Schiit Bifrost and Jotunheim Review

[@jimmyblues59m76]

Have a Jotunheim 1 and really like it. Picked it up recently at Schiit as B stock for $259 with a 5 year warranty.. Also have the Asgard 3 and really like that too. Thanks for the review! Glad you are enjoying yours!

[@ThriftShopReviews]

Thanks for the comment. Funny story and timely comment. I was driving to work this morning and told myself I would never sell my jottenheim! I might sell my Asgard simply do to power output and connections. They both sound great. Life is good with a Jot in it!! Lol

[@OWEN-CASH]

I'm confused. At 6:58, when you're describing the specs for the Bifrost you say that it has the AK4490 delta-sigma DAC, but according to the labels on the back panel you showed at 1:25 & 1:50, and the model you're holding, it should have the Analog Devices AD5547 multibit version 2 DAC. If it does have the multibit DAC there should be a very noticeable difference in sound from the Suncoz delta-sigma DAC as they are two totally different styles of DACs. Maybe the sound you're hearing from the Bifrost is actually the delta-sigma DAC in the Soncoz you're running it through and not the multibit. This might explain why they sound similar.

[@ThriftShopReviews]

Thanks for pixel peeping and finding that detail. Seriously!! I was told it was akm version and given the timing I just assumed. I also contacted schiit and at the time they were so busy they didnt have time to even consider upgrades. Perhaps if I would have made it to the upgrade step I might have found this out. I will open up the unit and see what it has inside. Good point on the soncoz. I will get back with you after I investigate further. Thanks

[@ThriftShopReviews]

You’re 100% correct. Opened it up to verify and multibit v2. Gen 5 usb. I’m going to relook at this dac. I’ve been using it and like it. I think my first issue was not leaving it on if multibit. The unit gets really warm so I shut it off and that didn’t help the sound. I will also try running a different usb cable directly to my computer vs a hub. Lastly I will try in my main system using raspberry pi and compare to the ares. Thanks for finding that detail.

[@OWEN-CASH]

Glad to hear it's the multibit, (and you will be too). That was a $200 upgrade from the first gen multibit chip. I posted another comment here yesterday about your USB issue but I think it was automatically deleted by KZbin because I included an external link. According to Schiit, the issue may be caused by not having enough power to the USB port on your Macbook. You can change it in the power management settings. More info at the Schiit website under Guides>USB Problems (scroll to the very bottom of page).

[@ThriftShopReviews]

@@OWEN-CASH I also went to the schiit website yesterday. I also went to few forums where people talked about it. The dac showed up as “advanced audio device” on my usb list but I could not select it. I use a hyperdrive 18 hub for my computer. I might try another solution to see if that works for usb or try the coax out of the hyperdrive. The hyperdrive has a lot of functions in it but it also has many limitations. Worthy of its own review!! I will report back tonight. Thanks again for your help

[@sashac3323]

How does the Jot power the HE6se? I read that they require a lot of power, is the Jot 1 able to power those headphones adequately? Thanks!

[@ThriftShopReviews]

The Jot did technically work but just didn’t deliver what was needed. The Jot is around 4 watts at the HE6SE loading and you need around 7 Watts. This is all up to personal preference and listening levels though.