Schiit Audio: Audio Products Made in USA

Ragnarok 2 is the only modular, remote-controlled integrated amp that’s a great match for both speakers and headphones. Delivering full speaker power to the balanced headphone outputs, and debuting our all-new Nexus™ differential gain stage, Ragnarok delivers performance that completely befits its name—in Norse legend, Ragnarok was the “end of the world.”

Modular Flexibility, Remote Convenience

Ragnarok 2 has two module slots that accept the same modules that many of our other products use, for flexibility and future upgradability. You can order Ragnarok 2 in one of two ways to suit your needs:

Just An Amp: with two RCA input modules installed, for a total of two balanced inputs and three RCA inputs, ready for you to add all your line-level sources
Fully Loaded: with a MM phono preamp and our True Multibit Unison USB DAC, for a total of two balanced inputs, one RCA line-level input, one RCA phono input, and one USB DAC input—a single integrated solution for a variety of analog and digital needs

Both versions come with a standard milled aluminum remote control that allows you to select source, control volume, select headphone or speaker output, mute, and set gain.

Nexus™: One Stage To Rule Them

Ragnarok 2 debuts our unique differential Nexus™ gain stage for seamless interaction between single-ended and balanced sources. Nexus converts single-ended inputs to balanced outputs, and balanced inputs to single-ended outputs—in a single gain discrete gain stage, without gain differences between modes, and with good performance in all modes.

Power and Control for Speakers and Headphones

Ragnarok 2 delivers 60W into 8 ohms and 100W into 4 ohms, for excellent performance with most speakers. It also delivers full power through the balanced headphone jack (24W into 32 ohms) and quarter-power output from the single-ended headphone jack (6W into 32 ohms). With selectable gains of 1, 8, and 25, it’s compatible with a wide range of speakers and headphones.

Easiest 128-Step Relay-Switched Volume, Ever

The benefits of a relay-switched stepped attenuator for volume are clear. Compared to a potentiometer, they give you essentially perfect channel matching and near-unmeasurable distortion. However, some preamps with relay-stepped attenuators confuse you with buttons and screens. Not Ragnarok 2. Ragnarok 2 has a volume knob that works just like a volume knob—just grab and turn. And if you use the remote control, the motorized potentiometer changes to match the remote setting.

Designed and Built in California

By “designed and built in California" this is what we mean: the vast majority of the total production cost of Ragnarok 2—chassis, boards, transformers, assembly, etc—goes to US companies manufacturing in the US. Our chassis are made minutes from our facility. Our PCBs are done just over the hill from us, or done in NorCal. Our transformers are also made in California. You get the picture.

5-Year Warranty and Easy Return Policy

Ragnarok 2 is covered by a 5-year limited warranty that covers parts and labor. And if you don’t like your Ragnarok 2, you can send it back for a refund, minus 5% restocking fee, within 15 days of receiving it.

Power Output, Speaker Outputs:
8 Ohms: 60W RMS per channel
4 Ohms: 100W RMS per channel

Power Output, Balanced Headphone Output:

32 Ohms: 24W RMS per channel

50 Ohms: 15W RMS per channel

300 Ohms: 3W RMS per channel

600 Ohms: 1.5W RMS per channel

Power Output, Single-Ended Headphone Output

32 Ohms: 6W RMS per channel

50 Ohms: 3.75W RMS per channel

300 Ohms: 750mW RMS per channel

600 Ohms: 375mW RMS per channel

Frequency Response: 20Hz-20Khz, -0.1db, 3Hz-350KHz, -3dB

THD: <0.01%, 20Hz-20KHz, at 100W RMS into 8 ohms

IMD: <0.01%, CCIR, at 100W RMS into 8 ohms

SNR: >115db, A-weighted, referenced to full output

Damping Factor: >80 into 8 ohms, 20-20kHz

Gain: 2, 8, or 25 (balanced, half those gains through headphone SE output)

Input Impedance: 10k ohms

Crosstalk: >95dB, 20-20kHz

Inputs:

(2) pairs XLR balanced inputs

(1) RCA single-ended input

(2) Module slots, one small and one large

Topology: Nexus™ differential current feedback with nested differential stages

Oversight: microprocessor-controlled monitoring and management of critical operational points, with relay shut-down for DC, overcurrent, thermal, and other faults

Power Supply: 600VA transformer with dual mono main rails, plus boosted, regulated supply to input, voltage gain and driver stages, plus separate, isolated and regulated rails for microprocessor management.

Power Consumption: 500W maximum

Size: 16” x 13” x 3.875”

Weight: 32 lbs

APx555 Report for Ragnarok 2

I thought Ragnarok was the end of the world, now you have a Ragnarok 2, what’s up?
Ragnarok is, in Norse mythology, the Twilight of the Gods. There are gods that survive beyond Ragnarok, so it’s clearly not the end of the world. Or worlds. More reading and less Marvel movies is our prescription for understanding this better.

Fine. So how is this Ragnarok 2 different than the original Ragnarok?

Oh holy moly, it is so completely different it would be easier to list what’s the same. Which, er, is pretty much nothing. Well, except the name. And the fact it’ll drive headphones and speakers. And that’s about it. As far as what’s different:

Ragnarok 2 debuts our all-new Nexus™ differential topology, which provides one discrete gain stage for all I/O—balanced and single-ended, headphones and speakers.
Ragnarok 2 is modular—it has two input module spaces that can be filled with RCA inputs, or with an MM phono preamp and Multibit DAC module.
Ragnarok 2 has remote control. Yes. Finally.
Ragnarok 2 has an all-new thermal design with external heatsinks—which means it runs monumentally cooler than the original.
Ragnarok 2’s relay-stepped attenuator has 128 steps, 2x more than the original.
Ragnarok 2 has an all-new, modular chassis design that reduces chassis cost and labor cost—which means it costs less than the model it replaces. Yes. Less. At least as Just An Amp (which is all Ragnarok was). Don’t pass out. We’ve done this before. Yes, we’re weird.
Ragnarok 2 now allows you to select speaker and headphone outputs with visual feedback as to which mode you’re in, both from the front panel and from the remote.

Hey, I don't want a phono preamp and Multibit DAC, I want some other combo of modules for my Ragnarok 2.
Sorry, guys, to keep this one simple, we're only offering it as Just An Amp (with two RCA inputs) or Fully Loaded (with MM phono and Multibit DAC module).

Is this an overgrown headphone amp or a proper speaker amp?

Ragnarok 2 is, much more than the original Ragnarok, a true integrated amp. It’s perfectly suited as an all-in-one, do-everything, single-box product for your headphones and speakers. However, if we had to call this one, it’s more a speaker amp than a headphone amp. I mean, what headphone amp is rated at 24 watts RMS into 32 ohms? Come on. this ain't an intelligent idea for your IEMs.

Aha! Then it’s a Vidar in a box!

Ah, no. Ragnarok is a fully differential amplifier—that is, both sets of speaker terminals are active. And its Nexus topology is completely different than Vidar. Also, Vidar is in a box.

But it uses Vidar heatsinks, I can see that!

Yep. So does Aegir. It’s called “manufacturing efficiency.” It doesn’t mean they’re the same inside.

What is this Nexus thing? More Schiit blathering?

Nexus is what we’ve been referring to as the “holy grail gain stage” internally, during development. Now, maybe we’re a little too much into Monty Python, or maybe we’re a bit touched in the head. But it took a long time to come up with Nexus, which is a current-feedback stage with nested differential amplification, and has the following interesting qualities for a discrete design:

It does not exhibit the N/N+1 gain relationship when fed a single-ended signal, so it seamlessly converts single-ended to balanced.
It also converts balanced to single-ended.
It also is quite happy to amplify, differentially, a differential signal for differential output.
It does this without summers, buffers, or any other tricks; it is a single discrete differential stage,

So it’s supersymmetry?

Nope.

So it’s a circlotron?

Nope.

Hmm. So it really is different?

As far as we can tell. Of course, we don’t know everything, nor are we perfect.

Well, I already got a 1979 receiver with a headphone out and speaker outs, whatcha think about that?

We think good for you! People should keep their gear longer. However, your receiver has little in common with Ragnarok 2—the headphone outputs may be run from a resistor divider, or may be a separate low-power op-amp circuit. Ragnarok 2 uses the same balanced output stage for both speakers and headphones—there is no difference.

Well, I already got a new integrated amp with headphone and speaker outs, and it even has a DAC and phono input, whatcha gonna do for me now?

Maybe nothing. If you’re already happy with what you have, why not simply enjoy it? However, some of the same caveats above apply…most integrated amps don’t run full power to the headphone outs, and even if they have a DAC and phono stage, they’re not modular and upgradable for the future. Ragnarok 2 is.

What if I want to run speakers and headphones together?

Sure, no problem. You can even select which ones you want to listen to with the remote.

Talk to me about this relay-switched stepped attenuator thing. What is that?

It’s a volume control. Unlike continuous, potentiometer-based volume controls, it uses relays to switch in and out a set of precision resistors based on the volume setting on the front panel. The result is perfect channel tracking down to very low levels, with 128 steps of 0.625dB available at each gain level—much more than most stepped attenuators. Note that our attenuator also works just like a regular potentiometer—there are no continually-spinning encoders, but an actual knob with stops at the low end and high end of the gain.

Is this a Class A amp?

For most headphones, this is technically a Class A amp. It runs about 1W of Class A bias. For speakers, that translates to Class AB operation.

Q: Over the past decade and a half, I have been assembling the highest-performance system in the universe, comprised of a Scintillant Mega-Complex Uber-Transport, a Pinnacassio Modum 14 TransQuantum DAC, quad Puissance Series Seven Monoblocks (Rev 2 with new Series Z Output Transformers, hand-wound by Buddhist monks, of course), Bi-wired through Cantessa Gate Limited Edition Oxidized Gold cables to Stratoz Kemplaflammar Gas-Plasma full-range speakers. Do you think your new amp has the performance to match this system, and why? Please include a 1550-word or more dissertation on the design principles employed in this amplifier, including cryo-treating (which components), types of premium fuses used, type of wiring used internally, whether or not the PC board has been treated for maximum neutrality in a Black Gate Field, and other important considerations.

A: What? I fell asleep reading this.

Q: Ahem, I am a very important person! I have spend $55,000 last year alone in assembling the ultimate listening system on planet Earth. I—

A: Ah, right. Gotcha. Unfortunately, we are not qualified to dispense psychoactive medications nor consult in matters of psychology. Nor do our products come with a psychologist, either standard or as an option. The shipping is brutal, and the psychologists don’t like it too much.

Q: Why, I never! What cheek! I will tell all my friends about your lack of respect for a true audiophile! You’ll never work in this town again!

A: Cool. Please do. Remind them we make cheap gear, maybe they need presents for their less-fortunate relatives.

Q: No audio component should cost this much! This is absolutely outrageous! If you apply the principles of transparency espoused by M. David Gartner, Senior, M.Sc. Ph.D, author of the book, Audio Can and Should be Be Hella Cheep, then all you need is a couple of op-amps and some LM7815s. This thing could cost $50! And it’d probably perform better! All you guys are just using snake oil to pull the wool over our eyes and deceive less discerning audiophiles! all just a bunch of poorly-engineered hoo-ha, and it’ll probably just blow up your speakers!

A: Was there a question there?

Q: Ah. Well. But it’s outrageous, you see! You’re ripping people off! You could do this a lot cheaper if you just used 40-cent op-amps and 10-cent regulators in a plastic chassis. How can making something like this possibly be fair?

A: Corvette. Porsche.

Q: Corvette Porsche what?

A: You can get around town just as well in a 10-year-old Civic as a Corvette or Porsche.

Q: I fail to see the connection here!

A: You can rail against people buying expensive cars all you want, you can show them all the charts and graphs that they won’t get there any faster in their Corvette or Porsche or Mercedes or Bentley or what-have-you, you can regurgitate all the Consumer Reports stuff you want showing how high-end cars just cost a lot more money to buy and repair and maintain and insure and that in the end they don’t do a damn thing for the owner’s ego or attractiveness to the opposite sex. And you know what? They’ll still want the Corvette, Mercedes, Porsche, whatever. Same with audio. Bottom line, there’s great stuff available very inexpensively, and there are options that cost a lot more.

Q: Well, I’ll still never buy your stuff! What do you think about that?

A: You wouldn’t anyway.

Q: What happened to the True Multibit DAC card option?
A: We're constrained on the Analog Devices ADSP parts, so we're afraid those are on hold for a while. Hopefully they'll be back at the end of 2022.

Ragnarok 2 Integrated Amplifier

Stereophile, Ken Micallef

"I love Ella's Swings Brightly With Nelson for Riddle's arrangements and buoyant big band—and of course, Ella herself, who sounds joyful throughout. Through the Rag 2, Ella's artistry—every dynamic nuance, every subtlety of timing, every inhalation and exhalation—was reproduced better than through any amplifier I've had in house. The Ragnarok 2 was so resolving, yet in such a non-analytical way, it was almost like being inside Ella's head. Her vocals sounded more human and less canned than I've ever heard."

"Midrange frequencies are where this amplifier excels. Kessel's guitar on Poll Winners Three! sounded particularly lush and toneful. Shelly Manne's drums were textured and present—not as present and colorful as when played through my Shindo gear, but with more warmth than any other solid-state amplifier I've reviewed. The Rag 2 performed the neat trick of being crisp and warm at the same time."

"Conclusions

In its Fully Loaded version, the Schiit Ragnarok 2 offers greater flexibility than its predecessor and includes a remote and an evidently capable DAC and phono stage. And when purchased as Just An Amp, the Rag 2 is $200 less expensive than the original Ragnarok. Where else can you get all this hi-fi goodness for that kind of money? Highly recommended."

Read Full Review ->

Schiit's new audiophile amplifier is a slam dunk winner

Steve Guttenberg, CNET Audiophiliac

"The Ragnarok 2 was a truthful messenger. Music sounded real, immediate and alive. I loved it for that. It's not going to sweeten the sound of harsh recordings, but the great ones were revealed in all their glory."

"The Ragnarok 2 is also one heck of a headphone amp. It drove massively insensitive headphones like the Hifiman Susvara with a remarkable sense of ease, and the sound was absolutely superb."

"To sum up, the Schiit Ragnarok 2's versatility is unmatched for the money. Its sound with speakers and high-end headphones is extraordinary. Build quality and the warranty are top notch. The Ragnarok 2 is one heck of an amp."

Read Full Review ->

Ragnarok 2: Muscles

Linus at Headfonia

"The Ragnarok 2 is primarily a speaker amplifier, but it’s so much more than that. Select the fully loaded option and you get a DAC, pre-amp, integrated amp, MM phono amp and a headphone amplifier. All in one massive box. The build quality of the Ragnarok is very good, but you have to make sure you have the room for it."

During the last couple of months, I have played and enjoyed my time with the Ragnarok 2. It handles anything I throw at it and I’m sure my bookshelf speakers did not push the Schiit to its limits. Very far from it. With my HiFiMAN Susvara headphones that did look a bit different. But Ragnarok still had more than enough reserves to fire into my headphones to make my ears bleed.

Ragnarok sound smooth, organic and full through and through. It is a great amplifier for many products."

Read Full Review ->

Ragnarok 2 Integrated

Positive Feedback, Smit Patel

"Overall then, the Schiit Ragnarok 2 represents the next evolution in Schiit's mantra for modular design philosophy. Complete with remote control, nexus differential gain stage, and heatsink capacities, the Ragnarok 2 improves over its predecessor at a surprisingly cheaper price ($1499). Tracks sound vivid and holographic with engaging character and holographic resolve. Perhaps Schiit could consider the options for a tube stage, but I imagine this may drive the price of a future revision. The versatility of this amp however, is second to none with the upgraded version featuring both MM Phono and DAC options (at $1799). Together with a durable design factor and generous 5 year warranty, the Ragnarok 2 really represents that all-in-one amp to service both speakers and headphones alike."

Read Full Review ->

AudioSolace: Ragnarok 2

Smit Patel

"The Ragnarok 2 amplifier, like its predecessor, has a very transparent, rich and clear tonality. In all gain settings, the Ragnarok 2 demonstrates excellent ability in delineation with quick transients and separation. The amplifier is not really recommended for in-ear monitors due to the overwhelming power outputs and high noise floor. Instead, headphones and speakers are the best pairing options with the Ragnarok 2 able to drive both with authority and depth."

"Paired with the SVS Wireless Speaker system, the Ragnarok 2 commands authority with great dynamics, stereo separation and a rich sound that fills the room. Compared with the Mjolnir 2, the Ragnarok 2 sounds more vivid and characterful with a holographic layering that defines the Schiit house sound. Paired with the Schiit Yggdrasil Analog 2 DAC, the sound becomes faithful to tracks, highlighting every miniscule detailing and nuance in its glory without covering or misrepresenting poorly mastered tracks. For that reason, the Ragnarok 2 makes an excellent addition for any consumer or professional wishing to master music or for those seeking a neutral but accurate sound."

"The Ragnarok 2 pairs well with planar headphones such as HiFiMAN’s Susvara, HE-1000 V2 and Meze Audio’s Empyrean. The sound rests very much in line with the original signature but with added focus, sharper transients and a very multi-layered field of sound."

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Headphone Guru: Ragnarok 2

Gary Alan Barker

"The Schiit Ragnarok 2 DAC/Preamp/Headphone Amplifier/Loudspeaker Amplifier expands on the original with a better amplifier and the options for a phono preamp and a True Multibit DAC offering a reference quality DAC/Amplifier for less than most companies (including Schiit to be honest) sell their stand-alone reference DACs making it one of the best values in audio period."

"While my love of tube magic still makes the Lyr 3 special to me, the huge soundstage, copious reserves of power, unprecedented musicality and laser fine imaging clearly puts the Ragnarok 2 at the head of the pack, able to compete favorably sonically with any DAC/Amp out there, at any price, while also performing as the centerpiece of an audiophile loudspeaker system."

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GreenAudioReview: Ragnarok 2

GreenAudioReview

"If you’ve read any of our reviews you know that modularity is something we value here at Green Audio Review. It makes a component future-proof rather than, as Schiit says it, dumpster-fodder. How many great integrated amplifiers have been resold or discarded because the DAC or the phono stage could not keep up with technology?

The Ragnarok 2 is a wonderful amplifier, and being able to upgrade the DAC and phono-modules as technology advances means that we might never have to buy another amplifier.

Once again, sustainability is tied with modularity. Making products that meet all our needs (speaker-amplification, DAC, phono stage, and a seriously good headphone amp) while being both great sounding, affordable, and upgradable shows us how simple and rewarding it can be to go green on audio.

The Ragnarok 2 is not the end of the world – it’s the beginning…

Here you go: a Green Award effortlessly earned."

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Headphone Guru