[Jkane101]

Reviving this thread as this is, as of now, my end game. Would love to hear everyone's thoughts on what the totl headphones to pair with these?

 

[UntilThen]

I love my Yggdrasil and Ragnarok. They will remain in my stable even though I have some OTL amp coming.

My favourite heafphones with this combo are those in my signature.

 

[claud W]

I am in sort of the same boat. I ordered a DNA Stratus, then began to think about selling Ragg. I decided to keep Ragg and rack Ragg, Stratus and Yiggy all together. Some ying and yang , both fed by Yiggy from CD player

 

[UntilThen]

I heard a lot of lovely gear this year. including the Susvara and Woo Audio WA33, WA5, Simaudio MOON 430HAD, Violectric 281, Blue Hawaii with Stax headphones.

I would still rate the Yggdrasil and Ragnarok combo as worthy contender for end game status. I have tried many headphones and they all sound great with this combo. I use Ragnarok solely for headphones because I have a dedicated integrated amp for my speakers.

 

[mcbrion]

Hi, I have a question about the power cord for the Yggdrasil. Are you still using the stock power cord or did you find the unit only delivered its "magic" fully after you changed the cord (if you did that, of course)?
And if you did not, I'm still interested at what point in time you believe the unit reached its full run-in (as in, a week or a month). Thanks.

 

[sheldaze]

Stock cord is good.

I'm not using the stock cord. I'm not using the stock cord for any of my amplifiers or DACs. Call it color or flavor, or just voodoo insurance. I have heard a difference caused by a power cable, in an amplifier I am no longer using (no longer own it). From that experience I decided it simpler to just change the cord. Do I hear a difference, stock cord of Yggy versus what I'm using - no, not really. Am I going back to the stock cord - no. Is the stock cord good - you betcha, it is!

Yggy takes a week to reach full-run. I've run through this process several times, with two different Yggy.

 

[SeaWo|f]

I am a firm believer in power cords making a difference, but not for the reasons that most people will say.. In an amping application especially in power amps which draw a lot of current aftermarket cables can help because they typically have a bigger conductor. Normally power cables are 18, 16 and 14 gauge, rarely you can find a 12. Many aftermarket cables are 10 or 8 gauge. I am sure that their are even larger ones around. As far as shielding, "skin effect" etc I am not convinced that their is a difference if your equipment has a sophisticated well regulated power supply.

 

[Ableza]

Stock.

 

[johnjen]

I have conducted tests that tell me that the greater the current dumping capability of a power cable, not only can these changes be heard, but they usually make a significant improvement in SQ.
Of course this assumes that the branch circuit that is being used is sufficiently 'robust' to begin with, and that the duplex receptacles being used aren't worn out, which I have found on more than one occasion.

These are examples of CP's (Choke Points) that can neutralize other refinements such that no improvement will be noticed.
This can all to often lead to erroneous conclusions.

JJ

 

[KoshNaranek]

Stock.

I would value your opinion on this

://www.mycablemart.com/store/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=7235&ad_source=google_usa_mobile&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoo29tpLB2AIVzbbACh2bIg9fEAQYFyABEgLNWPD_BwE

 

[Ableza]

I would value your opinion on this

://www.mycablemart.com/store/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=7235&ad_source=google_usa_mobile&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoo29tpLB2AIVzbbACh2bIg9fEAQYFyABEgLNWPD_BwE

Looks like a decent product.

Power cords are power cords. The things to look for are good quality construction (which "hospital grade" usually provides as that indicates immunity from spark generation and solid wire-to-connector engagement) and sufficient wire gauge to handle the draw of the load.

By the way, power cords cannot be "choke points." That is not how electricity works. If their impedance is high then they will heat up, wasting power and drawing more from the source than the load requires. But the load will still draw what it draws, right up to the point of power cord failure or source shut down (circuit breaker trip.) Larger gauge wire enables higher current draw with less heat generation in the cord (and insulation is rated to stand off the supply voltage at a given maximum temperature.)

 

[hifimckinney]

Hi, I have a question about the power cord for the Yggdrasil. Are you still using the stock power cord or did you find the unit only delivered its "magic" fully after you changed the cord (if you did that, of course)?
And if you did not, I'm still interested at what point in time you believe the unit reached its full run-in (as in, a week or a month). Thanks.

I use a home-made power cord using bare solid copper (8-10 awg) and I can hear the difference (see..I did not say improvement). The whole thing becomes quieter (less of noise?) and the images (think of every sound and notes a track contains as images) are sharper.

 

[Ableza]

I use a home-made power cord using bare solid copper (8-10 awg) and I can hear the difference (see..I did not say improvement). The whole thing becomes quieter (less of noise?) and the images (think of every sound and notes a track contains as images) are sharper.

And it sounds really safe too.

 

[hifimckinney]

And it sounds really safe too.

Thanks for reminder . When I say 'bare', do not use bare copper as is, insulate it.

 

[johnjen]

snip
By the way, power cords cannot be "choke points." That is not how electricity works. If their impedance is high then they will heat up, wasting power and drawing more from the source than the load requires. But the load will still draw what it draws, right up to the point of power cord failure or source shut down (circuit breaker trip.) Larger gauge wire enables higher current draw with less heat generation in the cord (and insulation is rated to stand off the supply voltage at a given maximum temperature.)

What I'm posting here is not meant as a direct challenge to anyone's beliefs, but is meant as further explanation for what I mean when I use the term CP (Choke Point).
My term CP is related to forms of 'choking' the SQ in any way (be it large or small). Some have observed these reactions, mostly when they substitute components like fuses and cables, while others have not.

There are those who have heard these subtle sonic changes and so have direct personal experience with 'choking' the SQ, and these changes are usually noticed by contrast when the degree of 'choking' has been abated.
And fuses are by definition a CP because that is what they are designed to do, to 'choke' off the current under tightly controlled situations ofttimes while self destructing in the process (the ultimate CP).

That others haven't heard CP's in no way lessens their impact for those who have experienced these effects.
And it is a logically false statement to say that this or that, isn't or can't be the case, unless you have tested every possible combination of every possible piece of gear to ascertain this statement.
This is referred to as a logical fallacy. Such is the nature of Aristotelian logic.
What can be said is that in ones personal experience this or that has, or has not been, experienced.

And the perception of the wire heating up due to high current demands, is not a yes/no situation but a sliding scale where there is ALWAYS some degree of heating and cooling going on in ANY wire.
Such is the nature of power (voltage and current) traveling down a wire.
And since the heating and cooling is dynamic (changing), this can tend to make for a complicated interaction between delivering the signal (intact?) and being able to hear the results of these interactions.
And when a wire does heat up, it does change its impedance, and so will affect the delivery of voltage and current that it has been fed, and this change is dynamic based upon the signal and circuits at each end of the wire.
Some of these interactions certainly are inaudible, while others clearly are audible, as I and many others will clearly attest.

Not to mention that any wire has a frequency response characteristic that it responds to, based upon multiple parameters (wire size, type, layout, geometry, metallurgy, length etc.). And to put it plainly, it isn't a simple relationship between any of those parameters and the overall SQ performance of the wire.

IOW any wire will 'choke' some frequencies while having less effect on other frequencies. These traits can sometimes be used to our advantage, while in other cases not so much.

For those who haven't heard or aren't bothered by these effects, count your lucky stars, while those of us who have, are still trying to get a handle on just what truly IS going on and which parameters are key so we can optimize these influences and hear into the music all the more.

Just my 2¢

JJ