[Paladin79]

I recall seeing discussion of the best batteries to get on the pono forums. I should look back there if the forum still exists, and copy down that info

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Battery+(2600mAh+/+9.62Wh&i=electronics&ref=nb_sb_noss
The battery may just plug in if you find the right replacement. One forum said they were 2600mah 3.7 volt. The originally is 11.15 WH (watt-hours), for longer battery usage you need to be careful that you meet or exceed that number if possible, or you will be going backward compared to what you have now.

 

[treecloud]

Tim van der Leeuw:

Trying to figure out how to intersperse comment and reply to your post...hope this works...perhaps someone could clue me in

At first, we fed the optical output of the Node 2i into the NAIM, so no DAC involved at that point.

Yes of course, dumb mistake on my part.

That is a good point, but in the end we're listening to the system as a whole and for any standalone DAC, it will have an analog gain stage so I think it's only fair to incorporate this as part of the comparison.

Yes, true.

I think my conclusion is still valid: the DAC component is the primary cause of the differences we heard between the Ragnarok 2, and the NAIM Atom.

Meaning including the NAIM analog gain stage, yes then your conclusion is certainly possible.

If I might get off into the weeds a bit here, there are so many reasons audio and music reproduction is a compelling vocation and avocation. It's an emotionally gratifying magic carpet ride for the individual. Then there is the intellectually stimulating collective compulsion to reproduce aural reality exactly. I wonder if the first people hearing Edison's gramophone were as emotionally gratified as we are listening to today's state of the art. Music is food for the soul...when you're hungry everything tastes good

From the standpoint of reproducing aural reality exactly there's a distortion hiding in the weeds. We don't understand it very well and goes mostly unidentified, so it can't be measured, and isn't talked about very much. It is the difference between a complex aural event and the reproduction of it. How much information is completely missing? How much of what is there is distorted, and by how much? To the best of my knowledge we can't answer these questions.

A visual correlate is a reasonable thought experiment. We photograph a static scene under controlled lighting, measure the gamut and luminance range of the scene, measure the same in the photograph, and calculate the difference in percentage terms. 30% distortion in the photograph would not be uncommon. But off in the weeds somewhere are things that can't be measured, one example: what is the quantifiable distortion in the collapse from 3D to 2D?

Audio does better, we can reproduce some semblance of dimension. But we can't measure deviations and reductions and end with a quantified distortion figure. It could be 30% or higher, we don't know because we can't measure it. What we do know is when we listen to our audio systems we are not hearing a final product with "vanishingly low distortion"...it ain't no 0.001 harmonic distortion from 20 to 20K! (Take that ASR! )

And this is where it gets interesting because a lot of things can fall into that unknowable gap between what we want (perfect reproduction) and what we get. Things like euphonic deviations from linearity: 2nd order distortion, certain phase distortions, dynamic compressions and expansions, tonal tweaks. What am I leaving out - who knows.

I think of these euphonic distortions of measured linearity as compensatory. They enable "enhancement" of something that is otherwise not perfect, like salt on a steak.

To circle back around to the original (inferred) question: how important are level matched A/B comparisons? Well first of all we certainly are not going to listen that way for pleasure, and we don't even need to do that many of them to "get the point". Hear it once you don't forget, it becomes an anchor of sorts. That anchor does not mean placebo effect in listening to audio ever goes away! But we do realize more readily "yeah that could be a placebo", or "no way that's a placebo".

Unfortunately backordered, but that only gives me the chance to wait for a Loki Midi (Bifrost-sized) to come up for sale...

It should arrive tomorrow, looking forward to it.

I envy you getting Bifrost 2! It's what I would get if budget was not a current concern. Looking forward to your impressions.

 

[ScottFree]

Just checked Headfonia and there's a Ragnarok 2 review. If anyone's interested - Review: Schiit Ragnarok 2 - Muscles

 

[Pietro Cozzi Tinin]

Took me almost a year to discover that the RC is magnetic.

 

[Rensek]

Took me almost a year to discover that the RC is magnetic.

I read/heard that in a recent Bifrost 2 review. I was wondering if it applied to the metal saga/Freya remotes..... Thanks for sharing.

That just made it even more attractive then it was previously.

@Jason Stoddard maybe im missing something, but I don't think you guys have advertised/talked about/sold this cool feature. Little things like this are awesome, and worth sharing.

 

[Jheal]

I read/heard that in a recent Bifrost 2 review. I was wondering if it applied to the metal saga/Freya remotes..... Thanks for sharing.

That just made it even more attractive then it was previously.

@Jason Stoddard maybe im missing something, but I don't think you guys have advertised/talked about/sold this cool feature. Little things like this are awesome, and worth sharing.

The battery changing instructions do say that the front of the remote is held in by magnets.

 

[Rensek]

The battery changing instructions do say that the front of the remote is held in by magnets.

Yeah, ok. If you read the owner's manual, carefully, it mentions the cover is held in by magnets.

No where does it mention those same magnets are also able to hold your remote to pieces of metal, like the side of the chassis. Just saying, it's a cool feature, even if its an accidental feature. Might as well mention it.

Especially on the page where you can buy replacement remotes. "Hey this ones magnetic, stick it to the side of your Schiit when you aren't using it."

 

[PioBeer]

Had an idea for a cool Schiit product - The Schiit stack carrying case

I have a fulla 2, but want to upgrade to a magni/modi-multibit and loki. The problem is that I would need to haul that stack to and from work everyday to get the benefit in both places and the though of dumping everything in my back pack scares me. A schiit stack carrying case (with maybe a thrown in chtulu to minimize power supplies) would be pretty sweet.

Anywho, just a thought. Keep up the good work, btw...the Yggdrasil GS has me wanting to put off buying tires and a new dish washer....oh boy.

 

[FLTWS]

@Jason Stoddard I just ordered a RAAL- Requisite RS1a, should be here by end of week. I’ll be breaking it in with Yggdrasil 2, Ragnarok 1, Loki – for special occasions, and alternating with my PrimaLuna EVO 400 with a fresh set of Gold Lion KT88’s and 12AU7’s.

If you’re looking for a Jotunheim - R Beta tester I’m ready, willing, able, and retired.

 

[jnak00]

A schiit stack carrying case (with maybe a thrown in chtulu to minimize power supplies) would be pretty sweet.

The Chtlulu floor wart is actually really big. I don't have exact measurements, but it's probably bigger than the Schiit stack itself. Maybe a smaller, 2-headed Cthulu is possible?

 

[Rensek]

@Jason Stoddard I just ordered a RAAL- Requisite RS1a, should be here by end of week. I’ll be breaking it in with Yggdrasil 2, Ragnarok 1, Loki – for special occasions, and alternating with my PrimaLuna EVO 400 with a fresh set of Gold Lion KT88’s and 12AU7’s.

If you’re looking for a Jotunheim - R Beta tester I’m ready, willing, able, and retired.

Plus you're an expert reviewer and tester.

 

[FLTWS]

Plus you're an expert reviewer and tester.

Yes. Yes I am, forgot to mention that.

 

[RickB]

Schiit Audio Magni/Modi DAC and Headphone Amp Review

https://www.mmorpg.com/hardware-rev...imodi-dac-and-headphone-amp-review-1000014055

 

[tincanear]

The Chtlulu floor wart is actually really big. I don't have exact measurements, but it's probably bigger than the Schiit stack itself. Maybe a smaller, 2-headed Cthulu is possible?

my two cents:

long Velcro strap to hold the stack together with RCA interconnects intact.
daily plugging/ unplugging the RCA cables is not good for the connectors & cable ends.
consider adding a cthulu for either work or home (so no need to lug the pile of wall warts back and forth)

if you can forgo the loki (or use digital eq on the source), what about asgard3 with 4490 dac card?

 

[PioBeer]

my two cents:

long Velcro strap to hold the stack together with RCA interconnects intact.
daily plugging/ unplugging the RCA cables is not good for the connectors & cable ends.
consider adding a cthulu for either work or home (so no need to lug the pile of wall warts back and forth)

if you can forgo the loki (or use digital eq on the source), what about asgard3 with 4490 dac card?

That's actually a cool option, seems like for $100 bucks you get a much better amp and with the built in multi-bit card won't have to worry about unplugging RCA's. I do want a loki, however...And yep, I like the idea of leaving the cthulu at work and just using the normal power supplies at home, so wouldn't have to lug any of those around.