Digital Drive: REVIEW: Schiit Audio Bifrost w/SPDIF DAC Processors by Greg Cz

Model:	Bifrost w/SPDIF
Category:	DAC Processors
Suggested Retail Price:	$350
Description:	Bifrost DAC with only SPDIF and Toslink input
Manufacturer URL:	Schiit Audio

Review by Greg Cz on April 19, 2013 at 06:46:26
IP Address: 68.40.61.140 Add Your Review
for the Bifrost w/SPDIF

Appreciation of audio is a lifetime journey with an ever changing landscape. Technology improves, new equipment arrives, audiophile methods change, and technical knowledge increases adding to the quest for perfect music reproduction. It is a journey offering many years for perspective.

My path began nearly fifty years ago in my early college years. I had the opportunity to take my first steps the glory days of tube and analog audio with wonderful gear - Marantz 8b, 7c, Thorens turntable with SME arm and electrostatic speakers. The sound was gloriously smooth and detailed.

The audio community marched down the road into the age of transistors, telling ourselves that everything was a good, even better than tubes. Then came the early CDs, citing all along the way technical data that they are as good as LPs. Unfortunately, audio reproduction did not measure up to standards created in the golden years of analog.

Fast forward again to the computer revolution of 1990s. A quiet rumble was afoot. SACD arrived and upsampling CD data yielded results that showed promise. In the past few years raw digital from the hard drive began using tightly clocked, low jitter digital to analog converters. A milestone was reached.

The Schiit Bifrost is a member of the latest generation of superb digital to analog converters (DAC). The sound quality is easy to describe - detailed, dynamic and delicate. Lost is the edginess of early transistor and CD sound.

How good is it? For me, my Stereophile Class A SACD player has been sold. My music collection is on a dedicated mini computer passing through the Bifrost DAC.

To deliver all glorious qualities of the Bifrost a smart move is to use the best cabling. My audio system passes a glass toslink between the Mac Mini server and Bifrost. The power cable is a homebrew star quad design with first rate plugs. Audio cables are DIY .999 silver with wood/silver RCA plugs. It makes a difference.

A bit of warning. The Bifrost requires a great deal of break in time. It may be wise not to even listen for the first 100 hours. Playing your system sooner could introduce fears that you made a mistake. Let it go. Even at 125 hours the high end is still not as quite silky as more hours will deliver. Just turn on the Internet radio and let it play into the DAC. The new discoveries in your music collection will make up for all the waiting time.

Is the Schiit Bifrost the best out there? Not sure, the audio world today is much, much larger than 50 years ago. The market is broad with so many options and choices. My choice was easy. This is the best sound I have had in 50 years as an audio enthusiast. Simply amazing.

Product Weakness:	Long break in time
Product Strengths:	Detailed, dynamic and delicate

Associated Equipment for this Review:

Amplifier: Musical Fidelity 3.2cr
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): Musical Fidelity 3.2cr
Sources (CDP/Turntable): Mac Mini computer
Speakers: Magnepan MG12
Cables/Interconnects: DIY silver
Music Used (Genre/Selections): Variety of Genres
Time Period/Length of Audition: 150 hours
Type of Audition/Review: Home Audition

Amplifier:	Musical Fidelity 3.2cr
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	Musical Fidelity 3.2cr
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Mac Mini computer
Speakers:	Magnepan MG12
Cables/Interconnects:	DIY silver
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Variety of Genres
Time Period/Length of Audition:	150 hours
Type of Audition/Review:	Home Audition