conrad-Johnson Premier stuff , not-in-use Wilson Monitor Speakers , coils of Transparent Audio Cables , a few Belt Drive Turntables with their delicate Tone-Arms and a boxfull of nice Koetsu Moving Coil Phono Carts , Ebay awaits to turn this Old stuff into cash , your wife will admire you for finally coming to your senses by getting rid of all that "Stereo" junk that she no longer allows in her living room !!  
   I applaud Sir Jason and Dr.Mike , nice going lads !!  , you brought me into the 21st Century , I won't forget you !!!   
 
  Bon Vivant ,
 
  Tony Kaz 
 
  Farmington , Michigan 
 
  " The Home of Rock & Roll " 

Outstanding post Mr. Stoddard.  Thank you for telling the truth.

Jason - Glad to have you back!  My condolences continue.  Thank you for a very insightful post.

Take it or leave it, but it helps me keep a cool head:
Something that I constantly return to to avoid "feeding the trolls"; Every body is the good guy in their own story. Even you in your own story. When you take to the keyboard just remember; there are more details you're missing, you're not always right, you're not always the good guy in your own story.