[Early B.]

I totally agree.  Do you have a list of people that do specific builds?

What do you want to build?

[BrandonB]

What do you want to build?

Actually just someone that helps to upgrade electronics if I ever needed it.

[Early B.]

Actually just someone that helps to upgrade electronics if I ever needed it.

Avoid paying for shipping. Look for a local audiophile who enjoys tinkering with electronics, ideally, an experienced DIY guy who loves the smell of molten solder. 

[mkrawcz]

I managed to get a First Watt F5M kit before they sold out in 20 minutes. Talk about no parts, this amp will be interesting.

[jmimac351]

I managed to get a First Watt F5M kit before they sold out in 20 minutes. Talk about no parts, this amp will be interesting.

Keep us in the loop.

[Presb4]

I just shipped the Yggdrasil back yesterday.  As mentioned, it had a mechanical transformer hum that I could hear at my listening position, 12' away.  It was loud enough that my wife asked "What is that humming noise?"

The Yggy sounded nice... but so did this other stuff.  I just mentioned to someone elsewhere that I would definitely just opt for the Bifrost 2/64 unit.  It was dead quiet and sounded great.  It had the smoothness but also detail that people have been describing in the Yggdrasil LIM unit.  This is actually the second time I've owned the Bifrost 2/64.  The first was when I had my Magnepan 3.7i speakers.  The speakers were the limiting factor in really being able to appreciate the DAC, and I sold it too quickly.

~Some sort of RME DAC will be staying, whether it's the current one or even the ADI-2/4 Pro SE, which uses the same chip as my Ayre QB-9 Twenty. The features / sound of the RME are incredible, IMO.  It's a tremendous product.

~The Ayre QB-9 Twenty will be staying, as it sounds wonderful and is my frame of reference for "right".

~The Modius with AKM4493 will be staying... I paid for it with quarters I found in the couch, and it sounds excellent.  I think it is the DAC that Mike Moffat mentioned as a D/S DAC that "sounded waaaaaaaay too good".  The Modi Multibit will be staying for similar reasons.  I think I bought it with nickels I found in the cupholder of my truck.    There is a reason why Jason Stoddard said he still uses one.

This time around, I will not be quick to sell the Bifrost 2/64.  I bought it right and I think this stuff is fun.  Besides... Schiit is working on an update for Gungnir that will be D/S.  If they come out with some new card for BF 2/64, maybe I'll play with it.  I think the Bifrost 2/64 is the best option for me to have one of their DACs that truly does sound great, can be upgraded (when they do it), costs half (or less) of the Yggy, and doesn't have the mechanical hum issues.  (Search for that Yggy hum issue, it can be easily fixed, but it's still a thing).

I had similar thoughts as you about buying into the Yggy ecosystem / upgrade path.  And then I heard transformer hum, experienced other DACs that sound as good (or better) with far more features never contemplated (and will never be done) by Schiit.  And then, you see the pricing for Upgrade cards on Schiit website.  $550 for the LIM boards and $850 for the MIB.  After what I've experienced with these DACs and as it relates to your question, the Bifrost 2/64, I would absolutely keep the 2/64.

I'll put it to you this way, when I dropped off the Yggdrasil at FedEx yesterday, it was with a sense of relief that "I experienced that and know what that is, and I know what I already have is at least as good, and in very important ways, SUPERIOR".

Hopefully this helps you get past that itch.  I know how it is when you're wondering about "that other thing..."

Thanks jmimac351 for you detailed feedback, it was appreciated.

I still pulled the trigger and ordered a Yggy LIM the other week and a new CEC TL5 transport to try out from Japan. I have had the Yggy LIM for about a week now and the TL5 was delivered by FedEx today.

I'm sorry you had a noisy transformer in your Yggy, sounds like you might have gotten a lemon as mine is dead quiet, I have to have my ear up against the chassis to her the tranny inside the yggy, only a slight hum even then. I have been comparing the Bitfrost 2/64 with the Yggy LIM for a week now and can say I love both, but the Yggy is better in my system.

IMO, the sound stage is deeper and taller than the Bitfrost 2/64, but oddly, not wider.... The bass is the first thing I noticed between the two. The bass coming out of the Yggy is significantly better then the BF. This was just what I was looking for as I felt the Bitfrost could be a bit edgy paired to my GR Brutes. They both have the same DAC chip, but different PS and analog circuits and the bass quality and quantity out of the Yggy gives me the perception of reducing the edge I find in the BF when paired with my GR Brutes.

Then today when I hooked up my new CEC TL5 transport to the Yggy and loaded my favorite XRCD, Dire Straits Brothers in Arms. OMG, the Yggy came alive. My system has never sounded this good. I am truly shocked what a change a good transport made.

I have since taken my BF to my office and paired it with my G-Horn amp and Arendal small BS speakers, it ended up being perfect match.








 

[mkrawcz]

I have the F5M up and running in its temporary case. I like what I’m hearing so far. Seems more detailed and tighter in the bass than the AlephJ.

[Jaytor]

I have the F5M up and running in its temporary case. I like what I’m hearing so far. Seems more detailed and tighter in the bass than the AlephJ.

Nice! Thanks for sharing. I'm still waiting for a few parts to finish assembling mine. I'll be tied up for the next couple weeks, so probably won't get a chance to finish until sometime in April.

I'm glad you are happy with the sound. I'm thinking of building two stereo amps with a built in active crossover to try and bypass my passive crossovers.

I've just got too many projects and not enough free time. 

[Presb4]

I have the F5M up and running in its temporary case. I like what I’m hearing so far. Seems more detailed and tighter in the bass than the AlephJ.

With the size of those heat syncs, I think it could catch fire and it still wouldn't over heat 

Joking aside....

What kind of power are you expecting this F5M will make into an 8 ohm load? 10 watts?

[mkrawcz]

With the size of those heat syncs, I think it could catch fire and it still wouldn't over heat 

Joking aside....

What kind of power are you expecting this F5M will make into an 8 ohm load? 10 watts?

25watts 8ohms 40watts 4ohms  class A

[Presb4]

Wow, that's a lot more than I expected.
I will have to take a deeper look into this design.
It might need to be my next project after I finish the Kegger EL34 SEUL amp I am currently building.

[mkrawcz]

Wow, that's a lot more than I expected.
I will have to take a deeper look into this design.
It might need to be my next project after I finish the Kegger EL34 SEUL amp I am currently building.

It’s a push pull design which gives it more output. If you go to the diyaudio forum, in the Nelson Pass section, you can find the discussion. Nelson Pass has the document on the amp available in the first post. I will say that this is quickly becoming one of my very favorite amps.

[Presb4]

It’s a push pull design which gives it more output. If you go to the diyaudio forum, in the Nelson Pass section, you can find the discussion. Nelson Pass has the document on the amp available in the first post. I will say that this is quickly becoming one of my very favorite amps.

Thanks 
I will check it out.

[KTS]

I have the F5M up and running in its temporary case. I like what I’m hearing so far. Seems more detailed and tighter in the bass than the AlephJ.

After you spend some time with it, please give your listening impressions. I enjoy the Aleph J, but building an M2X. Looking for the next project, the F5M looks interesting. Nice clean build too, thank you for sharing!

[mkrawcz]

After you spend some time with it, please give your listening impressions. I enjoy the Aleph J, but building an M2X. Looking for the next project, the F5M looks interesting. Nice clean build too, thank you for sharing!

Will do. I definitely need to put some hours on the amp and I will start comparing it directly with the. Aleph.

[mkrawcz]

On the tube side of things, I just put together this Elekit TU-8900 this weekend that I got on sale. I have to say, this amp blows the TU-8600 away. I highly recommend it if you’re looking for a 300b set amp. I don’t think there are too many that will better this amp, especially for the price. It’s 9watts, which should be enough for the NX-Oticas or NX-tremes in an average size room.

[jmimac351]

After going thru a bunch of DACs, having the Ayre AX-7e integrated (under $1500 used, and awesome), hearing the difference a proper crossover makes (and that the best way to get this is by NOT buying a retail speaker)... and then being parked in front of Danny's "Chip Amps" when I was there recently for a listen... I am quickly realizing that you can spend a fraction of the money you think you have to spend to have the best sound.  I think you can spend a ton of money to have good sound, but it's unnecessary.

I suspect many people have a hard time getting over that mental hump. 

Oh... and I saw those chip amps and started asking Danny about them... He mentioned they were a Folsom chip amp (maybe Folsom EC7293?) that someone did some other work to.  60w/8ohm... 120w/4ohm.  They were effortless with the NX-Treme. 

I am going to be listing a lot of gear for sale soon. 

[mkrawcz]

After going thru a bunch of DACs, having the Ayre AX-7e integrated (under $1500 used, and awesome), hearing the difference a proper crossover makes (and that the best way to get this is by NOT buying a retail speaker)... and then being parked in front of Danny's "Chip Amps" when I was there recently for a listen... I am quickly realizing that you can spend a fraction of the money you think you have to spend to have the best sound.  I think you can spend a ton of money to have good sound, but it's unnecessary.

I suspect many people have a hard time getting over that mental hump. 

Oh... and I saw those chip amps and starting asking Danny about them... He mentioned they were a Folsom chip amp (maybe Folsom EC7293?) that someone did some other work to.  60w/8ohm... 120w/4ohm.  They were effortless with the NX-Treme. 

I am going to be listing a lot of gear for sale soon.

Yup, the Folsom EC7293s are the best sounding chip amps I’ve come across to date. I’ve built a couple of them and they’re near the top of the list of amps I have.  I will be reworking them into monoblocks eventually. As good as the chip amps are, the new NelsonPass F5m i posted above is really special and that can be built for under $500. I’d put it against just about any class A amp I’ve heard.

[jmimac351]

Yup, the Folsom EC7293s are the best sounding chip amps I’ve come across to date. I’ve built a couple of them and they’re near the top of the list of amps I have.  I will be reworking them into monoblocks eventually. As good as the chip amps are, the new NelsonPass F5m i posted above is really special and that can be built for under $500. I’d put it against just about any class A amp I’ve heard.

I was reading thru that Nelson Pass F5m thread several weeks ago and meant to keep tabs on when the kit was going on sale.  Since they are now out of stock, I signed up for alerts about the next batch of boards.  I saw where someone asked about bridged mono operation, with a balanced input.  Nelson mentioned THD impacts and also that the damping factor would be about half of the stereo version.

Is that a doable thing... you could build 2 of them and run them mono with balanced input?

As best I can tell, the Folsom EC7293 amps not buildable anymore.

[Jaytor]

I was reading thru that Nelson Pass F5m thread several weeks ago and meant to keep tabs on when the kit was going on sale.  Since they are now out of stock, I signed up for alerts about the next batch of boards.  I saw where someone asked about bridged mono operation, with a balanced input.  Nelson mentioned THD impacts and also that the damping factor would be about half of the stereo version.

Is that a doable thing... you could build 2 of them and run them mono with balanced input?

You could do this but it would significantly change the sound characteristics since what makes this amp interesting is the dominant second harmonic distortion component. Running two in a balanced configuration would cancel the majority of the even harmonics.