[sinae]

Thanks!  Nice to see some more reviews coming in.

RE: LED bright lights... these things seem to be more common on newer equipment of late.  Just a few of these could light up a runway for plane takeoff!

Totally agree, should be a lot dimmer, i mostly always put tapes on those crazy led.. would be nice to have a dimmer or a way to turn them off

 

[cpu8088]

has anyone used the bifrost to play 24/88 and 24/176 files with success?
 
 
 

 

[wkhanna]

[size=10pt]The Bifrost has been running 24/7 since Monday, and we are now at the 100 hour mark.

It has definitely smoothed out some. I notice it most in the high and mid range. What has not changed is the speed and detail. The overall balance may be the slightest bit light in low mid & V bottom range, however the accuracy and clean, snappy kick in percussive detail is absolutely amazing. String bass, Congo, bass drum and synthesized bass is extremely musical and alive with enough raw power to maintain the overall natural essence. With acoustic material, the bottom truly shines. I have no desire what so ever to tweak any extra bass via the tone knob. I will take musicality, tonality and timing over ‘big boom’ every time.

The highs are silky, but still V sharp and crisp. Exquisite detail with no grain, no ‘edge’ typically associated with digital. This is the area where digital can induce listening fatigue. Not so with this DAC.

The mid range started out great, now it is true as life. Voices ring clear and true. Brass and woodwinds shimmer and shine. Strings are full of percussive quality, as they should be.

Regarding depth, nothing has changed. My system has always had a V deep sense, attributed to the pre-amp and speakers. Same with stage width. And focus may actually be bettered. If it is on the source material, it is in my room. And if the source material is sub-par, the result will be displayed in spades. I noticed it right away with my ‘Trombone Shorty’ rip. Brick-Walled mixing will hit you like a……well, like running into brick wall. Bifrost will not hide any flaw. In other words, the Bifrost is adding nothing. Nor is it demanding tithe in return for tonality or musicality. It is totally transparent in my system.

If I were to condense my overall opinion into one word (that would be a first) I would have say ‘detail’. The Bifrost is delivering an amazing sense of life, truth and realness that is unexpected at this price.[/size]
 
 
[size=10pt]My System:[/size]
[size=10pt]SeeDee w/FLAC Conversion via dBpoweramp & Imported HiRes files > NAS File Storage > Foobar File Management & Control > SoundBlaster Audigy 2 XS Sound Card ASIO > SPDIF Silflex Glass Optical > Bifrost DAC > Kingcats RCA I/C's > Carver C-19 Pre-amp > Kingcats RCA I/C's > Rotel RB-1090 > Mapleshade Cleaview Golden Helix Speaker Cable > NatP 65 litre Towers[/size]

 

[Maxvla]

Nice impressions. They mirror mine.

 

[TubeDriver]

Changing LEDs brightness in the Bifrost is easy. Just open up the unit and you will see that the LEDs are just sitting on their leads. Bend then down (or up) SLIGHTLY and they will not be as aligned with the opening. The intensity can be adjusted this way to suit your preferences.

 

[sampson_smith]

Great advice, TubeDriver! Thanks.

 

[wkhanna]

X2!

 

[internethandle]

Re: the adjustment of the LEDs, I inadvertently dimmed them in a similar manner when I opened up my Bifrost for the HiFi-Tuning fuse upgrade - it's pretty difficult, really, to NOT make them dimmer if you open up the Bifrost, since lining up the LEDs with their respective holes in a flush manner as they come stock is pretty difficult. So you could probably just unscrew everything, slightly pull out the DAC board, then slide it back in, tighten all the screws, and it'd be dimmer.

 

[judmarc]

 
Quote:

has anyone used the bifrost to play 24/88 and 24/176 files with success?
 
 
 

176.4 resolution won't work through USB.  Other resolutions through USB, and all resolutions through 192 into the other inputs, should work.
 
I routinely play 24/88.2 files (Stones downloads from HDTracks) with no problem.
 

 

[ultrarider]

Replacement Bifrost has arrived and is working great. Sounds much better in stereo Great customer service from Jason.

 

[mab1376]

Mine should be here tomorrow!
 

 

[pyramid6]

^^^^ This!
 
I order the Asgard and Bifrost and not 15 minutes later they had it shipped.  They clearly caught up.
 

 

[arcinthesky]

Anyone know if this cable works for Bifrost? It says 8mm.
 
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10229&cs_id=1022904&p_id=6270&seq=1&format=2
 
Or should I just get the 5mm one?

 

[TheGrumpyOldMan]

Looks like the diameter of the jacket. The toslink connector itself is always standard size. The back of the Bifrost is flat and the connector is flush with it, so it should fit OK, but I don't know about what you'll connect on the other end; make sure it's flush with a flat back too or at least has enough clearance.
 
They refer to the XBox Slim requiring the 5mm one, I guess because its connector may be recessed with no enough space for the large "Metal Fancy Connector"

 
In terms of quality, optical cables are considered of higher quality if using glass/quartz, and that will be mentioned specifically, not just "premium". How much of a difference it makes is debatable  (esp. on Head-Fi

) but you are running 10ft. based on your link, that's pretty long.

 

[wkhanna]

I'm using a 10' glass optical cable with absolutely no issues thus far.
Maybe I'm just lucky?
Obviously, the longer the run, the greater the loss in signal strengtht.
Still, for optical, 10' "should" be reasonable for most applications, IMHO.
Remember, the signal is digital (on - off) not analog.
 
Of greater influence may be the quality of the device generating the actual light signal along with the receiver at the other end?