[elitico]

I'm trying out the Asgard 3 with MB now. I guess that it has been playing straight for 24 hours now.

Is any more improvements to be expected after further burn-in time?

I did notice that finding the correct phase had a noticeable impact on the sound though.

But I do not know if my AKG K712 is a good fit.

Has anyone BTW been playing around with different power cords?

 

[KukoCL]

I'm trying out the Asgard 3 with MB now. I guess that it has been playing straight for 24 hours now.

Is any more improvements to be expected after further burn-in time?

I did notice that finding the correct phase had a noticeable impact on the sound though.

But I do not know if my AKG K712 is a good fit.

Has anyone BTW been playing around with different power cords?

I think the headphones you put in there is up to your likings, This DAC/Amp combo is very transparent on it's sound with a little bit of an analog touch, also the multibit card puts a slightly V shaped sound, so any headphones you throw at it will sound good and fun. I would not mind in finding an special sinergy between this amp and headphones. But, just my thoughts.

I did notice some improvement in the dynamics after some hours, but not anymore after that. Maybe I just didn't pay attention.

 

[elitico]

@KukoCL

I'm not disliking the Asgard. It is as you say, all about synergy. I liked the K712 with more analytical stuff. But their mids is special and the the base is it's weak point according to me. The A3 with MB does not seem to do them any favors.

I think that headphones with a more neutral sound-signature maybe is a better fit.

What have you been using?

 

[ev666il]

I did notice that finding the correct phase had a noticeable impact on the sound though.

What improvements did you find with this in particular?

I checked the whole chain with a tester screwdriver to ensure it was hooked up correctly but I couldn’t hear a difference afterward. Tidied up my cabling quite a bit while I was at it, though.

 

[elitico]

What improvements did you find with this in particular?

I checked the whole chain with a tester screwdriver to ensure it was hooked up correctly but I couldn’t hear a difference afterward. Tidied up my cabling quite a bit while I was at it, though.

It was not a big difference but noticable to me. I often tend to hear when not correct. It sounded a little bit off in the begining. Did not compare that carefully, but when corrected the musical flow and timing seemed a bit improved.

It can somtimes make a big difference.

 

[airwhale]

But I do not know if my AKG K712 is a good fit.

I am using the AKG Q701, and I did hear significant improvements in the bass especially, and just overall more precise.

Not the same pair of cans, I know, but according to comparisons, these are often regarded as being very similar.

 

[elitico]

@airwhale

Interesting, I had the original K701 and find them (from memory) quite different. But I did maybe not power them probebly.

I'm not sure if understand. After what did you hear significant improvements (changing phase, burn-in, buying the A3)?

 

[airwhale]

@airwhale

After what did you hear significant improvements (changing phase, burn-in, buying the A3)?

Ah, sorry for being incomplete. This was after buying the A3, coming from less powerful and portable dac/amp combos. The amp in the A3 really brought my Q701 to life in a way I never heard before.

 

[ev666il]

So, question for those who have heard both the Asgard 3 and the Jotunheim—which of the two is the better match for the Bifrost 2 in your opinion?

 

[ScubaMan2017]

Thanks! I ended up getting the HD 6XX along with the Asgard 3. I was hoping to get the newly designed HD 600, but they are not available in the country I am in and the price on the HD 6XX was just too good to pass up. I've got a friend with similar musical taste and he loves his HD 6XX, so i think I'll be happy with them. This should be a decent upgrade from my mp3 player and Koss Porta pros I purchased almost a year ago to upgrade from my usual streaming mp3s and stock earbuds.

I'm pleased with my HD650 clones (i.e., Drop's HD6XX offering). So, with my Sony MDR7510, I have all the headphone I need. The Fulla2 that's sitting in my office feeds an older HD515 and I like it. Yep, I have all the 'phone that I need.... ... ... ... Now, what I want... that's another story.

I had the HD6XX (HD650 from Drop) and now HD660S using the asgard 3 with MB card. The HD660S is a big improvement in every aspect over the HD650 i had, IMHO.

Weird. When Tyl (?) was still part of Inner-Fidelity, he was dissapointed with the HD660S. I might be screwing up my models. See this link.

I want to ask something here that worried me a little yesterday.
We had an ambient temperature of 38°C, damn hot, and my Asgard 3 with MB card was running VERY hot, even i couldn't put my hand on the upper part of the chassis which was the coolest area, more than 5 or 7 seconds....{{{snip}}}}}....Could this working temp damage the DAC/Amp combo?

If I have one criticism about the Schiit line of gear, is their unnerving operating temperatures. I had it hammered into my Intel-PC skull that heat = bad for electronics. Cooling fins! Active cooling! @Jason Stoddard and @Baldr have assured us Nervous-Nellies that the chassis acts like a heat sink. And that the components are rated for WARM operating environments. As long as I keep the exhaust holes clear, conductive cooling will keep the gear safely operating. No magic blue smoke! See FAQ link, questions #14-16.

Ah, one last question. How bright is the light inside the Asgard 3? Mine will be next to my bed, I suppose I can open the case and just stick a small piece of electrical tape on top of it?

The white LED lamps on my gear blaze outward. Mind you, I like the incandescent glow of my Vali & Valhalla tubes. I'd be uncomfortable removing the case and sticking electricians tape on bulbs (I'd also want to keep both the side & top cooling ports open). I'm a safety-fer-all high school science teacher, so that's my bias.

So, question for those who have heard both the Asgard 3 and the Jotunheim—which of the two is the better match for the Bifrost 2 in your opinion?

I remember @jude commenting on a YouTube video about how Schiit having no issues offering gear that competes against each other (link here). Before Schiit monkeyed around with the Bifrost (and added XLR outputs), I'd suspect the Asgard-Bifrost pairing would be ideal. I don't need the balanced-cabling-option (no excessively long cable runs; low EMI environment... [no hairdryers, table-saws, nor milkshake blenders whining in the background]). The Asgard 3's cheaper than the Jotunheim, no? Unless you're planning ahead for balanced cabling, I wonder if it'd be better to stick with the A3-Bifrost pairing? Meh, Just my 2 cents...

 

[KukoCL]

Weird. When Tyl (?) was still part of Inner-Fidelity, he was dissapointed with the HD660S. I might be screwing up my models. See this link.

I know that review. But just one guy disliking them, doesn't mean others can't. Just see the HD660S impressions thread.

I had the HD650 and HD660S at the same time, and I just could not move back to the HD650 because they sounded so lifeless to me. But as I said, it's just my opinion, like the one from the guy in the review you mention.

And thanks for the answer about the Asgard's temperature, it was concerning me a bit as I never had electronic equipment running so hot, so I even put a USB fan behind the amp to cool it and it worked, lol. But of course, putting more electromagnetic interference near the amp is not what I want.

 

[elitico]

Ok, I can confirm that a better power cord is worth a try with the A3. I haven't fully got used to MB card though. It sounds a bit different from DAC:s I've tried in the past. Thinking that I maybe should have gone for the DS DAC instead (but haven't heard that one...).

 

[HifiRED]

I picked up the A3 with the MB DAC and I'll admit that it's my first step into this level of audio gear (exciting). I read in the manual that you can just keep it running and don't need to switch it off. Is this recommended or just a perk? I'm pairing it with my Sennheiser 58X Jubilees, Philips Fidelio X2, and my B&W P7. Is there anything I should be doing to maximize the sound quality, i.e. burn in with certain noise? Lastly for those running a USB connection to a computer is the general rule of thumb the shorter the cable the better?

 

[KukoCL]

I picked up the A3 with the MB DAC and I'll admit that it's my first step into this level of audio gear (exciting). I read in the manual that you can just keep it running and don't need to switch it off. Is this recommended or just a perk? I'm pairing it with my Sennheiser 58X Jubilees, Philips Fidelio X2, and my B&W P7. Is there anything I should be doing to maximize the sound quality, i.e. burn in with certain noise? Lastly for those running a USB connection to a computer is the general rule of thumb the shorter the cable the better?

The USB sends data. The length and cable quality doesn't affect the digital data sent from the computer to the DAC.

 

[bequietjk]

In my humble opinion and experience, I believe the traditional black AC/IEC style power cords that come with most electronics could be swapped and improved on with cables using better copper conductors, wire gauge comes to play, and connectors. Again, this is just my opinion but even if it doesn't yield better results to your ears sonically, you can at least have a cable you're proud of and is more robust and aesthetically pleasing