Schiit Audio Yggdrasil Review

[PHC1]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Yesterday I made a direct A/B comparison of the Wireworld Silver Starlight coaxial digital interconnect with the Wireworld Gold Starlight AES/EBU balanced digital interconnect. I had both the Gold Starlight AES/EBU digital interconnect and the Silver Starlight coaxial digital interconnect installed between the MOON Neo 260D transport and the Yggdrasil DAC. The Gold Starlight cable has 165 hours on it. The Silver Starlight cable has 400+ hours on it. I wanted to wait until I had over 150 hours on the new Gold Starlight AES/EBU cable so that I was comfortable it had a decent amount of break-in before making a comparison. What I notice with the AES/EBU cable feeding the Yggdrasil DAC is a slightly more refined musical essence, a sensation of the sound being ever so slightly more realistic in warmth and timbre. It is not a night and day difference that you would immediately identify without direct A/B comparison with a number of different recordings. The added refinement appears most in the dimensional characteristics of vocals, particularly female vocals. I also notice a tiny improvement in the tonal richness and lingering harmonics of solo piano notes and full chords.

After a couple of hours of direct A/B comparisons yesterday I am satisfied that the Wireworld Gold Starlight AES/EBU balanced digital interconnect is the superior digital connection between the Simaudio MOON Neo 260D transport and the Yggdrasil DAC. I am not certain how much of the difference I noticed between the coaxial and AES/EBU inputs is attributed Schiit Audio's implementation of the two Yggdrasil SPDIF inputs versus the sonic impact of the two different Wireworld digital interconnects. In either case I decided the Gold Starlight AES/EBU balanced digital interconnect reins supreme. I have removed the Silver Starlight coaxial digital interconnect from the system.

Thanks for sharing your findings Dan. Good stuff.

[PHC1]

Originally Posted by Puma Cat

Its really great to hear how well Yggy is working out for you, Dan. Now, hopefully Serge will get his soon!

Patiently awaiting the arrival of Mr.Yggy the but hopefully not too much longer now!

[US Blues]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Stephen.......I am super pleased with the Yggdrasil DAC. The more I listen to it the more it captures my heart. Lately I find myself favoring the living room sound system with the Yggy over the Studio system with the K-01X. The Yggdrasil is so pleasing, so analog in its presentation, and so captivating of my attention. It delivers a truly pleasurable listening experience.

I am not saying I now favor the living room over the studio system, or the Yggdrasil over the K-01X. What I am saying is having the Yggdrasil in the living room sound system has raised the performance bar to a new and higher level that I am soaking up like a sponge. I am so happy you and Serge provided the catalyst that pushed me off the ledge to purchase the Yggdrasil. This is one DAC I would have been remiss not to have found a place in a sound system to enjoy. The Yggdrasil delivers astonishing performance and is an exceptional value.

Dan-

Your words are always so elegant in describing the sound of music, thank you.

I've been giving my Yggy upgrade a chance to break in properly before reporting on what I am hearing, based on memory of course. The caveat is that the differences are subtle, not night-and-day, yet clearly noticeable (to me, with my ears, etc.) A few keys:

1- Bass. More articulate now, vibrating bass strings have more clarity and resonance, which can create the impression that there is "less bass," because sloppiness can be interpreted as "more." Drums are also tighter, less thump more drum head.

2- Detail. One of the keys to the Yggy 2 upgrade is that the unit offers more inner detail, including spatial cues, instrument and vocal resonances, etc. And yet the sound did not lose any of the organic musicality that makes Yggy a wonderful DAC.

3- Soundtage: In some cases the soundstage sounds less wide than before, which I attribute to accuracy, since the depth and height have not changed much. If anything there is more depth, but only when it is accurate to the recording. I feel there is less exaggeration than before, although this is very subtle and notable only on certain recordings.

Overall I am very happy with the upgrade. This feature was one of the deciding factors when I originally purchased my Yggy, the boys at Schiit promised that upgrades would only come when they were fully worthwhile. For my money they kept their word.

Scott

[jdandy]

Scott.......I appreciate your comparison of the sound from the original Yggdrasil to the Yggdrasil with the Analog 2 upgrade. I have not experienced the original Yggdrasil but believe from all reports it is quite remarkable in its own right. From your comments it is clear the Analog 2 upgrade brings greater focus to micro details, those that help us focus on the finer elements and presence of instruments and voices. I am especially pleased to read that the Analog 2 upgrade managed to keep its organic musical nature, that which recreates a more holistic impression when compared to actual real sounds. That is the name of the game in high-end audio, make the reproduction as close to the real event as possible. The Yggdrasil stands among the best in its ability to make a listener believe the performance is original.

[avico238]

I wonder if someone here ever compared audial model s (also a R2R DAC) with yggy.

[jdandy]

avico238.......A member for 4-1/2 years, and this is your first post. Welcome to Audio Aficionado.

This is the first time I have heard of the Audial Model 2 DAC. Interesting that it is made in Serbia. I did a quick search and found this review. http://audiophile.no/images/Audial%2...0S%20MkIII.jpg . It certainly appears to be a well designed and built DAC. I am curious to read if anyone has experience with it.

I hope we don't have to wait another 4-1/2 years to read your second post. Don't be a stranger.

[Bhatten]

Hmmm.... I bought my Yggy right around the time of the upgrade. Need to check wich version I have when I get home.

[Bhatten]

How interesting. I just looked and it seems that I do in deed have the Analog 2 board (serial number starting with a B). Schiit never made any mention that they were changing the Yggy to this new board back when I ordered it. After it was ordered, I had to wait about 3 weeks before it was shipped. I communicated with Schiit about the minor delay (and they were very responsive), but I wasn't told why specifically it was delayed. I had figured that the delay was probably related to the new Gen5 USB that was being used on the new Yggys. Looking back, now I would assume it was the new analog board they were waiting on. My unit was shipped October 10, 2107 and according to website, that's right when they began (clandestinely) sending out the new upgraded units.

When my Yggy broke in, it didn't seem to go through so many of the dramatic changes that so many in the past have described. Do you think that has to do with the new board?

[jdandy]

Bhatten.......Good to see another Yggdrasil owner's post, and especially happy to see you received the newest Analog 2 version. My Yggdrasil did the majority of its sonic maturing in the first 100 hours. After that there were very subtle improvements in the presentation of micro details but overall the Yggdrasil was sounding absolutely amazing once past the first 100 hours. I suspect the new Analog 2 boards improved output resolution still requires a break-in period to ultimately reach its permanent voice.

[PHC1]

Originally Posted by Bhatten

How interesting. I just looked and it seems that I do in deed have the Analog 2 board (serial number starting with a B). Schiit never made any mention that they were changing the Yggy to this new board back when I ordered it. After it was ordered, I had to wait about 3 weeks before it was shipped. I communicated with Schiit about the minor delay (and they were very responsive), but I wasn't told why specifically it was delayed. I had figured that the delay was probably related to the new Gen5 USB that was being used on the new Yggys. Looking back, now I would assume it was the new analog board they were waiting on. My unit was shipped October 10, 2107 and according to website, that's right when they began (clandestinely) sending out the new upgraded units.

When my Yggy broke in, it didn't seem to go through so many of the dramatic changes that so many in the past have described. Do you think that has to do with the new board?

The Yggy break in was indeed much less pronounced than Gumby. Yggy was smooth and musical cold, out of the box on day 1. My unit now has 500 hrs on it and I can not say I have noticed any significant change at all in the past 300. Pure joy to listen to.