[JLM]

Love the whole Schiit philosophy:  no bull; good design; upgradable DAC's; money goes into quality American made guts versus fancy boxes.

So has anyone compared Gungnir Multi-Bit to other $1,000 - 2,000 DAC's?

I've been using the DAC in my DSPeaker Anti-Mode 2.0 Dual Core, but am itching to move up.  My concern is having a DAC that is ruthless to early digital recordings (revealing the harsh/thin sound).  Note I only listen to Redbook quality recordings.

TIA for any input.

[Ric Schultz]

I just talked to my friend who has a modified Yggy.....shown here: http://tweakaudio.com/EVS-2/Schiit_mod.html

He just got in the LKS DAC: https://www.shenzhenaudio.com/l-k-s-audio-mh-da004-dual-es9038pro-flagship-dac-dsd-input-coaxial-bnc-aes-ebu-for-dop-usb-i2s-optical-audio-decoder.html

He said right out of the box stone cold it beat the modded Yggy.  He is now doing various mods to it (following my suggestions) and now says it is neck in neck with his analog system.  He is playing mostly 16/44 using a Beatis server and coax with modified IFI spdif I purifier (also modded per my instructions).  Seems like Schiit is now old news.  Things are moving fast.

[zoom25]

Take a look at the Crane Song Solaris. It's turning heads in the high-end pro world. People with top Prism and Weiss even showing it love.

There's also the Convert-2, which if you want engaging and slightly coloured is perfect. 2 people so far preferred it to the Yggy.

[Ric Schultz]

Don't think many will take a risk on a studio piece......but then again the LKS is not exactly in every store! 

A friend with modded Gustard Pro prefers his Gustard (by a mile) over the latest Prism Callia DAC ($2600) he borrowed from his dealer.  Chinese stuff is getting crazy good!

[zoom25]

I think people should certainly take a look at the studio world for DACs. This is one area where you can get very good value. I am in both camps. The studio world has stuff that will hang with the likes of Naim, Bryston, NAD, Arcam, Luxman, reference Marantz and many others. Some of the manufacturers, like Dave Hill, are very much audiophile at heart.

Shows in his interview as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcJigc27p6w

Just a suggestion.

[drhoon]

I pretty much had all the Schiit offerings, Modi2, Modi Multibit, Gungnir MB, now I have Yggdrasil.

I highly recommend Gungnir MB. I don't think any DAC comes close in price range $3k+ minus Yggdrasil. Multibit is very nice. 5 year warranty, upgradeable, American-made. What more can you wish for?

All the other D/S dacs have this sharp/metal effect that I detest.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

JLM, if you are wanting a forgiving DAC for harsh or poor digital recordings, consider a Chord DAC like a Hugo or 2Qute if you don't need the headphone amp.  The Chord DAC's are musical, detailed and forgiving.  Plus no fancy BS.

I am like you, I have a lot of older recorded music and I choose a more forgiving DAC with my Luxman.  I went through several DAC's before settling on it.  The Hugo Chord was on my short list.  I have a friend that brought his over to try in my system a couple of times.

[JLM]

Thanks for the the feedback.  Should have mentioned that I looking for balanced outputs. 

BTW I. Greyhound Fan, tried a used 2Qute a while back based on those same qualities, but at that time the needed Mac software wasn't available, so all I could listen through was my iMac via a 35 foot, $6 toslink cable.   

I've "heard" that Gumby has an "organic" sound which should help my (currently) 100% solid state system.

Looking for a comfortable solution (have tried modded/homebuilt/studio/exotic stuff in the past) and am ready to settle down.

[rpf]

If I were in the market for a DAC, I would try this:

http://www.musicalparadise.ca/store/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=80

Lots of great reviews here and on Audioshark. Balanced.

I'm very happy with my Lampizator Amber II but, as it's not balanced, that doesn't help you.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

I would take a look at the Aqua La Voce S2.  It has great reviews and is supposed to have an organic sound.  It has XLR outs.  A friend of mine has one and loves it.  And he owned a Yggdrasil  (he hated it), a PS Audio DSDse, Metrome Hex and a few others .  He loves the natural organic sound of this dac.  I have seen an occasional used one for under $2K.

https://www.audiogon.com/listings/da-converters-aqua-la-voce-s2-dac-d-a-converter-2173-2017-04-11-digital-80020-broomfield-co?acq=fuel&keyword=daconverters&creative=shopping&gclid=CjwKEAjw5_vHBRCBtt2NqqCDjiESJABD5rCJaCKnibCCbu_xN9WW8Slf6yijt-yx30y_tnPU1st-fhoCec_w_wcB


http://www.aquahifi.com/la-voce-da-converter/


http://www.soundstageultra.com/index.php/features-menu/opinion-menu/106-uncategorized/592-aqua-acoustic-quality-la-voce-s2-digital-to-analog-converter


http://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/a-few-thoughts-on-the-aqua-la-voce-s2.686634/

[DTB300]

Love the whole Schiit philosophy:  no bull; good design; upgradable DAC's; money goes into quality American made guts versus fancy boxes.

So has anyone compared Gungnir Multi-Bit to other $1,000 - 2,000 DAC's?

I've been using the DAC in my DSPeaker Anti-Mode 2.0 Dual Core, but am itching to move up.  My concern is having a DAC that is ruthless to early digital recordings (revealing the harsh/thin sound).  Note I only listen to Redbook quality recordings.

Sorry I cannot comment directly on the Gumby MB.  My Yggy replaced a Wadia Di DAC and for me there was no contest - I still own the Yggy.  I had the money for the Gumby, but forked up the extra cash and bought the Yggy - still very pleased and satisfied with the purchase (so happy that I even bought a Freya to try out - and kept that too).

The change IMO is what you are looking for.  Redbook sounds EXCELLENT with the Schiit Gumby or for me the Yggy.