Introducing Olympus & Olympus I/O - A new perspective on modern music playback

For those who just started reading up on Olympus, Olympus I/O, and XDMI, please note that all information in this thread has been summarized in a single PDF document that can be downloaded from the Taiko Website.

https://taikoaudio.com/taiko-2020/taiko-audio-downloads

The document is frequently updated.

Scroll down to the 'XDMI, Olympus Music Server, Olympus I/O' section and click 'XDMI, Olympus, Olympus I/O Product Introduction & FAQ' to download the latest version.

Good morning WBF!​

We are introducing the culmination of close to 4 years of research and development. As a bona fide IT/tech nerd with a passion for music, I have always been intrigued by the potential of leveraging the most modern of technologies in order to create a better music playback experience. This, amongst others, led to the creation of our popular, perhaps even revolutionary, Extreme music server 5 years ago, which we have been steadily improving and updating with new technologies throughout its life cycle. Today I feel we can safely claim it's holding its ground against the onslaught of new server releases from other companies, and we are committed to keep improving it for years to come.

We are introducing a new server model called the Olympus. Hierarchically, it positions itself above the Extreme. It does provide quite a different music experience than the Extreme, or any other server I've heard, for that matter. Conventional audiophile descriptions such as sound staging, dynamics, color palette, etc, fall short to describe this difference. It does not sound digital or analog, I would be inclined to describe it as coming closer to the intended (or unintended) performance of the recording engineer.

Committed to keeping the Extreme as current as possible, we are introducing a second product called the Olympus I/O. This is an external upgrade to the Extreme containing a significant part of the Olympus technology, allowing it to come near, though not entirely at, Olympus performance levels. The Olympus I/O can even be added to the Olympus itself to elevate its performance even further, though not as dramatic an uplift as adding it to the Extreme. Consider it the proverbial "cherry on top".

 

Well, I was going to comment on your post, but I'd rather keep quiet.
But if he was told (and I don't doubt it) it has arrived and we are working on it,
I can imagine how you must feel after having your holidays and your professional activity messed around.

 

@Taiko Audio
I was told by Ted in his email dated 6th Feb that you have received my chassis (#87) and working on it as soon as possible, I cut short my holidays to prepare for the delivery and now, 3 weeks later I was notified that I still have to wait for the next batch of chassis that coming in the next 10 days! I did not only cut short my holidays but also postpone all my oversea business trips to the second half of March onward. Look like I have to re-schedule my trips again. I really hope you can communicate better with me. Otherwise it is difficult for me and I really hope you can understand my situation. Thanks

Hello @Bioeasy ,

We just updated your dealer, he can bring you up to speed personally! Like @JulienVermeiren posted in #5089 everybody will be kept up to speed by e-mail starting Monday.

 

As I read Julien’s post, the anodized pictures are of the chassis with holes across the entire top. And powder coat is the chassis with a small group of holes? But there’s no way to distinguish the surface of the two in the pictures. I’m assuming they both look very good.

Yes that’s correct.

 

Hello @Bioeasy ,

We just updated your dealer, he can bring you up to speed personally! Like @JulienVermeiren posted in #5089 everybody will be kept up to speed by e-mail starting Monday.

I’m #86 and was under the impression that my unit was going to be shipped soon too. Post #4868 gave a manufacturing update on 29 Jan that the following orders were “under construction”: 66, 67, 69, 74, 75, 76, 77, 82, 84, 85, 86, 87.

If Taiko can manage to build 10-15 units per week these units (including mine) should have been ready by early February.

I hope customers can be given more clarity and transparency, including in public channels.

 

As I read Julien’s post, the anodized pictures are of the chassis with holes across the entire top. And powder coat is the chassis with a small group of holes? But there’s no way to distinguish the surface of the two in the pictures. I’m assuming they both look very good.

Yes--I just created confusion with my hole count mention--but the part with more holes on the top is anodized, and the part with fewer holes (I/O module) is powder coated.
Both look good so I think it's a matter of what other gear you are trying to match, an anodized black DAC (MSB?) or a powder coated black DAC (Horizon).

 

@Taiko Audio Any update about the Aries Cerat XDMI daughterboards?

 

I’m #86 and was under the impression that my unit was going to be shipped soon too. Post #4868 gave a manufacturing update on 29 Jan that the following orders were “under construction”: 66, 67, 69, 74, 75, 76, 77, 82, 84, 85, 86, 87.

If Taiko can manage to build 10-15 units per week these units (including mine) should have been ready by early February.

I hope customers can be given more clarity and transparency, including in public channels.

Yes, we are left to infer that more issues were encountered. As a courtesy, someone should say something to those affected most directly. Not all of us are petulant billionaires impatiently waiting for another Bentley delivery. This messaging lead me to sell my Horizon last July and I haven’t had a viable replacement since. I certainly wouldn’t have done this without the false promise of 10-15 units per week, which has been mentioned as far back as last March. Just trying to be in position to honor my end of the contract. True, this is only a hobby without critical effect on our survival, but that’s not the standard in play.

FWIW, I believe this new finishing will alleviate the primary issue.

 

I’ve been building my own projections for when each order will go to production, factoring in everything I know about bottlenecks, capacity, and any other issues that could impact the timeline. Twice a week, I check in with various people at Taiko, update my estimates based on what I learn, and adjust for completed units or newly arrived chassis. Over time, these projections will become more accurate, but I’ve also taken a conservative approach - I’d rather set expectations further out and have units ready sooner than the other way around.

I think people are tired of hearing about problems and just want to know when they will receive their unit. I could go into detail about how anodizers spent over 600 hours trying to re-anodize 60 chassis that previously failed, only for the results to be devastating - but people have heard enough of that already. So let’s focus on the good news and projections. Here’s what’s going on right now:

1. Taiko has two good anodizers and one company handling powder coating.
2. Anodizing chassis machined from the outer cuts of ingots seems to be very successful. There are still some rejects, but the results are much better than before. Black still has a better yield than silver, but both have significantly improved with the new material.
3. Re-anodizing previously failed chassis not only takes much longer than the initial anodizing, but the success rate is very poor. So, going forward, all chassis that fail anodizing on the first attempt will go straight to powder coating.
4. The black powder-coated samples look better than the black anodized ones. We are expecting to see silver powder coated samples soon as well.

At this point, I know what people really care about is when they’ll receive their unit. My goal is to give everyone a projected date as soon as possible. Because of powder coating, my previous projections got thrown off, and I need more data - specifically, how many chassis can be powder-coated at a time and what the success rate is. We’ll have the first numbers by the end of next week. Once I have that data, I’ll update my projections accordingly. By the following Monday, I expect to have a more refined timeline that can also be incorporated into Julien’s updates.

Production isn’t fully linear yet, and the chassis remains the only bottleneck (every good chassis received is turned into a completed unit right away). However, powder coating is a huge step forward and a big relief for the production process. Once the new flow is established, things should move much more predictably. I’ll post another update once I have more concrete details!

 

@nenon Thank you for this update.

 

Olympus Serveur
Roon randomly stops playing music
​

For those of you who have received your Olympus Server : if you’re experiencing issues with Roon like some of us do, it would be great to send a quick bug report to support.

This will only help them narrow down and eventually fix the problem.

I have an Olympus + I/O XDMI, and Roon randomly stops playing music, showing the message: "Roon lost control of the audio device."

If you’re not experiencing this issue, it would still be helpful to send your system details to Taiko, mentioning that you don’t have this problem.

Knowing the conditions in which the issue does not occur is just as valuable.

Here’s a suggestion of bug report structure to send to @Taiko Audio :


SYSTEM :

- Olympus Server serial : xxx
- Olympus I/O serial : xxx
- Output XDMI interface : xxx
- DAC : xxx
- Roon Server version : xxx , build xxx
- Taiko Switch : yes/no
- Taiko Router : yes/no
- Taiko DC Power Distributor : yes/no
- Roon control app : iOS/Android


MUSIC STORAGE LOCATION-S :

- Local drive, in the Olympus Server
- NAS located on home network
- NAS connected to Taiko Router
- Streamed from : Tidal, Qobuz, other
- Music is playing from which storage when problem occurs?


PROBLEM DESCRIPTION :

- Does the music stop after a random amount of time?
- How often?
- Longest time between two stops ?
- Shortest time between two stops ?
- Does rebooting the server resolve the issue?


ERROR MESSAGE :

- Does the following error message appear on your iPad/Android ? "Roon lost control of the Audio device."
- Does the error message always appear?
- Take a screen shot


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION :

- Any additional information that might be useful or give more context


Cheers,

Thomas

 

Hi nenon,
How did it go? Are you happy with the feedback that listeners gave about the Olympus?
If you would like to share, of course.

This was my first time running a room at a show. I have always been a visitor before. I’m learning a lot and adjusting. I am focused on building good relationships within the industry first - helping dealers, connecting with other manufacturers, exploring potential partnerships, and getting familiar with the press, including YouTubers, magazines, and reviewers.

What was interesting (and expected) was that when people walked into the room and liked the sound, their immediate reaction was, “Wow, these speakers are great!” So I need to find a way to showcase what the digital source contributes to the system. Perhaps I need to come up with some interesting A/B comparisons that highlight the Olympus without taking anything away from other brands. We’ll come up with some creative ways to do that in the future.

Another takeaway was that very few people I talked to had heard of Taiko Audio. It’s clear that we have a lot more work to do in the U.S. market.

 

What about the different footers under Olympus?

I really liked the Hifistay products, and I am actively working with them to create a custom solution for the Olympus, I/O, and network stack. More to come on that.

 

@SwissTom

The music storage question needs to include if the files are being streamed from a particular provider, like Qobuz or Tidal, etc.

MUSIC STORAGE LOCATION-S :

- Local drive, in the Olympus Server
- NAS located on home network
- NAS connected to Taiko Router
-- Streamed from 1) Tidal; 2) Qobuz, 3) other
- Music is playing from which storage when problem occurs?

My guess is that many of issues are created by the streaming service.

 

My guess is that many of issues are created by the streaming service.

In my case, music is playing from the local drive or NAS connected to my home network.
I suspect the issue is related to Roon and XDMI interaction.

 

...so perhaps if connected to streaming service even if the issue did *not* occur while streaming, I think you are implying, Tom. That seems a good data point to me.

 

...so perhaps if connected to streaming service even if the issue did *not* occur while streaming, I think you are implying, Tom. That seems a good data point to me.

Hi @MarkusBarkus ,

No, that’s not what I was implying

I don’t think the issue is related to where the music is stored (local, NAS, or streaming).

As I mentioned earlier, I believe the problem is caused by something else.

I haven’t been able to access the Roon log files on my Olympus.

But judging by the error message, it’s possible that the issue is related to Roon not handling the XDMI interface properly.

That said, this is pure speculation. I’m not qualified to give or even have an opinion.

That’s why it’s so important to send as much information as possible to @Taiko Audio .

Cheers,

Thomas

 

...I was implying the mere presence of Qobuz, etc. might have an impact, even if only using local play-back, due to stream-service messaging, polling/heartbeat calls home, etc. And I agree: send them the data! Cheers.

 

Hello @Bioeasy ,

We just updated your dealer, he can bring you up to speed personally! Like @JulienVermeiren posted in #5089 everybody will be kept up to speed by e-mail starting Monday.
[/QUOTE

Hello @Bioeasy ,

We just updated your dealer, he can bring you up to speed personally! Like @JulienVermeiren posted in #5089 everybody will be kept up to speed by e-mail starting Monday.

Hi @Taiko Audio,

I have contacted my dealer but for delivery issue, there is nothing he can do about it, it is solely depend on Taiko's allocation. What a disappointment!

Moving forward, I hope you can give me a concrete delivery timeline soon so that I can plan my schedule accordingly. I would appreciate it if you can keep to your word this time. I hope I am not asking too much. Thanks

 

I’ve been building my own projections for when each order will go to production, factoring in everything I know about bottlenecks, capacity, and any other issues that could impact the timeline. Twice a week, I check in with various people at Taiko, update my estimates based on what I learn, and adjust for completed units or newly arrived chassis. Over time, these projections will become more accurate, but I’ve also taken a conservative approach - I’d rather set expectations further out and have units ready sooner than the other way around.

I think people are tired of hearing about problems and just want to know when they will receive their unit. I could go into detail about how anodizers spent over 600 hours trying to re-anodize 60 chassis that previously failed, only for the results to be devastating - but people have heard enough of that already. So let’s focus on the good news and projections. Here’s what’s going on right now:

1. Taiko has two good anodizers and one company handling powder coating.
2. Anodizing chassis machined from the outer cuts of ingots seems to be very successful. There are still some rejects, but the results are much better than before. Black still has a better yield than silver, but both have significantly improved with the new material.
3. Re-anodizing previously failed chassis not only takes much longer than the initial anodizing, but the success rate is very poor. So, going forward, all chassis that fail anodizing on the first attempt will go straight to powder coating.
4. The black powder-coated samples look better than the black anodized ones. We are expecting to see silver powder coated samples soon as well.

At this point, I know what people really care about is when they’ll receive their unit. My goal is to give everyone a projected date as soon as possible. Because of powder coating, my previous projections got thrown off, and I need more data - specifically, how many chassis can be powder-coated at a time and what the success rate is. We’ll have the first numbers by the end of next week. Once I have that data, I’ll update my projections accordingly. By the following Monday, I expect to have a more refined timeline that can also be incorporated into Julien’s updates.

Production isn’t fully linear yet, and the chassis remains the only bottleneck (every good chassis received is turned into a completed unit right away). However, powder coating is a huge step forward and a big relief for the production process. Once the new flow is established, things should move much more predictably. I’ll post another update once I have more concrete details!

Thank you. I have waited for 14 months in Hong Kong and so far I have not received a single update with any real dates. So what you just promised is good. I also want to get an assurance that you deliver strictly based on our order number — please do assure me/us this is absolutely the case.

 

Another takeaway was that very few people I talked to had heard of Taiko Audio. It’s clear that we have a lot more work to do in the U.S. market.

tell them to join WBF and read a few threads......tell them to bring their wallets as the rest is history