Taiko Audio SGM Extreme : the Crème de la Crème
- Thread starter CKKeung
- Start date
I SHOULD have done that, but I was so excited, just to hear it. Ever since, about 5 hours I can't stop listening. I listened to one album all the way through and then listened to it again all the way through. I was afraid to listen to another album and that it would not sound as good. The album was Touch by YELLO. It was an experience.Bob, you need to do a USB unboxing and installation video!
$1600 Euros is the price from Taiko. I am selling them for $2Kusd in the US with shipping/import included.
Imho the best bang for the $$$ that any of us will spend this year.
Although TAS and the usb driver are hard to compete with , being that they were free
I am testing the Taiko USB card with a Chord DAVE which has a Amanero USB receiver
the SQ uplift is similarly jaw dropping as it was with XMOS DAC’s with the Taiko Driver
Dare I say ? It sounds like this USB card is a game changer in computer audio playback
Can your Extreme run 2 USB cards?
Earlier there was speculation that the USB card might have more effect for Amanero.
Is that not the case or too early to tell?
G
Touch is a wholly engineered album with one of the most spectacular, 3 dimensional, immersive soundstages (Soundscape). The musical and spacial elements play together to create a continuous firework display of music flying around all over the soundspace it creates. The clever use of 2 channels and phase manipulation makes it almost hypnotic and mind altering in places. As I remember, the bass is really gorgeous sounding....created to be musically pleasing, it more than hits the mark. You can feel the bass as it energises the space it plays in, including the listener. There is a seemingly endless depth, a kind of ethereal, eternal nature to the soundscape created. You can hear incredible depth and transparency, like looking into space with no atmosphere to hinder the clarity. The interplay between instruments is mesmerising and the PR&T will practically bounce you out of your seat. A few of the tracks you may label as being a little ‘commercial’ but then they just take off into beautifully musical, highly mesmerising, mindblowingly spacial musical artistry. When played at realistic levels, this album, and several other Yello albums allow an extremely well resolved system to provide incredible listener involvement. Background thoughts are obliterated and the music absolutely takes over, with no extraneous thoughts intruding. If you liked Touch, try
Stella - Yello
Electrified - Boris Blank
Mettavolution - Rodrigo y Gabriela
Convergence - Malia
Whole Lotta Love - 2 cellos
Essentially albums where the music and the studio engineering share the same pinnacle of creativity that ideally exhibit and demonstrate the full capabilities of super accurate, highly resolving, fully involving systems like the Taiko Extreme.
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Theoretically one could install a second USB card but we would not recommend it
the SQ Delta on Amanero is in the same ball park as XMOS, quite transformative
its been a longtime since I have heard a DAVE
the charming harmonic sound signature is still the same
After having the usb card playing for 12 hours of constant streaming (overnight) the resolution and transparency are VERY NOTICEABLE especially in the high frequencies, also in the midrange and down through the full spectrum to the lowest frequencies.
The soundstage is IMMENSE and each instrument is solidly placed on the soundstage and each string or stroke of each note on the piano jumps out at you as if the performers with their instruments are in the room. And I'm listening to a 70's rock album "America".
Three acoustic guitars are so clear from each other and you can hear different strings from each guitar SO clearly. It is also very cohesive and musical at the same time.
I agree with what Ed said above "Dare I say ? It sounds like this USB card is a game changer in computer audio playback". I can't say it any better than that.
I have to add that I am sitting here at 7:05am listening to an old rock album and I have goosebumps all over my arms.....enough said
The soundstage is IMMENSE and each instrument is solidly placed on the soundstage and each string or stroke of each note on the piano jumps out at you as if the performers with their instruments are in the room. And I'm listening to a 70's rock album "America".
Three acoustic guitars are so clear from each other and you can hear different strings from each guitar SO clearly. It is also very cohesive and musical at the same time.
I agree with what Ed said above "Dare I say ? It sounds like this USB card is a game changer in computer audio playback". I can't say it any better than that.
I have to add that I am sitting here at 7:05am listening to an old rock album and I have goosebumps all over my arms.....enough said
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My Pac just came back from Poland tour. Got the JL board updrade. Waiting for TAS + USB Board + USB Driver now. 2 weeks downtime but worth the wait.
"Broken record" sorry.
Last night I was a bit apprehensive to gush as much as I did. You never know if you are over-stating and exaggerating although I think I said plenty.
Today - if I was playing poker and had every dollar that I owned sitting in front of me, I would push it ALL into the center of the table/pot and say "ALL IN". You all are not going to believe it until you hear it.
Last night I was a bit apprehensive to gush as much as I did. You never know if you are over-stating and exaggerating although I think I said plenty.
Today - if I was playing poker and had every dollar that I owned sitting in front of me, I would push it ALL into the center of the table/pot and say "ALL IN". You all are not going to believe it until you hear it.
It will be interesting when someone experiments with it. For me I'm only using a Signature Gold Ethernet cable from a splitter into the Extreme usb card. The splitter is connected to a 50' long run of cheap copper cable to my Verizon Fios Router. The router has an Aurender on it, along with all of my wi-fi and a few other connections.
Coming from the splitter I do have two M12s/LPS feeding the Aurender, which the switches provide a big uptick in SQ for the N20 Aurender.
I have no further desire to experiment with it.
