Fortunately the Taiko Extreme, this beautifully engineered piece of hardware, helps us seeing that these "deeper issues" do not affect our perception and enjoyment of current digital HiRez in many SOTA existing recordings.
Taiko Audio SGM Extreme : the Crème de la Crème
- Thread starter CKKeung
- Start date
Fortunately the Taiko Extreme, this beautifully engineered piece of hardware, helps us seeing that these "deeper issues" do not affect our perception and enjoyment of current digital HiRez in many SOTA existing recordings.
Can any of XDMS alpha testers share the Discord invite link? I haven’t been on there yet and wanted to share some feedback on the latest app update.
Also, are any of you having any issues connecting to the streaming services today? Mine just comes up as: No data found Make sure you’re connected, but no issue connecting or playing from my local library.
Also, are any of you having any issues connecting to the streaming services today? Mine just comes up as: No data found Make sure you’re connected, but no issue connecting or playing from my local library.
The Qobuz aggregator, which affects all three of the streaming services, has been down for the last few hours.
I think if you email support@taikoaudio.com they will set you up with the Discord invite.
I connected the new Shunyata ALTAIRA grounding hub to the Extreme and here are the initial findings.
I was skeptical, but I trust Shunyata's claims and relative to the cost of my system, the cost of the ALTAIRA is low.
In short, if you already have an Everest or Denali, consider the ALTAIRA a must buy. The ~$4K cost (including ground cables) is about that of a high end power cable/interconnect, and should be considered better value.
Omega ground cable connected to Extreme:
I am using the Signal Hub. The difference between the Signal and Chassis Hubs is simply due to whether or not you plan to segregate components (e.g., analog vs digital) or not. If you plan to connect analog and digital components to the Hub, get the Chassis. If you plan to connect only analog or digital to one hub, get one or more Signal Hubs. Shunyata's terminology is a bit confusing, since it has nothing to do with how you ground the components. In my case I only have the Extreme connected to a single hub, so I got the Signal. I also have another Signal Hub for the Nagra HD DAC X and the DarTZeel 18NS preamp power-supply.
Initial listening impressions (this is at initial power-up; keep in mind the break-in time is 150-200 hours):
It was not an immediate 'hit you over the head' change, but with careful listening it was obvious that there is a lot more detail, authority, "energy", and presence, especially in the upper midrange and high frequencies.
Keep in mind that I have a highly revealing system. The field coil RCA 1443 midrange, with its mammoth 50 lb. weight and ~6" voice coil is often called one of the best midranges in the world and the Fostex t500aMkII super-tweeter, with its large Alnico voice-coil, is also highly revealing. Both are horn-loaded and highly efficient (>100dB), and fed by a Nagra HD DAC X and DarTZeel amplification -- so if the detail is on the recording, there's a very good chance it will be heard... or so I thought.
• Listening to Dexter Gordon Montmartre 1964 (2XHD), Manha de Carnival, I had never noticed the cymbals before. They are easily heard now.
• Localization has improved, but not to the point of being hyper-localized, which can take away from the suspension of disbelief that you are at a live event. Sound of Movies (Budafok Dohnanyi Orchestra), which was lacking a bit in terms of localization compared to other orchestral recordings, now sounds more convincing.
• Dave Brubeck Newport 1958 (Remastered) - improve clarity and localization is very apparent.
• Norah Jones Nightingale - I had never noticed the subtle high hats before, and I listen to this album a lot!
• Bach Cello Suites - more precise localization of the box moving across the cello strings. You can basically 'see' the bow moving across the strings now. XDMS made a big improvement here, the ALTAIRA furthers it.
Finally, I was already using a ground wire before, Duelund 16GA stranded tinned copper in cotton, which was connected to the Denali's grounding post. So I already had some grounding in place.
Also, keep in mind that my home has pretty good incoming AC already. When I had a PS Audio P20, incoming THD was about 3-3.5% and voltage was 121V (dropping to 119-120 when components were on). The transformer on the street is new and the home is 8 years old, so the grounding is probably also quite good. Older homes will probably benefit from the Everest/Denali + ALTAIRA solution even more.
The point is that it’s very interesting to hear that the Extreme can benefit from this new Shunyata grounding solution.
I was skeptical, but I trust Shunyata's claims and relative to the cost of my system, the cost of the ALTAIRA is low.
In short, if you already have an Everest or Denali, consider the ALTAIRA a must buy. The ~$4K cost (including ground cables) is about that of a high end power cable/interconnect, and should be considered better value.
Omega ground cable connected to Extreme:
I am using the Signal Hub. The difference between the Signal and Chassis Hubs is simply due to whether or not you plan to segregate components (e.g., analog vs digital) or not. If you plan to connect analog and digital components to the Hub, get the Chassis. If you plan to connect only analog or digital to one hub, get one or more Signal Hubs. Shunyata's terminology is a bit confusing, since it has nothing to do with how you ground the components. In my case I only have the Extreme connected to a single hub, so I got the Signal. I also have another Signal Hub for the Nagra HD DAC X and the DarTZeel 18NS preamp power-supply.
Initial listening impressions (this is at initial power-up; keep in mind the break-in time is 150-200 hours):
It was not an immediate 'hit you over the head' change, but with careful listening it was obvious that there is a lot more detail, authority, "energy", and presence, especially in the upper midrange and high frequencies.
Keep in mind that I have a highly revealing system. The field coil RCA 1443 midrange, with its mammoth 50 lb. weight and ~6" voice coil is often called one of the best midranges in the world and the Fostex t500aMkII super-tweeter, with its large Alnico voice-coil, is also highly revealing. Both are horn-loaded and highly efficient (>100dB), and fed by a Nagra HD DAC X and DarTZeel amplification -- so if the detail is on the recording, there's a very good chance it will be heard... or so I thought.
• Listening to Dexter Gordon Montmartre 1964 (2XHD), Manha de Carnival, I had never noticed the cymbals before. They are easily heard now.
• Localization has improved, but not to the point of being hyper-localized, which can take away from the suspension of disbelief that you are at a live event. Sound of Movies (Budafok Dohnanyi Orchestra), which was lacking a bit in terms of localization compared to other orchestral recordings, now sounds more convincing.
• Dave Brubeck Newport 1958 (Remastered) - improve clarity and localization is very apparent.
• Norah Jones Nightingale - I had never noticed the subtle high hats before, and I listen to this album a lot!
• Bach Cello Suites - more precise localization of the box moving across the cello strings. You can basically 'see' the bow moving across the strings now. XDMS made a big improvement here, the ALTAIRA furthers it.
Finally, I was already using a ground wire before, Duelund 16GA stranded tinned copper in cotton, which was connected to the Denali's grounding post. So I already had some grounding in place.
Also, keep in mind that my home has pretty good incoming AC already. When I had a PS Audio P20, incoming THD was about 3-3.5% and voltage was 121V (dropping to 119-120 when components were on). The transformer on the street is new and the home is 8 years old, so the grounding is probably also quite good. Older homes will probably benefit from the Everest/Denali + ALTAIRA solution even more.
The point is that it’s very interesting to hear that the Extreme can benefit from this new Shunyata grounding solution.
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I updated my Roon Core today with the latest release and I can no longer find my Core using the Roon app. I soft reset 3 times and also hard reset Extreme with no joy. There are no problems with my network so I can only assume that the Roon update has corrupted things somehow. So, firstly, a warning to anyone else who may be thinking of applying the latest Roon update to maybe hold on a bit and see whether I am an isolated incidence or whether there are wider issues. Secondly, does anyone have any bright ideas? I’m guessing it may need a new installation of Roon.
Thank you for sharing! I‘ll be happy to get similar results once my Altairas get delivered.
The little demo at my dealer with a dCS Rossini was quite impressive. This and a tube integrated got hooked up to one/two Altairas and my comment was this system now sounds not like a 40k anymore but more like a 80-100k system. So any effect similar to this in an already magnificent system including an Extreme with XDMS should really sound quite extraordinary!
If the Roon installation got corrupted, then you may indeed need to reinstall Roon Server. Please note that you would need Roon Server, not regular Roon. On a networked PC or Mac, download the latest Windows RoonServer installer from the Roon website, drag the installer over to the Extreme music folder, connect to the Extreme via VNC, and run it on the Extreme. There is no need to uninstall anything. After updating you can delete the installer from the desktop and music folder.
Let us know via support@taikoaudio.com if you need help with this.
Thank you, yes I did. I have had occasional issues with Roon over the years, but haven’t had this one before. I have switched the Extreme off completely now and will restart later on but suspect that I shall need to follow Christiaan’s advice above.
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This problem has happened to me so often over the years I’ve had Roon (I have a lifetime subscription and I am a heavy Roon user). Ultimately I decided for my sanity to not constantly upgrade Roon. These “upgrades” are often not really needed. But we live in a world ruled by software upgrades. Our phones and watches get regular software updates (if you are in the Apple ecosystem). My Tesla gets software updates each week. So far, touchwood, no update of my Tesla software has rendered the car inoperable. I do worry about that. My car now has the “Full Self Driving (beta)” update. I don’t trust it with my life, though. Prefer to drive the old fashioned way. Just like I keep my CDs and vinyl around so I can listen to music if Roon dies on me.
@Christiaan Punter , can you add a „reinstall Roon“ menu option to the XDMS todo list?
Hi all, here are some updates on recent Audio Shows that featured the Taiko Audio Extreme music server. We're honored and proud to see our product being used so enthusiastically for so many shows.
Myhiend, Warsaw, Poland
Wilson Audio, Audio Research, dCS, Taiko Audio, Dan D'Agostino, Artesania, Thixar, Synergistic, KLH
Video:
Myhiend, Warsaw, Poland
Wilson Audio, Audio Research, dCS, Taiko Audio, Dan D'Agostino, Artesania, Thixar, Synergistic, KLH
Video:
Wilson Audio at the Audio Video Show 2022, Warsaw, Poland
Taiko Audio - Gryphon - Synergistic Research - Artesania Audio
Taiko Audio - Gryphon - Synergistic Research - Artesania Audio
Sound by Hari Padova, Italy. Gran gale della musica hifi fair.
Taiko Audio, Zellaton, FM Acoustics
Taiko Audio, Zellaton, FM Acoustics
I am attending a grounding-event Dec 14th at my dealer - even more interested now after your positive feedback. I will borrow a set of units and cables to try out at home after event.
Extreme already helps reduce system's noise floor - with improved grounding, noise floor will (I hope) be reduced a bit more -> more MUSIC emerges where there previously was (non audible) noise.
Altaira Signal- and Chassis products do differ on one point - their internal filters are tuned for 50/60 Hz (Chassis) and 'higher' (think digital sources, switch-noise) for Signal - both provide isolation between connected units' ground-planes to avoid inter-component ground noise leakage.
So - segmenting Analog (->Chassis) and Digital (->Signal) is my plan.
(Currently I have all my components connected to my Everest's chassis ground in a star-topology. This setup definitely improved my system's noise floor.)
Journey continues!
Tokyo International Audio Show 2022 (Japan)
Taiko Audio - DCS - Nagra - Avalon
Taiko Audio - DCS - Nagra - Avalon
Hiend Panda, TAS 2022 in Shanghai, China
ZELLATON/TAIKO AUDIO/VERMEER/NAGRA/CH PRECISION
ZELLATON/TAIKO AUDIO/VERMEER/NAGRA/CH PRECISION
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