Thought I’d try to move a discussion about Asgard3 that somehow started in the HD660S thread that probably better belongs here.. this is a copy of my last post in that sub thread:
Honestly I think the Asgard 3 is very similar to the Lyr 3 without the tube rolling ability and the slight tube sound the Lyr 3 has. The Lyr 3 just has a little bit smoother treble (though this depends on the tube) and is a bit more resolving. But don't get me wrong the treble is very smooth and natural on the Asgard 3, by far the smoothest and cleanest I've heard around it's price range. I listen mostly with Beyers so I know real fast if an amp or dac has issues with the treble. Just as with the HD 6xx line I'll know real fast if there is some problems in the upper mids.
I really like the Asgard3 and it certainly has similarities with the Lyr3. It probably should have, too, as both use the same Continiuty(tm) topology (Lyr3 for its solid state part).
A few days ago I did a comparison between my Lyr3 and Asgard3 on the Bifrost2. But before I get to that though, a word about the multibit card vs Bifrost2 on Asgard3; albeit I did not do a thorough comparison on this, I felt that Bifrost2 gave the Asgard3 a more dynamic sound, removed some uncomfortable treble presence and also gave it a larger sound stage as compared to the card.
Now for the Lyr3 and the Asgard3. I use a Tung-Sol 6SN7 GTB (reissue) tube in the Lyr3 and listen with HD6XX headphones. Both amps on high gain.
I had the Asgard3 sandwiched between the Bifrost2 and the Lyr3 (and yes, yes, the Lyr3 on top..
), and to switch between them I had to first move the interconnects and then the headphone to the one I wanted to listen to.
TL;DR: Asgard3 is very good, but I prefer the Lyr3.
The slightly longer version; Both of them are great, no doubt about that. However, using Asgard3 as the reference, I feel that the Lyr3 has more of a wide/deep soundstage (while Asgard3 is more in your head). Lyr3 also feels more engaging, more dynamic to me, with perhaps a bit more low end bass, while Asgard3 comes out as a little more dry sounding.
Moreover; if, having switched back and forth between them, I stayed on one and listened to the end of the song before going to the next and begin switching again it was almost always the Lyr3.
If they were beers:
Asgard3: well, this is a really good pint of beer!
Lyr3: hey barkeep! get me anothet one!
Perhaps it’s a tube thing..? I’ve found that I really like the tube sound, so just as the tubes, I might be a bit biased..