Schiit SHOLL User manual

BALANCED DISCRETE CLASS A ZERO FEEDBACK
REMOTE CONTROL PHONO PREAMP

Welcome to Skoll, simply the most
amazing phono preamp for the lowest
cost, anywhere in the world. Hype?
Consider the high-voltage-rail, Class A,
no-feedback gain stages, the passive
RIAA, the balanced and single-ended in
and out, and the freakin’ remote control!
Holy moly, tweak this thing from your
chair rather than getting up every time
you want to ddle with loading. Heck,
hook up two turntables (you know you
want to, right?). Pretty much whereever
you are on the phono scale—just getting
started, or over the top—Skoll is ready to
deliver exceptional performance.
INTRODUCTION
The following is required by the roughly 9,542
government agencies and regulations we have to
comply with. If you have some common sense, they
should seem pretty straightforward. In any case, read these
instructions before proceeding farther, follow all instructions,
and heed all warnings. Or else!
1. If you don’t know how to install audio devices, get a
qualied professional to help.
2. Never use this device near water, and clean only with a
dry cloth.
3. Assure adequate ventilation, do not block any ventilation
openings, or place near heat sources.
4. Use only the supplied power cord or suitable replacement.
Route cords away from trac areas and protect them from
being pinched. Unplug the cord from the outlet if the appara-
tus is unused for a long period of time.
5. To prevent electric shock, do not use the plug with an
extension cord, receptacle, or outlet unless blades can be
fully inserted.
6. Refer all servicing to qualied service personnel. Service
is required when the device has been damaged, including
cord or plug damage, liquid has been spilled or objects have
fallen into the device, the device has been exposed to rain or
moisture, does not operate normally, or has been dropped.
WARNING: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR
ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS DEVICE
TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.
CONNECTIONS
1 Balanced outputs. Connect to your
preamp or integrated amp with XLR cables.
2 Single-ended outputs. Connect to your
preamp or integrated amp with RCA cables
if it doesn’t have balanced inputs.
Note: both balanced and SE outputs are on at all
times.
3 Ground. Some turntables need a ground
connection to Skoll for minimum hum.
Connect with a short, thick ground wire.
4 Balanced inputs. Connect any turntable
with balanced outputs using XLR cables.
Note: yes, balanced out turntables are rare. And
some use bizarro nonstandard connectors. Ask
them for a conversion cable to a proper set of XLRs.
2 Single-ended inputs. Connect any
SE turntable with RCA cables here. We
strongly recommend keeping them short
and well-shielded for minimum hum.
6 Power switch. Up is on, down is off.
Sound only comes out when it’s on.
7 AC input. Connect the supplied wall-wart
output here. This wall-wart is very special,
providing both 24VAC and 6VAC to the
Skoll. You won’t nd it anywhere else. If
you need a new one because your cat ate
the cord, no worries, we sell them on our
site, under Accessories.
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OPERATION
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4 Gain select. Press to select gain of both
stages. Here’s how it works:
No LEDs: 40dB
Left LED only: 50dB
Right LED only: 60dB
Both LEDs on: 70dB
5 LF lter light. This is on when the 2-pole
15Hz passive lter is enabled.
Note: LF lter is selected via the remote. Alternately,
if the remote isn’t handy or is in your parrot/dog/
cat’s stomach, you can press and hold (4) to toggle
it on and off. Seriously, a new remote is cheap. Just
get one.
1 Resistive loading. The rst 5 LEDs show
the resistive loading—10 ohms to 47k ohms.
Select 47k for MM. Select the cartridge
manufacturers’ recommended load for MC.
2 Capacitive loading. The next 4 LEDs show
the capacitive loading—50p to 200p. Leave
at 50p for MM and use the recommended
load for MC.
Note: loading is selected using the remote, or, if it
isn’t handy, you can press and hold (3) to enable a
“step through” selection function. It’s a pain in the
rear end, so just order a new remote, OK?
3 Input select. Press to select input, bal-
anced or single-ended.
Yes, Skoll comes with a remote. It’s simple and
plastic so if your dog chews it up, a new one is
inexpensive. Sorry if that offends your senses.
1 Input. Press to select the input you want to listen
to, balanced or single-ended.
2 LF lter. Woofers dancing due to warped records
or platter wobble? Press here.
3 Resistive loading. Press up or down to increase
or decrease resistive loading.
4 Capacitive loading. Press up or down to increase
or decrease capacitive loading.
5 Gain. Press up or down to increase or decrease
gain. Be careful when going up—gain changes in
10dB steps, which is pretty signicant!
Changing the Battery
1. Flip the remote over to reveal a slide-lock cover.
2. Remove the cover.
3. Replace the battery inside with one of the same type.
4. Replace the cover.
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REMOTE
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FAQ
I don’t know where to start on all
these settings—help!
Don’t panic--you’re not going to hurt anything
by changing the settings. If you’re running a
moving-magnet cartridge (MM), you can start
with the Skoll as-shipped: lowest gain (no
LEDs), 47k/50p load, no LF lter. For moving
coil, use 60dB gain (left LED on) and the
recommended load from the manufacturer,
or start with 100 ohms/50p and tweak from
there.
I have a balanced turntable, but it doesn’t
have standard XLRs for output. What do I do?
Curse them for not using, literally, the most
standard and accepted balanced connection
on the planet, and wish them that special
afterlife reserved for people using proprietary
connectors, offering “upgraded” linear power
supplies, or special “tuned” editions? No, seri-
ously, they certainly sell adapters to XLR.
I’m getting noise on the output.
Phono isn’t digital, with a vanishingly low
noise oor. It’s normal to have some hiss
and hum, especially when you crank up the
volume. Remember the intro from Back to the
Future? Like that.
No I mean a TON of noise!
You may need to use the ground connection
to your turntable (or, if you are already using
it, you may need to disconnect it—try both
ways).Try different, short, well-shielded RCA
cables, and don’t run them over power cords
or other gear. If that doesn’t work, you may
need a ground loop breaker like the EbTech
HumX.
What’s with the Cylon thing?
That’s just a fun thing that Skoll does when
you rst turn it on, so you have something
to watch while the gain stages stabilize and
everything comes up to proper operation.
It doesn’t turn on, what do I do?
Plug it in to a different AC socket. Ensure you
are not currently in a blackout. Then email us
if it still doesn’t work.
WARRANTY
Schiit Audio warrants to the original purchaser that this product shall be free from defects in
material and workmanship for two (2) years from the date of purchase. If a defect covered
by this warranty occurs during this period, Schiit Audio will repair the defective product, free
of charge. Date of purchase will be based on customer receipts, otherwise date of manufac-
turing will be used.
If you believe you need warranty service, contact us rst. Schiit Audio products sent back
to us without a Return Authorization (RA) will be returned to the sender without repair. To
contact us and obtain an RA, email [email protected].
Warranty Limitations. This warranty shall not apply if a product: (a) is modied or tampered
with; (b) is damaged by negligence, accident, unreasonable use, or other causes unrelated
to defective materials or workmanship, or (c) has had the serial number altered or removed.
Any implied warranties, including warranties of merchantability and tness for a particular
purpose, are hereby limited in duration to the warranty period of 5 years. In no event shall
Schiit Audio be liable for consequential or incidental damages resulting from the breach
of any implied or expressed warranties. Some states do not allow these limitations, so
they may not apply to you. You may also have other rights which vary from state to state or
province to province.

SCHIIT.COM
[email protected]
IN THE BOX
(1) Skoll
(1) Wall-Wart (AKA “linear power supply”)
(Various) Stickers and stuff
(Innite) Appreciation from the whole Schiit crew
in Valencia, CA and Corpus Christi, TX
(Even more) Thanks from our chassis and PCB
guys in California, Nevada, and Utah.
This product is in compliance with standards
and regulations of the European Community.