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 agree: if the XDMI analog card sounds better than XDMI to Horizon 360 (or some other SOTA DAC), it’s a game changer. That to me is the clincher.

In a way, it’s a return to what some companies have designed their products for a long time. Naim has always integrated their DACs into their streamers, from budget models to their top of the line ND555. In fact, while Naim did not go through the heroic step of a battery powered system, their 555 has a massive two-box auxiliary power system (555PS) whose combined cost exceeds the streamer. In other words, their argument has always been it’s the power supply that matters, not the DAC conversion.

Eliminating the vagaries introduced by connecting cables and clocking issues, and giving the DAC board the purest power supply and the lowest latency and jitter you can manage might be the secret sauce to the Olympus design.

I'll take an O with a Nait1 circa@82 over dbl, six pack, cd555 or ns555.

 

Ordered IO.. Something in black please...

 

Ordered IO.. Something in black please...

reading your post brings up something else to consider in the thread Nenon started on comparison testing as IMO the O/IO combo adds even more to the paradigm. As a result I still feel these comparisons do add data points but there will never be an identical room with identical gear and the same pair of ears in the sweet spot

 

Happy new year to you all!! Here’s to wishing 2025 to be the most exciting yet for all things Taiko!! Incredible we are approaching 6 years since @CKKeung ‘s inaugural post unveiling the Extreme. Feels as exciting now as it was then.

 

"As a result I still feel these comparisons do add data points but there will never be an identical room with identical gear and the same pair of ears in the sweet spot,"

Steve
Happy New Year...
if you do the a/b in your own room?
You may have the ability to line up 50 folks outside your room. Put em in the (sweet spot), doing individual a/b comparisons.. all it'll take is 5 minutes a piece if you have the kit in place..
Better is better no matter which way it leans.. love to hear those data points
Booze and food will keep #50 busy..

 

"As a result I still feel these comparisons do add data points but there will never be an identical room with identical gear and the same pair of ears in the sweet spot,"

Steve
Happy New Year...
if you do the a/b in your own room?
You may have the ability to line up 50 folks outside your room. Put em in the (sweet spot), doing individual a/b comparisons.. all it'll take is 5 minutes a piece if you have the kit in place..
Better is better no matter which way it leans.. love to hear those data points
Booze and food will keep #50 busy..

I hope you can make it .....the last one I did was truly a lot of fun. Im sure a weekend with Emile will be all of the above. I'm anxious to hear the feedback from the MSB users with their daughter board and to see what they think of XDMI vs the analogue board. Im still betting that they will prefer the new pro ISL card with native XDMI but again it's all good. I think the best place for comparison would be in Oldenzaahl where IIRC Emile has one room with different speaker possibilities as well as different. preamps and DACs. Therein would be IMO the best place to do the best A-B tests . We should have a traveling Taiko club and all meet in these different places to enjoy one another's company and learn from everyone's experiences. But Oldenzaahl is our North Pole where all the elves are busy doing their magic

 

I'm anxious to hear the feedback from the MSB users with their daughter board and to see what they think of XDMI vs the analogue board.

...early feedback: the MSB daughterboard workflow is excellent.

Do I prefer it to the Taiko dac? I do, but I would like more time for "burn-in" of my board, and my ears. It's different. It's very different. Very detailed. Good flow. Fast. Very detailed and airy.

Honestly, WBF brothers, I am wondering if it is the best match for my Magicos (A5s). The sound profile is very different. I was already pondering this evolutionary development with the analog card implementation.

My network and system is very "clean" and incisive. Is the bride stripped bare? Another week or two may be needed to re-visit the sonic signature. Or perhaps speaker repositioning/adjustment? I'll be interested to read what MSB honchos report on Magicos and other speakers/systems.

 

...I did run-in the analog card for a good while, but the MSB board is only a few days of 24/7 Roon Radio. But I do understand your guidance and the caveat. Thank you. Cheers.

 

"As a result I still feel these comparisons do add data points but there will never be an identical room with identical gear and the same pair of ears in the sweet spot,"

Steve
Happy New Year...
if you do the a/b in your own room?
You may have the ability to line up 50 folks outside your room. Put em in the (sweet spot), doing individual a/b comparisons.. all it'll take is 5 minutes a piece if you have the kit in place..
Better is better no matter which way it leans.. love to hear those data points
Booze and food will keep #50 busy..

No booze until *after* the listening! Just as an incentive, of course!

Steve Z

 

I hope you can make it .....the last one I did was truly a lot of fun. Im sure a weekend with Emile will be all of the above. I'm anxious to hear the feedback from the MSB users with their daughter board and to see what they think of XDMI vs the analogue board. Im still betting that they will prefer the new pro ISL card with native XDMI but again it's all good. I think the best place for comparison would be in Oldenzaahl where IIRC Emile has one room with different speaker possibilities as well as different. preamps and DACs. Therein would be IMO the best place to do the best A-B tests . We should have a traveling Taiko club and all meet in these different places to enjoy one another's company and learn from everyone's experiences. But Oldenzaahl is our North Pole where all the elves are busy doing their magic

I like it! Let Emile buy the booze. . .

Steve Z

 

I must say, while my order was placed on December 30, 2023… (no current expected time of delivery still at this point, which is honestly quite painful given the substantial deposit that i sure could have used the cash and earned some interest. yes, over 12 months at this point)….

but that’s all fine, that said am surprised that there really aren’t any comparisons between XDMI analog out versus XDMI digital out to either Lampizator or MSB. There have been dozens of Olympus in the wild for months now. I imagine Lampizator concerned about the Olympus DAC and Taiko treading lightly. But all that said, step forward and share your observations. let our ears be the arbiter. that is what this forum is all about

 

...my order (Olympus) was mid-December @ctydwn so hopefully, your card will be shortly along. My Olympus arrived early December. The MSB card arrived this Monday. Yes, the wait was long...

 

I must say, while my order was placed on December 30, 2023… (no current expected time of delivery still at this point, which is honestly quite painful given the substantial deposit that i sure could have used the cash and earned some interest. yes, over 12 months at this point)….

but that’s all fine, that said am surprised that there really aren’t any comparisons between XDMI analog out versus XDMI digital out to either Lampizator or MSB. There have been dozens of Olympus in the wild for months now. I imagine Lampizator concerned about the Olympus DAC and Taiko treading lightly. But all that said, step forward and share your observations. let our ears be the arbiter. that is what this forum is all about

I agree with the annoyance at no real info on delivery. My units were last mentioned on November 20 as "Followed by:". Haven't heard anything since in the ensuing 6 weeks. That silver anodizing must be a huge problem.

 

Last completed server = #65

There are a few gaps due to missing I/Os (which we did actually finally receive this morning).

The anodising queue has grown to around 50 chassis divided over 2 anodisers, but they’re closing today so those won’t arrive this year.

There’s no “cheating” going on.

There’s no further update to the above as everything is closed till next week.

 

...early feedback: the MSB daughterboard workflow is excellent.

Do I prefer it to the Taiko dac? I do, but I would like more time for "burn-in" of my board, and my ears. It's different. It's very different. Very detailed. Good flow. Fast. Very detailed and airy.

Honestly, WBF brothers, I am wondering if it is the best match for my Magicos (A5s). The sound profile is very different. I was already pondering this evolutionary development with the analog card implementation.

My network and system is very "clean" and incisive. Is the bride stripped bare? Another week or two may be needed to re-visit the sonic signature. Or perhaps speaker repositioning/adjustment? I'll be interested to read what MSB honchos report on Magicos and other speakers/systems.

IIRC you have the DC distributor right? Which filters do you use?

 

...looks like "default" is in use, Emile. Since day 1.

 

I hope @Taiko Audio could experiment by daisy-chaining at least 2 DAC chips - using my coming Olympus as a guinea pig.

Done and discarded, nothing works as expected in an environment where even nV or fA increases in noise are very audible.

 

...looks like "default" is in use, Emile. Since day 1.

Try ALT2 perhaps?

 

...I plugged in "Default" based on someone's guidance at the time, and left it alone. That was great at that time.

Having never used Roon before, I had no relationship to the DDC manual guidance re: Roon vs. XDMS and filter selection.

But, I moved the DDC output cable to Alt2, per above. I am not sure how much this workflow has to "burn-in" since it was never used, but I would say initially, this would be a better sonic choice in this system.

Emile, I appreciate you mentioning the filter choices. In this system, the Alt2 option provides a bit more sonic meat. I do not find any loss of detail or speed/pace. But the sound is not so sharp or hygienic in nature.

I should still probably putter around with the speaker toe-in, which is minimal here, to see what's up, but I will let things settle for another week or so. Multiple changes usually end up being confusing to sort out.

It will be interesting to hear about other MSB users and their options and opinions.

Thanks again, Emile. Happy New Year and Happy Listening to all.

 

Done and discarded, nothing works as expected in an environment where even nV or fA increases in noise are very audible.

I find this very interesting that folks are able to hear minuscule changes in a server, despite the fact that the downstream electronics is a tubed Horizon 360 driving tubed amplifiers (which are inherently quite noisy). Perhaps there is a lot more to understand about how computer noise in servers affects the transmission of digital information. Theoretically speaking, and putting my academic hat on, the sole virtue of digital data transmission is that it is inherently robust to the physical media over which it transmits (hence, my English text can be safely transmitted from the Bay Area to every corner of the world tens of thousands of miles away, in an error-free manner). But, perhaps in the conversion to analog, there are subtle effects that are difficult to model theoretically.