[TubemanRQ]

So I'm planning to get the Gumby, as far as cables go, I have zilch. So for the xlr balanced and USB cables, any monoprice cable would do or shall I order PYST along with the Gumby??

Also I have no idea about my USB quality from my PC or laptop, so do I get a WYRD too??

Yes yes yes! Get the WYRD. Those are an amazing value for what they do. PC USB power is very dirty, even if you use high quality power conditioners. The PYST USB cables are also a great value and highly recommended.

 

[TubemanRQ]

OK, got Yggy in yesterday and hasn't even been 24 hours since using Yggy. Will keep you posted about Gungnir multibit vs Yggy impressions, in my system, according to my bias, with my ears.
 
It's been about 22 hrs, and I can tell there's a greater sense of transparency and neutrality vs Gungnir multibit, focus is also very very good, but so far Yggy vs Gungnir multibit is not knocking my socks off. The two are DEFINITELY of the same familial signature.
 
Cold out of the box Yggy  sounded open, and focused, but I've only been watching movies this last day off I had, not much music. Listened to Lorde's album in hi-res just now and there's definitely more inner detail and greater transparency than Gungnir multibit, but it's not a HUGE difference between Yggy and Gumby, but it's there. Sorry if this is a little OT.

 

[Amictus]

FWIW, I got my Gungnir back today after surgery performed by Mark Dolbear of www.electromod.co.uk to turn into a multibit version. I was very happy with the Gungnir as it was, but the difference is astounding. There is so much more to the music. Mark is also delightful to deal with.

 

[mikoss]

  OK, got Yggy in yesterday and hasn't even been 24 hours since using Yggy. Will keep you posted about Gungnir multibit vs Yggy impressions, in my system, according to my bias, with my ears.
 
It's been about 22 hrs, and I can tell there's a greater sense of transparency and neutrality vs Gungnir multibit, focus is also very very good, but so far Yggy vs Gungnir multibit is not knocking my socks off. The two are DEFINITELY of the same familial signature.
 
Cold out of the box Yggy  sounded open, and focused, but I've only been watching movies this last day off I had, not much music. Listened to Lorde's album in hi-res just now and there's definitely more inner detail and greater transparency than Gungnir multibit, but it's not a HUGE difference between Yggy and Gumby, but it's there. Sorry if this is a little OT.

Excellent impressions. I hear exactly what you describe between the two... to my ears, Gumby is slightly warmer, and has just very slightly less ability to flesh out the insane detail and atmosphere Yggy is capable of.
 
One thing Yggdrasil did for me that I'd never heard from another DAC is an ability to allow me to hear differences in volume to a degree I never thought that the recording had captured. I heard it in voices first; being able to notice how a singer would lean into a microphone; something I'd never heard differentiated before from other DACs. It extends far beyond just vocals with the Yggdrasil though - it becomes this resolution that brings out all of the nuances in the volume and timbre of details throughout the music.
 
Going to the Gumby, in my personal first week of listening, I had a tough time hearing that particular phenomenon. I found Gumby's warmth to smooth over that resolution... however things changed after a week for me, and Gumby started offering more and more glimpses into what I heard with the Yggy.
 
Fast forward to now.. I went on a three week vacation and lent Gumby to a friend. Just got it back yesterday and it's been on less than 24 hours. Things are sounding very, very good to my ears. I dare say that it sounds better than it did the first week I had of listening. Any further improvements are simply musical bliss at this point. Anyway, enjoy Yggdrasil!

 

[333jeffery]

So far, I have mixed feelings about my Gumby. On some recordings, it sounds amazing. Percussion and horns have never sounded so good to me before. However, other recordings sound so harsh it's almost painful to listen to them. These are recordings that were fine on my old Gungnir, even good sounding on it. I have 80 hours on the unit so far, and wonder if additional time will smooth out the harshness.

 

[jfoxvol]

  So far, I have mixed feelings about my Gumby. On some recordings, it sounds amazing. Percussion and horns have never sounded so good to me before. However, other recordings sound so harsh it's almost painful to listen to them. These are recordings that were fine on my old Gungnir, even good sounding on it. I have 80 hours on the unit so far, and wonder if additional time will smooth out the harshness.

I have a Bimby and an Yggy.  I had similar experiences with mine initially.  The Bimby harshness went away after a day or two (hard to tell since I didn't listen to it during that period after day 1).  The Yggy took a while.  At the 1-2 week mark somewhere it stopped and hasn't been back.  Smooth sailing every since.

 

[mikoss]

  So far, I have mixed feelings about my Gumby. On some recordings, it sounds amazing. Percussion and horns have never sounded so good to me before. However, other recordings sound so harsh it's almost painful to listen to them. These are recordings that were fine on my old Gungnir, even good sounding on it. I have 80 hours on the unit so far, and wonder if additional time will smooth out the harshness.

Can you explain how the recordings are sounding harsh? What amp and headphones are you using?
 
 
I would imagine that the harshness will go away... as others have noted, there seem to be two distinct points of change with the MB Gungnir presentation from initial power up, to where it's sounding as good as it gets. I'd give it at least a good week of play time and see if things change.

 

[333jeffery]

I have a Zana Deux and HD800's. The recordings that sound bad have a bright almost metallic edge to them. They are also very loud, I have to turn the volume way down just to stand them.

 

[cskippy]

  I have a Zana Deux and HD800's. The recordings that sound bad have a bright almost metallic edge to them. They are also very loud, I have to turn the volume way down just to stand them.

They were probably mastered way to loud and pushed the limiter/limiters WAY to hard.  I've heard this too many times.  There is distortion as the waveforms are being clipped, literally chopped off at their peaks, to increase the average SPL.  Modern Pop songs are the worst at this but there are a few gems out there.  

 

[mikoss]

  I have a Zana Deux and HD800's. The recordings that sound bad have a bright almost metallic edge to them. They are also very loud, I have to turn the volume way down just to stand them.

I have the same setup... list some tracks if you'd like. You can also check out if it's the mastering fairly easy by taking a look at the waveform, or watching the volume using a peak meter in your player. If it's hitting 0dB like @cskippy mentioned, it will sound bad. 
 
I've also noticed that one of my USB ports has a tendency to do this to my music after I play files with different bitrates. I have an idea this is what may be happening to you... try unplugging your USB cable going to the Gungnir, and plug it back in. Also try other ports... one of my USB ports will play music for about 1 minute and then die. The other does this "metallic" sound to the treble like you mention if I go from say 16/44 to 24/96 and then back. Unplugging/replugging is the only solution for me.
 
I should also mention this happens on this USB port with all DACs that I have. I literally have no idea why it does this, but the computer must be altering the data or something. The Wyrd doesn't fix it, and the effect can be subtle.

 

[edwardsean]

I’m interested in both the Gumby and Yggy. The consensus seem to be that the Yggdrasil has slightly better resolution, but reports seem to contradict each other in terms of soundstage. Can anyone verify which has the overall larger soundstage?

 

[alvin sawdust]

  So far, I have mixed feelings about my Gumby. On some recordings, it sounds amazing. Percussion and horns have never sounded so good to me before. However, other recordings sound so harsh it's almost painful to listen to them. These are recordings that were fine on my old Gungnir, even good sounding on it. I have 80 hours on the unit so far, and wonder if additional time will smooth out the harshness.

I am with you on this. I have around 200 hrs on my GMB and up to the 175 hr mark I didn't have a problem with the highs, but now they can be unpleasant on some tracks.
I always give my new components and cables 500 hrs cooking time so hopefully there is time for improvement yet.

 

[sheldaze]

  I’m interested in both the Gumby and Yggy. The consensus seem to be that the Yggdrasil has slightly better resolution, but reports seem to contradict each other in terms of soundstage. Can anyone verify which has the overall larger soundstage?

Yggy, but I am hesitant to answer your question.
 
Most persons in the market for a DAC a more likely to question the value of one DAC versus another, particularly two DAC from the same manufacturer. Of course the Yggdrasil is the highest resolving, most accurate DAC from the Schiit lineup. The advantages of the Gungnir Multibit are a little less heft (if you are planning to bring to a headphone meet, or move to various places in your home - it also takes up less space), a little more warmth (very slight, but if you need that), and it consumes slightly less power (again, helps if say you're trying to attach to a UPS to bring to a headphone meet, or you plan to leave on all the time, it will consume less electricity).
 
But the largest difference is the Yggdrasil is twice the cost of the Gungnir Multibit. If you can afford it, go for the Yggdrasil - you will regret nothing.

 

[TubemanRQ]

  I’m interested in both the Gumby and Yggy. The consensus seem to be that the Yggdrasil has slightly better resolution, but reports seem to contradict each other in terms of soundstage. Can anyone verify which has the overall larger soundstage?

Well, all I can say is, 48 hours later, comparing Gumby to Yggy, the Yggy being only 48 hours old, HOLY SCHIIT!!!  It may only be "an incremental improvement" of 10% people are claiming with Yggy vs Gumby. ALL I KNOW.......is there is an immediacy, intimacy, and greater tangibility and emotional connection with the instruments, the performers, and the music as a whole with Yggy vs Gumby. Along with a greater emotional connection, the transparency and the "there in the room with you" aspect has jumped up considerably!
 
Both are AMAZING DACs, but Yggy is in another league! This is only 48 hours in, I'm looking forward to 500 HOURS IN! I will eventually upgrade all my Gumbys to Yggys, the way this is going, I can see that right now.....but until I save my pennies and dimes, I am thoroughly enjoying Yggy on the tweeters, and Gumbys from 900Hz to 40Hz, and D/S Gungnir from 40Hz to below 20Hz.
 
Gotta get back to listening to music!
 
Cheers!!

 

[edwardsean]

Right, the greater transparency and immediacy of Yggdrasil is consistent with a lot of impressions circling around. Would you be able to comment on which has the greater overall soundstage dimensions?