Thrax Maximinus DAC & Libra Pre are here …

[Audire]

The flight cases are here!!!

We’re conducting additional DAC tests this week. Oz @ Highend by Oz went ahead and sent me a Thrax Pre Amp as well. It’s heavy for sure, 2 flight cases.

The Maximinus Mk2S DAC is special. From the Thrax website:

• Multibit conversion
• Full Differential operation
• Shunt regulated power supplies
• 4 quadrant sign magnitude operation
• 6 Inputs
• DSD Support
• Balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA outputs
• Silver Transformer output
• No I/V conversion
• No filtering after DAC
• Total galvanic isolation of internal circuits from outside world
• Highest precision internal clocks with lowest phase noise
• Jitter removing re-clocking prior to conversion
• Dither on/off
• De-emphasis
• Selection of 4 digital filters
• Upgradable firmware
• Modular design for field upgrades
• Sealed solid aluminum enclosure
• Streaming client supporting multiple protocols
• Roon Ready

My dealer - Tony @ Ellington HiFi - is driving in and setting everything up tomorrow.

 

[dcc]

If you are talking about the two units preamp, this is the Libra and not the Dionysos. You are good for a treat. I am biased as I own one.

 

[ashandger]

If it's Libra (which it probably is) then this is going to be VERY interesting indeed! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. Have fun.

 

[Audire]

If you are talking about the two units preamp, this is the Libra and not the Dionysos. You are good for a treat. I am biased as I own one.

Thanks and you are right. I haven’t looked inside the cases yet (my back is totally out) but it’s definitely two units. I'm looking forward to it.(I changed the title).

 

[facten]

@Audire - Joe feel better soon. I sympathize with you over your back pain

 

[Audire]

@Audire - Joe fell better soon. I sympathize with you over your back pain

Many thanks. I appreciate your comments.

 

[dcc]

The power unit of the Libra is rather heavy so I understand your back pain. This is a fully balanced preamp, so XLR cables are highly recommended. You may also adjust the input and output gains individually which is a great feature.

Have fun with both the preamp and the DAC.

 

[Audire]

Tony from Ellington HiFi is here. He‘s begun the install for our demo.

 

[Audire]

The Thrax Libra Remote. Heavy, just like the Pre.

 

[Audire]

She’s up and going.

 

[Audire]

I’m going to wait until they settle in some (3 days or so) to make any comments. Right now I can tell they aren’t at their potential.

They are solidly made. The Libra is extremely heavy. You'd better hire Samson to move the two units. The Maximinus is about the weight I was expecting for a DAC. The online pic on the Thrax website don’t do their equipment justice, you must see them! More on the sound later.

 

[morricab]

I’m going to wait until they settle in some (3 days or so) to make any comments. Right now I can tell they aren’t at their potential.

They are solidly made. The Libra is extremely heavy. You'd better hire Samson to move the two units. The Maximinus is about the weight I was expecting for a DAC. The online pic on the Thrax website don’t do their equipment justice, you must see them! More on the sound later.

If the Thrax DAC and pre prove to be "end game" then I think you would be remiss not to try the matching Spratacus 300B amps that are the natural partner for the Libra preamp, despite your current love for the Vitus amps.

 

[Audire]

If the Thrax DAC and pre prove to be "end game" then I think you would be remiss not to try the matching Spratacus 300B amps that are the natural partner for the Libra preamp, despite your current love for the Vitus amps.

I would somewhat agree but Oz states they run hot - really hot - and so here in Florida that would be a non-starter for us. Besides these Vitus SM-103s are end game amps for us. I have no desire for change.They are what dreams are made of.

 

[Audire]

Our testing with the Thrax Maximinus DAC and EMM has lots of options to listen to.

We have three Pre amps to compare and contrast:

Vitus SL-103, Thrax Libra, and the EMM PRE.

We have two DACs at present:

Thrax Maximinus and the EMM DA2V2.

So, we will be demoing all the combos!

I’ve contacted Lampi to see if they would send us a Horizon demo. No reply as of yet. Our dealer is contacting Ideon to see if we may obtain a demo of the Absolute + Time.

This is most enjoyable.

 

[thomask]

Our testing with the Thrax Maximinus DAC and EMM has lots of options to listen to.

We have three Pre amps to compare and contrast:

Vitus SL-103, Thrax Libra, and the EMM PRE.

We have two DACs at present:

Thrax Maximinus and the EMM DA2V2.

So, we will be demoing all the combos!

I’ve contacted Lampi to see if they would send us a Horizon demo. No reply as of yet. Our dealer is contacting Ideon to see if we may obtain a demo of the Absolute + Time.

This is most enjoyable.

I had listned to Horizon and Thrax during Pacific Audiofest 2022.

Also I had done home audition of Ideon Absolute and Ion.

I had used Emm Dac2 from 2009 to 2018 which I still keep in the attic.

Both Horizon and Absolute are nice dacs for the money.

But they sound different. Horizon sound fresh and Absolute sound more stable.

Thrax seems to make nice amps.

But I have no opinion on their Dac.

It will be dangerous for you to do home audition of Wadax.

The chance is that it will blow away all other dacs.

You may need to get a loan on your home.

I had done side by side comparison of Wadax and Absolute at dealer's showroom.

As good as Absolute is for the price, Wadax is in another league.

My impression of Wadax is re confirmed during Pacific Audiofest 2022.

I am going to wait untill Wadax come up with junior model below 100k $ but close to its top model in performance.

Have fun!

 

[Tbzc]

Love Thrax. I think they produce beautiful products, highly musical. Their support is first class. But I am not sure that combining Libra tube preamp with Vitus power amp, which has very low input impedance and is rather low sensitive, is a good idea. In my experience you could end up with weak bass and drive…

 

[ashandger]

Our testing with the Thrax Maximinus DAC and EMM has lots of options to listen to.

We have three Pre amps to compare and contrast:

Vitus SL-103, Thrax Libra, and the EMM PRE.

We have two DACs at present:

Thrax Maximinus and the EMM DA2V2.

So, we will be demoing all the combos!

I’ve contacted Lampi to see if they would send us a Horizon demo. No reply as of yet. Our dealer is contacting Ideon to see if we may obtain a demo of the Absolute + Time.

This is most enjoyable.

Lots of fun ahead for you. Enjoy the trials. Are you also planning to try the Vitus Masterpiece pre? Wondering if you had considered the Gryphon Commander pre which already got a rave from Michael Fremmer and also is being reviewed in the next issue of TAS? Looking forward to your updates.

 

[Audire]

Lots of fun ahead for you. Enjoy the trials. Are you also planning to try the Vitus Masterpiece pre? Wondering if you had considered the Gryphon Commander pre which already got a rave from Michael Fremmer and also is being reviewed in the next issue of TAS? Looking forward to your updates.

Many thanks. I’m going to see who wins this runoff between Pres. I’m really interested on the Libra vs the Vitus Signature comparison. If Vitus wins then I’ll be getting the Vitus Masterpiece. Oz says it’s about an extra 10%-15% of goodness. If the Libra wins then the decision is made.

Though they are very good, I’m not really a Gryphon fan (too dark sounding for may taste). But o5hers love them … just a matter of preference.

 

[Audire]

Love Thrax. I think they produce beautiful products, highly musical. Their support is first class. But I am not sure that combining Libra tube preamp with Vitus power amp, which has very low input impedance and is rather low sensitive, is a good idea. In my experience you could end up with weak bass and drive…

I think this is what I'm experiencing at present. Everything is sounding kind of flat, no soul.

Oz and the companies owner are going to call me and make some adjustments on the Libra. The are very pro active. I like that.

 

[Audire]

Today we replaced the Thrax Maximinus with our EMM DA2 V2. The magic re-appeared. We called Germany and spoke with Rumen Artarski of Thrax. We adjusted the gain and tried different filters. It must be a bad tube, but not sure.

With the Thrax Libra the SQ is off the charts. It’s incredible. The Libra seems to play all kinds of music well. The sound stage is off the charts. Multiple layer upon layer upon even more layers. Pretty incredible. And the bass - just wow. Everything is indescribably excellent.

We are going to try the Vitus SL 103 Line Stage this coming Monday. We will be doing back to back comparisons with the Libra and the Vitus. Thrax LIBRA will be a difficult act to follow. But we will need to keep in mind that the Vitus I’m re-demoing is one step down from the Masterpiece MP-L201 Mk.II, which is my intended purchase if I go with Vitus.

With the Thrax Libra I’ll be able to try some Takatsuki 300Bs. Yummy.