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Schiit Asgard 3 Headphone Amp & DAC Review

AnalogSteph

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Should work fine.
You should be able to get at least 50 mW into 44 ohms at low distortion (<-90 dB) out of the Asgard 3, at which point the 100 dB / 1 mW AT cans would be emitting 117 dB SPL - way more than you need.
At the same time, noise floor in low gain should be unconcerning as well (-82 dB ref. 50 mV = -108 dB ref. 1 V, and headphone sensitivity is ~113.5 dB / 1 V, so 5.5 dB SPL worth of noise... the rule of thumb for headphones is <20 dB SPL).

These Audio Technicas are fairly sensitive, so even an amplifier that breaks a bit of a sweat when driving low-impedance loads at high levels (like this one) will do just fine. Some notoriously inefficient planars would be a different story (there are some that only get to the mid-80s dB SPL for 1 V while having a very similar kind of impedance, this is not the amplifier I would recommend for those).
 
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Deleted member 18309

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So my new electric bass guitar has finally arrived, but I expect I won’t get my multi-effects pedal (with headphone out) until at least next week. So I wanted to ask if in the mean time if it’s safe (and feasible) to play by plugging my bass guitar into my Asgard 3 line in?

The signal chain would look like

Bass guitar – > Instrument cable --> 1/4 inch to 3.5mm adapter --> 3.5mm to RCA adapter --> Asgard 3

I do have all the necessary connectors/adapters, tempted to try but nervous I’ll break something

Edit: Curiosity got the better of me and I tried it out. It does work, but sound is in mono (played only through my left earcup). And doesn't sound that great. It is kind of soft, too. But as a stop-gap measure until my gear arrives, it will work.
 
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tvrgeek

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Of course it is MONO. And of course it does not have the eq and distortion of a typical bass amp as they are part of the instrument.
 

Wagstaff

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We certainly could. I have generally sent in units people were interested in for this forum. Jot 2 is an awesome amp and if people are interested in the review, I would be happy to oblige them.
I’d also love to see this reviewed here — and it’s not too much, with the Multibit DAC implementation too! Of course the amp is the thing, if you don’t want to get that fancy— and whatever Amir is willing to do)
 

Veri

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I’d also love to see this reviewed here — and it’s not too much, with the Multibit DAC implementation too! Of course the amp is the thing, if you don’t want to get that fancy— and whatever Amir is willing to do)
I would vouch against the internal multibit/ak4490 boards. We already know they are not that stellar, no surprises there. If/when Schiit comes out with a new ~2Vrms output internal board I would be very curious indeed, but the old ones? Ehh.
 

Wagstaff

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I would vouch against the internal multibit/ak4490 boards. We already know they are not that stellar, no surprises there. If/when Schiit comes out with a new ~2Vrms output internal board I would be very curious indeed, but the old ones? Ehh.
Good point. If it’s the old board, already reviewed, never mind!
 

Zensō

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We certainly could. I have generally sent in units people were interested in for this forum. Jot 2 is an awesome amp and if people are interested in the review, I would be happy to oblige them.
I would love to see the Jotunheim 2 reviewed alongside the Bifrost 2.
 

genrl

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I would love to see the Jotunheim 2 reviewed alongside the Bifrost 2.
The Bitfrost 2 was never intended to measure well, the Jontuheim 2 obviously is though. I'd like to see the Jot measured, for sure.
 

Veri

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Evidently the Jot 2 is not particularly intended to measure well. FAQ on this page https://www.schiit.com/products/jotunheim-10

there’s reference to “save $200 and get the Magnius if you want better measurements”
Well, because it's discrete. Heresy will measure better than Magni3+ for the same reason. Doesn't mean both 3+ and Jot 2 do not perform pretty well, even in measurements.
From what I see, especially with lower impedance loads, discrete designs start to distort a lot earlier than solid state ones...
 

Wagstaff

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Well, because it's discrete. Heresy will measure better than Magni3+ for the same reason. Doesn't mean both 3+ and Jot 2 do not perform pretty well, even in measurements.
From what I see, especially with lower impedance loads, discrete designs start to distort a lot earlier than solid state ones...
Of course still want to see it measured here. I saw some other post (on head-fi maybe? Couldn’t find it easily this morning — I will look more) where Jason expressed much more forcefully that this wasn’t for the measurements-crowd. If it measures as well as the Magni 3+ with all of the power and versatility it has, I’ll be interested indeed.
I definitely didn’t predict it won’t perform well! No crystal ball on my desk.
 

Lpd2

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Hello, new member here. I have the A3 w/4490 and some 600-ohm headphones on order soon to arrive. If I understand correctly my onboard DAC is undervolting the headamp section?? Will I need another DAC to get the power I need? Would the JDS Atom DAC have the same issue?
 
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Lpd2

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Just got my DAC. The Liquid Spark ticked all the boxes...and got here quick from in-state. In high gain my T1 600ohm are now at noon instead of 2:30ish as before. Glad I saw this review. Thanks!
 

Veri

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Just got my DAC. The Liquid Spark ticked all the boxes...and got here quick from in-state. In high gain my T1 600ohm are now at noon instead of 2:30ish as before. Glad I saw this review. Thanks!
Liquid Spark DAC? Nice, should be a great combo with the Asgard3. Enjoy your new set-up!
 
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I would vouch against the internal multibit/ak4490 boards. We already know they are not that stellar, no surprises there. If/when Schiit comes out with a new ~2Vrms output internal board I would be very curious indeed, but the old ones? Ehh.

@T.M.Noble . want a asgard 3 with 2Vrms output internal board
 

TheSacredSoul

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Was looking at Jot2 with the built in dac chip to save some cash but looks like that's a no go because of performance.
 
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