[imackler]

  The thing I dislike most about my audio system is that I can't take it everywhere. I have my desktop setup but if I want to listen to good quality music in bed or at work I need a second or third setup.

 
x100! Seriously. 

 

[Mattcye10]

A portable amp from Schiit would be awesome!

 

[drez]

What bothers me with my system:

-lack of Stax 009
-lack of Yggdrasil
-lack of power regenerator
-computer ATX linear psu out for repair.
-lack or rrrrreally high end amplifier

The computer probably annoys me the most because it takes so much work to optimise, download music etc. This is easy to do on a workstation computer, but such a computer is not near optimal. I therefore have to choose between ease of use and performance. Would be great to have both without $$$$$ price. Other companies have already made kind of good streaming devices which are still computers. Some have made excellent SD card transport with LVDS I2S over HDMI output and word clock. Lots of options already out there.

I reckon though a really good stand alone linear power supply would be welcome. Maybe multi rail. Maybe low cost upgrade for cheaper gear. maybe as upgrade for high end Schiit components. Maybe something else like computer psu . Maybe stackable. Always useful IMO.

 

[aamefford]

I am less interested in an "oversize" portable DAC / Amp.  I went through that phase with the HIFI-M8.  Sounds great, does balanced, drives near anything except the usual offenders (HE6 anyone?).  Only problem?  Once you lug it around for a month or so, it dawns on you - it just ain't portable!  I'm back to efficient cans and and iPhone for my portable rig.
 
What do I hate about my current system(s)?
 
Upstairs - The Oppo HA-1 is a really nice all in one.  It is pretty freaking big for a night stand though.  I would like a balanced out DAC in the same basic form factor as the Bifrost if possible, and upgraded with the new Yggdrasil derived secret sauces.  A balanced out amp in the Asgard2 size for excellent stack-ability without using up all of the nightstand real estate.  I could live with SE dac, but all of my headphones are balanced, so balanced is the desired output connection of the headphone amp.
 
For the downstairs speaker rig - It is already dated afer 6 years or so.  It is Peachtree Nova dac/pre/amp, and only decodes 24/48, and has a much touted but kind of gutless headphone amp.  It also has a tube that can be switched into the preamp circuit.  Id like a nice DAC + preamp, Gugnir sized here, with a Gugnir sized class AB amp below it, putting out a conservative 100+ wps RMS.  It could also be a dac on top of a pre on top of the speaker amp for a 3-high stack.  I don't know much about balanced out for speakers, but that would be a viable option if this is a solution that is used in speaker rigs.  All of my speaker rigs have been SE.
 
I've seen this mentioned before - a tube buffer.  I had a Vali for a while, and I used it from the analog out of my Oppo HA-1 as a change of flavor.  The one I had was actually pretty quiet.  Still, I ended up setting the volume at about 12:00 if I remember correctly, and using the pre-out volume control on the HA-1 to control the volume.  Not exactly a tube buffer, but close.  Maybe easily rollable tubes (though I'll put in the ones most tube rollers like best and call it a day), and also in the Gugnir form factor, or as part of the pre-amp?  Or, in a bifrost size, as part of my fantasy bedside rig in the paragraph above.

 

[TRapz]

  I'd be thrilled to see something like a Fulla...with a line out option!

I'd like to see something like a Fulla, with a line in option. I'd love something I could use with both my PC and my turntable for headphones. I was looking at the FiiO E07k (little old now), but I'd take anything like this made by Schiit at this price in a heartbeat.

 

[jehugo]

"DAPs. When you’re sitting on the subway or working in a noisy open-plan office, do you really need much more than a smartphone and a pair of efficient headphones? This is not a rhetorical question…I’m serious. Are $99-499 DAPs really that much better than phones in real-world use? Are there good reasons for carrying $1,000-$3,500 devices around in your backpack or briefcase? Are there use cases that I’m overlooking? I’m ready to listen, but at the moment, enthusiasm for a product like this is so low that I don’t think we’ll ever do one"

So you think dedicated DAPs with DACs and amps built-in (=$$$) are silly, but it makes sense to build a portable DAC/amp stack-on to make smartphones sound better? Does not compute...Maybe you shouldn't dabble in this arena.

 

[Otheronek]

  2015, Chapter 9:
Hints, Teases, and Solicitations
 

1. Combined desktop DAC/amp. We still get asked about this all the time. We actually have tons of DAC/amps. They’re called Magni 2/Modi 2, Asgard 2/Bifrost, etc, etc. This separation of DAC and amp allow you to choose a combination that best fits your needs, to avoid the obsolescence of an embedded DAC inside an amp. If we come up with a solution that sidesteps the obsolescence problem and doesn’t have problems with digital noise in the analog amp section, sure, maybe there’s something there. What do you think?

 
 

1. Speaker amps. The hardest thing here is doing something meaningful…for a non-eye-bleeding price. Do we shoot above Emotiva (in price) with big, heavy, impressive boxes filled nifty circlotron designs and intelligent amp management? Or do we try to go head-to-head with this behemoth price-wise, but with smaller and more efficient amplifier designs (think small Class AB, not D, think fan)? Neither approach is particularly appealing. Above Emotiva, there’s about ten billion small manufacturers, all with their own spin…and some with very compelling products. At Emotiva, well, there’s Emotiva. Would something that doesn’t look big and impressive sell well against their iron? I don’t know. If you have thoughts, I’ll be glad to listen.

 
 
What’s the one thing you dislike most about your current audio system?
If you have a few moments, indulge me. I’d appreciate it!
 
Yes, dislike

 
 
 
I don't have the credibility to speak as I don't own Schiit yet, but that's about to change.....yeah I know you have heard it before.
 
Also I am no engineer so I am speaking in terms of gear lover who doesn't know the engineer slang so please excuse my non-technical descriptions.
 
but since you asked here are my observations / hopes and dreams
 
"Combined desktop DAC/amp." Hello aren't you the guys who do modular stuff.  I envision a gungnir case with amp on one side, dac of the other, separated by a separate power supplies for each down the middle.  Amp card and Dac card can be popped in/out and replaced with any future upgrades or tonally different cards..
 
"Speaker amps" A tube speaker amp......... or hybrid tube/solid state speaker amp or what the heck, both...
 
"Tube buffer stage" I can't seem to find these anymore.  Say I have a cd player I really like and a pre/amp I really like, but want to just take the edge off but don't want to invest in completely new units.  a tube buffer component would be cool.
 
"Power Supply Brick" A completely filtered and regulated power supply in the case of a Bifrost.  IEC input with 3 16 volt outputs to your smaller amps and dacs.  I am positive you can build a power supply that is cleaner and better than the wallwarts that come with you small stuff.  The amount of Schiit stacks I see this product would be loved... 
 
"What’s the one thing you dislike most about your current audio system?"  The fact that I regretfully sold off my 2 channel listening set up to deal with some family issues(which was more important and since resolved) but I have regretted ever since. So I will be in rebuild mode in the not to distant future, once I complete the headphone set up I want.
 
and lastly thank you for getting it right..  American made, quality gear, realistic pricing, great customer service, and for giving a Schiit about it all...
 
Peace OOK

 

[mkozlows]

 
What’s the one thing you dislike most about your current audio system?

 
It's a mess. My headphone stuff is a bedside system, and what I want on my nightstand is a single attractive box with a regular power cord (no bricks) that I can plug my headphones into, with a volume knob and a USB input. 
 
What I have is HeadRoom's old Micro DAC/Amp, which means two power cords with two bricks, two boxes with a cable running between them, and a bunch of switches and jacks. It's ugly, it's inelegant, it's messy. 
 
I care about sound quality, but what I really want is something that doesn't make it look like I'm running a science experiment in my bedroom.

 

[Skooks]

Jason...
 
The one thing I'm interested in is getting clean USB data from my iMac to my DAC and then to the Rag and HE-6's. Have you worked on putting out a bi-power/data USB cable to provide cleaner data to the DAC's?
 
Thanks...
Hugh

 

[mangler]

I'm one of those who would love to see a tube or hybrid preamp. The Lyr2 is currently serving that role, and it's doing it well, but something specifically designed for that would be great.

Id also be interested in a schiit 2 channel amp, especially given Jason's background. I understand the competing against emotiva thing, but you've become a big name in the crowded headphone amp world, so I wouldn't be shocked to see you do the same in the budget 2 channel market, especially since your products punch in well above their price point. Plus, all of my gear is schiit (modi 2u, Vali, lyr 2, and Yggy) and I love each piece, so between you and emotiva I'd gravitate towards your products.

What don't I like about my setup? Not much BUT I am frustrated I don't know more about the new unique balanced topology Jason's been hinting at recently, lol!!!

 

[Anavel0]

My humblest of opinions on Schiit doing 2 channel speaker amp(s) and preamp(s). 
 
My fiancée and I are getting ready to move in to our first home. So, we've been thinking about a real 2 channel setup for some time now. (And yes she is an audiophile too.) We're both Schiitheads now as well. We've been pondering Ragnarok for our system because we like Schiit's design/engineering philosophy, aesthetic, and community. For all of those reasons we've ruled out Emotiva. We're not fans of their designs, we really aren't fans of their visual appearance (yes this matters, if I can't look at it I sure don't want to listen to it), and I have never seen this level of community interaction from Emotiva or hardly anyone else in audiophiledom. 

The downside to Ragnarok is the price. Full stop. End of list. Our 2 channel rig will NOT be replacing our headphone rigs. It won't even been in the same room. So 1 amp won't be doing double duty and there are potentially equal or better speaker amps for roughly $2,000. 
 
The only other contender I've seen with a Schiit state-of-mind in 2 channel audio is Klaus Bunge's Odyssey Audio. Simple but efficient designs, not half bad looking (okay they aren't the greatest but they are customizable), and while Odyssey doesn't have an intense online presence like Schiit he does personally interact with almost all of his customers. Seriously, just call him up, his number is on his website. He can personally tailor your equipment to the power in your home if you give him a couple simple measurements; or add components to equipment for a custom piece. The downside here is that prices are certainly a bit higher than I'd prefer for an entry in to 2 channel. Now if I knew I liked the equipment and this was the end of the line the prices wouldn't worry me.
 
So that's why I feel Schiit should get into 2 channel amps and preamps. Even if it's just Emotiva in the realm where Schiit would be playing WHY NOT? Like there's no room there? As if Emotiva is perfect and we should all just default to their stuff? Their product lines have been changing several times over in the last couple of years that I've been paying attention to 2 channel equipment. (Save for their cheapest couple of amplifiers.) Do you really think you can't do anything better? Don't sell yourselves short. Look how far you've come in just a handful of years. 
 
And yes I do think if you do a preamp you need to do a 2 channel amp. Mostly because I like my equipment to match not only in appearance but performance. I don't want to wonder if Billy-Ray's amp will work well or sound good with a Schiit preamp. Also, I hate the way that looks visually. Again yes this is important to us. 
 
I'll leave you with this piece of saga advice from my father, that could be applied to your 2 channel situation, about finding the right girl. "Never decide for the girl if you're out of her league." 

 

[Anavel0]

Side Note: I don't mean to be a party pooper but I can't for the life of me get behind vacuum tube buffers! I've always felt that if you have to add a piece to your setup just make it sound different maybe you didn't have the right setup in the first place. Maybe the preamp/amp weren't a good match and the buffer is just a band-aid to a bigger issue.
 
Just my $0.02 on tube buffers.

 

[sorue]

I’m a speaker guy. Headphones, rarely. Stereo power amps <$500 don’t make a compelling offering next to emotiva’s stuff. I don’t doubt that schiit could do a much better power amp at that price range, but it just doesn’t make sense.
 
I have a nad d3020, a little all-in-one DAC+integrated+wireless+remote+headphone. Now it doesn’t do everything perfectly. But it sounds bloody brilliant for the size and price.
 
There’s a lack of quality offerings in the nad d3020/ps audio sprout type of products. These amps are class D and the DACs are an after-thought.
 
If schiit could combine a solid DAC and integrated amp (<50W), it’ll be awesome. Wireless and Remote is definitely a big plus point too.

 

[Otheronek]

  Side Note: I don't mean to be a party pooper but I can't for the life of me get behind vacuum tube buffers! I've always felt that if you have to add a piece to your setup just make it sound different maybe you didn't have the right setup in the first place. Maybe the preamp/amp weren't a good match and the buffer is just a band-aid to a bigger issue.
 
Just my $0.02 on tube buffers.

 
But isn't that what we do.... searching for the sound. you add or subtract till you find the right potion for your ears.  Doesn't matter how you get there, you just get there... but I respect your opinion.

 

[NZheadcase]

 Originally Posted by Jason Stoddard 
 

1. Portable amp or DAC/amp. Hmm. This is one I spent a lot of time on last year and ended up abandoning, mainly because I couldn’t answer Question #2 well enough—that is, how do we do it better or cheaper? This is something I could still get behind, though, if we figure out a way to make it unique enough. And we have some ideas…but those ideas point towards a relatively large device with very high power output and some unique takes on power supply and topology (discrete.) So we’ll keep playing. Which is where I’d ask…would you be interested in a larger-than-normal portable amp/DAC that provides truly stellar performance? I’d assume that iOS and Android connectivity (self-powered USB input) would be a must, but let me know what you think.

 
This. 
 
If you can make something that is:
 
1. As powerful as the HifiM8, or more. No need for all the fancy tuning, I trust your tuning. 
2. Better battery life and/or user-replaceable battery. 
3. iOS AND Android Compatibility.
4. Same price or less than M8. 
 
Winner. Would buy in a heartbeat.