Gungnir sound before and after multi-bit upgrade?

Bob - Doing the MB to the Gungnir seems to have transformed it into a different product altogether. I’m not given to exaggeration; often things some call "huge" I either can’t hear or simply find to be subtle and inconsequential. Upgrade doesn’t really convey the significance of this change, however. Can’t tell you how to spend your $. If you got the scratch, I’m guessing Yggdrasil would be the way to go but personally, I don’t see me feeling the need for another DAC for a long time. I was leery about spending the $ but it ended up being good value for money. Thanks again to DPatterson for recommending it.

An afterthought - look to your digital coax.  Before the upgrade I liked the way things sounded using a DH Labs SilverSonic D750 coax more than the Stereovox XV-2 SPDIF I had.  Afterwards the XV-2 took front seat.  It sounded very very good.  Recently I switched to a Black Cat Silversonic 75 SPIDF cable.  The sound is insanely good and certainly a contributor to my enthusiasm.  I auditioned several digital cables from The Cable Co. - worth considering to maximize what you already have component-wise.

Can I get some feedback please regarding Schiit order wait time?

I have a Yggdrasil on order for nearly six weeks. I am patient (waited 5+ months for speakers and 12+ months for blue ray player), but the issue I see is that their web site continually changes with the "back ordered, orders placed now shipping the week of MM DD" constantly changing - for the worse - and obviously inaccurate to begin with.

When the date read "shipping the week of August 22" my order was in a few weeks before. 8/22 came and went. Their website date changed to September 14. That came and went. Their website date then changed to September 22. I was hopeful. Now, the date reads October 6.

I've contacted Schiit via email and they regurgitate the same response; that parts are back ordered. I fail to understand why they can't be more precise with the "when" aspect of my order. Again, I don't mind waiting, but do mind lack of information.

Any feedback (no pun intended or reference to Jimi Hendrix or Grateful Dead) is appreciated. Thanks.

Hi gdhal,

Glad to see that you have decided to pursue a fine DAC. I don’t have answers to your questions and I doubt anyone else does (outside of Schiit themselves and maybe they don’t either).

I have extensive first-hand experience with procurement in the electronics industry and can tell you that when critical parts become unavailable, the small guys get the shaft. They often have to buy from distributors due to low volumes and these distributors are one mouth to feed on a long list of large corporations with direct contractual agreements specifying their supply priority with the component’s manufacturer. This process is known as "allocation".

If the shortage is a crystal/oscillator, the wait can be extensive as these must be cultured, tested, and sorted. This can take a very long time. The common practice is for an engineer to identify an alternate manufacturer, but if it is an unusual frequency, then everyone is up Schiit creek.

It is likely that Schiit does not have a firm delivery commitment from their source at this point. I assure you that they want this shortage cleared even more than you do.

As insensitive as this may sound, either buckle in for a possible long and bumpy ride or cancel your order and select another DAC from a long list of fine alternative brands that have product in stock.

Dave

@dlcockrum

Thanks Dave. I appreciate your well articulated response. To be honest, it was the feedback from you and some others on this forum that helped guide my decision to the Yggy versus any other DAC. I realize there are alternatives, however, I do want multibit and I don’t recall if there is any viable alternatives *at the price point of the Yggy*. I’d prefer to not cancel at this point.

I can and do remain patient, but I just can’t understand why Schiit cannot provide realistic dating. Updating their website every two weeks by pushing out the date another two weeks seems to be their normal modus operandi.

@gdhal - 

Just today ordered an Eitr USB/SPDIF converter from Schiit.  Placed the order around 9:30AM (my time - 3 hrs ahead of Calif) and got an email from Schiit right at noon saying my order had shipped.  Was picked up by USPS 2:40 this afternoon.  

Truly sorry for your long wait...but I'm guessing it's for a legitimate reason and not incompetence on their part.  Hope the Yggdrasil is worth the wait.  By all accounts, I expect it will be.