Schiit Ragnarok - aka raggy

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by JoshMorr, May 4, 2016.

  1. Merrick

    Merrick A lidless ear

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    Yep, makes total sense. Going Gungnir Multibit A1 and vinyl to Rag out to Gen G and Orcas works wonders. I’m sure Yggdrasil 1/HD800 would result in a totally different reaction.
     
  2. zonto

    zonto Friend

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    I can echo the above. I’ve had my Ragnarok for about 3.5 years now, and after FedEx manhandled my big boy Coda speaker amp recently the Ragnarok is back on speaker duty as well.

    Some notes from me:
    • The Ragnarok 1.5 boards do sound better. They are also more reliable than the earlier boards.
    • The amp sounds better if it is left on all the time.
    • The amp pairs better with Yggdrasil Analog 2 than Analog 1. I imagine it would pair well with the Less is More.
    • I have to assume that other comments re: its response to clean power are true as well. Mine is plugged into my Shunyata power conditioner and I use a Shunyata Alpha HC power cable with it.
    • For headphones, I think any gain settings except low gain sounds too aggressive. This is true even with Sennheiser HD6x0, but especially true with Utopia.
    • I haven’t tried the other big boy solid state headphone amps yet (DSHA-3F, BW2, etc.), but it’s the best solid state headphone amp I’ve heard.
    • I don’t think it pairs well with the HD600. This must be an upper midrange thing, perhaps the Ragnarok accentuates those frequencies and it becomes too much. It pairs much better with the HD650.
    • It is not the best pairing with Maggies as it just doesn’t have the balls to drive them as well, but it sounds better than a couple other amps I’ve tried with it (including a Peachtree Class D integrated).
    I wish mine was black instead of silver, but that qualm aside I don’t think I’ll sell it. Always good to have a jack-of-all-trades for backup. Also, screw FedEx.
     
  3. MellowVelo

    MellowVelo Friend

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    Has anybody compared the Rag (1, 1.5, or 2) to a supersymmetry dynalo build? I have the Headamp GS-X Mini, and I absolutely love it. It’s powerful, has an incredibly quiet and black background, and has a touch of warmth (it’s nothing like the GS-X mkII). I’m totally happy with the amp, but I’m thinking of picking up a Rag 2 to simplify my headphone and speaker setup.

    I’d be curious if anybody has made comparisons, particularly with the Rag 2. I know that Rag 2 utilizes the Nexus topology, which is different than a circlotron. From what I understand in reading Jason’s posts, it sounds like Nexus is an evolution of the supersymmetry design.
     
  4. zonto

    zonto Friend

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  5. MellowVelo

    MellowVelo Friend

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    Thanks! It sounds like the Ragnarok in general (and especially Rag 2) may share some attributes of the supersymmetry dynalo circuit. A Ragnarok would greatly simplify my setup.

    I’m hoping that somebody has made a direct comparison with the supersymmetry dynalo and can share their thoughts.
     
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  6. Merrick

    Merrick A lidless ear

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    Interesting about the gain. I’ve been using gain 2 for the Gen G and have had no issues. I do use gain 1 for IEMs.
     
  7. rlow

    rlow A happy woofer

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    Hi folks, does anyone know if you can identify a Rag v1.5 vs the OG version from the outside (i.e. the serial number maybe)? Not sure if @schiit would know?
     
  8. zonto

    zonto Friend

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    Defer to @schiit of course, but as far as I know, there’s no way to tell without being in-person to look inside the top vents with a flashlight and check the board. That’s how I did it years ago anyway. You can see pictures elsewhere in this thread with the different component and heatsinks on the v1.5 main board vs. the original boards.
     
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  9. Vansen

    Vansen Gear Master (retiring)

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    What’s with the binding posts on this amp? They don’t accept any of my banana plugs. All of my speakers and other amps are 4.00mm diameter plugs, but the Ragnarok’s on mine are 5.25mm diameter and I can’t get any of my cables to work so far. Is 5.25mm a normal diameter, or are my other devices the issue?
     
  10. Entropy

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    Huh? I don't think I've ever heard of this. 5.25mm seems to be rather unusual. I've seen many reviews on the Ragnorak, Tyr, Aegir, and Vidar (all seem to share the same binding posts), but I've never heard much of note about that. Very strange.
     
  11. Vansen

    Vansen Gear Master (retiring)

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    FWIW, I’m using the cables linked below. I’ve had them for fourteen years and they still fit all of my stuff, but could have been flattened over the years. With some finesse, I was able to restore the plugs to a wider diameter and they fit great now.

    Knowing AV123, I wouldn’t be surprised if these are actually CCA cables instead of the stated 99.99997% pure stranded copper. :sweat-smile:

    https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/av123-elt-525m-2-speaker-kit-review,4.html
     
  12. Yodalogger

    Yodalogger New

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    Recently purchased a ragnarok2 with multibit card. Connected a sub via the RCA preout and I'm getting little to no sound from the sub with the speaker output selected but robust sound with the headphone or headphone and speaker output selected. Seems like the same behavior was noted in Steve Guttenberg's review published on CNET in 2019.
    I don't understand the design logic, unless listening to headphones and a sub is a feature and not a bug. I guess if you had both the headphone and speaker outputs active you could connect the raggy preout to another amp to drive additional speakers.
    I like the way the ragnarok sounds otherwise with speakers and headphones but or now, irritatingly, sub gets turned off when listening to headphones.
     
  13. zonto

    zonto Friend

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    I believe that is a "feature" because some users used headphones plus sub in a desk setup. I never hooked up a sub to the loaner while I had it, but thought it was a weird choice too. I think you can use the "both" setting to have the sub play when you have speakers hooked up, and just ensure your headphones aren't hooked up then.
     
  14. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    My experience with the Schiit amps is long and storied. My relationship with them began back in 2013 or so, a year after I'd had my eyes opened to what the world of headphone audio could deliver. HD600 into an Audioengine D1 amp/dac. Probably dogshit compared to even mid-fi Schiit amps, but after spending $400 on headphones (a decision I thought was ludicrous at the time, 'how can anyone spend a whopping $400 on mere headphones???' having no idea $4k+ headphones would be common in a few years, Jesus), there was no way I was spending more than a few bucks on something to plug them into. It didn't matter much though, as the headphone's power over me couldn't be denied and I was hooked.

    I don't remember how I heard about Schiit, probably browsing head-fi (ugh). Anyway, a Magni 2 replaced the Audioengine, though I believe I still made use of the DAC portion, since it had line outs. I started expanding my audio vocabulary and at the time the Schiit "house sound" I felt to be accurate and honest, but also musical and engaging, with an emphasis on the "honest" part. Except for the Vali 1, an extremely colored (but tastefully done) amp I owned briefly that didn't seem very interested in the accurate part. Schiit's take on stereotypical tube sound?

    Eventually I made my way through their amps like a traveling drunken businessman in a Thai whorehouse (sorry but I'm feeling colorful today). Getting my rocks off on the Vahalla 2 (very nice, but too dry... 6CG7 tubes fixed that, but then the headstage became to claustrophobic), Jot 1 (again very nice, but too square/icy ultimately and didn't serve my HD800s headstage), Lyr 2 (my favorite Schiit amp up to that point and my introduction to tubes-proper), and I only ditched the Lyr 2 for the Torpedo 3 and finally started stepping into TOTL territory. T3 stayed longer than any of the other Schiit amps, which says alot about it. Sampled a borrowed Mjolnir 2, but just wasn't my thing... too slammy and lackluster headstage didn't justify the price to me. Briefly heard an Asgard 2 and it was decent but not for me.

    Anyway, once you go TOTL you never go back, and the T3 had me hungry for more. DNA Starlett, Jot-R/Raal SR1A, EC 445, EC ZDSE, each of these amps I owned at one point for extended periods and ultimately moved on from for one reason or another I wont bore you with. A big thing I learned from TOTL amps, was synergy and peculiarities in tone became more important, as you are hearing more honest and transparent sound, making any weirdness jump out more, whether from the amp itself, or the DAC and/or headphones plugged into it. Hell, even playback sources, cables.... And if some aspect of the sound doesn't work, it screams at you rather than gently tapping you on the shoulder. Ultimately all this makes you more hungry for ultimate synergy, since it becomes even more rewarding at this level. A blessing, maybe... but probably more of a curse for most of us.

    Anyway, the Ragnarok had been an elusive one for me. I'd heard Marv rave about it, but not a TON of enthusiasm from others... satisfied folks seemed to be there for it, but I always got the sense the Rag wasn't enough amp to be made a big deal of, which was weird considering it was Jason's statement amp. I was able to finally hear it briefly at a friend's place years ago, and I liked what I heard but the Rag is a weird one, in the sense that it does not call attention to itself. One could say "it's fine" and be totally accurate in their assessment. But one could also listen more closely and say "holy f**k", and also not be bullshitting.

    But the synergy has to be right for those stars to align for you...

    The Rag is a chameleon in the sense that it is insanely transparent and if you have boring components downstream, you will hear boring sound. Or thin, or anemic, or bright, or tonally f'ing weird. Yes, even cables can (tonally) shift things around enough that you must approach building a system around it with the careful attention and dedication of a chef. And if even one spice is off, it can throw off the entire thing. But the Rag can also be "fine" like I said before, and give you little to complain about even with less than stellar ingredients. But IMO you are robbing yourself of an extraordinary experience.

    The Rag is kind of extraordinary in its ability to BE extraordinary without acting like it. Its deeply black background doesn't scream BLACK BACKGROUND, LOOK AT ME BITCH! Or it's stunning levels of resolution aren't throwing it at you like the HD800 can. The thunderous slam and bass depth doesn't smack you like a mack truck (like the ZDSE) but can remind you how slamming your music is if you focus on it. You can marvel at the seemingly infinite microdynamic volume gradations or just sit back and let them melt into the soundscape and just focus on music. You can even be mesmerized by its laser focused imaging capabilities, or just let the musicians exist in front you fully formed. But at the end of the day, its these extreme technicalities that changes the very nature of the music you're listening to and make it something more. So while you CAN choose not to focus on them, you actually CANNOT help but be moved by the end result.

    An amp of this caliber that is currently sitting around $600 on the used market is beyond ridiculous... hard to think of a better deal in audio right now.

    Ultimately the Rag probably fell through the cracks of hype for other TOTL gear, which is a shame... and I feel like it never got the attention it deserves. Ragnarok means the end of the world... in the context of Schiit we can interpret this as: the end of the road for its amp line. If you're going to come to the end of the line for Schiit amps, I can't think of a more fitting conclusion.




    [​IMG]
     
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    Last edited: Jul 26, 2023
  15. MellowVelo

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    An epic read. Thanks. Do your impressions apply to both the Rag 1/1.5 and Rag 2?
     
  16. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    I heard Rag 2 briefly at the Schiiter meet here in Austin but too briefly to form any real impressions other than I liked what I heard. Sounded slightly warmer than v1.
     
  17. JK47

    JK47 Friend

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    Or Youtube vlogger
     
  18. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    I don't know which Ragnarok you're using, but I loved the V1 dearly. I actually hated the ZDSE, even with the most synergistic pairings and I had the Ragnarok not long after. I had the EC 2A3 MKIV and loved it but found myself using the Ragnarok a LOT during that time just due to synergy and my life circumstances.

    Looking back, I remember that time very fondly. Great amp that I used for so many different setups.
     
  19. Gazny

    Gazny MOT: ETA Audio

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    Any idea if yours is 1 or 1.5?
    I've had a line on one since the seller "upgraded" to a tube amp for his bookshelves.
     
  20. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    1.5
     

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