[Guidostrunk]

Worked perfectly with every previous dac since I've had the phone. Mimby., Airist r2r, Denafrips Ares.

My Pixel 4XL works with the Bifrost 2 over USB. Android can be funny about what works and what doesn't, depending on the device. Does your Note work with other DACs?

 

[Smoothstereo]

Worked perfectly with every previous dac since I've had the phone. Mimby., Airist r2r, Denafrips Ares.

Now you got me worried. I am awaiting my Bifrost 2 to arrive which I was planning on pairing it with my Samsung S7 edge phone.

 

[Guidostrunk]

It's really strange. Android otg has always worked for me with any dac. Even my old note 3 worked lol.
I can tell you this. I just bought a new laptop with windows 10 and if there's any connection issues I'll totally be done with schiit dacs. I'm already regretting making the move from my Ares.
The unison usb has more cons than pros so far imo.

Now you got me worried. I am awaiting my Bifrost 2 to arrive which I was planning on pairing it with my Samsung S7 edge phone.

 

[Ripper2860]

Don't know if this is related, but Unison USB requires power over USB so if your Android device cannot deliver +5v power over USB or if the USB cable has +5v line neutered, it will not work.

 

[Guidostrunk]

Pretty spooky you posted this. I was looking into a powered hub just to see if that was the culprit lol. It could very well be that my phone isn't delivering the needed 5v.
I'm just impatient and really want to hear this dac. Lol.
Phone won't work. Current laptop won't work. New laptop won't be here until Monday.
Even if I did get it working I couldn't even properly judge is coz Mjolnir 2 is being cap modded and I was going to use my Loxjie P20 to hold me over.
Now I'm reduced to the phone jack on my phone

Don't know if this is related, but Unison USB requires power over USB so if your Andoid device cannot deliver +5v power over USB or if the USB cable has +5v line neutered, it will not work.

 

[scottshields]

Pretty spooky you posted this. I was looking into a powered hub just to see if that was the culprit lol. It could very well be that my phone isn't delivering the needed 5v.
I'm just impatient and really want to hear this dac. Lol.
Phone won't work. Current laptop won't work. New laptop won't be here until Monday.
Even if I did get it working I couldn't even properly judge is coz Mjolnir 2 is being cap modded and I was going to use my Loxjie P20 to hold me over.
Now I'm reduced to the phone jack on my phone

Be confident it will work with Windows 10, and it does not require a driver which is awesome. No fuss just plug it in and it works just fine. I'm not had a single issue with mine. I also just confirmed that my Galaxy Note 10 will not power the BF2's usb card that this won't work from my phone either.

 

[Guidostrunk]

Thanks for the reply bro. I've settled myself down. Waiting is the worst part of this hobby. Lol.
I did try my wife's S10 and it wouldn't work either. So , Monday will be the day the laptop arrives and I'll finally get to hear it. Knowing my luck something will happen in shipping to delay it

Be confident it will work with Windows 10, and it does not require a driver which is awesome. No fuss just plug it in and it works just fine. I'm not had a single issue with mine. I also just confirmed that my Galaxy Note 10 will not power the BF2's usb card that this won't work from my phone either.

 

[bigjako]

I had similar situations but solved it ultimately with a powered USB, but just in case - is it possible you’re using a power-only cable (for charging) rather than a data and power cable?

 

[Shane D]

I had similar situations but solved it ultimately with a powered USB, but just in case - is it possible you’re using a power-only cable (for charging) rather than a data and power cable?

Interesting as I thought all the "printer cables" were data only.

 

[Shane D]

Well I used my BF2 for a week with a few different headphones. After a week I was enjoying my music as usual.

Yesterday I went back to my SMSL SU-8. It did sound a little thinner, a little less full. It really depended on the music. Bassier stuff sounded fuller/thicker.
One specific example was a Dido song called White Flag. With the BF2 you could her drawing breath between the verses.

Overall, the difference between the two DAC’s is subtle, to me. Is it an improvement? Yes. It it worth $1,135.00Cdn? Not to me.
For that kind of money, I am used to having my world rocked. As in Grado GH2, Focal Elex, CFA Cascade, Liquid Platinum and a used Vio V220.

Since Schiit is in a foreign country and has a restocking fee, return is not an option. I could sell it privately, but why throw away two hundred bucks.

In closing, it is an improvement, but a very subtle one. It will NOT give you the rush or ear to ear grin of discovering a very good new amp or HP. But over time you will notice an improvement.

It was a good time for me to do this as I am pretty content with the rest of my gear right now. I personally wouldn’t stretch my budget for a DAC upgrade.

Next week I will start running all my headphones through the new system. Looking forward to it.

 

[JWahl]

If anyone is interested, I posted my review of the Bifrost 2. I know it's far from a new product anymore, but if anyone was still deciding and wanted another perspective, maybe mine can help. Disclaimer though, it is a very non-conventional review. But there were no reviews for the product on the site yet so I figured what the heck. Anyways, it's not for everyone but I think for a few select people it might be very helpful

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/schiit-audio-bifrost-2.24927/reviews

Hi. I received a Bifrost 2 and I think I am experiencing the same problem. No sound at first and couldn't figure out why after some troubleshooting steps. Left for about 10 minutes and came back and heard a crackling/arcing sound coming from it with the chassis very warm to the touch, warmer than my Soloist 3X at full warm-up. FWIW, I was a military electronics technician for 10 years and I'm in my senior year of an electrical engineering degree, so I opened the chassis to investigate. The heat and smell seems to be originating from the power transformer. The transformer (especially the core) was painfully hot to the touch and smelled like burning plastic. My immediate suspicion is a transformer insulation failure that's causing windings to short and arc internally. I'm going to notify Schiit immediately to they can hopefully narrow down the problem further and contact their supplier if it is indeed a transformer fault. Alternatively, there could be something else shorted and causing the transformer to draw too much current, but the heat and smell is definitely coming from the power transformer. It's really a bummer because the Modius worked flawlessly for me and I was really looking forward to trying the Bifrost 2. The fact that Modius worked so well (from USB power) also makes me further suspect a power transformer QC issue. Just glancing at what I'm able to see, I don't see any glaring solder-quality issue from the board assembler.

 

[theveterans]

Well I used my BF2 for a week with a few different headphones. After a week I was enjoying my music as usual.

Yesterday I went back to my SMSL SU-8. It did sound a little thinner, a little less full. It really depended on the music. Bassier stuff sounded fuller/thicker.
One specific example was a Dido song called White Flag. With the BF2 you could her drawing breath between the verses.

Overall, the difference between the two DAC’s is subtle, to me. Is it an improvement? Yes. It it worth $1,135.00Cdn? Not to me.
For that kind of money, I am used to having my world rocked. As in Grado GH2, Focal Elex, CFA Cascade, Liquid Platinum and a used Vio V220.

Since Schiit is in a foreign country and has a restocking fee, return is not an option. I could sell it privately, but why throw away two hundred bucks.

In closing, it is an improvement, but a very subtle one. It will NOT give you the rush or ear to ear grin of discovering a very good new amp or HP. But over time you will notice an improvement.

It was a good time for me to do this as I am pretty content with the rest of my gear right now. I personally wouldn’t stretch my budget for a DAC upgrade.

Next week I will start running all my headphones through the new system. Looking forward to it.

The delta in sound will always follow that HP > Amp > DAC. What makes a DAC upgrade worth it in the long run is the enjoyment factor that slowly grows over time despite changing the sound ever so slightly. What's interesting is that even if you have a TOTL headphone and a great amp, a proper DAC upgrade helps cure that "I'm still missing something feeling" during extended listening sessions. IMO A DAC can sometimes make or break your "one more song before I go to bed" feeling even if the actual change in sound is very subtle from another DAC

 

[Shane D]

Not sure how BF2 related it is but today was a great music day with: Laptop to BF2 to MAD Ear+ HDII tube amp to Grado GH2's.

Sweet, sweet music.

 

[Guidostrunk]

So my laptop arrived today and I'm finally able to hear the BF2. My Mjolnir 2 is out being cap modded so I'm using my completely underrated modded Loxjie P20. I've used this with my Denafrips Ares before so just a quick and dirty on the difference.

I'm extremely happy at this point with the BF2. The Ares sounds sleepy/hazy in comparison. The imaging and blackground on the BF2 is ridiculous! The pause between songs has me staring at my rig wondering if it is even playing lol. There's other reviews and whatnot that stated that you sacrifice soundstage and layering from the Ares. I'm not hearing that at all. The BF2 starts and stops on a dime. There's no smear or decay clutter.

Bass on the BF2 is leagues above the Ares. It's tight, accurate, and properly placed in the stage.

I'll follow up when I get the Mule back. Lol.

 

[Shane D]

So my laptop arrived today and I'm finally able to hear the BF2. My Mjolnir 2 is out being cap modded so I'm using my completely underrated modded Loxjie P20. I've used this with my Denafrips Ares before so just a quick and dirty on the difference.

I'm extremely happy at this point with the BF2. The Ares sounds sleepy/hazy in comparison. The imaging and blackground on the BF2 is ridiculous! The pause between songs has me staring at my rig wondering if it is even playing lol. There's other reviews and whatnot that stated that you sacrifice soundstage and layering from the Ares. I'm not hearing that at all. The BF2 starts and stops on a dime. There's no smear or decay clutter.

Bass on the BF2 is leagues above the Ares. It's tight, accurate, and properly placed in the stage.

I'll follow up when I get the Mule back. Lol.

Glad it's working out for you. I hooked mine up to my tube amp yesterday and it sounded really good. Today I inserted the Schiit Loki into the chain. I wanted to get a little more bass into my Grado's.