Taiko Audio SGM Extreme : the Crème de la Crème

[Zeotrope]

Perhaps but TBH XDMS is getting so close that for my ears I would have difficulty picking one from the other 100% of the time. The bigger question in my opinion is how close XDMS is getting to vinyl and although it isn't there yet I am finding with each new uptick in the SQ that the boundaries are getting closer together

I have listened to fewer than 5 vinyl albums since getting my Extreme last April. A few weeks ago, I listened to the same exact recording (Nagra 70th Anniversary 2xHD) on both vinyl and digital. This is an original analog recording, so if anything the vinyl should be better.

I think that with XDMS, in my system, the war is over. Taiko’s Digital has won. That’s especially true when you consider all the inherent systemic flaws with vinyl (e.g., surface noise, angular distortion, tracking angle, reduced dynamic range, etc.); but even without this, there’s nothing missing from the digital playback anymore (with XDMS).

There’s a certain romance to spinning vinyl and zen-like habitual action of cleaning and setting up the turntable that makes the experience of vinyl attractive; but the sound quality ‘war’ has been won.

 

[Zeotrope]

Has anyone compared the same album on reel to reel and on the Extreme?

 

[soarsz]

My internet provider is a Verizon 5g tower, wireless connection, and the in-home receiver doubles as a router. I am able to connect ethernet cable between the dual device, so I connect my Extreme with a cat 6 copper cable. Interposing a switch seems straight forward but how would I incorporate the Taiko router into this setup?

 

[Steve Williams]

Like you I was all vinyl until I received my Extreme which paired with my Horizon has shifted my listening parameters to almost 100% digital. XDMS simply put is that good. Yesterday was the first tie I listened to vinyl in months. It remains a few steps above XDMS but honestly those steps are pretty small now.

My switch and card are on order and Im all in wrt the BPS and router

Taiko IMO is going to have another huge break out year in 2023

 

[Steve Williams]

Has anyone compared the same album on reel to reel and on the Extreme?

I have. I did yesterday and no question vinyl remains at the top but honestly the digital is so close that I wonder if I could pick it out blinded 100% of the time

 

[Steve Williams]

The other thing I love about XDMS is that I no longer care about the format of the track I am playing as redbook, hires PCM and DSD sound so very close that Im positive I could not identify one format form the other

 

[cat6man]

Hello Emile, with the network card, switch, and router (using the supplied wall warts instead of the BPS), how far off is the difference now between streaming and local playback?

XDMS was the first time ever I actually enjoyed streaming, but it still can’t match local playback.

I can almost always tell the difference between local wav and streaming, which is usually flac encoded. Streaming flac sounds close to local flac, but way below the SQ of local wav, at least here.

I had an audio buddy over to listen to my test/evaluation tracks, to hear what I focused on for each track. Once we finished doing that I played him the last track we'd heard, but this time in local flac. His response was something like "wtf do I do now if I can't trust the streamed flac?". His solution for now is to travel to audio shops with wav versions of his test tracks on a USB stick.

We still haven't gotten to the bottom of the flac v wav issue, though Emile says he has something up his sleeve for us.

By the way, anyone remember the papers by Zeilig and Clawson? They claimed that embedded media art was audible in flac files.

 

[dminches]

Has anyone compared the same album on reel to reel and on the Extreme?

It is very difficult to just compare digital to vinyl to tape since one doesn't know if the mastering on each of the version is the same. Very often it is not which makes a pure format comparison impossible.

However, the advances in digital playback due to the Extreme hardware, XDMS and the Lampizator Horizon have made it where the best mastering, regardless of format, will "win" the sound quality war.

 

[Taiko Audio]

We still haven't gotten to the bottom of the flac v wav issue, though Emile says he has something up his sleeve for us.

Streaming flac sounds close to local flac, but way below the SQ of local wav, at least here.

Yes this will be addressed soon.

 

[Taiko Audio]

They claimed that embedded media art was audible in flac files.

It is, but also being addressed.

 

[Taiko Audio]

XDMS was the first time ever I actually enjoyed streaming, but it still can’t match local playback.

Confidence is high this difference will become either very minimal or dissapear entirely, assuming the source file is the same (master / edit etc). We have quite a few things on our to-do list for this, mostly a matter of coding hence coming as free updates.

 

[oldmustang]

I just received an e-mail, purportedly from Trustwallet, that I need to verify my wallet and that unverified wallets will be suspended. A link is provided to a verification page. The e-mail further states unverified wallets will be suspended.

Being new to the platform, is this expected behavior and required of a customer who has paid via Trustwallet? Will failure to verify a wallet prevent further direct purchases from Taiko Audio?

Thanks in advance. Phishing attacks and general internet skullduggery make me very cautious about following links embedded in unsolicited e-mails, let alone provide PII (personally identifying information) or banking information.

Steve Z

 

[Nils]

I just received an e-mail, purportedly from Trustwallet, that I need to verify my wallet and that unverified wallets will be suspended. A link is provided to a verification page. The e-mail further states unverified wallets will be suspended.

Being new to the platform, is this expected behavior and required of a customer who has paid via Trustwallet? Will failure to verify a wallet prevent further direct purchases from Taiko Audio?

Thanks in advance. Phishing attacks and general internet skullduggery make me very cautious about following links embedded in unsolicited e-mails, let alone provide PII (personally identifying information) or banking information.

Steve Z

That is either phishing or a very immature platform - play it safe @oldmustang and reach out to the platform separately to verify...

I am buying the switch + network card via my Dealer....

 

[Taiko Audio]

Trustwallet? Isn’t that for cryptocurrency? We don’t accept cryptocurrency. Sounds like phishing to me.

 

[Kingsrule]

I just received an e-mail, purportedly from Trustwallet, that I need to verify my wallet and that unverified wallets will be suspended. A link is provided to a verification page. The e-mail further states unverified wallets will be suspended.

Being new to the platform, is this expected behavior and required of a customer who has paid via Trustwallet? Will failure to verify a wallet prevent further direct purchases from Taiko Audio?

Thanks in advance. Phishing attacks and general internet skullduggery make me very cautious about following links embedded in unsolicited e-mails, let alone provide PII (personally identifying information) or banking information.

Steve Z

What is Trustwallet? Must be a non US way to transfer $$??
Actually for us here in US, the payment options to Taiko are really bad. 2.9% vig for using paypal!! Please! PIA to set up bank transfer.
How about good old CC checkout?

 

[Taiko Audio]

What is Trustwallet? Must be a non US way to transfer $$??
Actually for us here in US, the payment options to Taiko are really bad. 2.9% vig for using paypal!! Please! PIA to set up bank transfer.
How about good old CC checkout?

It’s for cryptocurrency. There was a CC checkout actually which appears to have stopped working, we’ve contacted the gateway service. Paypal is indeed horrible, the 2.9% is actually a 50/50 buyer/seller split, go figure..

 

[oldmustang]

I just received an e-mail, purportedly from Trustwallet, that I need to verify my wallet and that unverified wallets will be suspended. A link is provided to a verification page. The e-mail further states unverified wallets will be suspended.

Being new to the platform, is this expected behavior and required of a customer who has paid via Trustwallet? Will failure to verify a wallet prevent further direct purchases from Taiko Audio?

Thanks in advance. Phishing attacks and general internet skullduggery make me very cautious about following links embedded in unsolicited e-mails, let alone provide PII (personally identifying information) or banking information.

Steve Z

Sorry, all. I got Transferwise (used by Taiko Audio) mixed up with TrustWallet (which sent me the unsolicited e-mail). And here I thought I'd already had enough caffeine today to make rational decisions and be trusted to leave home by myself. . .

Steve Z

 

[theaudiogeek]

I just received an e-mail, purportedly from Trustwallet, that I need to verify my wallet and that unverified wallets will be suspended. A link is provided to a verification page. The e-mail further states unverified wallets will be suspended.

Being new to the platform, is this expected behavior and required of a customer who has paid via Trustwallet? Will failure to verify a wallet prevent further direct purchases from Taiko Audio?

Thanks in advance. Phishing attacks and general internet skullduggery make me very cautious about following links embedded in unsolicited e-mails, let alone provide PII (personally identifying information) or banking information.

Steve Z

I use wise.com (former Transferwise.com). Decent exchange rate and reasonable fee.

 

[austinpop]

I use wise.com (former Transferwise.com). Decent exchange rate and reasonable fee.

Wise has been very reliable for me as a payer, but as Emile reported in this post , they seem to cap out receiving accounts above a certain threshold, so this is still an issue.

 

[theaudiogeek]

Wise has been very reliable for me as a payer, but as Emile reported in this post , they seem to cap out receiving accounts above a certain threshold, so this is still an issue.

Yes.. Emile did provide me a different one which seems to be not maxed out. The transfer I did this morning is still in "Sending..." status.