[genck]

Got my G6 now with the Asgard and I really like this combo. I much prefer this to the Modi 3 in fact. Very energetic sound without being overblown. Less warm but less withdrawn mids than the Modi.

The G6 internal amp sounds sparklier than the Asgard to me but with that comes a irritating edge than the Asgard gets rid of. I agree there is less weight to the bass and Asgard sounds like its got more body/lower mids. Asgard sounds more natural to me. Asgard has more depth to the soundstage as well, sounds a bit less congested.

This being said I actually like G6 internal amp on some metal/rock as I like the spark/edginess as it gives some bite to guitars, Asgard can be too polite on some energetic tracks for my taste. Its quite a nice combo as I can just switch to which one I prefer for each track though its the Asgard 95% of the time.

The digital filters on the G6 make a difference to me as well, I actually like the Fast, Minimum phase one for the internal amp but I prefer the fast, linear phase on the Asgard. Minimum phase sounds less irritating, but a little dull while linear is the opposite. Slow filters are just dull and I dont care for them. A small thing but enough for me to notice. Asgard sounds killer with the linear phase one with my Amiron home.

The DAC in the G6 is Cirrus Logic which is similar to what some apple products use, the modi uses AK as you may be aware. Good comparisons there, glad you like the A3 as well.

 

[Rensek]

I currently have the Modi 2 Uber, Topping D30, and Grace SDAC.

I love the Asgard 3, but I didn't want to be tied down with a card. Im thinking of getting another DAC and I have it down to three choices...

Modi 3 black $99
Topping D50S $185
Bifrost 4490 closeout in black $250

Has anyone actually tried a 4490 Bifrost and is it that much better?

I DO NOT CARE ABOUT MEASUREMENTS. I care about sound quality and tonality. (Sorry for shouting, dont want any ASR comments).

I have a 4490 bifrost, self install, did it back in October....

It's great. I also have a Bifrost 2.

I'd say if you are looking at best cost vs performance factor, get a Bifrost 4490 over the modis.

Bifrost 2 is better then the 4490, but only you can determine if its worth 450 dollars more then the 4490. That difference could buy some nice HPs

 

[Rensek]

The DAC in the G6 is Cirrus Logic which is similar to what some apple products use, the modi uses AK as you may be aware. Good comparisons there, glad you like the A3 as well.

The Cirrus logic DAC in my IPad air 2 is pretty stellar.

 

[genck]

The Cirrus logic DAC in my IPad air 2 is pretty stellar.

Cool story bro, I didn't say it wasn't

 

[Plautus001]

I have a 4490 bifrost, self install, did it back in October....

It's great. I also have a Bifrost 2.

I'd say if you are looking at best cost vs performance factor, get a Bifrost 4490 over the modis.

Bifrost 2 is better then the 4490, but only you can determine if its worth 450 dollars more then the 4490. That difference could buy some nice HPs

Thanks for the feedback... I'm still thinking about it... not sure what's going to come out over the next year.... but I am tempted by the 4490 but Canadian exchange is killing me.

 

[Rensek]

Cool story bro, I didn't say it wasn't

I don't think the dude or Walter would approve of a Walter avatar while using the awful, awful, awful slang of "bro"

Also, I was agreeing with you, a plus one so to speak..

It helps tie the room together.

 

[genck]

I don't think the dude or Walter would approve of a Walter avatar while using the awful, awful, awful slang of "bro"

Also, I was agreeing with you, a plus one so to speak..

It helps tie the room together.

I was hoping you would be out of your element dude, but you're not.

 

[Asahi Templar]

The DAC in the G6 is Cirrus Logic which is similar to what some apple products use, the modi uses AK as you may be aware. Good comparisons there, glad you like the A3 as well.

Yeah G6 uses the CS43131 which is quite new and rare so far. Only a few daps out there using it, and I think the G6 is the only desktop dac to use it.

I am quite impressed with it, I actually have disliked every other Cirrus Logic dac I have tried, but they all used the older CS4398. This new one sounds amazing, from memory its extremely similar to the Sabre 9038 which is also great.

Really impressive little chip, very low power consumption, wouldnt be surprised if the newer Iphones are using it or something extremely similar. Its likely one of the best options out there now if power consumption is a concern.

Modi uses the AKM 4490 like most the modern Schiit DS dacs. Will be interesting to hear if more people find the 4490 based dacs good with the Asgard.

Not sure how much different the Bifrost 4490 is from the Modi 3.

i suspect the Modi Multibit would also be great with the Asgard.

From what I understand Jason uses the Asgard 3 with the new Bifrost on his desk, so maybe that is the best pairing if you can afford it lol.

 

[goryglory0209]

Got my G6 now with the Asgard and I really like this combo. I much prefer this to the Modi 3 in fact. Very energetic sound without being overblown. Less warm but less withdrawn mids than the Modi.

The G6 internal amp sounds sparklier than the Asgard to me but with that comes a irritating edge than the Asgard gets rid of. I agree there is less weight to the bass and Asgard sounds like its got more body/lower mids. Asgard sounds more natural to me. Asgard has more depth to the soundstage as well, sounds a bit less congested.

This being said I actually like G6 internal amp on some metal/rock as I like the spark/edginess as it gives some bite to guitars, Asgard can be too polite on some energetic tracks for my taste. Its quite a nice combo as I can just switch to which one I prefer for each track though its the Asgard 95% of the time.

The digital filters on the G6 make a difference to me as well, I actually like the Fast, Minimum phase one for the internal amp but I prefer the fast, linear phase on the Asgard. Minimum phase sounds less irritating, but a little dull while linear is the opposite. Slow filters are just dull and I dont care for them. A small thing but enough for me to notice. Asgard sounds killer with the linear phase one with my Amiron home.

I had an Aune X1S used with Asgard 3 but then moved to Modi. Its a lot of difference in sound stage as well as the the music sounds more cleaner way cleaner.

 

[Asahi Templar]

I had an Aune X1S used with Asgard 3 but then moved to Modi. Its a lot of difference in sound stage as well as the the music sounds more cleaner way cleaner.

Yeah that soundstage difference is what I dont care for about the Modi. It sounds like the presence region/upper mids are a bit withdrawn on the Modi which makes the vocals sound further away from you. Its a nifty effect and I think it works really well with Sennheiser Hd6xx series headphones but with the headphones I use that already have the vocals a bit laid back its too much. Everything sounds a bit diffuse and too polite for me.

its a really bad match with the Amiron home imo, as the amiron already has somewhat withdrawn upper mids and some very warm mids, Modi takes it to a 11. Alternatively if you really into that sort of sound I guess it would be a amazing combo.

Detail is very good on the Modi and its very pleasant sounding though, I just crave a little more excitement/intimacy.

Think I may be in the minority on this one, most people seem to like the big soundstage effect, I like a relatively intimate one or everything sounds too diffuse to me. . I dont even really like the HD800 for instance, great headphone but too diffuse sounding for me.

Just been listening to Nirvana's unplugged with the Asgard ,G6 and my EQed Amiron, sounds so damn good. Really does sound like you are sitting in the front row at the concert. Wish I had gotten this setup earlier, could have saved so much time and money lol.

 

[goryglory0209]

Yeah that soundstage difference is what I dont care for about the Modi. It sounds like the presence region/upper mids are a bit withdrawn on the Modi which makes the vocals sound further away from you. Its a nifty effect and I think it works really well with Sennheiser Hd6xx series headphones but with the headphones I use that already have the vocals a bit laid back its too much. Everything sounds a bit diffuse and too polite for me.

its a really bad match with the Amiron home imo, as the amiron already has somewhat withdrawn upper mids and some very warm mids, Modi takes it to a 11. Alternatively if you really into that sort of sound I guess it would be a amazing combo.

Detail is very good on the Modi and its very pleasant sounding though, I just crave a little more excitement/intimacy.

Think I may be in the minority on this one, most people seem to like the big soundstage effect, I like a relatively intimate one or everything sounds too diffuse to me. . I dont even really like the HD800 for instance, great headphone but too diffuse sounding for me.

Just been listening to Nirvana's unplugged with the Asgard ,G6 and my EQed Amiron, sounds so damn good. Really does sound like you are sitting in the front row at the concert. Wish I had gotten this setup earlier, could have saved so much time and money lol.

I agree with your comment on the Vocals and that beat that gets missed. I feel the same. You are now making me think that I may go get a G6. I have been using the Dt990 80Ohm and Sen HD599. On DT surely it looks sometimes commpressed. Source is mainly Tidal Premium.

 

[goryglory0209]

I agree with your comment on the Vocals and that beat that gets missed. I feel the same. You are now making me think that I may go get a G6. I have been using the Dt990 80Ohm and Sen HD599. On DT surely it looks sometimes commpressed. Source is mainly Tidal Premium.

I sometimes feel better using my Blon 03 with this combo. They sound so neutral balanced that its puts shame on the Expensive headsets. Not sure how that happens. Maybe its the combo that just works with those IEM

 

[Asahi Templar]

I agree with your comment on the Vocals and that beat that gets missed. I feel the same. You are now making me think that I may go get a G6. I have been using the Dt990 80Ohm and Sen HD599. On DT surely it looks sometimes compressed. Source is mainly Tidal Premium.

G6 is very nice, really impressive device for the money. I think it has the most features for the lowest price of any dac out there currently and sounds great. May be able to get it cheap used too, I got mine for about 75 dollars used here in Japan.

Only complaint I have with it is Creatives software is a pain to get running at least on my PC it was. Some people just plug it in and have it work, but on my PC it kept thinking it was a realtek device and trying to install realtek drivers for it. I think its because my motherboard had a creative sound thing as a bonus feature and it caused windows to see it as part of that. Very strange and other people had similar issues. Its not given me any problems now that its up and running but really wish Creative could get it together software wise. Not anything new though, Creative has always struggled with driver issues.

Dt990 is quite similar to the Amiron Home FR wise so might also be a bit of a bad match at least if you like your vocals a little closer yeah, they are already going to be a bit recessed.

I think the Modi is at its best with a relatively neutral headphone or midrange forward headphone as it gives them a little more openness without hurting the vocal presence too much. Not heard a Blon 03 yet but they are supposed to be great for the price.

Its amazing how cheap great audio is getting nowadays.

 

[Chastity]

Its amazing how cheap great audio is getting nowadays.

Speaking of which, I see the DT-1770 Pro on Amazon for $393, or $78.60/mo for 5 months. Nice.

Also, thanks for the info on the Modi, and I would be upset if the mids were more recessed on these headphones. Fortunately, I prefer the A pads, and it's the B-pads that recess the mids. I decided against having a DAC card in my Asgard, because I don't like the fact that there's only USB input. I would want optical in option so I can use my G6 with it. The G6 in 5.1 or 7.1 Virtual and Direct Mode is wonderful for my 24/96 6ch DVDA rips. I'd hate to have to rely on Dolby Atmos for Headphones or DTS:X.

 

[Asahi Templar]

Speaking of which, I see the DT-1770 Pro on Amazon for $393, or $78.60/mo for 5 months. Nice.

Also, thanks for the info on the Modi, and I would be upset if the mids were more recessed on these headphones. Fortunately, I prefer the A pads, and it's the B-pads that recess the mids. I decided against having a DAC card in my Asgard, because I don't like the fact that there's only USB input. I would want optical in option so I can use my G6 with it. The G6 in 5.1 or 7.1 Virtual and Direct Mode is wonderful for my 24/96 6ch DVDA rips. I'd hate to have to rely on Dolby Atmos for Headphones or DTS:X.

That is cool I didnt know the virtual surround would work over optical out and direct mode. I assumed it was tied to the SBX engine and would be disabled in direct mode. Very nice feature!

Havent yet played around with the virtual surround, just been using it in stereo direct mode.

Being able to run virtual surround to a better dac in the future is very nice indeed. Only having USB is definitely a weakness of the Asgard addon cards.

THe DT-1770 dropped a lot because of the Drop 177x-go I think. Not sure which is actually a better headphone. The drop one comes with more earpads and is a bit less bright I think but drops to 32ohms. Not sure if the lower impedance will make any difference in detail/resolution. Traditionally the higher impedance Beyerdynamics have been better, so maybe the DT1770 might actually be a better buy.

The Tesla Beyers pair really nicely with the Asgard as it cuts some of the harshness from the treble. I still use EQ with my Amiron to drop the treble a bit, but its a lot more tolerable even without EQ than it is on many other amps.