Schiit Audio Ragnarok integrated amplifier Associated Equipment

Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment

Analog Sources: Technics SL1200Mk.2 turntable; Abis SA-1.2 tonearm; Dynavector 20X2L, Jasmine Turtle cartridges.
Digital Sources: Integra DPPS-7.2 DVD-A player; Halide DAC HD, Schiit Audio Bifrost DACs.
Phono Stages: Dynavector P75, Parasound Halo JC 3+, Schiit Audio Mani.
Headphone Amplifiers: Audeze Deckard, Schiit Audio Asgard, Simaudio Moon Neo 230HAD.
Integrated Amplifiers: Line Magnetic LM-518 IA, Rogue Audio Sphinx, Simaudio Moon Neo 340i.
Loudspeakers: Falcon Acoustics LS3/5a, KEF LS50, Magnepan .7, Technics SB-C700.
Headphones: AKG K812, Audeze EL-8, AudioQuest NightHawk, JH Audio Roxanne, MrSpeakers Ether, Sony MDR-7520.
Cables: Speaker: AudioQuest GO-4, Auditorium 23. Interconnect: AudioQuest Cinnamon, Auditorium 23, Kimber Kable Silver Streak. Digital: Kimber Kable D60 Data Flex Studio (coaxial).
Accessories: Sound Anchor stands, Dr. Feickert Analogue cartridge protractor & Adjust+ software.—Herb Reichert

COMPANY INFO
Schiit Audio
24900 Anza Drive, Unit A
Valencia, CA 91355
(323) 230-0079
ARTICLE CONTENTS

COMMENTS
doak's picture

"...if your expensive stereo is playing some New Orleans R&B—like Frankie Ford's "Sea Cruise," from The Best of New Orleans Rhythm & Blues, Volume Two (CD, Rhino R2 75766)—and you're sitting in your soft chair all serious and thoughtful—well, it's a crap system."

As we are known & prone to exclaim here in N'awlins,Herb:"Yeah, you right!"

Odin 412's picture

Yeah, you right! No fun = crap system. It sounds like Herb had a good time with the Ragnarok. It's a great amp from a great company. Made in USA too!

fetuso's picture

I recall that Steve Guttenberg reviewed this amp a number of months ago over at cnet. He gave it a very favorable review also, but why do you guys think the lack of a remote is such a positive? I'm old enough to remember not having a remote for the tv and that was no fun. I have a Peachtree nova 125se, and I tell you I'd like it a lot less if it didn't have a remote.

Odin 412's picture

I agree that the lack of a remote is a deal-breaker for the Ragnarok as a speaker amp. For headphone use a remote isn't needed. From what I've heard Schiit is working on other to-be-announced 2-channel components (with remote controls!) so we'll have to wait and see what gets released later this year.

spacehound's picture

"High fi-del-i-ty is not ever about sound or "accuracy""

Fidelity MEANS accuracy. (In our case accuracy to the source, which will usually be a CD, a file, whatever.)

You haven't HEARD the live performance by the same performers at the same location so you can't use that for any comparison you make.

Do you actually THINK "I like it" means "fidelity"?

DH's picture

Sorry, That's a deal breaker for me in this day and age. Use a playlist and you need to adjust volume frequently.

I understand why Schiit didn't include one, but as their "top of the line" product, maybe it could have been an option?

Dr.Kamiya's picture

Is your friend! Replaygain or whatever set to album mode and you can just let the songs roll on and not be surprised by a sudden jump in loudness.

Most players are also now smart enough to switch to 24-bit when volume is adjusted in order not to truncate the bit depth of the song.

tonykaz's picture

That is the Story!

Geez, does Audio Research have a Remote?

I own a few Schiit designs, it's nice gear.

You get a whole lotta "bang for the buck" from these guys!

And they're even "Tube" people.

Schiit is money well spent.

Tony in Michigan

6AM's picture

"Geez, does Audio Research have a Remote?"

Yes.

bigasherm's picture

I need to be able to mute the stereo if the phone rings, if someone knocks on the door, or if my my spouse wants to talk to me without having walk across the room. There are other integrated amplifiers in that price point that have remotes. The Rouge Sphinx 2 remote now has a mute button which now puts it into the running for me. Lack of a remote is a reason for consumers not to buy a product.

spacehound's picture

Must be terrible to be disabled AND have an impatient wife.

Bertie's picture

Poor comment. Given the choice the overwhelming number of people will choose to have an amp with a remote.

Capt Stormfield's picture

An overwhelming number of people will be happy with a Bose docking station. So...

Bertie's picture

This is a company wanting to sell a product and as it has been illustrated here the lack of remote is reason enough for many people not to spend money on this product. Own goal. Shot their own foot. So there....

audiodoctornj's picture

Shitt does indeed make very nice products, but are hardly the holy grail that you make them out to be, another review in an English magazine liked this amp very much but was hardly blown away by it.

Yes the Rangnarok is an excellent headphone amp, and it is a good amp but there are plenty of others excellent products that are in this same league.

The Rouge Sphinx you compared is a lovely little amplifier, but the Nuprime IDA 8 sounds far more transparent, adds APT X Blue tooth streaming, and a full function remote and costs $295.00 less!

What I find ironic about your review is that you proclaimed this product to be a miracle without comparing it a line of products that are also in many peoples minds, when they talk about sound quality for the money.

I would point to Herb that for not that much more money you can find a great competitor that has a world class Dac built in, is a fantastic headphone amplifier also, and has two matching amplifier pairings plus a full function remote control, if you want to hear what a remarkably transparent, dymanic, package that will shock you with its bass control as well as midrange, you should hear the LS 50 on the Nuprime gear.

We have the LS 50 set up with the DAC 10H headphone amp/dac, $1695 plus the Nuprime STA 9 power amp $649 for a package of $2,344.00 and this combination is remarkably musical, with the Nuprimes very high damping factor you would be amazed at how deep and tuneful the LS 50 sound in the bass with this amplifier.

jon91661's picture

I always get amused at some of the comments I read about someone not liking something that a reviewer loves and says its not all that? I realize that hearing is in the ear of the beholder and all that, but its quite obvious after the first paragraph that this guy is a Nuprime fan? Because he owns it and he made the decision to buy it, BOY, TRY THIS AMP, IT IS WAY BETTER THAN THAT ONE, I DONT UNDERSTAND WHAT THIS GUY IS TALKING ABOUT? I have heard Nuprime, I bought an IDA 8 when they first came out, so did a bunch of friends that I have. Nuprime cant hold a candle to the Schiit products, the IDA 8 to be specific, is a piece of crap. Nuprime having a world class dac? What Dac would that be exactly? I have owned better integrated amps also, FOR WAY MORE MONEY!! Not even a close comparison, I have heard both, and so have all my audiophile friends. There is simply NO comparison with the Ragnarok and the nuprime crap. Take it for what its worth. Nothing, Just my opinion.

neogeo's picture

Kudos to John Atkinson for the measurements on this amplifier! The Ragnarok proved ricky to measure, and I know of no other publication that would go to such great lengths to get meaningful measurements. Nice work!

John Atkinson's picture
neogeo wrote:
Kudos to John Atkinson for the measurements on this amplifier! . . . I know of no other publication that would go to such great lengths to get meaningful measurements. Nice work!

Thank you. But that's 3 days of my life I won't get back :-)

John Atkinson
Editor, Stereophile

audiovision's picture

Herb,
Seeing you also did the review of Vinnie Rossi's LIO and also appeared to loved that piece, how would you compare them. While I know it's not totally an apples to apples comparison, your thoughts on these two manufacturer-direct products would be great.

Chet Roe's picture

any opinion vs Sterophile's recently well reviewed Parasound Halo? compare/contrast? same magazine same ballpark$ of amp, thanks

Bertie's picture

You can't measure our amplifier the same way you can measure every other amplifier on the planet because, eh, yeah, we got this algorithm see, and it does funny things when it knows it's not music playing.

Effectively, what they are telling us is this amplifier cannot ever be properly tested and measured the way all others are and to trust them that the reason the measurements are so bad is not because it's a poorly designed and poorly working amplifier but because it's got this algorithm.

Seriously, they were surely aware of this before sending it out to you to be tested. The way it seems to have happened is you got some very bad results, contacted Schitt who then came away with this story.

I mean, how did they design and test this amp before manufacturing it? How did they know it was the algorithm making a mess of the tests and not bad design? How did they know it was achieving certain parameters during the design and build stage if you can't test the thing?

helomech's picture

I was surprised when I found this amp rated under Class K in the Fall 2015 edition of Recommended Components. Was there an earlier, less favorable audition of this amp by a different author?

I also agree with others that the lack of a remote is a deal breaker.

helomech's picture

I apologize, this component was listed as Class K in the Spring 2016 Recommended Components, not in the Fall 2015 edition as I stated in my previous post.

Alain89's picture

Hi herb,

Yah i really love on the way how your describing this amp specially used to have the Gungnir MB DAC which was made by the same company. Of course not being biased to Schiit but they do really make good quality products considering value to money, anywaze how is this amp compared in sound vs the parasound integrated, recently im planning to invest on the maggie .7. In your opinion which amp does match well w/ the maggies considering my source as vinyl specifically the vpi scout jr. with ortofon red as cart, I'm more lean towards that rich midtone character, i have a rogue audio pharaoh but im planning to sell due to its recessed mid tone character, maybe because of its class d architecture, so hopefully you can provide insights or info to this amp, which of course again I am considering the .7 and a rich tone mid character sound as my preference, thanks a lot Herb more power to you and strereophile

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