Schiit Audio Bifrost 2
Feb 25, 2021 at 3:20 PM Post #1,681 of 4,812
Out of curiosity, is anyone aware of comparisons between the BF2 and the more expensive Schiit offerings? I am particularly keen to learn how it compares to the Yggdrasil.
 
Feb 25, 2021 at 3:27 PM Post #1,682 of 4,812
Feb 25, 2021 at 5:03 PM Post #1,683 of 4,812
Feb 28, 2021 at 2:36 PM Post #1,684 of 4,812
Out of curiosity, is anyone aware of comparisons between the BF2 and the more expensive Schiit offerings? I am particularly keen to learn how it compares to the Yggdrasil.

I wish there were more comparisons, YouTube videos, etc. between Yiggy A2 and BF2.
  • I feel BF2 is newer with Unison and Autonomy and a remote.
  • I feel Yiggy A2 (and especially Gungnir MB) are "long-in-the-tooth" products at this point. A bit stale. As soon as I buy YA2, Schiit will introduce the A3. I just know it.
  • Yiggy A2 SE outputs are not as good as BF2 SE outputs from what I keep reading. This is a deal breaker for me as my NAIM amp accepts RCA and DIN only.
  • Balanced XLR outputs mean schiit to me.
  • I prefer the BF2 form factor.
  • But I want the best DAC implementation Schiit can make.
Hence, I want a SE only (best SE outputs Schiit can make) DAC, similar in footprint to BF2, with a DAC setup that is better than Yiggy A2. I think this would be amazing at Chord Qutest prices between $1700-$2000.
 
Mar 1, 2021 at 11:34 AM Post #1,685 of 4,812
I haven't play with the ability to invert phase via the remote too much. What does everyone think about this feature?
 
Mar 2, 2021 at 7:33 PM Post #1,687 of 4,812
I wish there were more comparisons, YouTube videos, etc. between Yiggy A2 and BF2.
  • I feel BF2 is newer with Unison and Autonomy and a remote.
  • I feel Yiggy A2 (and especially Gungnir MB) are "long-in-the-tooth" products at this point. A bit stale. As soon as I buy YA2, Schiit will introduce the A3. I just know it.
  • Yiggy A2 SE outputs are not as good as BF2 SE outputs from what I keep reading. This is a deal breaker for me as my NAIM amp accepts RCA and DIN only.
  • Balanced XLR outputs mean schiit to me.
  • I prefer the BF2 form factor.
  • But I want the best DAC implementation Schiit can make.
Hence, I want a SE only (best SE outputs Schiit can make) DAC, similar in footprint to BF2, with a DAC setup that is better than Yiggy A2. I think this would be amazing at Chord Qutest prices between $1700-$2000.

At least you get your money's worth with the Yggy; instead of a tiny metal block with the Qutest :)

I'm in the same boat as you. I want to replace the DAC in my headphone system, but feel sure the Yggy is due a refresh. I suspect at whatever time they do it, they'll make it modular. Crazy that cheaper DACs are and their flagship is not...
 
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Mar 2, 2021 at 8:26 PM Post #1,688 of 4,812
At least you get your money's worth with the Yggy; instead of a tiny metal block with the Qutest :)

I'm in the same boat as you. I want to replace the DAC in my headphone system, but feel sure the Yggy is due a refresh. I suspect at whatever time they do it, they'll make it modular. Crazy that cheaper DACs are and their flagship is not...

The Yggy is modular. They are on rev 2 of the modular boards aka Analog 2.
 
Mar 3, 2021 at 7:28 AM Post #1,689 of 4,812
I think he means Autonomy. The Gungnir is truly long in the tooth. I would love to consider it for its price point and form factor but they don't even make it in a black finish. I would it's scheduled for a refresh before Yiggy.
 
Mar 3, 2021 at 12:24 PM Post #1,690 of 4,812
The Yggy is modular. They are on rev 2 of the modular boards aka Analog 2.

My apologies, I meant modular in the sense of boards sliding out the back like the BF2 and Jotenheim.
 
Mar 3, 2021 at 11:18 PM Post #1,691 of 4,812
I received my replacement Bifrost 2 earlier today (working properly this time, thankfully) and I've been listening for awhile. So far....it's interesting. In some ways it's exceeded my expectations in areas that I already expected it to excel, yet there's some small weaknesses relative to the Modius. The biggest positive thing that jumps out at me is the way that it tracks the shaping of musical transients. Things like guitar plucks, quickly bowed strings, trumpet articulations, and vocal flourishes are done amazingly well. Like freakishly well, with the HE-6se easily being able to track those subtle modulations. It adds a lot of palpable realism to the music By that same token, micro and macro dynamics are also exceptional.

Now the criticisms. It does seem like there's this sort of grayish haze to everything, like you're listening through some kind of vinyl simulation filter. It's almost as if there is a low level steady-state distortion which is just barely audible. Sometimes I find it distracting. It seems like it lessens (maybe) on high-res tracks versus 16/44.1k, and I usually can't tell any difference with high-res tracks. None of this is present with the Modius. I suspect this is part of the full-R2R tradeoff. Although I have owned the Gungnir MB and Yggdrasil before, it's been over 5 years, so my memory is probably not very precise. It kind of seems like the polar opposite to the RME when I had it. The RME measured incredibly well, and was smooth, pure, and free of any audible steady-state distortion, but I thought it was poor at tracking the subtle shaping of transient passages. That gave music a bit of a dull and lifeless sound, although it was clean and smooth sounding. The Modius sits somewhere in the middle of the two in this regard. Not as clean as the RME, but also not as dead. The Bifrost 2 brings believable life and realism to the music, but just sounds a little dirty, if that makes sense. Right now, I'm mostly likely going to keep it. Despite the kind of hazy sound, the transient-shaping is really out of this world.

This comparison made me think of something, though. I wonder why nobody has tried to make something that sits between full R2R (or other multibit) and the typical ~6 bit delta-sigma? Maybe 12-14 bits multibit, then DS modulation for the rest? Something that balances the pros and cons of the architectures a little better. I think this might be the next frontier for DACs in the future, albeit probably not consumer chips.

Also, I found a nice link that I think more accurately describes what I'm calling "transient shaping". Now I just need to figure out what it is about the DAC that makes it excel so well in that property.

https://maplelab.net/overview/amplitude-envelope/

Edit: I should clarify that I don't think the slight "haziness" has anything to do with aliasing/distortion issues that had been reported a long time ago and since fixed. I ran some test-tones and didn't find anything abnormal aside from the HE6se's lumpy upper-midrange and high frequencies. I also used the Yggdrasil and Gungnir Multibit with various tube and tube-hybrid amps, which may have masked this subtle effect in the past. Overall, I'm really pleased with it so far.
 
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Mar 4, 2021 at 1:25 PM Post #1,692 of 4,812
I can give you some impressions this week I have the BF2, D90, BHC, MOGWAI OG, Pendant and a Matrix i3Pro incoming...

Any update on your review? I ended up with the Chord Qutest currently but still interested in your impressions with the BF2/BHC pairing.
 
Mar 4, 2021 at 3:35 PM Post #1,693 of 4,812
I'm curious if this is expected, I just got my Bifrost 2. Upgrading from a normal Modi 3. Being driven by a Asgard 3 to a pair of VC....
On the Modi 3 - Asgard 3 high gain max volume I get a ticking static noise.
On the Bifrost 2 - same high gain max volume it's not just a static noise, no ticking.
(Both scenarios I'm not playing anything, obviously to save my hearing)

My main question is, is this noise being amplified by the Asgard 3 impacting the quality of sound at actual listening levels?

Other observations are I really don't hear any difference. I feel like half the people will say "duh", and the other half will say I have awful hearing. I'm going to give it some warm up time before I make a formal declaration that I hear any difference between the 2. I'll try to A/B it, my main testing album will be RAM from Daft punk through FLAC.
 
Mar 5, 2021 at 4:35 PM Post #1,694 of 4,812
Any update on your review? I ended up with the Chord Qutest currently but still interested in your impressions with the BF2/BHC pairing.
Hey! It was an enjoyable pairing. I ended up trading it and getting a more neutral detailed Dac in the matrix Element X. I prefer to have more neutral DACs with wide stage and choose amps or tubes to add the flavor. I am finishing up my review and comparisons of the D90 to a few other DACs then I will be listing that one up for sale most likely too.
 
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Mar 5, 2021 at 5:26 PM Post #1,695 of 4,812
Hey! It was an enjoyable pairing. I ended up trading it and getting a more neutral detailed Dac in the matrix Element X. I prefer to have more neutral DACs with wide stage and choose amps or tubes to add the flavor. I am finishing up my review and comparisons of the D90 to a few other DACs then I will be listing that one up for sale most likely too.

While totally not neutral I'm currently looking at getting rid of my Qutest in favor of a NOS DAC such as the Morpheus myself. Like you said, its nice to have neutral sound with more detail and space. I think the NOS Dacs excel in the latter.
 

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