[Letmebefrank]

Yeah I was also thinking a double shot injection molding setup could eliminate bleed, but it might be significantly more expensive. It might have to be done anyway to keep multiple leds from bleeding across each other when the pipe is all one piece.

I like the idea of a light up volume knob with a light pipe, then nobody could complain about not seeing the little dot.

 

[webstaa]

Interesting, and fits with what I've experienced. I worked a few months for a company that used "advanced 3D printing" for prototyping and mold/tooling construction. It was faster for the parts designers to knock out a prototype part for the customers in country, then send the documentation and STL file to the factories in Japan, Taiwan, and China for tooling and production. According to the engineers I worked for/with, it cut down part order turn around from 2-3 weeks for tooling and 2-3 months for first articles to 2-3 weeks for first articles from the factory. I learned how to make STL files for the printers while doing their English documentation/translation work.

I got a secondhand printer - a MakerBot Replicator - and played around with it for weeks. It was really great for making all kinds of useless tchotchkes and a few "can I print a replacment part for this" experiments. I sold it when I moved. It's a wonderful experience to produce stuff, but the average household doesn't have the need to have a 3D printer in house. Something like the "maker spaces" or even public libraries are where they seem to flourish, not in every home. Being able to design a part and go reserve a printer and get the part made overnight is a great modern convenience for tinkerers. I think the last thing I had printed was a mounting bracket for a (network) switch for under my desk. The first party ones are about $10 and ship within 2-3 weeks, whereas I designed mine and had it printed and installed in under 36 hours.

 

[Nicholas Seltzer]

Contact amy@schiit.com. Tell her I sent you. She'll send you some LEDs.

Hi Jason,
Big fan! Slowly collecting all your Schitt. I heard the Yggdrasil/Ragnarok stack at the Schiitr and it's amazing. Next up for me is a Ragnarok, but I worry that it's a few years old now and has at least one glaring omission, the lack of a remote control. If it also had a unity gain setting or pass-through input it would allow me (and others I'm sure) to replace stand-alone analog preamps. Is there any chance that a Ragnarok 2 is under works and might it have one or both of these features?

Thanks. I really appreciate a response, but I understand if you can't say anything.

 

[AudioBear]

Or you could always just wait and see.....

 

[AudioBear]

I shouldn't be so flippant about it but that's what I am doing. Jason has the new pivot point design in Jot and Magni 3 where it works really well. The Rag is still version 1. A V2 could be in the offing but on the other hand there's certainly nothing wrong with V1. Change for change's sake is not one of Schiit's specialities. I need to wait a month or two anyway so I'll see what develops.

 

[sublime9]

Jason,

I am currently dealing with light pipe hell. 4 bicolor LEDs, IP67 sealing requirement so it has to be panel mount and not PCB mount .LED's on a board orthogonal to panel. Looking at your requirements, I am surprised Bivar didn't have anything that fit the bill. They might be a good place to get a quote for a 100K custom order.

 

[Zojokkeli]

We also recently got a 3D-printer to our factory. One of the simple and cheap ones I think, but we are experimenting with printing some small jig designs and temporary replacement parts in order to see if there would be any sense in investing in a larger 3D-printing machine.

 

[artur9]

Yesterday ran and tested 4 variants on light pipe. Winner will go out for quote today.

For whatever reason, I find the light pipe engineering saga very interesting. Maybe the frustrated MechE in me. Please continue with more details on curved versus angular, materials change, etc.

I also wonder if it would be possible to manufacture them with different colors for each wave guide (if that's the right term). Or with an intentional refraction pattern.

 

[Snowpuppy77]

I shouldn't be so flippant about it but that's what I am doing. Jason has the new pivot point design in Jot and Magni 3 where it works really well. The Rag is still version 1. A V2 could be in the offing but on the other hand there's certainly nothing wrong with V1. Change for change's sake is not one of Schiit's specialities. I need to wait a month or two anyway so I'll see what develops.

That pivot point tech is ok for the cheaper amp but I sure hope Jason does not use it in more expensive amps like the Ragnarok. Circlotron tech of the Raggy sounds excellent.

 

[Ragnar-BY]

That pivot point tech is ok for the cheaper amp but I sure hope Jason does not use it in more expensive amps like the Ragnarok. Circlotron tech of the Raggy sounds excellent.

Why do you think pivot point amp could not be better? Anyway, topology is important, but it does not determine if the amp would be good or bad. Implementation matters. My guess is that the next amp update would be not a Ragnarok 2, but Mjolnir 3 (it makes more sense to me, looking at the Schiit product line now). Should be very interesting if Jason could make a "pivot point hybrid tube amp". I am a solid state guy, but such hybrid could finally bring me to tubes.

 

[FLTWS]

That pivot point tech is ok for the cheaper amp but I sure hope Jason does not use it in more expensive amps like the Ragnarok. Circlotron tech of the Raggy sounds excellent.

I'm not sure if there is a characteristic "sound" to pivot point as compared to circlotron that I can hear, but I do own both Jot (sans DAC) and Rag and much prefer the Rag. That being said, the Jot plus my Loki does allow me to dial in a more pleasurable sound to my ears, but the Rag is still a better overall listening experience for me.

As time goes by I like my Rag more and more, it really eliminates my grinding over tube rolling and what glass bulbs sound best with my tube HP amps. (But, just like first loves, I've got to have a tube glowing somewhere in the rack.)

Attended an open rehearsal of the Phila. O. at the Kimmel Center yesterday morning; Hayden, Beethoven, and Wagner. One thing I'm absolutely certain of after 5 decades of live and recorded listening experiences, no matter how much money one throws at the equipment, it's never going to sound like live.

 

[sam6550a]

Contact amy@schiit.com. Tell her I sent you. She'll send you some LEDs.

Thank you very much, Jason. The email will be on her desk Thursday morning. This kind of customer service is what differentiates a good company from a mediocre firm.

 

[Snowpuppy77]

Why do you think pivot point amp could not be better? Anyway, topology is important, but it does not determine if the amp would be good or bad. Implementation matters. My guess is that the next amp update would be not a Ragnarok 2, but Mjolnir 3 (it makes more sense to me, looking at the Schiit product line now). Should be very interesting if Jason could make a "pivot point hybrid tube amp". I am a solid state guy, but such hybrid could finally bring me to tubes.

I did not say a pivot point am could not be better. But there is no indication yet that it can be better than Raggy. After hearing the Magni 3 and Jot they fall significantly short of the Raggy to my ears. The better measurements mean nothing as a component can measure great and sound like crap. Fortunately Magni 3 and Jot sound good for their price.

 

[Ragnar-BY]

I did not say a pivot point am could not be better. But there is no indication yet that it can be better than Raggy. After hearing the Magni 3 and Jot they fall significantly short of the Raggy to my ears. The better measurements mean nothing as a component can measure great and sound like crap. Fortunately Magni 3 and Jot sound good for their price.

Well, there is no indication that it could not be better, either. New Magni sound good for the price, and Jotunheim, sound good for the price. All Schiit products, as far I know, sound good for the price. Also, all Schiit new amps sound better, than older generations. I assume, new Ragnarok 2 would also be good for its price and would also be better than first generation, no matter what topology. Jason said that they are relying not only on measurements, so the future of Ragnarok should be safe.

 

[Snowpuppy77]

I'm not sure if there is a characteristic "sound" to pivot point as compared to circlotron that I can hear, but I do own both Jot (sans DAC) and Rag and much prefer the Rag. That being said, the Jot plus my Loki does allow me to dial in a more pleasurable sound to my ears, but the Rag is still a better overall listening experience for me.

As time goes by I like my Rag more and more, it really eliminates my grinding over tube rolling and what glass bulbs sound best with my tube HP amps. (But, just like first loves, I've got to have a tube glowing somewhere in the rack.)

Attended an open rehearsal of the Phila. O. at the Kimmel Center yesterday morning; Hayden, Beethoven, and Wagner. One thing I'm absolutely certain of after 5 decades of live and recorded listening experiences, no matter how much money one throws at the equipment, it's never going to sound like live.

So true on live music. All we can do is suspend our disbelief as much as possible with our system. When I was at RMAF 2017 the system I heard that sounded the most like live music was Sanders Sound Systems. Soundstage was very convincing. Felt like you were watching the performers. And though the system costs like $14k it is really a bargain compared to so many other systems I heard that cost over 100 or 200k.

By the way one of my favorite things about the Raggy is the quality of tone. Tone is where tube amps often really improve over SS. Now I am not saying that the Raggy sounds like a tube amp. However it seems to incorporate some of the smoothness, harmonic fullness, and quality of tone that many SS amps can't deliver. And they are some of the biggest priories for me personally. I certainly won't say that the Raggy is as dimensional as a good tube amp but more so than the Jot.