Grimm MU1 Streamer - Really "The Best"?


I've recently become interested in the Grimm MU1.  While reviews of top end players from Innuos, Aurender and Antipodes and others are typically all very positive, the tone of the many pro reviews of the Grimm MU1 go far, far beyond, with some reviews resorting to using superlatives and gushing of positive system transformation and not being able to stop listening to material, etc..  HiFi Advice and Steve Huff (actually calls it "magic") have such reviews.

Given the delay in availability of the Innuos Pulsar which I'm told will be better than my current Zenith Mk3 + PhoenixUSB reclocker, I am interested in replacing my streaming setup with a one-box solution that includes a high-precision clock.  The new streamer will continue to feed my Gryphon Diablo 300's DAC module, which I have no interest in replacing.

I'm actually a fan of Innuos, after they improved the sound of my Zenith with firmware updates and after I added their PhoenixUSB reclocker. I appreciate this commitment to improving sound quality which is why I was so interested in the Pulsar.

The trigger for considering an upgrade is not for improved sound, but rather, to solve some issues I have with too many Audioquest power cords coiled and clumped together. I will get to lose one of them and one of my USB cords with a one-box streamer. I've noticed my sound is very sensitive to positioning of my AC cords and find I often need to re-adjust the PC feeding my amp to get proper sounding vocals at center stage.  One of my subs also seems to be picking up AC noise when the crossover is set above 60Hz. The second trigger is simply system simplification, removing one box.  All that said I don't really have any complaints regarding sound, and the PhoenixUSB reclocker truly did improve the sound of my Zenith.

While the Grimm MU1 has it's 4X upsampling up it's sleeve with reviewers absolutely glowing over this feature and it's extreme ability to separate tones to the left, right, front, and back far better than the rest, I don't see that Grimm has gone to any lengths with regard to power supply management in the way other brands do including Innuos. The MU1's ultra-simplistic interior doesn't bug me, but the lack of transformers and power management makes me wonder....

Are there any updates from folks who have directly compared the MU1 vs similarly classed streamers from the competition?  Did you find it to be as revelatory as the pro reviewers found it? And, how does it compare to other streamers with it's 4X upsampling disabled?  Does it sound like it suffers from it's lack of power management?  I do see that the clock should be very good...

 

 

nyev

Showing 6 responses by rshad0000

One note…

There is a lot of talk in this thread and others about the Grimm MU1 working well with the Tambaqui DAC, which I have no doubt that it does.  I’ve been trying out an MU1 in my system, vs the Aurender N20, over the past week with a Chord DAVE.  It meshes VERY well with the DAVE as well.

Nyev,

The main differences I hear...  The Aurender N20 is very transparent, dynamic and has quiet backgrounds.   The Grimm is very smooth, yet still dynamic, and adds some really nice texture to the music.   I have to say that I prefer the Aurender Conductor app more because its easier for my family to use when I am not around, but I'm still good with Roon.   Overall, I've been really impressed with the Grimm.   Crazy that the N20 is so large and heavy(power supply and battery) while the Grimm is a much smaller unit and a lot lighter.   

I'm surprised I like the Grimm so much with the Chord Dave.   I actually tried the Chord M-Scaler with the Dave at one point and I just did not prefer the sound for some reason and sold the M-Scaler.   The upscaler on the Grimm, however, I do like.   Great rythym and pace with the Dave and is very synergistic for lack of a better term.    

I'm going to continue to listen and will probably make a decision by the end of this week on whether to keep the Grimm or not.      The extra texture and smoothness the Grimm adds, at least in my system, is pretty addictive.

Nyev,

I agree, I love how Roon pulls up "like" songs and plays them!  

Before my current gear I had a Diablo 300 as well...I loved that integrated amp and I can see how the Grimm work work very well with it.   Enjoy!

quattr0,

If your dealer is in Dallas, then, yes, that would be me. I took the MU1 out of my system and put the N20 back in. Love the N20 but the Grimm just works so much better with my system so I had to put it back in and buy it. The dealer was gracious enough to let me purchase the demo unit.

Strange.  I don’t have that issue with my MU1.  I certainly do with other components in my set up but not the Grimm.