The Mike Moffat (#2 at Schiit) Blog

There were recently two postings by @baldr, both touching upon Manhattan. It seems they're considering incorporating into the Yggdrasil as well:

 

Fantastic blog thread. Mike....You guys have helped renew my passion for great sound. Love your attitude and business philosophy. My first and current outboard dac is Schiit. Have seen some interviews with you guys. You tell it like it is with just the right amount of spice for my taste. Love your overall positive view of this hobby and commitment to great quality Schiit at a price that must surely ruffle the feathers of the high end establishment. Keep making quality at a great price and initiating a new generation of audiophiles, who will in the end ensure the future of this hobby as us old timers slowly fade to silence.

 

I’ve been reading an interesting book – Creating the Vital Organization. Within is an interesting narrative. It seems later in his life Picasso was out at a cafe for dinner. The meal was interrupted by a man who recognized him. The man begged him to make a sketch, offering Picasso whatever he wanted for his trouble. Picasso took a pencil, making a sketch of a goat within a minute or so. The man reached for the drawing (of a goat) but Picasso held it back, asking for 100,000 francs. The man was offended, saying “100,000 francs – it only took you a minute” Picasso put the napkin in his pocket, telling the man he was mistaken - “It took over forty years” The lesson is that what is in front of you is not the full story.

Not that I am comparing myself to Picasso (which I am not); the only analogy is that my audio work is not pure science. There is a bit or art involved. I also have a huge advantage over one who paints: the ability to scale. I can make many, many, Yggys. It is unfortunate that this simple fact seems to lost on many high-end audio component makers. Picasso could only make one of each of his sketches or paintings.

I realize there are many who can not afford a DAC at $2300. Now it is none of my business what anyone can or can not afford. But it is very much my business to design my products in a way for maximum scalability which then translates to lowest possible price. The lower the price, the more you sell, repeat. That notwithstanding, please consider the above when placing value on our (or anybody’s) manufactured productss.

 

I don't know, Mike, it feels like you maintain a fair relationship between BOM and eventual price anyway. Schiit's pricing always feels a lot less like gouging to the informed consumer. We can see where the money goes, you don't just use giant fancy milled cases with a bunch of cheapass reference design stuff crammed inside.

Also, yes, there is a certain amount of art and human judgement in making audio gear to be listened to by humans. You seem to intend your multibit DACs to sound a certain way and work hard to deliver that- be it through power supply design or your infamous closed-form filter.

Personally, I bought myself a Gungnir Multibit, as I liked the sound. It's a bit more laid-back than the Yggdrasil- something I enjoy. That said, I agonised long and hard over which DAC I preferred. Non-audio considerations like how sturdy the furniture had to be, increased power consumption and various other things were factors, I admit.

It sounds great- just the laid-back side of perfect, tons of detail, very little fatigue. That sound comes from the sane engineering decisions that you made, tempered with your years of gnarly digital audio prejudices that informed which trade-offs mattered the most.That's the art and the human part, priorities and tuning. It's f'ing great. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

If there is any downside, it's probably the lost sleep due to "just one more" syndrome.

Listeners are people. Good component designers tune for people, too. I reckon you might have learned a thing or two on your way to this point. Thanks for the DAC, it's so good that sometimes I forget it's there.

 

Musicians, technical professionals, audio engineers and especially Monitor and FOH mixers are greatly undervalued, as so many people are without ability to see beyond what is in front of them at the moment. They only see the performance, not the learning, practice and sacrifice of time. Non-audio EEs are the worst. They have two ears and a degree which in their minds make them qualified to be a GD Audio Engineer.

 

I will afford it one day.

It is funny that some products are out of my budget, but still I know it is of great value. While other products are within my budget, but I feel like I'm cheated.

 

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I happen to really like the look of the Schiit gear. Reminds me of that utilitarian look of Heathkit and Dynaco kits, except sexier. Please keep the focus on what is inside the metal box, and not the metal box.

 

Schiit gear got me involved in audio again. I was rarely listening anymore; the difference between going to hear a live concert vs the harsh fuzzy digital experience listening at home had become extreme. After buying several rounds of speakers, separates, integrated gear, I had given up on home audio gear being enjoyable.

I tried again with the HE-500's, and the Modi and Magni (original) combo was pretty decent, but still sounded very digital (great value for the money, but...)

The Lyr 2 and Bifrost Uber combo was quite nice, very listenable and I got back into listening again. The Bifrost Multibit upgrade made me go hmm, wow, even better.

The Mjonir 2 and Yggdrasil upgrade has me listening again for hours.

Please keep up what you are doing right Schiit -

+ Does it sound good? Yes, and keep the focus on this.

+ The prices are reasonable vs the insane prices that reach into the realm of a kick-ass sports car, or even a home.

+ Okay I admit, it appeals to me that you are making most of this in the USA.

The color, magic materials, or shape of the box is the last on my list.

 

Does anyone have news about the "Schiit Eitr" or something like Schitt DCC solutions for the next coming weeks. I'm waiting for a couple of months and hesitate to buy a usb/spdif like Singxer or Mutec. Thanks!

 

Maybe hang in there for another week or three.

 

Agreed. I just caught up on a Schiit thread on Ad-Fi. Jason mentioned 2-3 products should be hitting very soon, and their product categories are not related.

 

If you have early adopter pathology, the refresh button is your friend.

 

Can you give me a hint when I need to start being diligent if I want to get a Vidar? LOL....

 

There is also another release pending, non-Schiit this time, which might be relevant here. In doubt and for the time being, try to find a 'non-refresh patience bracelet' for your itchy 'buy now' fingers, or similar...

 

Think "working days".

 

This is why I follow this thread.

 

In fact, i'm a new Gungnir Multibit owner, thus I believe and prefer Schitt solution before trying anothers , because of ...

 

Thanks...I was kidding when I asked....I suspect the ability to order will coincide with the official roll out. I will certainly be keeping an eye on the web site! Can't wait! Exciting times!!

 

For those drooling over a potential Schiit turntable*, here's @baldr's strongest hint yet:

* Though now that I think about it, a Schiit Turn Table is not something that I would want spinning in my living room... I can even see Jason go wild on Stereophile: "The Schiit Turntable: A Bit for Everyone" or maybe the more cough "The Schiit Turntable: Pre-historic, not obsolete"

 

My advice would be to add some wood trim pieces to style it like a VPI Classic or Linn Sondek. If it looks like something from outerspace it will be reviewed well but largely ignored.