Taiko Audio Setchi active groundbox has got a big brother - D3

CKKeung

Well-Known Member
Jun 17, 2011
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I wrote a review on Taiko Audio Setchi active groundbox D2 a few months ago :
http://www.whatsbestforum.com/showt...er-groundbox-but-this-Setchi-is-quite-special

The new Setchi "3 Series" - D3 is available this month.
D3aa.jpg

Its again has a panzerholz enclosure and the size and weight are around 2x of D2.
D3b.jpg
D3c.jpg

Is the sound character of D3 a D2-on-steroid?
I did a direct shootout between D3 and D2.
They are sequentially applied on a "The Memory Player" (https://www.thememoryplayer.net/) which IMHO is one of the best two CAS severs in the market, the other being SGMS.
D3dd.jpg

D3 has an unexpected sonic character. The improvement is not on authority & dynamics.
It's ahead of D2 in term of soundstage depth, layering in the soundstage, quietness and most importantly it makes music more continuous & more analogue-like.
It immediately becomes a hot Taiko Audio item in Hong Kong.

Is it perfect?
No. Some audiophile friends of mine think that D3 will make the sound a bit too soft.
The solution is again mix & match.
D2 in general makes the sound more vivid.
We found that applying both D3 and D2 in a system will get the best of both worlds, but the ratio of D3/D2 must depends on owners' taste and the character of their systems.

In HK where there is no VAT, a D3 is around USD600 only.
It is almost a must for digital frontends and CAS.
 
Last edited:

Kingsrule

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I hope they have a trade up program...I have a bunch of #2 Setchi's
 

Taiko Audio

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Feb 10, 2017
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I hope they have a trade up program...I have a bunch of #2 Setchi's

The D3 is not a D2 replacement. It does possess a "softer" overall balance which CK describes so well in his review. It is more of a successor to the D1 which never sold very well due to not being able to fully match the D2's overall performance but does also possess this "softer" quality which can be a desirable trait in brighter voiced systems. I would not recommend replacing all of your D2's with D3's but a few selective replacements could provide you with another nice uptick in overall system performance. I would consider replacing 1 or 2 D2's on your Roon Server and/or DCS Vivaldi stack. Ofcourse we will accommodate any replacements in your system. Customer satisfaction is our #1 priority. I will drop you an email.
 
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Kingsrule

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Thanks Emile

You guys are the best!
 

Mike Lavigne

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Apr 25, 2010
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Thanks Emile

You guys are the best!

+1.

I have -3- Setchi D2's which help even with the Tripoint Elite in the neighborhood. 2 of the D2's are on the Tana's, and one on the dac box of the MSB connected to an RCA digital input (a Tripoint Thor SE grounding cable (connected to the Elite) is on grounding post the power supplies of the MSB).
 

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