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".

 

I know exactly what you meant. My reply from my sound room is that tape and Vinyl which used to be 95% is now under 10%. Streaming with O/IO via XDMI to my Horizon is so good and so easy that everything else is now in the rear mirror

My only issue with digital music is that there are so many albums that I like that don’t have good representation in the digital domain. Many of these are rock and jazz (I don’t listen to much classical). Many of my top 2-300 jazz albums have been reissued in the past decade on LP but not in digital. This points me to either tape or LP. Similar for rock. A lot of rock albums have been reissued but cut with digital files which isn’t my preference. But for anything that has been reissued in digital I am 100% satisfied with that.

 

My only issue with digital music is that there are so many albums that I like that don’t have good representation in the digital domain. Many of these are rock and jazz (I don’t listen to much classical). Many of my top 2-300 jazz albums have been reissued in the past decade on LP but not in digital. This points me to either tape or LP. Similar for rock. A lot of rock albums have been reissued but cut with digital files which isn’t my preference. But for anything that has been reissued in digital I am 100% satisfied with that.

Last night when Ray and Vassil were at my house Ray played a beautiful track streamed via the O/IO via XDMI digital card in to my Horizon. Vassil asked what the format was and Ray said 24/192. Vassil asked if he had it in 24/96 which he did and played. I asked after it played why he asked to compare the two formats and I was reminded that 29/96 sounds better on the Taiko analogue card ( I think I have that right) , but when he played it in 24/96 it sounded every bit as good to my ears and I commented again that I just no longer look at formats when I am streaming as they just all sound so good. Immediately after I reached to one of my shelves and brought down tightly wrapped package. I asked them if they knew what it was.....I replied "this is the Taiko XDMI analogue card still unused and in its original packaging. I smiled and said, "I'm a happy camper"

 

Last night when Ray and Vassil were at my house Ray played a beautiful track streamed via the O/IO via XDMI digital card in to my Horizon. Vassil asked what the format was and Ray said 24/192. Vassil asked if he had it in 24/96 which he did and played. I asked after it played why he asked to compare the two formats and I was reminded that 29/96 sounds better on the Taiko analogue card ( I think I have that right) , but when he played it in 24/96 it sounded every bit as good to my ears and I commented again that I just no longer look at formats when I am streaming as they just all sound so good. Immediately after I reached to one of my shelves and brought down tightly wrapped package. I asked them if they knew what it was.....I replied "this is the Taiko XDMI analogue card still unused and in its original packaging. I smiled and said, "I'm a happy camper"

You are correct regarding the sample rate...I think it was Ray who shared these preferred Roon settings..

 

You are correct regarding the sample rate...I think it was Ray who shared these preferred Roon settings..

my point was simple.....the format for me has become meaningless

 

What I'm finding more and more (after decades of collecting classical, often the same performance remastered multiple times), is the source of the particular format really matters. For instance, Bob Witrak at HDTT continues to do things that usually sound better than everything else. His sources are commercial tapes and more recently some vinyl rips with a very hi-end digital rig. Also, I find it impossible to generalize, but forced to assess every recording individually. I look forward to re-assessing when I get my Olympus, but I think @ray-dude did a marvelous job laying this and everything else out in his lengthy reviews on AS.

 

I agree...format really matters........and then along came the Olympus . I just don't find the need anymore , at least in my system using the Lampi XDMI digital card into the Horizon 360. Now I queue up a play list, push play and the rest is history. Now I spend most of my time listening.

 

Gents, I have to agree with the previous comments about the file format becoming irrelevant.

I've had the analog card running almost continuously (with the exception of the occasional Roon fallouts) since January, and then since the end of February when Stirling Trayle set up my system.

I can not believe, that even now, to this day, the Olympus-I/O with the XDMI analog card continues to improve and not by insignificant measures.

Don't know if it's the Taiko or the Roon updates, or both that are causing the improvements, but they leave me shaking my head every time I get a chance to listen.

The presentation is simply devoid of any distracting artifacts and allows a pure musical relaxed flow that invites complete musical immersion.

Hard to believe. What an accomplishment by the Taiko Team!

 

@cmarin: You reference Taiko "updates" in your post (in addition to Roon updates). What "Taiko updates" are you referring to?

 

@cmarin: You reference Taiko "updates" in your post (in addition to Roon updates). What "Taiko updates" are you referring to?

Hi always learning,

Sorry for the confusion I meant the updates to apply only to Roon.

 

Good morning
Can we expect an update via email fairly soon?
Mn

 

New Roon update just came in..reading the details seems like mostly ARC stuff that I have no interest in.
The funny thing was a few minutes before the update banner appeared Roon once again just stopped mid-track....
I haven't hit the update button yet as my system sounds real good

 

New Roon update just came in..reading the details seems like mostly ARC stuff that I have no interest in.
The funny thing was a few minutes before the update banner appeared Roon once again just stopped mid-track....
I haven't hit the update button yet as my system sounds real good

Last few sessions Roon playing Radio paradise and Qobuz has stopped.

 

Last few sessions Roon playing Radio paradise and Qobuz has stopped.

I’ve updated and loaded a large playlist, hoping to trigger the stop error. Unfortunately, it hasn’t occurred here anymore since a few updates ago.

If I cannot recreate, is there someone who is willing to note timestamps of occurrences and subsequently allow me into their system to check their logs?

 

Good morning
Can we expect an update via email fairly soon?
Mn

Yes, a quick update is on the way and a more detailed update coming up before the end of the week.

 

Gents, I have to agree with the previous comments about the file format becoming irrelevant.

I've had the analog card running almost continuously (with the exception of the occasional Roon fallouts) since January, and then since the end of February when Stirling Trayle set up my system.

I can not believe, that even now, to this day, the Olympus-I/O with the XDMI analog card continues to improve and not by insignificant measures.

Don't know if it's the Taiko or the Roon updates, or both that are causing the improvements, but they leave me shaking my head every time I get a chance to listen.

The presentation is simply devoid of any distracting artifacts and allows a pure musical relaxed flow that invites complete musical immersion.

Hard to believe. What an accomplishment by the Taiko Team!

“Off the record,” improvements can actually take place over several years. Of course, they’re not as pronounced or variable as during the first month or so, but they’re definitely there. My personal Extreme—also the very first one built—is now 7 years old, and it simply sounds better than more recently produced units.

If you’ve ever noticed a lot of older equipment being sold right after a recap, it’s often because people no longer recognize—or even like—how it sounds. This isn’t due to a poor restoration job, but because it takes a long time to fully burn in again.

 

If I cannot recreate, is there someone who is willing to note timestamps of occurrences and subsequently allow me into their system to check their logs?

Emile, refresher please: is this different/unrelated to the "lost control" message? I have had both the stop, and the lost control message at various times.

 

I get that error too.

 

I’ve updated and loaded a large playlist, hoping to trigger the stop error. Unfortunately, it hasn’t occurred here anymore since a few updates ago.

If I cannot recreate, is there someone who is willing to note timestamps of occurrences and subsequently allow me into their system to check their logs?

My stoppages occur from "shuffling" tracks, not a playlist. I haven't tried playing thru a long playlist. Also my shuffling does not include DSD resolutions. Also all tracks are from my NAS storage. Could these have something to do with stoppage I'm experiencing?

 

I always have a bunch of songs in my queue and play through it. During those times I get stoppages.

 

Emile, refresher please: is this different/unrelated to the "lost control" message?

The difference is in if you have to reboot / restart roon or if you can just hit play and it resumes playback. The actual messages Roon produces appear to vary.