One method, which @Rhapsody suggested, is to "delete" the TAS app from you device and then re-open in Test Flight. Knock on wood, but it's been stable for me since then.
Taiko Audio SGM Extreme : the Crème de la Crème
- Thread starter CKKeung
- Start date
Release the beast! I’ll sign an agreement saying I can’t ask for support until the official rollout! 
It's in music folder that I don't see everything. They are all tracks in the same folder, so the folder name is common to the tracks that appear and those that don't.
Perhaps there are characters in the track titles? I'll have to check.
Ludwig says: just navigate to the music folder, and add the folder to the queue. Go to the queue, and hit play. You'll notice that files with special chars will not display by metadata, but by file name.
Ludwig again: OK that's not good. I am writing this down and will give Ed a piece of my mind.
Ludwig again: OK that's not good. I am writing this down and will give Ed a piece of my mind.
great to hear from you Ludwig, old buddy. anything new?
i found the problem is that the symphonies/tracks that are missing all share, in the track titles, an 'e' with an 'accent aigu'
i hear that Ed is on top of this one already as software project manager and whip holder.
Christiaan Punter
Well-Known Member
Christiaan Punter
Well-Known Member
The day before yesterday, a demo Taiko Extreme unit was delivered to HFA Quarters, which was a very exciting moment! After lifting it on top of an Artesania Exoteryc rack, directly on top of the Carbon Fiber linear arms (something I will still experiment with), starting off with Roon and the CH C1 DAC, I extensively compared the server with two friends and we are all impressed. It started out great even cold from its shipping crate but got better and better with every hour that passed. As the unit warmed up/bedded in, the soundstage grew and its emotion-inducing quality increased.
The first thing that struck me is how fluid, organic, and deeply imaging the USB connection sounds (using a Final Touch Audio Sinope USB cable). Normally, in my setup and with all servers/renderers so far, the USB connection sounds more stilted, flat, and mechanical than AES/EBU, but now, both with the C1 and the Formula xHD, it’s the other way around!
Yesterday, I was joined for my first extended listening session by two friends who were eager to hear the server for themselves. We all use the Grimm MU1. The two friends were skeptical at first but the longer they listened (and the server improved), the more I could tell that they were cast under the Extreme’s spell.
The Extreme manages to be revealing and detailed but also deliciously liquid, extremely refined and subtle yet firmly planted and dynamic without limits, and above all continuous, truly stepless, in its portrayal of dynamic contrasts. It also has impressive distinctiveness for the 3D aspect, body, and location of all the individual elements within the sound image, which by the way is a huge bubble, both in width and height and especially in the depth plane. The Extreme is transparent and neutral (not at all colored) but with deep tonal saturation, richness, and body.
Arguably the Extreme’s most important aspect is that it immediately establishes an emotional bond and involves you enormously in the music.
Both friends were massively impressed and walked away slightly dismayed at the thought of having to continue listening with their own servers. And I have to say, even if the Grimm remains a very nice server, certainly at its price, and especially after the two recent firmware updates, compared to Extreme, it does sound considerably flatter, soberer, and more down to earth, and whilst nicely toe-tapping, significantly less emotionally engaging.
I will add more listening impressions as I gather more experience with the server and even without having heard TAS just yet, let alone XDMS, at this stage, I can already say that this is truly something special.
The first thing that struck me is how fluid, organic, and deeply imaging the USB connection sounds (using a Final Touch Audio Sinope USB cable). Normally, in my setup and with all servers/renderers so far, the USB connection sounds more stilted, flat, and mechanical than AES/EBU, but now, both with the C1 and the Formula xHD, it’s the other way around!
Yesterday, I was joined for my first extended listening session by two friends who were eager to hear the server for themselves. We all use the Grimm MU1. The two friends were skeptical at first but the longer they listened (and the server improved), the more I could tell that they were cast under the Extreme’s spell.
The Extreme manages to be revealing and detailed but also deliciously liquid, extremely refined and subtle yet firmly planted and dynamic without limits, and above all continuous, truly stepless, in its portrayal of dynamic contrasts. It also has impressive distinctiveness for the 3D aspect, body, and location of all the individual elements within the sound image, which by the way is a huge bubble, both in width and height and especially in the depth plane. The Extreme is transparent and neutral (not at all colored) but with deep tonal saturation, richness, and body.
Arguably the Extreme’s most important aspect is that it immediately establishes an emotional bond and involves you enormously in the music.
Both friends were massively impressed and walked away slightly dismayed at the thought of having to continue listening with their own servers. And I have to say, even if the Grimm remains a very nice server, certainly at its price, and especially after the two recent firmware updates, compared to Extreme, it does sound considerably flatter, soberer, and more down to earth, and whilst nicely toe-tapping, significantly less emotionally engaging.
I will add more listening impressions as I gather more experience with the server and even without having heard TAS just yet, let alone XDMS, at this stage, I can already say that this is truly something special.
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“Arguably the Extreme’s most important aspect is that it immediately establishes an emotional bond and involves you enormously in the music.” - Unquestionably THE most important aspect!!
Great room and setup. Congratulations!
@Christiaan Punter Awesome to hear that you finally have the Extreme in your system. Thanks for sharing your early impressions AND with the clarity, detail and insight you always do. Looking forward to learning more from your ongoing impressions and final conclusions.
Congrats Christian, it’s about time, but please call it Taiko Extreme.
According to Taiko Audio, it is the SGM Extreme...but whatever
.
While each owner will have their opinion on what aspect of the Extreme is most important (the power supply, the dual Xeons, the USB card, etc.), imho, I think it is the Extreme's software that allows the Extreme to be more than the sum of its parts because it is the Extreme's software that allows its hardware to be optimally utilized. This became most obvious to me back in 2020 when that disastrous Roon update made my Extreme sound barely better than a NUC (perhaps an exaggeration but that's how I felt). Roon is a serious roller coaster ride and so I feel sorry for servers that have no other option but Roon and all of its moodiness. While I look forward to Emile's NIC, network switch, BPS, and the fruits of his other projects, my bet is that XDMS will have the greatest potential to be the MVP. It is what will tie everything together and will allow us to be free of the destructive whims of 3rd parties. Don't get me wrong, it's nice to have options and so having Roon as an option is a good thing for those that like what it offers but even with TAS's rough edges, I value the knowledge that every time I sit down to listen, I know what I'll be getting.
Congratulations. You do realize, however this post makes waiting for mine even harder!
I completely agree: of all the exciting projects Emile and team are working on, the one I prioritize most highly is XDMS, for reasons that Roy has already articulated so well.
I will also add that I sympathize with Emile on the difficulty of pleasing all his customers. His customer base spans the gamut from the turnkey user — "I just want it to work like a $30k CD player" — to reformed DIY hobbyists like me who are happy to tinker. Personally, I would have foregone the shiny UI and bells and whistles that are clearly going into XDMS for something more basic that delivered the SQ improvements and key functionality like gapless quicker, but I can understand the dilemma this poses. Ultimately, I trust Emile to do what is best — for his customers, for his business, and his brand.
Hi Chriistian.
Thanks for your valuable opinion on SGM Exterme.
I am following your HFA blogs.
Just one question.
Although Magico S1 is a nice speaker, it does not go very deep, Thus it could be mismatch with rest of your system.
Have you considered going up to Magico A5 which is not very imposing but with more bass and dynamics.
Thomas
Mine arrived in Geneva this morning.
It will be delivered on Tuesday
It will be delivered on Tuesday
Christiaan Punter
Well-Known Member
No apology is necessary! I double-checked with Emile and the thing is that even though the server is officially still called SGM Extreme, the SGM part has slowly been dropped in the communications. In the coming days, I will make this formal by changing it in the Taiko manuals and on the website.
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Christiaan Punter
Well-Known Member
I won't claim to know the Extreme's single most important aspect, I wouldn't underestimate the synergy of the combined recipe, but surely, the software certainly ranks very highly. Indeed, it's not just Roon but server and streamer firmware as well. In essence, all servers/streamers that allow software updates are vulnerable to sonic changes. This is really annoying for listeners but arguably even worse for reviewers, who should be able to rely on their equipment's sonic stability.
The beauty of XDMS is that it is not only tailored to the Extreme server and will make it sound even better than with TAS or Roon but is actually coded 100% in-house. As such, Taiko is not dependent on 3rd party software and is always fully in control, which will be great for the overall stability as well.
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