It would be helpful to know your preferences. What kind of music do you listen to? What kind of sound signature are you going for? Is budget a consideration at all?
Schiit Asgard 3 - Impressions Thread
- Thread starter XERO1
- Start date
ScubaMan2017
Headphoneus Supremus
I was waffling between buying the Audeze LCD-XC (or is it CX, meh) and those fascinatingly modified Fostex T50 headphones (Modhouse [link to a fun review]). My gut's telling me the Asgard 3 will have NO problems driving those cans. The large volume knob (potentiometer?) will make fine volume control much easier than my Magni or Vali. The only issues I'd have with the Modhouse is having to wait for manufacturing, cross-USA-Canada shipping and possible waranty work.
Lyr 3 versus Asgard 3. Are you vacuum-tube curious? My instincts tell me if you enjoy fussing around with tubes (that eventually change their sound signature and/or eventually need to be replaced), go the Lyr 3 route. For consistency, the Asgard 3 all-transistor-solid-state system will do the trick.
Jotunheim versus Asgard 3 versus Lyr 3. Does the maturity-of-the-technology come into play with you? Schiit's Lyr & Jotunheim are more mature technologies than the Asgard 3 (and I think the older Asgard2 was one of Schiit's first models when they started out). For me? I don't need/want the balanced XLR inputs/outputs, so I wouldn't want to spend my money on it. BTW - Schiit's return policy's very fair if you buy new units (you can try a unit out... if you don't like its sound... exchange it for another model and pay the difference).
My 2 cents = Go Jotunheim, if you want to play around with advanced cabling in the future (or if you suffer from a lot of electromagnetic interference). Go Lyr 3 if you want to mess around with tubes (my Valhalla 2 has 4 tubes... and that's enough for me [I've heard users comment that the Lyr's like an upgraded Vali 2])... a Lyr 3 has only 1 tube to replace... cheaper than maintaining my Valhalla). Go Asgard 3 if you want a modular, or all-in-one (DAC/amp) option. My 3 cents = I think you'll be happy with any 3 of them.
+1 ... @jnak00 's is right on the money. I agree -- these 3 heaphone-amps should have slightly different signatures. A musician-buddy of mine uses a different amps for different genres he listens to. Indeed, how restrictive is your budget?
goryglory0209
New Head-Fier
Hello Folks Just received the Asgard 3 24 hours back from Fedex. I was using a CHifi Aune X1s but I knew from a year this is not the sound I am looking. Anyways Asgard 3 brought my DT 770 Pro and Monolith M560 to a new level. But But But. I installed everything and then was checking the switched Low-high gain and the output selector . As soon as I turn th output selector it just came out and dropped inside the amp. I turned off everything just to make sure nothing gets short. I opened the amp and found that the switch was not at all soldered whereas the gain selector is soldered strong. This Output switch was just sitting there. I pressed it same way and turned it to Headphone Mode now. Have anyone of you saw this. its sad to see such a top product with such a quality where I just used it for first time and switch falls apart. Problem is I ordered directly from Schiit website as the Local Authorized distributor in Hong Kong would take sometime to get it. I have emailed Schiit support and lets see what they have to say about this. Just be careful anyone new ordering to check the switches.
Bad news , I hope to solve your problem as soon as possible.
goryglory0209
New Head-Fier
24 hours since I got it apart from the switch issue that my unit has I have the exact same problem of humming as you mentioned.
I should be able to try out the iFi Defender 3.0 next weekend; I’ll let you know if that helps.
KukoCL
100+ Head-Fier
I ordered the A3 with the wrong power cord plug, so I'm using an adapter that doesn't even have the ground connection and I can't hear any humm.
Something must be wrong in the wires of your home.
Something must be wrong in the wires of your home.
In my case, the hum is coming from my computer’s USB. If I disconnect the USB cable, it’s gone.
I did—same story. Humming and buzzing that seems to increase or decrease with my computer’s operations. It looks like I have a noisy machine :-\
KukoCL
100+ Head-Fier
Ah, noises by computer operations are usually present on cheap motherboards. I guess it's a desktop PC.
I doubt that changing your PC's power supply would change anything :c
Indeed, it is a desktop. Changing motherboard would be a pinch to the wallet as it would require a change of CPU, RAM, and OS to go with it—and with no guarantee I’d have complete silence to boot. If the iFi Defender doesn’t work, I’ll figure it out :-\
If you use the idefender, i highly suggest using an external 5v power supply before you rule it out. After thatn may be worth trying an isilencer/jitterbug in series or alone with your setup.
Personally I feel my sound degraded in dynamics and air when using the idefender. But when i used external power IIRC it was an improvement.
Personally I feel my sound degraded in dynamics and air when using the idefender. But when i used external power IIRC it was an improvement.
goryglory0209
New Head-Fier
Thanks for your reply. Let me run directly to the wall and see. I have an Aune Dac amp running and never heard a thing past 1 year. Plus my Asgard 3 unit is without the DAC
goryglory0209
New Head-Fier
I just turned off the DAC--Sound very minimal. Unplugged the DAC from PC----Sound Gone---- Connected the Asgard without and DAC----Sound Gone. It seems like even if DAC is turned off the Sound is coming from the USB. AS soon as I unplug the USB cab e DAC turned on/off sound goes away. Asgard 3 is not at fault it seems and its the USB. I will try with another cable and see how this goes. Anyways next month was a new DAC and not this Aune garbage.
Users who are viewing this thread
