Proper upgrade from Holo May KTE?

Sep 10, 2022
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Im looking to upgrade my dac ive had the holo may kte for a couple years and have enjoyed it thoroughly. It was a jaw on the floor moment when i got it in my system. Im just looking for MORE of everything the may does so well. Huge Holographic soundstage , correct tone and tamber , full bodied, great bass , detailed , smooth, organic , rich , musical.

Has anyone compared the holo may dac to the msb discrete or premier? Or have other comparable suggestions

My very short list :
Msb Premier , playback designs MPD-8 , Lampizator Golden Gate 2/Pacific


Thank you!
 
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Sampajanna

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Those are both great choices. The MPD8 is excellent. Can you demo them?
 
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Those are both great choices. The MPD8 is excellent. Can you demo them?
I am working on getting the MSB here, talking with my local dealer. looking into getting the playback designs
 
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Sep 10, 2022
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Ive added Lampizator to the mix. i want to be around 25k , which puts me at Golden gate 2 unless Pacific is a must. I also want to see what an Innuos Statement / Pulsar or Aurender n20 will bring to the table.
 
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Argonaut

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Also consider the Aries Cerat Kassandra MKII Reference.

 

thomask

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You can also include Ideon Ion (17k$ just Dac, 21k$ with pre).


Also you may consider upgrading music server to Aurender N20 which makes substantial difference.

Above video was taken with Ion and N20 combo.

I had listened to Holo May kte during Pacific Audiofest which impressed me with clean and holographic sound.

If I were you, I will go for Aureder N20(12k$).
 
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You can also include Ideon Ion (17k$ just Dac, 21k$ with pre).


Also you may consider upgrading music server to Aurender N20 which makes substantial difference.

Above video was taken with Ion and N20 combo.

i agree i think the N20 will be my next purchase. im also interested to see reviews of the innuos pulsar that is being released soon. N20 + Lampizator Baltic 3 sound really intriguing. especially after reading the whole baltic 3 thread. the baltic 3 may be a nice introduction to lampi and from reading @Puma Cat comments in the baltic 3 post an improvement over the holo may kte.

its going to be a interesting test since i upsample everything that goes through the holo may with a DIY hqplayer “mscaler” to PCM 1.5mhz /sinc M/Lns15 filter. I can tell you if i remove the hqplayer upsampling and just use the may in nos mode its a completely different dac. With hqplayer really elevating the mays performance substantially.
 
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I see the lampizator golden gate 3 is available on the poland site. Resistance is feeling futile.
 
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christoph

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Sampajanna

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Lampi ftw. I would look into used Pac.
 
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Lampi ftw. I would look into used Pac.
Im definitely looking! I feel ive pretty much made up my mind what i want long term (horizon) but need to start at gg or pacific. I have a request in with ldms for info on doing a server ill be testing out the innous statement and msb discrete in my system next week. And maybe n20. I just spent some money with the dealer so their eager to let me try more stuff.
 
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KeithR

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Actually in this case, it shouldn’t be hard. MSB has dealers that will send you a demo unit. Lampi’s US distro (a member here) has something similar. And I’d bet OCD guy in GA has a Playback option to hear.
 
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Does anyone have experience with the pacific dacs builtin roon bridge feature?
 
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christoph

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Does anyone have experience with the pacific dacs builtin roon bridge feature?
I did some comparing and I preferred USB with FTA Callisto and then FTA Sinope over the Ethernet-in of the Pacific.
USB sounded more natural and organic to me, while the Ethernet-in was clearly leaner.
It's a matter of taste and system synergy but I prefer USB over Ethernet-in on the Pacific.
 
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U_J

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Well i was made an offer i couldn't refuse so I have a Fully loaded Pacific on the way. Cant wait..
I look forward to your full report of the Lampi vs the May ! I too own a May that I am extremely happy with it but as ever the upgrade bug is niggling away and the Lampi looks like it might be the best option for a future upgrade. I upsample using Roon I am not sure if this is the best way to go but it does make a difference to certain files
 
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Well I can say with 100% confidence that the Lampizator Pacific Dac is a Proper upgrade from the holo may dac+hqplayer . Right off the top ill list my initial thoughts.

Wow. Holy Sh1t

Pacific dac running native without hqplayer oversampling

Bass is Stronger, Tighter more defined more texture
More texture throughout the audio band
Density! Midrange Bloom is so additives
The texture and tone of instrument is the best ive herd , i can hear the artist blowing into the saxophone (Embouchure)
instead of just "saxophone sound" strings i can hear them i can visualize them being plucked in the air. Piano has such weight , decay is amazing.
Holographic , the Music is in the Room , the speakers are gone. There is air around everything.

Horizon will be here in 3 months.

aurender n20 and grimm mu1 inbound for testing.
 
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christoph

Well-Known Member
Dec 11, 2015
4,660
4,058
825
Principality of Liechtenstein
Well I can say with 100% confidence that the Lampizator Pacific Dac is a Proper upgrade from the holo may dac+hqplayer . Right off the top ill list my initial thoughts.

Wow. Holy Sh1t

Pacific dac running native without hqplayer oversampling

Bass is Stronger, Tighter more defined more texture
More texture throughout the audio band
Density! Midrange Bloom is so additives
The texture and tone of instrument is the best ive herd , i can hear the artist blowing into the saxophone (Embouchure)
instead of just "saxophone sound" strings i can hear them i can visualize them being plucked in the air.
Holographic , the Music is in the Room , the speakers are gone. There is air around everything.

Horizon will be here in 3 months.

aurender n20 and grimm mu1 inbound for testing.
Congrats on the Pacific. The Lampi sound is REALLY magical :cool:
What tubes are you using in your Pacific?
 

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