NEW - Schiit Asgard 2

[volly]

I’ve used my Darkvoice 336 SE and my Little Dot Mark 2 as a tube preamp on my Magni 2U and Magni 3 and it does soften up the treble a bit. Looking to get an Asgard 2 to have also to have a solid state amp that doesn’t move when I have the stock cable from the Focal Elear plugged in. I’ve always wanted a non tube Class A amp and the Asgard 2 is pretty much the only game in town. And I’m not digging the newer topologies with opamps. Give me an amp that has transistors and has some weight to it any day.

Looking forward to your thoughts on the A2, I personally love the A2 but it only gets used every now and then! One of/if not, the hottest amp I own (temperature wise!) but it puts out a beautiful clean but slightly warm tone, smooth in the mids with very decent mid's and treble, the treble could be a little more refined but it is, what it is! The power it puts out is mostly significant, especially with lower impedance headphones and works well with IEM's and high-impedance headphones too! I also have the first-gen Mjolnir and to me, they definitely share a similar sound - which I love, compared to the Jot, the A2 is warmer/smoother, less harsh but a tad slower and doesn't quite pull-up that extra bit of detail like the Jot can. Pairing the A2 with planar's could be a winning combo, especially neutral-tuned headphones as the A2 can sweeten up the mid's and bring it out a bit, like my Edition X or AR H1's. My Nighthawks can get a bit bloomy in the bass and the mid's thicken up like hot-fudge, it can be a great pairing but comes down to what I'm listening too as it can bog down little in it's technicalities (More suited to the Jot)! The Vali 2 and the Asgard are like similar siblings to me, you could just get the Vali and be happy, but if you want a Solid-state then the Asgard can serve a similar sounding purpose. The Asgard definitely has a blacker background than the Vali 2. For the extra money, you get a very mature amp but it all comes down to personal preference. I do get bored of the Asgard some times and running an Asgard 2 in the summer isn't ideal, perfect for cold winters though!

My wishlist for the Asgard 3:

-Keep that sound signature but refine/polish it in to a diamond!
-Keep the heat if you must, for it's power delivery, but give the Chassis an overhaul!
-Speaker taps on the back to run some Passive speakers, nothing crazy but enough juice to run some small bookshelf speakers! (Imagine a $250 speaker/headphone amp in Class A with Schiits build quality) A baby Vidar as you will!? With Stereo or Mono flexibility?! I would have one in the Home theater, no problem!

 

[Voxata]

I’ve used my Darkvoice 336 SE and my Little Dot Mark 2 as a tube preamp on my Magni 2U and Magni 3 and it does soften up the treble a bit. Looking to get an Asgard 2 to to have a solid state amp that doesn’t move when Im using the stock cable with my Focal Elear. I’ve always wanted a non tube Class A amp and the Asgard 2 is pretty much the only game in town. And I’m not digging the newer topologies with opamps. Give me an amp that has transistors and has some weight to it any day.

Depends, you more a fan of weight or sound quality? The A2 is a great amp, but several opamp designs I've listened to have been amazing amps.

 

[Assimilator702]

Depends, you more a fan of weight or sound quality? The A2 is a great amp, but several opamp designs I've listened to have been amazing amps.

Well it has to be a full size amp which should take care of the weight issue. I was thinking of grabbing a THX 789 but those are not exactly available.

Name the amps that you've heard that completely destroy the Asgard 2 in every conceivable way. All I have right now is a Little Dot Mark 2 which will probably be sold, Darkvoice 336 SE and a Magni 3. The Magni 3 is obviously the most accurate to my ears on to the 6XX, 58X, 4XX, DT990, DT880 and Focal Elear. The Darkvoice is also nice but can only be used with high Z cans.

 

[tamleo]

Well it has to be a full size amp which should take care of the weight issue. I was thinking of grabbing a THX 789 but those are not exactly available.

Name the amps that you've heard that completely destroy the Asgard 2 in every conceivable way. All I have right now is a Little Dot Mark 2 which will probably be sold, Darkvoice 336 SE and a Magni 3. The Magni 3 is obviously the most accurate to my ears on to the 6XX, 58X, 4XX, DT990, DT880 and Focal Elear. The Darkvoice is also nice but can only be used with high Z cans.

The Magni3 easily destroys the Asgard2. Dang, even the Asgard1 sounds better to my ear than the Asgard2. So is the Magni2u.
The Asgard2 has a smooth sound but it lacks severely cleanliness, detail, speed and control.

 

[reddog]

I’ve used my Darkvoice 336 SE and my Little Dot Mark 2 as a tube preamp on my Magni 2U and Magni 3 and it does soften up the treble a bit. Looking to get an Asgard 2 to to have a solid state amp that doesn’t move when Im using the stock cable with my Focal Elear. I’ve always wanted a non tube Class A amp and the Asgard 2 is pretty much the only game in town. And I’m not digging the newer topologies with opamps. Give me an amp that has transistors and has some weight to it any day.

The Asgard 2 is a good solid state amp. I used mine at work, and it easily drove all my headphones, including my power hungry Alpha Primes.

 

[peptodismal]

How will the A2 pair with the hd 660s? It's on the way with a bifrost but after reading through this thread I'm wondering if I should have paired it with a val or even a jotenheim now. The A2 would drive them, but would either of those be more ideal?

 

[Otheronek]

I want to get one and they are on back order..... Now till 5/1...

 

[Assimilator702]

The Magni3 easily destroys the Asgard2. Dang, even the Asgard1 sounds better to my ear than the Asgard2. So is the Magni2u.
The Asgard2 has a smooth sound but it lacks severely cleanliness, detail, speed and control.

I also have a Magni 2U but haven’t compared it to the Asagard 2. I’m still getting to know it’s sound signature but I haven’t heard the criticisms you mentioned compared to the Magni 3.

 

[Assimilator702]

I want to get one and they are on back order..... Now till 5/1...

They were on back order until 4/10 2 weeks ago so I took a chance in a used one on Ebay. I got it for $192 SHIPPED and it’s flawless. So far every time I think I hear something missing after a few back and forth comparisons I find I’m mistaken. It’s a bit smoother in the treble than the Magni 3.

Read the review on moon audio. That review is fairly spot on to my findings but the criticisms he brought up when I do hear them don’t bother me too much.

And the amp doesn’t get as hot as people claim if you stand it on its LEFT side on. I have a laptop cooler with one 120 mm fan and it keeps it cool facing the top of the amp or the bottom panel. I made some temporary feet from some Blu Tak, a layer of thin plastic with a strip of rubber for grip. I can I remove them anytime with no residue left behind.

 

[Assimilator702]

How will the A2 pair with the hd 660s? It's on the way with a bifrost but after reading through this thread I'm wondering if I should have paired it with a val or even a jotenheim now. The A2 would drive them, but would either of those be more ideal?

The Asgard 2 drive my 58X very nicely and they’re both 150 ohms. Magni 3 volume control is maybe 9 o’clock while the Asgard 2 is somewhere between 10 and 11 o’clock.

 

[Otheronek]

i have a crazy feeling we might see an asgard 3...with the release of the aegir...I wouldn't doubt we see a trickle down.. I am going to hold out to see.

 

[Otheronek]

Ordered my first piece of schiit today... Expecting my asgard2 next week!

 

[Voxata]

Guess you didn't hold out! You'll enjoy the Asgard 2, I rather did mine when I had one.

 

[theveterans]

Ordered my first piece of schiit today... Expecting my asgard2 next week!

You'll love its really low noise floor that even my sensitive CA Vega IEM exhibits ZERO noise floor.

 

[volly]

Running my Edition X's off the old Asgard 2, beautiful amp!