[olor1n]

Quote:

You have the Mjolnir... which is super aggressive and top tilted.  That amp takes a seriously smooth, laid back and dark source.  It likely wasn't the Gungnir since it is one of the DACs known to tame the Mjolnir some compared to other sources.  Personally found the Mjolnir too aggressive even with the Metrum Octave and LCD-3.

 
The Gungnir was most certainly the culprit. Its flaws were also evident through speakers, with the MJ out of the equation. The notion that the Gungnir tames the MJ is counter to what I heard, and this is the first I've read of it.

 

[zigy626]

Audiolab M-Dac is a really good Dac. I am currently using it with my HD800

 

[PinkLed]

Has anyone used the Bifrost with uber and a Mjolnir? How does this stack up to the Gungnir?

 

[Solude]

Quote:

The notion that the Gungnir tames the MJ is counter to what I heard, and this is the first I've read of it.

 
Can only tell you what was spouted as gospel over and over in the Mjolnir thread.  I never took it that far since the Mjolnir just wasn't for me.  The Statement should fix it though with the ability to roll the front end tube to suit.

 

[preproman]

Quote:

 
Can only tell you what was spouted as gospel over and over in the Mjolnir thread.  I never took it that far since the Mjolnir just wasn't for me.  The Statement should fix it though with the ability to roll the front end tube to suit.

 
So Solude, your go for the Hybrid over the SS Statement?

 

[paradoxper]

Quote:

You have the Mjolnir... which is super aggressive and top tilted.  That amp takes a seriously smooth, laid back and dark source.  It likely wasn't the Gungnir since it is one of the DACs known to tame the Mjolnir some compared to other sources.  Personally found the Mjolnir too aggressive even with the Metrum Octave and LCD-3.

Mjolnir settles down. It's still more involving than most amps. But Gungnir is the edgy culprit. Gungnir would do wonders for the Soloist though.

 

[Solude]

Quote:

 
So Solude, your go for the Hybrid over the SS Statement?

 
Oh ya.  Assuming the Statement is the Mjolnir with more output devices it'll need the tube love to tonally shift it down and round it out.

 

[LifeAspect]

Violectric V800 is a great match~

 

[preproman]

The issue I have with the V800 is that it's adaptive or lets say older technology.  I'm sure it sounds very good.  However, if all things are equal in implementation would you rather go Adaptive or Asynchronous.
 
I'm sure someone will say.....  "I've heard some adaptive sound better than some Async."  I'm sure you have.  That's why I said if all things are equal in implementation.  

 

[Solude]

Adaptive/Async is really just new words for slave/master clock.  Problem is in SPDIF data is a continuous stream on a clock and jitter matters.  In USB the data is packet bursts that the device then streams out spdif or i2s continuously.  Ie the USB clock control for usb doesn't matter a whole lot.  It's the converter timing that matters.

 

[jeffreyfranz]

You made this up, right?
2x 25cm Van Damme Tour Grade Classic XKE Starquad microphone cable with nickel/silver-Neutrik XLR plugs
 
Quote:

 
No-nonsense balanced amplifiers don't exist in the first place, so it's not a problem.

 

[preproman]

Quote:

Adaptive/Async is really just new words for slave/master clock.  Problem is in SPDIF data is a continuous stream on a clock and jitter matters.  In USB the data is packet bursts that the device then streams out spdif or i2s continuously.  Ie the USB clock control for usb doesn't matter a whole lot.  It's the converter timing that matters.

 
In Adaptive mod -  The computer can't maintain perfect timing of the data sent by it's USB port.
 
In Async mod - The clock drives the computer directly, so it does not rely on the computers clock.
 
Async is technically more advanced. So why use adaptive if you don't have to?  
 

 

[JWahl]

Quote:

Mjolnir settles down. It's still more involving than most amps. But Gungnir is the edgy culprit. Gungnir would do wonders for the Soloist though.

Interesting.  I'm currently using Soloist + HD800 myself and I was previously using a Resonessence Concero with good results but had to sell it because I needed some extra money.  Using a Modi for the time being.  I remember listening to my HD800 and a Mjolnir/Gungnir combo with Wavelength USB converter at a meet not too long ago and didn't particular like the combo with the HD800. It wasn't terrible by any means but I much preferred my (at the time) Concero>PS Audio Nuwave>Soloist SL combo.  The Soloist SL was a loaner of someone elses and what made me decide to buy the full size Soloist, though I had to sell the Nuwave to afford it.  The Nuwave is said by some to be a forward and bright DAC but the Concero as a converter did help with that some.  I didn't like the M/J combo for essentially the same reasons that Olor1n stated.
 
I don't find the Soloist to be a "Syrupy" amp by any means though.  But it's certainly not thin sounding at all either.  It certainly has no problem showcasing the slight brightness of the Modi.  Surprising though, with Fidelizer enabled, I find the Modi comes very close to the performance of the Concero but with a slightly different presentation.  Without Fidelizer though, it certainly sounds much more like a $100 DAC in this rather transparent setup.  I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the difference is greater with the Modi since the Concero also uses it's FPGA for jitter reduction, in addition to it's custom filters.  The Modi has no such fanciness.  It does make me very curious though, of what the USB Bifrost Uber, and Gungnir would be capable of with Fidelizer enabled, and matched with my current setup.
 
And I apologize ahead of time to anyone that follows my posts and notices that I seem to be pushing the whole Fidelizer thing a lot.  I've just been really excited with the noticeable change in my PC setup using it and it's free as well.  Of course each PC is different and YMMV.  Some have tried it and stated they couldn't tell any difference.  But I figured it's free so it couldn't hurt to try and honestly wasn't expecting an difference at all.  Another similar option is JPlay which is similar in concept but gets there by different means and is not free to use for full version.

 

[M-13]

+1 for Fidelizer.
 
It works. Simple as that. The effect is indeed much bigger on the Modi. I have both the Modi and the Concero. I appreciate you spreading the word about Fidelizer. It seriously changed my mind about how inadequate my laptop is in stock form. Going off memory. Fidelizer + Modi sounds better than my Bifrost ever did. (non-Uber and not using Fidelizer at the time, when I owned it). I'm wondering how the Uber would sound with the Fidelizer as well, but perhaps the dramatic effect won't happen, kind of like the Concero.
 
It's a free program, so people can try it without much risk. I'm using Foobar + Wasapi plug-in + Fidelizer, and I have a huge smile on my face right now.

 

[faverodefavero]

So, anyone knows please, where can I buy some or any of these DACs you're suggesting? I mean, a link that ships to Brazil with no problem? Thanks so much for all the suggestions again, you've been most responsive and helpful guys!