[maheeinfy]

Can you leave headphones plugged in and hook up preamp outputs to powered speakers and still flick through them both? Did someone try it?

I am desperately looking for a unit that DOES NOT require to unplug the headphones in order to unmute the preamp outputs.

Audio-gd to the rescue. R2R11 sounds sweet

 

[Rensek]

Audio-gd to the rescue. R2R11 sounds sweet

Many folks love that item, including a departed friend of mine. Just don't look up the measurements or compare said measurements to other dacs and amps. Stay away from ASR. Just enjoy the music and reject nervosa.

 

[ev666il]

Has anyone else noticed that the Asgard 3 sounds better on high gain, even with headphones that don't need the additional power? To me it sounds a little dull and less dynamic on low. The only explanation I've heard for it is higher feedback on low gain, not sure if that fully explains it.

Same here. I was stubbornly sticking to low gain at the beginning because my cans are low impedance and “don’t need high gain.” But the sound did feel a bit ... lifeless. I kept cranking it up until I was at the max, and it was only marginally better. Then I tried high gain and I finally had satisfaction. No idea how to explain it either—I just like it better this way.

 

[tafens]

Has anyone else noticed that the Asgard 3 sounds better on high gain, even with headphones that don't need the additional power? To me it sounds a little dull and less dynamic on low. The only explanation I've heard for it is higher feedback on low gain, not sure if that fully explains it.

People have said this about the Magni3 as well, and I get the same feeling with the Lyr3. The difference is there and just like you describe. I thought on the Lyr3 that it could be the tube having to work harder and thus making the difference..? It is of course well known that difference in volume can fool the ears, but running in high gain I adjust the volume down accordingly.

Perhaps @Jason Stoddard can offer an explanation as to what the difference is electrically between high and low gain on these amps, as it would be very interesting to know.
Unless it’s a trade secret of course..

 

[ev666il]

It is of course well known that difference in volume can fool the ears, but running in high gain I adjust the volume down accordingly.

I do too, but the chances of getting to exactly the same volume output by ear are close to zero. One of the two will be louder and our ears will perceive as better. However, does it really matter what the root cause is, versus whether our enjoyment is increased? (Though I, for one, can certainly relate to the curiosity.)

 

[tafens]

It is of course well known that difference in volume can fool the ears, but running in high gain I adjust the volume down accordingly.

I do too, but the chances of getting to exactly the same volume output by ear are close to zero. One of the two will be louder and our ears will perceive as better. However, does it really matter what the root cause is, versus whether our enjoyment is increased? (Though I, for one, can certainly relate to the curiosity.)

Of course it doesn’t matter really, as one wise man said, “whatever you do, enjoy the music”

However, that said, it would be interesting to know if the difference perceived is really for real and if so, why that is.

For me, it is not as simple as to switch gain, adjust volume and say; oh high gain is better. I can’t really tell them apart that way. But, when listening on low gain for a while there is that feeling of that there is something missing that presents itself after a while. Switching to high gain makes it sound “right” again. This is regardless of volume. Turning up the volume on low gain doesn’t fix it, it only makes it louder, not more dynamic. I don’t know why, but it is there, and @starence described it very accurately as to how I also perceive it.

 

[porchwizard]

People have said this about the Magni3 as well, and I get the same feeling with the Lyr3. The difference is there and just like you describe. I thought on the Lyr3 that it could be the tube having to work harder and thus making the difference..? It is of course well known that difference in volume can fool the ears, but running in high gain I adjust the volume down accordingly.

Perhaps @Jason Stoddard can offer an explanation as to what the difference is electrically between high and low gain on these amps, as it would be very interesting to know.
Unless it’s a trade secret of course..

Same with my Lyr3. When I got it I switched the gain back and forth a few times and it was clear that it sounded better to me on high gain regardless of volume, so that's where it stays.

 

[Clemmaster]

It’s true for all Schiit Amps with gain switch.
And the reason is indeed lower feedback gain.
It measures worse but consistently sounds better.
I use high gain (Lyr 3) and high attenuation ( IEMatch on ultra) with my sensitive IEMs.

 

[nerone]

People have said this about the Magni3 as well, and I get the same feeling with the Lyr3. The difference is there and just like you describe. I thought on the Lyr3 that it could be the tube having to work harder and thus making the difference..? It is of course well known that difference in volume can fool the ears, but running in high gain I adjust the volume down accordingly.

Perhaps @Jason Stoddard can offer an explanation as to what the difference is electrically between high and low gain on these amps, as it would be very interesting to know.
Unless it’s a trade secret of course..

I've read this many times about low vs high gain for different schiit products. I feel the same about Vali 2.
I guess the lower feedback has something to do with that. Maybe this is why a lot of people praises no overall feedback designs.

 

[486930]

Anyone tried this with a pair of Nightowls? I’m using those while I save up for the Aeon 2 Closed.

Also, anyone done a comparison with the Lyr 3 or the Cavalli CTH?

Thanks

 

[greenarrow]

There is no more the black version A3 on Schiit site when I check. Need a black version to blend with my system. Will the A3 comes with a power on light?

 

[ev666il]

There’s a led within the A3 that lights up when it’s on. When the room is dark, it will project dots onto the wall/ceiling though the ventilation holes in the chassis. On the outside, there is no led light.

Odd about the black chassis missing from the website. I inquired in the Schiit Happened thread. Other products (e.g. Bifrost 2, Jotunheim) still offer black as an option.

 

[tincanear]

Black for Asgard 3 is probably just temporarily out of stock. If you're not in a hurry, then just wait for it to come back and jump on it (check the website daily, because its likely to move quickly with the upcoming holidays)

 

[Jason Stoddard]

Most likely black Asgard 3s are just out of stock. A quick email to orders@schiit.com will clear it up.

 

[bequietjk]

G' day fellow people. I'm about to pull a trigger and purchase the Asgard 3. I will be pairing it with the Sennheiser HD660s. Currently, own AKG K712 Pro but the mini xlr connector in the headphones is like loose or something and the left headphone is going on and off depending how I move with the cable. I recently purchased a brand new cable as I hoped it would fix the issue but it's still there. I have been powering these off of the Asus Maximus IX Hero Alpha. My primary use is gaming, followed by the usual music listening and movie watching. They served me quite well, even though you might say that without a decent amp at least I couldn't hear their full potential. As was described before, its soundstage is really awesome, but somewhat lack more precise imaging.
I am aware that HD660s don't have such a 'large' soundstage but if its imaging is better presented than the K712 Pro I'm sure I won't mind.

I would like you - the experienced folks - ask something:

What and how big is the difference between the multibit DAC and 4490? I read in previous pages that the former has a slightly higher latency. On the other hand, apparently the multibit sounds a little better. I don't expect to win the next CSGO championship, nor do I earn money by playing games... though, I'm very competitive with my other FPS shooters and wouldn't like to get something I'd regret afterward.

The rep from schiit told me quote 'The multibit sounds better in my opinion, more detailed and spacious'. Would I benefit from such upgrade (if say the latency isn't an issue) or should I rather save the 90 euros(?)
Is there other benefit going for multibit instead of 4490 DAC?

Hold that thought!

Somewhere among the head-fi threads (most likely the AKG K712 Impressions thread) is a fix for an issue like that one you're having IIRC. It's that the internal soldering of the drivers can come loose or even fully seperated and needs to be re-soldered.

If you're a handy DIY kind of person I highly suggest looking into it!