New Schiit: Custom USB Silicon

[Jinjuku]

https://www.schiit.com/about/news/usb-elevated-introducing-unison-usb

Not content to fuck up industry solutions like XMOS and CMedia. They've decided they know better and are shoveling their own sand.

** rolling their own code

 

[majingotan]

Their USB module is proprietary for their DACs only so I don’t see any point of them competing with XMOS or C-Media. Plus they don’t have to deal with them and actually control their DAC production better with this approach

 

[cjm2077]

https://www.schiit.com/about/news/usb-elevated-introducing-unison-usb

Not content to fuck up industry solutions like XMOS and CMedia. They've decided they know better and are shoveling their own sand.

It's not custom silicon, it's just their own code on an existing microprocessor. They even talking about flashing it onto older devices.

 

[mansr]

"Running on a general-purpose Microchip microprocessor (rather than a typical XMOS or C-Media solution)"

So it's just an Atmel/Microchip or ST microcontroller with some software, half of which was probably supplied by the chip vendor. Nothing wrong with that, but it's hardly newsworthy.

 

[Blur]

I've had nothing but issues with Schiit DAC's and trying to talk to Windows 10. It has gotten better with more support from Windows, but I refuse to use USB anymore from Schiit. Why make a headache out of a listening experience.

 

[Jinjuku]

Their USB module is proprietary for their DACs only so I don’t see any point of them competing with XMOS or C-Media. Plus they don’t have to deal with them and actually control their DAC production better with this approach

Why do all these other well behaving DAC's seem not to have these production problems?

 

[manisandher]

"Forget decrapifiers, regenerators, isolators, and all the USB dongles and boxes you’ve been told you need for USB sound. Our all-new Gen 5 USB input doesn’t require any of that stuff. It’s this simple: Gen 5 is USB, solved."
- Mike Moffat, 2017

But not quite "solved" enough, apparently:

"Unison USB is designed to do a single thing, and to do it better than anything else: deliver exceptional PCM audio performance."
"Now, Schiit is bringing Unison USB to all of its upgradable DACs: Bifrost, Gungnir, and Yggdrasil."
- Mike Moffat, 2020

And people still fall for this Schiit?

 

[Alex-D]

Firmware for usb input that costs 150$ without installation. Great offer!

 

[direstraitsfan98]

Mike has been making a big deal about it on head-fi and superbestaudiofriends. The forums have been abuzz about unison for a while now. I can try to dig up some posts later, but I recall a specific post by Jason where he discusses Mikes thoughts of the new Unison driver. They were talking about it as if somehow going to elevate the sound to the next level.

Of course they’ll downplay it in the actual marketing but continue the charade on their echo chamber forums.

 

[cjm2077]

Mike has been making a big deal about it on head-fi and superbestaudiofriends. The forums have been abuzz about unison for a while now. I can try to dig up some posts later, but I recall a specific post by Jason where he discusses Mikes thoughts of the new Unison driver. They were talking about it as if somehow going to elevate the sound to the next level.

Of course they’ll downplay it in the actual marketing but continue the charade on their echo chamber forums.

It's a USB connection. The only possible reason this could improve things is that they were screwing up something before.

 

[majingotan]

Why do all these other well behaving DAC's seem not to have these production problems?

You mean connectivity problems? I never had those with my Bifrost 2, but you mean placebo sound quality improvement then that’s their main reason for making their own. In subjective audiophile world: proprietary >> off the shelf that’s all it boils down to. Production issues regarding the sound quality of these off the shelf USB modules is not up to Schiit’s (or Mike Moffat) placebo sound quality standards

 

[mansr]

It's a USB connection. The only possible reason this could improve things is that they were screwing up something before.

Screwing? That would mean they've left the anal psychosexual stage and finally reached adolescence. They may yet grow up.

 

[mhardy6647]

"Forget decrapifiers, regenerators, isolators, and all the USB dongles and boxes you’ve been told you need for USB sound. Our all-new Gen 5 USB input doesn’t require any of that stuff. It’s this simple: Gen 5 is USB, solved."
- Mike Moffat, 2017

But not quite "solved" enough, apparently:

"Unison USB is designed to do a single thing, and to do it better than anything else: deliver exceptional PCM audio performance."
"Now, Schiit is bringing Unison USB to all of its upgradable DACs: Bifrost, Gungnir, and Yggdrasil."
- Mike Moffat, 2020

And people still fall for this Schiit?

To quote from the movie Annie Hall (sort of) -- A for profit company is like a shark. It has to keep moving forward (umm.... keep selling new stuff) or else it dies.

 

[Fluffy]

I've had nothing but issues with Schiit DAC's and trying to talk to Windows 10. It has gotten better with more support from Windows, but I refuse to use USB anymore from Schiit. Why make a headache out of a listening experience.

I got the Modi 3 and had no issues at all with windows 10.

 

[majingotan]

Schiit Unison USB available bit and sample rates:

 

[somebodyelse]

Firmware for usb input that costs 150$ without installation. Great offer!

Looking at the models involved, and the pictures of their internals, it seems more likely to be a replacement USB input board than a firmware upgrade to the existing one, and that the processor on the Gungnir's mainboard needs a firmware update to work with the new board. Note that it's this firmware update that requires a trip back to Schitt, while the others can be upgraded by any competent technician

 

[solderdude]

off topic... but a still a little bit on topic because of the thread name ... new Schiit.

Anybody know what happened with 'the gadget' ?

 

[Alex-D]

Looking at the models involved, and the pictures of their internals, it seems more likely to be a replacement USB input board than a firmware upgrade to the existing one, and that the processor on the Gungnir's mainboard needs a firmware update to work with the new board. Note that it's this firmware update that requires a trip back to Schitt, while the others can be upgraded by any competent technician

I might have misread that announcement, hopefully your interpretation is more correct

 

[Veri]

+1

Horrible experience with Modi 3 trying to play DSF files with Foobar in Win10. Never was able to get it to work.

Was planning to use it with my laptop and Magni 3+. NOPE.

My Topping D50s is a breeze to setup in comparison.

Schiit doesn't support DSD though? So of course native DSF will not work

 

[StevenEleven]

off topic... but a still a little bit on topic because of the thread name ... new Schiit.

Anybody know what happened with 'the gadget' ?

Could have actually been nice for those very few folks both cursed and blessed with perfect pitch... they might find recordings that got a little off in pitch somehow a bit annoying and difficult to enjoy, but you would have wanted a few baseline concert pitch reference points—it can vary by orchestra, etc., IIRC. Could have helped some extremely talented musicians to enjoy recorded music.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_pitch

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concert_pitch