The May is enticing because of the low Impedance output buffer which allows you to go into an amplifier directly. does the may have remote controlled output volume adjustment capability? i thought it was a straight dac (fixed output) only... |
the may certainly seems to be a unit that all love once they have them
i am curious to know if anyone with one has compared in their own system to a denafrips term or term +
similar upper tier r2r units with solid state output stage |
snackey
so buy one and tell us! :) |
@snackeyp
nice rig! i have similar - had 40.1’s, now have super hl5’s among others - had a LFD into amp also while back driving... absolutely lovely combo... something about the LFD slight upward tilt gives the Harbeths just a lil more ’life’... brilliant synergy tremendous listenability
i would think the 40's would overload your room (it did mine and my room is bigger), but you seem to have a pretty nice tight listening triangle
have fun! |
you can’t really know unless you hear it in your system
denafrips dacs are excellent, but a little bright amongst the r2r crowd, and according to my research, so is the holo springs unit (based on that i have ruled it out for my own use) - note also that there are various versions of the holo springs unit, they may have their sq differences too, dunno ... gets a lil complicated and hard to sort out as i was researching
the smoother school of r2r is sonnet/metrum, as well as border patrol and mhdt (though you can alter the tilt of their units with tube selection)
audio mirror is another one out there, but i have not had one in hand yet to assess
good luck
|
let us know snackey
10 days isn’t much time, wonder about break in
but like u say, better than nothing
there are just sooo many very good sounding dacs at reasonable prices nowadays - i have been thru a bunch last 6 months, they are really 'your choice of flavor', so many are really outstanding
good news for us |
@duckworp
there is really no way to know but to buy/borrow and try in your own system, and compare a vs b and with extended listening, with listening levels carefully equilibrated
i have been through just over 20 dacs in the past 8 months since the pandemic has had me at home more than ever
there is just no way to know by reading reviews and hearsay on boards like this ... few reviewers compare dacs head to head and even then it is not in your system, it is their taste, their ears, their cables, their streamer, their room ... the utility of the reviews and forum second hand hearsay/touts is to identify what may be worth trying if there seems to a groundswell of positivity ... no more no less
when you get into dacs it is about the presentation, the timbre, the imaging/space, the clarity with transients etc etc... system matching is key
the holo may is the hot new dac... six months ago it was the dena term... six months before that it was audio mirror tubador... before that it was the mhdt orchid... before that it was the ps audio ds... before that it was the schiit yggy .... you follow? ... the merry go round continues and never stops... be patient, wait and they will show up used (and broken in), then buy a well cared for piece and experience it yourself |
@twoleftears
i bought that new piece that stereophile classified as a+ now... and my goodness it sounds so much better
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA |
@snackeyp
excellent feedback, glad u are enjoying
tell us what is rest of your system? preamp amp speakers wire
and u are changing from base case of mytek digital front end yes?
help us calibrate a little
btw don't let millerc see your post it will shatter his world hehehe |
synergy among high quality components is the lifeblood of a hifi rig that thoroughly pleases its owner... |
what is the difference between the may and the spring (leave aside the ’levels’ of each) - other than the separate PS in its own chassis?
out of curiosity i went to the kitsune website tried to decipher, but while there is a lot of info there, i found it hard to figure this out |
@snackeyp The Holo Audio May DAC 3 won the Product Of The Year in Stereophile this month.
I couldn’t find a web link to the article. It will probably be up in a week or two. I read this in the print edition. so does it sound even better today knowing this???? sorry -- i just couldn’t help myself LOL -- have fun and happy listening!!! :) |
to be serious for a moment, there is no doubt a component being named by a major magazine or website publication as ’recommended’ or ’best of’ is an accolade to be proud of - it is also important confirmation of that component being very very good at what it sets out to do
the other point to keep in mind on this topic is that media outlets get their bread buttered too, so inclusion of an item is often a measure of what is paid in advertising, or fees, or public relations legwork by the maker or dealer ... the key point is that competing units NOT included in such publications are not necessarily worse or unworthy
this takes nothing away from the holo may - which is undoubtedly a lovely sounding well built high end dac |
@jriggy The high bitrate upsamplers will always say a DAC sounds best that way.
yes i think this is true in my pursuit of streaming and digital file playing, i have focused on what makes cd quality material sound as close to and ’analog’ like as possible - this objective is important as so much/most music out there exists in this resolution higher bitrates/mqa/dsd etc etc are icing on the cake, relevant side dishes, not the main meal deal |
@snackeyp
quick q
does the may have the ability to adjust the volume of its analog out with its remote, so if you wanted you could run it directly into a power amp as a sole source?
or is it a 'straight' dac with fixed analog outs only? |
investment value? 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
the correct verb, i think, is ’spend’... |
@jcarcopo
thank you for your post
when i had the denafrips dacs (ares thru term, still kept a pontus for fun), i also felt the treble is a little too forward for my personal tastes, even though the overall musicality was very nice
it is good to know that the may is less forward than the denafrips voicing, i will look to try one at some point
as for ron at record day, i know he tries hard, produces quite good videos and they are complete and thoughtful, but i find his videos hard to watch from start to end... reminds me a bit of some ex colleagues and friends who were randomly way too chatty and far slow to come to the point... (i know this is as much a comment on my sensibilities as his...) |
