What a pile of Schiit

I think it is one of those little annoyance situations we all run into now and then. It is not going to ruin Shitt as a company.  I have a bifrost connected to a bluesound node2. It is completely silent and more fluid sounding, more natural than the built in DAC. I am happy with it. 

IS this a repeat post?

Schiit is an interesting company. The 2 principals of the company have decades of experience in high-end audio (Sumo/Stoddard & Theta/Moffat). Theta was a particularly visionary brand in early digital...one that resonates to this day with the growing popularity of multibit and NOS DACs. After 20-30 years in the high-end 2-channel trenches, these men started Schiit. In a way, that’s when things got way more interesting.

Headphone audio was never as big as high-end 2-channel audio (which itself was never close to big using any standard business metric). But headphone audio was vestigial back in the day. But since 2010 when Schiit was started, headphone audio has grown a LOT. It’s still not truly big, but it’s certainly bigger than before. And Schiit clearly had something to do with that growth.

Schiit was among the first headphone audio companies to offer a coherent product & model set, affordably priced and offering clear upgrade paths within the Schiit product domain. These guys really know what they’re doing as businessmen. This includes watching other meta-trends in audio, like the resurgence of vinyl, which was repeatedly declared dead yet never went away. And so Schiit launched a turntable a couple years ago.

As for me, I have a lot of headphone gear--not just the headphones, but also electronics (8 amplifiers, several of which are also preamps; 3 DACs; SPDIF/DDC boxes; etc). My headphone audio tastes (and wallet) took me higher up the audio food chain than Schiit. But I’ve run into them often.

Schiit is a big exhibitor at headphone audio shows. I mean large booths, multiple representatives staffing it, lots of product. They do it right. I’ve heard a number of their products at shows. I admire the clever design and product differentiation of the company’s gear.

I only bought one Schiit product. It was B-stock (a SPDIF converter). It didn’t work well, so I called, hoping to get the "no returns for B-stock" policy waived. No such luck. Schiit is matter-of-fact to the point of bluntness in their dealings with customers. No warm hugs and favors. That's who they are; they don’t apologize for it.

I have no axe to grind with this company. If you're getting started in headphone audio, you would do well to check out their stuff. Beyond their low-end lineup, their big DAC, Yggdrasil (not cheap, but also not terribly expensive by high-end standards) competes well with other big DACs (some far more expensive) in the high-end world.

In fact, that DAC’s name illustrates my only real beef with Schiit. The names (and nicknames) drive me nuts. Hard to say, hard to spell, hard to remember. The names seem affected. Beyond that, I wish them well...

I’ve got two Aegirs, a Freya and an Yggy. I don’t think you can get better SQ for the money.

HOWEVER, their customer service is pretty bad. Either there’s no high level person in charge of customer service, they don’t train their people, or they can’t find good people. Every manufacturer is suffering from the same problems since the COVID giveaways started.

Thats why I am a Bryston fan. I bought a used BDP Pi. MM error’d out first thing. I called up Bryston and said hey I know you dont have to help 😿 but blah blah blah. They shipped me the hardware,tools and instructions to fix it without a question and free of charge.

BOT-1 not even made or supported now but I shipped mine back and they checked it out, again for free.

WELL ,what do you want from a Shitt company. 

@ cjveltman

Thomas Crapper, the Brit who invented the flushable loo way back in the day, might have a thing or two to say about this company.

Another, far more contemporary, enthusiast for what Schiit manufactures is Randall Messman, whose "brain housing unit" (that’s how Randall himself describes the seat of his thought processes) inspired him to become "The Cheap Audio Man." He is a big proponent of GOOD-VALUE-FOR-MONEY, INEXPENSIVE audio gear. Schiitt occupies a prime place in the top echelon of his recommendations. His many YouTube reviews are well worth watching: here’s one sample of his art: Room Treatment Doesn’t Work... Sometimes, Grunge Music is the Best, and Ron is BACK!!!!!! - YouTube

Randall’s reviews are a lot of fun to watch, and he has a great way of lightening up our sometimes-all-too-serious audiophile discussions.

Several months ago I purchased the Schiit Magni+ headphone amplifier. The only headphone amp I owned was the Fiio Montblanc E12, which I purchased to use with the X5II DAP, primarily for use when I'm away from home. It does a fine job for that purpose, but being battery powered it isn't ideal for home use.

So I did some research and bought the Magni+; a great reputation and only $100.

Their website states it is "all the amp you'll ever need for any headphone."

However, I was very disappointed to discover that the unit would suffer consistent 30 second dropouts, so I emailed the company. I explained the various methods I had used to connect the device to my Sennheiser RS180 wireless headphones, including what interconnects I was using, etc.

They responded by telling me I wasn't connecting it correctly and recommended alternate methods. Same result. 

So they sent me a new unit. Same results. 

When I emailed again, they responded by telling me that the Magni+ does not work with wireless headphones, and there would be a restocking fee should I choose to return it.

I replied asking them how they could charge me a restocking fee when their website says it is for "any headphone." They did not reply to me, but they did issue a full refund.

I bought a Monolith Spark for the same price, and I am pleased with it.

Schiit's website still makes the same false claim as to the Magni+'s compatability with "any headphone."

Thought I would give it one more try.  Most everyone deserves a second chance, right?

So I inquire about the return policy for the Lyr 3 with a phono card as the web site in not perfectly clear on that.  Also question the restocking fee for gear with options installed.

This time Savanna is on the case.  Her email:  "not sure how modifications work."

That was it.  No more.

Clearly Schiit has a take it or leave it approach.  I have not doubt some of their gear may sound great for the money.  But if you need any help...well, don't plan on them being there for you.  Clearly, they don't give a Schiit.

@highway_chile - I think that 'compatible with any headphone' has more to do with marketing than anything else. I doubt they'd expect anybody to think that this $100 will sound great driving Susvara headphones, for example. It would drive them, yes, but the sound would be very poor. But yes, I'd think they should say something if it requires headphones with cables. 

Their customer service is not that bad. They've answered every question I've ever had, including just the other day when I asked if they had any clue what could be causing an incompatibility issue between a streamer I'd bought and my Yggdrasil. They responded at 11 on Sat night and gave a few possibilities, but ultimately said they'd have to work with the streamer manufacturer to solve such an issue. Exactly what the owner of the streamer maker told me, and that's a high-end company known for their customer service that starts with a "B". 

As I said above, this is my fourth product from Schiit, and I don't continue to spend my money with companies that exhibit poor customer service. I have no reason to stop buying this Schiit. (I know, groan, but everybody else was doing it)

@shooter41   " I have no reason to stop buying this Schiit. (I know, groan, but everybody else was doing it)"

LOL.  It is hard to resist, isn't it.

So I thought I was Schiit out of luck.  But I actually received a follow up note from Schiit regarding my questions.  Laura gave a professional and helpful answer. So I amend my last post.  It seems they are capable of assisting their customers.

Just ordered the Jotunheim 2. Going to pair it with a Denefrips Ares DAC and use it with my LCD-2C. Seems like Schiit is a company you either love or hate. I owned the Yggy for a while, but it was too much for me so I sold it. I have emailed Jason a few times and he always responds to my questions. The only downer is that the Jotunheim is back ordered and I have to wait 6-8 weeks, or whenever they get the parts. Covid sucks....

Hey all. I have the Asgard 3 I order the multi card at the same time and they installed for me. 

I just bought a Lyr 3 and spent last night bring gobsmacked by it. It is the best sounding amplifier I've ever owned and I've had some good stuff. Absolutely incredible. I always thought that in this class of products Emotiva would always have them beaten via Chinese production. This product is far and away more bang for buck than any of the few thousand in gear I've bought from Emo over the last decade.

I dont know how they do it? It is an overwhelmingly high end sound. Running off a Gustard X26 Pro dac.

Wow, I just plugged in my new Lokius EQ and it has made my system incredible but with the LYR3, the LYR3 is officially the best amplifier I have ever heard in my life, bar none. It is otherworldly on my Gustard X26 Pro and on my 250 ohm DT770PRO. I dont know what the stock tube is but good choice Schiit!

I honestly am overwhelmed by it and can’t believe I got this level of performance for $600. Crazy.

If Parasound is bang for buck, this is nuclear supernova levels per buck.

Definitely throw in a Lokius. You'll thank me.

@borat-sagdiyev - I had a Lyr 3, and I upgraded the tube with another that was not very expensive, and it improved the sound significantly. So you might want to try a few as long as you don't have to fork out too much.

Very good amp and good value for money, as was the Quicksilver tube headphone amp I replaced it with, and that came in at a little under $1000. That Lokius is very good to have around, too! 

Greatly improve with another tube? Greatly? I mean its already pushing my cans to subsonic frequency with incredible control and the top end is like some kind of quantum microscope, every grain of billions of grains of sand, all perfectly defined. Toe tapping drive and verve and dimension. Describe how it would improve so much with another tube, greatly is a powerful word. This amp is jaw dropper as is. Thanks!

(I do plan on going on a tube spree, so I guess I'll find out.)

@borat-sagdiyev - Well, to ME it was 'greatly' - can't swear it will be for you! To me, what it mostly improved was the '3-D, holographic' aspects of the sound, especially through Utopia headphones. I don't need the utmost detail; that's why I like tube or tube-y sounding amps, like Lyr 3 and QS. 

And if you love the Lyr 3 as much as you do, I hope at some point you'll at least give a try to some other amps. Lyr 3 is a fine amp and a fine value, but it's just the beginning of a whole world of amplification out there that would REALLY blow your mind (and hopefully not your wallet!). 

Good luck with your tube experimentation! 

I was going to build a Crackatoa but I didn't want to wait three weeks and the guy at Bottlehead fell through on a kit I could just drop in and pick up.

Eventually a Crackatoa or a Mainline. Then call it a day. Headphones are my "3rd" system.

But yes, listened to it this morning, crazy crazy good. I'm sure the DAC has a lot to do with it, it is excellent.

..and the Lokius. It wouldn't sound like this without that in the chain.