Taiko Audio SGM Extreme : the Crème de la Crème

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Thank you for sharing your first impressions.

I now have one on order...!
smart move Ian. This is one piece of equipment that I know you will be enamored with. It completely changed how I listen to music and it only keeps getting better with TAS. Roon, for me is something I haven't used in about 7 months because of TAS
 

MadFloyd

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May 30, 2010
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smart move Ian. This is one piece of equipment that I know you will be enamored with. It completely changed how I listen to music and it only keeps getting better with TAS. Roon, for me is something I haven't used in about 7 months because of TAS
Thanks, Steve. I kept seeing TAS and thinking about the magazine; once I learned what it meant it pushed me over the edge. I have been using Roon since it's inception but I currently despise it (well perhaps that's too strong a word, but I find it very frustrating to use now) and welcome using something else.

This is a big purchase for me. After having made some improvements to my digital playback I now realize that digital can be very very good and I'm already listening more to digital than vinyl so I guess I'm ready to jump into this pool.
 
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dminches

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Oct 22, 2011
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I have been listening to TAS exclusively for about 3 months now. The sound is fabulous.

The Roon interface is hard to beat but once you use TAS for a while you forget about it.

The only downside to TAS vs. Roon is the lack of gapless play. For many this isn’t an issue but I listen to a good amount of live music where one song goes directly into the next. The break in sound is a downside. However, my understanding is that TAS will eventually have gapless play so this is temporary.
 

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Thanks, Steve. I kept seeing TAS and thinking about the magazine; once I learned what it meant it pushed me over the edge. I have been using Roon since it's inception but I currently despise it (well perhaps that's too strong a word, but I find it very frustrating to use now) and welcome using something else.

This is a big purchase for me. After having made some improvements to my digital playback I now realize that digital can be very very good and I'm already listening more to digital than vinyl so I guess I'm ready to jump into this pool.
It was a big purchase for everyone but I can promise you that the enjoyment you get right out of the box will mitigate all thoughts about its cost. I decided as an alpha user that the path I intend to follow is not Roon but TAS which is so far like a book that is being written as we go and with each new chapter the sonic gains are truly wonderful. And if you are enamored with Roon and want to use it until TAS has a final version I can promise you that whatever Emile did to the Extreme to allow for TAS functionality, it has also made Roon better for some reason I cannot explain. There are several Extreme users who have not yet committed to TAS because it is still a beta version and a work in progress and they use Roon as a result and cannot stop raving as to how much better Roon is with TAS. So even in beta, TAS is a quantum leap beyond Roon and as stated I stopped using Roon when TAS was an alpha version and still a twinkle in Emile's eyes. Since last October TAS has been the go to method for my listening sessions where previously it was over 90% analog. IMHO Emile has closed this gap so well that I told Emile he has made me a hard core digitphile and finally the format of the files was always a big thing for me trying to find files that were the best versions of each song only to find that 16/44.1 sounds just as good as high res PCM and DSD. IOW, whatever the Extreme does, I can say that there is just nothing like it in the market. This, coupled with the amazing development team that Emile has assembled along with unequaled customer support to provide the very best sound has put me steadfast on the TAS path and I have no regrets. I love the sound and have never experienced digital as good as this
 

austinpop

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May 23, 2017
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I have been listening to TAS exclusively for about 3 months now. The sound is fabulous.

The Roon interface is hard to beat but once you use TAS for a while you forget about it.

The only downside to TAS vs. Roon is the lack of gapless play. For many this isn’t an issue but I listen to a good amount of live music where one song goes directly into the next. The break in sound is a downside. However, my understanding is that TAS will eventually have gapless play so this is temporary.

I agree with you. Gapless is the crucial missing link, which once implemented, will complete the puzzle. My ideal use case is:

— select a collection of tracks to listen to and add them to the queue. Could be an album, a playlist,
or a manually selected list
— Select Batch-SP (i.e. Gapless) player
— wait for tracks to preprocess and preload. This could take a minute or 2, but it'll be worth it.
Users coming from Euphony will be familiar with this, as similar to "Buffer to RAM," although this step
does more on the Extreme.
— hit play
— as an added bonus, disconnect network (or power down the first switch upstream of the Extreme)
— enjoy gapless playback at the best possible SQ!

I use this today with TAS, and it delivers SQ as stated, except for the last bullet:
— enjoy gapless playback at the best possible SQ!
 

kswanson27

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Nov 21, 2018
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Wow, very cool !!

I will make an appointment to TeamViewer in to your Extreme to find the music that does not belong to your library of favorites
Ed, let me know when you want to do it.
 

EuroDriver

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Sep 16, 2015
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Chord DAVE transformed

The Chord DAVE with the stock SMPS removed, powered by a Sean Jacobs DC4, and digitally fed by the Audiowise SRC-DX

With these changes, to my old ears, the DAVE sonic performance moves in to the top draw, sonically competitive with the best DAC's out there. Amazing bass rolls out of the speakers

I just played a 2L DXD track, and the second BNC LED comes on.

For me putting the output from the SRC-DX in to Hi mode is too much, standard is better for me

Kudos to Dan Mance, and Sean Jacobs, I think you are going to make a lot of Chord Dave owners very happy
 
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QuantumWave

Well-Known Member
Feb 5, 2021
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Chord DAVE transformed

The Chord DAVE with the stock SMPS removed, powered by a Sean Jacobs DC4, and digitally fed by the Audiowise SRC-DX

With these changes, to my old ears, the DAVE sonic performance moves in to the top draw, sonically competitive with the best DAC's out there.

I just played a 2L DXD track, and the second BNC LED comes on.

For me putting the output from the SRC-DX in to Hi mode is too much, standard is better for me

Kudos to Dan Mance, and Sean Jacobs, I think you are going to make a lot of Chord Dave owners very happy
I think the high mode was designed for the OPTO-DX, but Dan might correct.
 

heebrog

Well-Known Member
May 12, 2018
131
51
135
Perth, WA
Chord DAVE transformed

The Chord DAVE with the stock SMPS removed, powered by a Sean Jacobs DC4, and digitally fed by the Audiowise SRC-DX

With these changes, to my old ears, the DAVE sonic performance moves in to the top draw, sonically competitive with the best DAC's out there. Amazing bass rolls out of the speakers

I just played a 2L DXD track, and the second BNC LED comes on.

For me putting the output from the SRC-DX in to Hi mode is too much, standard is better for me

Kudos to Dan Mance, and Sean Jacobs, I think you are going to make a lot of Chord Dave owners very happy
Hi Ed. Does this mean the TAS USB driver for CommTrue is now equivalent to the XMOS?
 

EuroDriver

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Sep 16, 2015
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Hi Ed. Does this mean the TAS USB driver for CommTrue is now equivalent to the XMOS?
The SRC-DX uses a Ct 7601 micro controller which does the USB to SPDIF conversion

Com True released a updated Windows ASIO Driver about a month ago and it provides good ASIO functionality with the TAS XD player including buffer size settings

The Taiko USB Driver is coded for working with the XMOS microcontrollers, but it can also talk to the Com True Ct 7601 and other USB 2 Audio compliant USB receivers with varying degrees of success.

The Taiko USB Driver cannot communicate with the Amanero receivers.

on the subject of DAC’s compatible with the Taiko USB Driver, the Solution 760 DAC (which has a XMOS) is being added
 

QuantumWave

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Feb 5, 2021
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The SRC-DX uses a Ct 7601 micro controller which does the USB to SPDIF conversion

Com True released a updated Windows ASIO Driver about a month ago and it provides good ASIO functionality with the TAS XD player including buffer size settings

The Taiko USB Driver is coded for working with the XMOS microcontrollers, but it can also talk to the Com True Ct 7601 and other USB 2 Audio compliant USB receivers with varying degrees of success.

The Taiko USB Driver cannot communicate with the Amanero receivers.

on the subject of DAC’s compatible with the Taiko USB Driver, the Solution 760 DAC (which has a XMOS) is being added
Would you say Ed it’s too early for deploying the TAS USB driver for SRC-DX, in the sense that it’s not yet able to stream audio data to the CT7601 chip?
 

Taiko Audio

Industry Expert
Feb 10, 2017
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Would you say Ed it’s too early for deploying the TAS USB driver for SRC-DX, in the sense that it’s not yet able to stream audio data to the CT7601 chip?

We have already added support for the CT7601 and it’s working, but we need to tune the SQ.
 
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Miramunt

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May 22, 2021
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Interesting thought, to bypass Amanero on the input to the M-Scaler. It'll be good to get SQ findings on whether this also improves transients as the direct Extreme > DAVE case that Roy and I have tried.



Actually, I'm not sure this is true. HMS allows DBNC out, and while it certainly has 2 SPDIF BNC inputs, there's nothing in the specs that says it accepts 16FS rates via these two inputs in "dual data mode."

But, since the rates you'll be passing at this interface are native — i.e. 1FS (Redbook) to 8FS (DXD) — you should only need a single BNC from SRC-DX to the HMS.

No idea if this is supported. Hopefully @dmance will confirm.
I have bypassed the Amanero USB receiver of the M-Scaler with the iFi micro iLink USB to SPDIF converter (see attachments) using one of the BNC inputs of the M-Scaler followed by double BNC connection into my Dave/DC4. The improvement was significant and immediately noticeable. Much cleaner sound with more open and holographic soundstage. Also improved transients with better focus, definition and clarity. I had the impression that a veil was lifted from the sound. Streaming from Qobuz was already good but has become excellent. This change has really narrowed the gap between the sound quality of PGGB’d files and files run through the M-scaler.
 

Attachments

  • iFi iLink USB to SPDIF Converter_2.pdf
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  • iFi iLink USB to SPDIF Converter.pdf
    269.1 KB · Views: 21
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Miramunt

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May 22, 2021
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It looks to me that the iFi Link is no longer an "active" product offering. Too bad. Cheers...
You are right. I hadn't used it for a long while but it turned out to be very useful and it is a high quality converter. I just thought it would be of interest for other Forum members to report my findings. It really pays off to bypass the Amanero USB receiver of the M-Scaler.
 
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QuantumWave

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Feb 5, 2021
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You are right. I hadn't used it for a long while but it turned out to be very useful and it is a high quality converter. I just thought it would be of interest for other Forum members to report my findings. It really pays off to bypass the Amanero USB receiver of the M-Scaler.
It reminds me a little from the time where I was using a stacked Mutec MC-3 and a Ref 120 SE feeding a HMS. I even tried the ‘surgery’ of feeding the stack MC3 with double Farad Super3, all to feed the M-scaler. Long story short, although fun (and expensive sic), it seemed to me a rabbit hole where you can again tune the sound in many ways, but always seem to loose on something, and I ended up simplifying my system (thanks Emille!!). The SRC-DX seems however to keep the balence right. Shame I don’t have the Opto-DX anymore, as I feel that RF isolation might still matter, as commented by Rajev on AS the choice of BNC cables seems to matter still.
 
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heebrog

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May 12, 2018
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You are right. I hadn't used it for a long while but it turned out to be very useful and it is a high quality converter. I just thought it would be of interest for other Forum members to report my findings. It really pays off to bypass the Amanero USB receiver of the M-Scaler.
If I’m not mistaken it’s limited to 24/192 anyway.
 

Miramunt

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May 22, 2021
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If I’m not mistaken it’s limited to 24/192 anyway.
That does not cause any restriction to users of the M-Scaler since most of them will be passing 1FS (Redbook) to 4FS (176.4/192 kHz; the maximum Qobuz currently offers for HD streaming) to this upscaler.
 

Sampajanna

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Apr 1, 2021
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EuroDriver

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