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".

 

The latest on this:

We’ll receive our airfreight safety certificate in 2 weeks.

We’ve been working hard on our production output, we were initially at a 6 chassis a week capacity, meaning we machined 12 since the Munich show.

This week we’re going to manage 10 thanks to several efficiency adjustments. We have new tooling and waste management, and we are going to run 3 shifts (24/7) as of next week, increasing output to 20 a week.

So if no further hiccups we can start shipping in 2 weeks and maintain a pace of 20 a week. That means everybody who ordered an Olympus should receive it before the end of August.

This is an all hands on deck maximum 24/7 effort we can only do for a limited amount of time, so we’ll take a small break after that, orders placed now will therefore start shipping halfway of September.

Dear Emile, thanks for the update! When can you share with us the price for each HD storage capacity? Cheers.

 

We use Lithium Titanate Oxide batteries, these are mainly used in applications requiring high levels of safety like public transportation or environmental challenging environments as they are larger and more costly then other battery types.

@Taiko Audio: Emile, curious why you chose lithium battery. A solo manufacturer who has deep experience in battery told me the following: some years ago, the US Army tested all the battery chemistries to determine which were the fastest for use in radios; all the lithiums tested near the bottom of the list for speed; but lithium's have by far the best energy density; the fastest was carbon zinc, the oldest of all the chemistries, but CaZn also has the worst energy density. His conclusion from his experiments is that SQ directly related to battery speed.

 

Dear Emile, thanks for the update! When can you share with us the price for each HD storage capacity? Cheers.

@tsaett has pricing, he’ll publish them asap.

 

@Taiko Audio: Emile, curious why you chose lithium battery. A solo manufacturer who has deep experience in battery told me the following: some years ago, the US Army tested all the battery chemistries to determine which were the fastest for use in radios; all the lithiums tested near the bottom of the list for speed; but lithium's have by far the best energy density; the fastest was carbon zinc, the oldest of all the chemistries, but CaZn also has the worst energy density. His conclusion from his experiments is that SQ directly related to battery speed.

Because they “sound” magical, they’re safe, have a very low output impedance, aka can supply high currents at very low noise levels, you can recharge them and they’ll last for decades

 

Because they “sound” magical

SQ, like beauty, is the ears of the listener. Sure, you arrived at your conclusion after comparison of different kinds of battery. Thanks

 

Yes, but did not listen to CaZn as those are unsuitable for our application. I’m aware they’re preferred for “vintage tone”.

I can tell you that manufacturer is not onto "vintage tone" at all. Like you, his goal is to achieve the "purest" sound quality with minimum jitters (which involves the use of 16x daisy chain of a Philip DAC chip, "direct coupling" of i2s signals, the use of ultra-thin ribbon (200 microinch for ICs) cables with proprietary absolute phase treatment and practically no shielding and insulation, and the use of carbon zinc batteries for all his components; completely off the grid). He does not care about commercial viability. I could PC you about details if you provide it.

 

I can tell you that manufacturer is not onto "vintage tone" at all. Like you, his goal is to achieve the "purest" sound quality with minimum jitters (which involves the use of 16x daisy chain of a Philip DAC chip and use of ultra-thin ribbon (200 microinch for ICs) cables with proprietary absolute phase treatment and practically no shielding). He does not care about commercial viability. I could PC you about details if you provide it.

I appreciate the input but these batteries are simply unusable for our specific application, I combined my replies into post #1944 detailing why.

 

I’ve learned never try to outsmart the creator

 

I’ve learned never try to outsmart the creator

In scientific work you always do that.
You always try to outsmart the others who Published before you.
To do that you have to have results that proof your point.
Emile is doing it every day I belive.
He is not trusting himself from yesterday hunting for a new discovery.
Thats how the progress is made.

You also need to learn from the others.
I will repeat what I posted sometime ago.
My father always told me
„Son , remember that even the stupidest person on This planet knows something you dont know , so listen carefully to everyone”

 

„Son , remember that even the stupidest person on This planet knows something you dont know , so listen carefully to everyone”

I might then learn a lot from the many audiophiles on this forum

 

In scientific work you always do that.
You always try to outsmart the others who Published before you.
To do that you have to have results that proof your point.
Emile is doing it every day I belive.
He is not trusting himself from yesterday hunting for a new discovery.
Thats how the progress is made.

You also need to learn from the others.
I will repeat what I posted sometime ago.
My father always told me
„Son , remember that even the stupidest person on This planet knows something you dont know , so listen carefully to everyone”

I think you missed my point but it’s all good

 

I might then learn a lot from the many audiophiles on this forum

Clearly, you have nothing more to learn…

 

Olympus Update

At Taiko we have been busy with producing the first servers and can't wait for the first client feedback!

To finalize your order, we need your input. For that we'll send out an E-mail to each individual client today.
In that you'll find a link to our Olympus specification form, where you can choose things like desired storage size, XDMI daughter cards, or what board should be pre-mounted when shipped.

You'll also find a unique number, representing your spot on our order list. With that you can check the progress via a dedicated link, also specified in that E-mail. That way you can roughly estimate your ETA, since we are updating the progress on a weekly basis (fridays), starting after the first batch has left the building.

We also have news on storage and XDMI pricing, that we want to share:

Storage options

We offer the following storage options:
• no storage (-350€ discount)
• 3,84 TB (+0€)
• 7,68 TB (+1000€)
• 15,4 TB (+1800€)
• 30,72 TB (+3600€)
• 61,44 TB (+8000€)

Please note, that choosing no storage has a slight edge on ultimate sound quality, if used with a Taiko Router/Switch/DCD. That is true for both streaming, as well as playing from a NAS.

XDMI output options

With every XDMI purchase - during the introductory phase - you get one analog output and one digital output (that is offered by Taiko) for free.
If you would like to get more daughter cards, here is the individual pricing:

• analog out (RCA, 1.500€)
• digital out (AES/EBU & RCA, 900€)
• Lampizator out / Taiko Link, 900€)
• MSB out (ProISL, ships at a later date, 900€)

The Aries Cerat interface will be sold through AC directly when available, that's why it is missing on the above list.
USB will be an output option with every Olympus (although we doubt it will get much playtime!)

All that is easily configurable through the mentioned form.

Should anyone who preordered either an Olympus or Olympus I/O not have gotten an email from Taiko by EOD, please reach out to support@taikoaudio.com

The XDMI introductory discount of 5.000€ will end when the first batch has left the door, we want to thank our early adopters for your trust in us!

While it has been a long and windy road, we are extremely proud of how the Olympus turned out. Be prepared for something extraordinary!

Chris

 

Olympus Update

At Taiko we have been busy with producing the first servers and can't wait for the first client feedback!

To finalize your order, we need your input. For that we'll send out an E-mail to each individual client today.
In that you'll find a link to our Olympus specification form, where you can choose things like desired storage size, XDMI daughter cards, or what board should be pre-mounted when shipped.

You'll also find a unique number, representing your spot on our order list. With that you can check the progress via a dedicated link, also specified in that E-mail. That way you can roughly estimate your ETA, since we are updating the progress on a weekly basis (fridays), starting after the first batch has left the building.

We also have news on storage and XDMI pricing, that we want to share:

Storage options

We offer the following storage options:
• no storage (-350€ discount)
• 3,84 TB (+0€)
• 7,68 TB (+1000€)
• 15,4 TB (+1800€)
• 30,72 TB (+3600€)
• 61,44 TB (+8000€)

Please note, that choosing no storage has a slight edge on ultimate sound quality, if used with a Taiko Router/Switch/DCD. That is true for both streaming, as well as playing from a NAS.

XDMI output options

With every XDMI purchase - during the introductory phase - you get one analog output and one digital output (that is offered by Taiko) for free.
If you would like to get more daughter cards, here is the individual pricing:

• analog out (RCA, 1.500€)
• digital out (AES/EBU & RCA, 900€)
• Lampizator out / Taiko Link, 900€)
• MSB out (ProISL, ships at a later date, 900€)

The Aries Cerat interface will be sold through AC directly when available, that's why it is missing on the above list.
USB will be an output option with every Olympus (although we doubt it will get much playtime!)

All that is easily configurable through the mentioned form.

Should anyone who preordered either an Olympus or Olympus I/O not have gotten an email from Taiko by EOD, please reach out to support@taikoaudio.com

The XDMI introductory discount of 5.000€ will end when the first batch has left the door, we want to thank our early adopters for your trust in us!

While it has been a long and windy road, we are extremely proud of how the Olympus turned out. Be prepared for something extraordinary!

Chris

What a welcome post! Thank you! A quick question: How difficult is it to add/remove the onboard storage? This will help me decide whether to order the Olympus with or without it.

 

Olympus Update

At Taiko we have been busy with producing the first servers and can't wait for the first client feedback!

To finalize your order, we need your input. For that we'll send out an E-mail to each individual client today.
In that you'll find a link to our Olympus specification form, where you can choose things like desired storage size, XDMI daughter cards, or what board should be pre-mounted when shipped.

You'll also find a unique number, representing your spot on our order list. With that you can check the progress via a dedicated link, also specified in that E-mail. That way you can roughly estimate your ETA, since we are updating the progress on a weekly basis (fridays), starting after the first batch has left the building.

We also have news on storage and XDMI pricing, that we want to share:

Storage options

We offer the following storage options:
• no storage (-350€ discount)
• 3,84 TB (+0€)
• 7,68 TB (+1000€)
• 15,4 TB (+1800€)
• 30,72 TB (+3600€)
• 61,44 TB (+8000€)

Please note, that choosing no storage has a slight edge on ultimate sound quality, if used with a Taiko Router/Switch/DCD. That is true for both streaming, as well as playing from a NAS.

XDMI output options

With every XDMI purchase - during the introductory phase - you get one analog output and one digital output (that is offered by Taiko) for free.
If you would like to get more daughter cards, here is the individual pricing:

• analog out (RCA, 1.500€)
• digital out (AES/EBU & RCA, 900€)
• Lampizator out / Taiko Link, 900€)
• MSB out (ProISL, ships at a later date, 900€)

The Aries Cerat interface will be sold through AC directly when available, that's why it is missing on the above list.
USB will be an output option with every Olympus (although we doubt it will get much playtime!)

All that is easily configurable through the mentioned form.

Should anyone who preordered either an Olympus or Olympus I/O not have gotten an email from Taiko by EOD, please reach out to support@taikoaudio.com

The XDMI introductory discount of 5.000€ will end when the first batch has left the door, we want to thank our early adopters for your trust in us!

While it has been a long and windy road, we are extremely proud of how the Olympus turned out. Be prepared for something extraordinary!

Chris

I just received the email. Very exciting!

 

Olympus Update

At Taiko we have been busy with producing the first servers and can't wait for the first client feedback!

To finalize your order, we need your input. For that we'll send out an E-mail to each individual client today.
In that you'll find a link to our Olympus specification form, where you can choose things like desired storage size, XDMI daughter cards, or what board should be pre-mounted when shipped.

You'll also find a unique number, representing your spot on our order list. With that you can check the progress via a dedicated link, also specified in that E-mail. That way you can roughly estimate your ETA, since we are updating the progress on a weekly basis (fridays), starting after the first batch has left the building.

We also have news on storage and XDMI pricing, that we want to share:

Storage options

We offer the following storage options:
• no storage (-350€ discount)
• 3,84 TB (+0€)
• 7,68 TB (+1000€)
• 15,4 TB (+1800€)
• 30,72 TB (+3600€)
• 61,44 TB (+8000€)

Please note, that choosing no storage has a slight edge on ultimate sound quality, if used with a Taiko Router/Switch/DCD. That is true for both streaming, as well as playing from a NAS.

XDMI output options

With every XDMI purchase - during the introductory phase - you get one analog output and one digital output (that is offered by Taiko) for free.
If you would like to get more daughter cards, here is the individual pricing:

• analog out (RCA, 1.500€)
• digital out (AES/EBU & RCA, 900€)
• Lampizator out / Taiko Link, 900€)
• MSB out (ProISL, ships at a later date, 900€)

The Aries Cerat interface will be sold through AC directly when available, that's why it is missing on the above list.
USB will be an output option with every Olympus (although we doubt it will get much playtime!)

All that is easily configurable through the mentioned form.

Should anyone who preordered either an Olympus or Olympus I/O not have gotten an email from Taiko by EOD, please reach out to support@taikoaudio.com

The XDMI introductory discount of 5.000€ will end when the first batch has left the door, we want to thank our early adopters for your trust in us!

While it has been a long and windy road, we are extremely proud of how the Olympus turned out. Be prepared for something extraordinary!

Chris

Hi Cris.
I'm looking at the prices of the Olympus Server on the Taiko website, and I see a price for Olympus Server XDMI + USB (€60,400), I suppose that price is keeping the USB card in the Olympus. It is mandatory to keep the USB card or it can be returned to Taiko saving €1,600, out of €60,400.

 

@Taiko Audio What is the SQ delta between using an Extreme NVMe storage device in an Olympus server vs a battery-powered U.2/U.3 storage device? I just hate to see wasting large amounts of storage space unused if the SQ delta is minimum.

 

What a welcome post! Thank you! A quick question: How difficult is it to add/remove the onboard storage? This will help me decide whether to order the Olympus with or without it.

Very easy!

 

Hi Cris.
I'm looking at the prices of the Olympus Server on the Taiko website, and I see a price for Olympus Server XDMI + USB (€60,400), I suppose that price is keeping the USB card in the Olympus. It is mandatory to keep the USB card or it can be returned to Taiko saving €1,600, out of €60,400.

Emile will post some details tomorrow regarding your question.

 

@Taiko Audio What is the SQ delta between using an Extreme NVMe storage device in an Olympus server vs a battery-powered U.2/U.3 storage device? I just hate to see wasting large amounts of storage space unused if the SQ delta is minimum.

Also something Emile will refer to tomorrow!