Bifrost Multibit vs. Gungnir Multibit?

Discussion in 'Digital: DACs, USB converters, decrapifiers' started by mtoc, Oct 22, 2015.

  1. mtoc

    mtoc SBAF's Resident Shit-Stirrer

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    Hello!

    Well, how Gungnir Multibit simply much better better than Bifrost Multibit?

    Would you talk about only using rca out put coz Bifrost Multibit no xlr...thx
     
  2. Bill-P

    Bill-P Level 42 Mad Wizard

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    Yeah, RCA out...

    Gungnir Multibit is much more neutral to my ears. Bifrost Multibit is on the warmer/darker/smoother/more gooey side. Even with Wyrd, Bifrost Multibit is still like that compared to Gungnir Multibit. The difference is enough that I'd be able to listen to a stock HD800 on a solid state amp connected to Bifrost Multibit. That's how warm it is. It is a very euphonic DAC in that sense.

    So tonal balance wise, I think Bifrost Multibit is a better match for the current "brighter means more detailed" crop of headphones, whereas I think Gungnir Multibit would be the better match with those thick, gooey, warm headphones like HD600/650, LCD-2/3, etc...

    On that note, though, I'd still prefer Gungnir Multibit even with my HD800, because Gungnir Multibit gives much higher resolution, much better imaging, and much better soundstaging. The difference really is not subtle. Bifrost Multibit tends to sound bit congested/compressed in the lower regions, and sometimes uncontrolled as well, whereas Gungnir Multibit is always tight, articulated, textured, and detailed in those regions. Drums sound like a blur on Bifrost Multibit, whereas they sound closer to the snappy, impactful, very slight but controlled rumble real life representation with Gungnir Multibit. Or at least IMO, Gungnir Multibit sounds closer to the truth with regards to instruments.

    Bifrost Multibit is more enjoyable with vocals, and it may in fact be superb for that purpose, as vocals are warm, full, smooth, and sibilant-free with Bifrost Multibit. Whereas Gungnir Multibit still borderlines on sibilant, and still pulls out more recording artifacts like hiss/buzz in the microphone, or noise floor hiss, etc... I think... choosing one over the other is down to your preference. I'd be perfectly happy with Bifrost Multibit if I'm merely listening to vocals, and nothing else.

    Those are early impressions I got after about 24 hours of the loaner Bifrost Multibit. Will wait a few more days and see if I'll change my mind, but... yeah, right now, going from Bifrost Multibit to Gungnir Multibit is like going from LCD-2 to HD800. The difference is really stark.
     
  3. drfindley

    drfindley Secretly lives in the Analog Room - Friend

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    As a side note, I wouldn't buy a DAC for any color it gives the FR. Let your amp do that work. DACs should be clear delivery system.

    That said, I don't find the Bifrost Multibit to be that colored, but I haven't had a quiet listen at home yet.
     
  4. Bill-P

    Bill-P Level 42 Mad Wizard

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    Yeah, I wouldn't say it is colored. Just that there is an "ease" to its sound that I don't find present in my Gungnir Multibit.

    This "ease" reminds me of the Sonic Frontiers TransDAC that I had a while ago. The TransDAC, if one is lucky enough, can be had for about $150 - $200, and it's really a good value there if your source can output optical or coax directly to it. But a good transport and Wyrd would help either way, and once those are factored in, the TransDAC comes to just about the value of Bifrost Multibit, but Bifrost Multibit is more detailed and cleaner IMO. There is no "compression" that I can hear with Bifrost Multibit. There is only a bit of "uncontrolled" feeling that I get when I listen to a track that's bassy/warm. The highs are still there, but because the warmth kinda invades upward, I find the tonal balance to be darker than what I'm used to with Gungnir Multibit.

    Maybe that's what "colored" is, but IMO, "colored" means something "bends" the sound so much that, say, violin will sound like viola, and vice versa. Whereas with Bifrost Multibit, I can still hear a violin as a violin, and a viola as a viola, but with more body added to both, at the expense of ultimate clarity, detail retrieval, and soundstage articulation.

    It's about 48 hours now since I hooked Bifrost Multibit up, and the sound characteristics haven't really changed all that much, or at least I don't really notice anything that makes the difference between Bifrost Multibit and Gungnir Multibit any less than what I wrote above.
     
  5. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Hehe. Indeed Bifrost Multibit is the new TransDAC. Warm, easygoing, but more resolving and better space.
     
  6. atomicbob

    atomicbob dScope Yoda

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    There are a good many albums, especially rock from the 60s 70s 80s in my collection that benefit from Bifrost Multibit's combination of just a tiny bit less resolution, more easy going while maintaining sense of space, depth and dimension compared to the Gungnir Multibit. Result is much more listening time, no listening fatigue. Down side is the sound becomes addictive. Just one more track. No wait, just one more.
     
  7. Bill-P

    Bill-P Level 42 Mad Wizard

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    Okay... so my day 4 report/comparison goes:

    Bifrost Multibit by itself (note: no Wyrd!!) coupled with a warm amp, or some tubes would be my go-to choice for a stock HD800, and even better with an HD800 with Rabid Dog mod 1.0.

    With Wyrd, Bifrost Multibit does gain a bit of soundstage width/depth to bring it closer to Gungnir Multibit, but it'd become too sharp in the higher registers relative to the still nebulous/warm/cloudy bottom end. That was too much to take even with tubes, so I put Bifrost Multibit back by itself pretty fast. And even with Wyrd + Bifrost Multibit, Gungnir Multibit still sounds cleaner overall just by itself, and with a bit extra refinement everywhere else. It's kinda weird that Bifrost Multibit would become so sharp with Wyrd, though, since my Gungnir Multibit doesn't seem to get that sharp.

    So overall, I agree... Bifrost Multibit is an enjoyable little bastard. Good enough by itself at the price point it's set at.

    Gungnir Multibit is a clear upgrade in just about everything except tonal balance, IMO. So I can see how that would discourage some.
     
  8. bixby

    bixby Friend

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    Seems like folks have caught on Only $660 used and $871 new this week, hahaha

    http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fro....TRS0&_nkw=Sonic+Frontiers+TransDAC+&_sacat=0
     
  9. Bill-P

    Bill-P Level 42 Mad Wizard

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    Yeah... at those prices, Gungnir Multibit is a much better deal. ;)
     
  10. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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    While the consensus here seems to be that the Gungnir Multibit is one of (if not the) best price/performance DACs currently available, it's still double the cost of the Bifrost Multibit. So if I'm constrained with a total budget of < $2,000 for a new amp + DAC, and I want more musical (enjoy the music) than analytical (study the recording), would it make more sense to build around the Bifrost Multibit or Gungnir Multibit?

    Then there's which amp to pair with, but that might be for another thread. Trying to avoid being pennywise pound-foolish.

    Cans are LCD-X and HD600.
     
  11. Bill-P

    Bill-P Level 42 Mad Wizard

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    If you're looking for musicality, then Bifrost Multibit any day.

    Like I said, I'd take Bifrost Multibit and a good solid-state amp with HD600, and call it a day. Bifrost Multibit also plays better with my HD800 as well. Resolution be damned.

    I'd go Gungnir Multibit if you absolutely want future-proofing (that you know your amp will keep scaling with your current gears) and resolution.
     
  12. BioniclePhile

    BioniclePhile The Terminal Man - Friend

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    I'm going for the Gungnir Multibit and Liquid Carbon. They total at $1850 or $1770 if you go B-stock (I would, who cares what it looks like). It also depends on what you want from your amp.
     
  13. atomicbob

    atomicbob dScope Yoda

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    Have a look at the 3 pages in this thread:
    http://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/system-synergy-special-sound.54/
     
  14. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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    I did, was informative, thanks. I would prefer not to mess with tubes and stick with SS if I can help it.


    Marvey mentioned the Bifrost Multibit would be a good match for my cans, just trying to gauge and decide whether it makes sense for me to step up to Gungnir Multibit. As you say, need to decide about future-proofing. As much as one thinks they're done in this hobby, well, we know what happens.
     
  15. atomicbob

    atomicbob dScope Yoda

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    Get a Bifrost MB and a SS such as Cavalli Liquid Carbon or G1217 Project Polaris. Live with the system for awhile and then ask yourself what you think you are missing, if anything. Then sell the Bifrost Multibit if you really want to try something else and consider the difference the price for renting the Bifrost Multibit. If possible, go to a meet and listen to candidate DACs and amps.
     
  16. atomicbob

    atomicbob dScope Yoda

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    I will soon have that very combination in my acoustic lab to evaluate.
     
  17. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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    Alrighty then, I just put in my order for the Liquid Carbon.
     
  18. BioniclePhile

    BioniclePhile The Terminal Man - Friend

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    Then I'm gonna be all ears!
     
  19. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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    Is it explained anywhere how the comboburritofilter works, e.g. at what sample rates it is active, if you need to up/downsample, vs. NOS, and is that the same for Bifrost Multibit & Gungnir Multibit?
     
  20. Tuco1965

    Tuco1965 Suffring from early onset Alzheimer's - Friend

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    The Multifrost is NOS at 176.4k and 192k. All the lower sample rates use the filter. You can upsample the lower ones to bypass the filter and downsample the the NOS rates to use the filter. Play around with it to hear the filters magic.

    I'm not sure if this applies to Gungnir Multibit though.
     

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