PicoWattson 442 Posted November 21, 2020 Share Posted November 21, 2020 Anyone using one of these in any of it's 3 available versions? Link to post Share on other sites
ZGojira 10 Posted December 3, 2020 Share Posted December 3, 2020 I have recently upgraded from a Spring Level 3 (Wildsim) to a May Level 3 KTE. Prior to the upgrade, I was very satisfied with the Spring to the point where I was unsatisfied with anything else I tried. The main DACs that I was comparing with was: Chord Hugo2, Grace Design m920 and the Denafrips Ares. Comparisons was done in my own environment with both speaker and headphone setups. Now with the May, I vastly prefer the May over the Spring. I could probably still live with the Spring, but will be constantly reminded of what I'm missing out on. With both DACS I was using I2S from a Singxer SU-1 (with LPS) with a Mutec MC-3+ USB as a clock. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
chris_jl 8 Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 I have had the Holo May Level 2 in my system now for the last six months or so. It is the first DAC that I have owned that I am really happy with and the first DAC that comes close to the very best vinyl recordings. (Happy to share my vinyl setup, if that is of help). I have experimented with plenty of DACs over the years (most recently the Chord Hugo TT2) and still have two ESS Sabre based DACs in my system. They all might measure spectacularly well, but I can't fall in love with them. The Holo May is a different matter and presents music that puts a smile on your face. My listening tastes are predominantly classical and jazz - with some rock. The Holo May excels with solo piano, large orchestral works (where it reproduces massed violins better than any other DAC I have heard) and small ensembles (jazz or chamber). I realise this is a very subjective view, but if you similar musical tastes to me, I think you will absolutely enjoy the Holo May. cheers, Chris 4 Link to post Share on other sites
PicoWattson 442 Posted December 15, 2020 Author Share Posted December 15, 2020 Thanks for both of your comments. Pertinent as I have also spent time listening to the Hugo 2, comparing it to my Resonessence Mirus pro. which I preferred for it's slightly more organic sound in the treble region, while not forgoing any of the Hugo's scalpel like detail. Prior to the mirus pro I had the non pro version so have now spent a number of years galvanised to the ESS Sabre's version of how music should sound. ( 90% Funk, Soul, Jazz, World Fusion, House, 10% everything else). Pressing my ESLs back into service I would like to try something that may have a slightly more relaxed ,velvety presentation to counterbalance a very edgy, analytical system now in play. All reading leads me to the Holo May as a possible contender. We don't always get an opportunity to audition equipment in our own system and I'm guessing many major purchases after all distilled research have been made on gut feelings. Link to post Share on other sites
BrownMagic 142 Posted December 20, 2020 Share Posted December 20, 2020 On 15/12/2020 at 1:37 PM, chris_jl said: My listening tastes are predominantly classical and jazz - with some rock. How does the May do on fast rock? Like say fast drumming? My friend who had the spring was not very happy with how the spring handled complex fast heavy metal tracks with too much going on. Also between the May and Spring, which is more laid back? Thanks Chris Link to post Share on other sites
ZGojira 10 Posted December 22, 2020 Share Posted December 22, 2020 The May handles complex tracks better than the Spring, in that the May is able to present more layers simultaneously in a uniform manner. In terms of being laid back, neither DACs are the aggressive type. To me, they put everything out there but nothing is particularly emphasized. I think this characteristic can be changed with the used of oversampling filters using software like HQplayer. May I ask what DAC your friend compared the Spring to, and if possible what source/inputs he used? Link to post Share on other sites
chris_jl 8 Posted December 22, 2020 Share Posted December 22, 2020 On 21/12/2020 at 12:46 AM, BrownMagic said: How does the May do on fast rock? Like say fast drumming? My friend who had the spring was not very happy with how the spring handled complex fast heavy metal tracks with too much going on. Also between the May and Spring, which is more laid back? Thanks Chris These are two questions I can't really answer. Heavy metal is one genre that I don't listen to that much. For classic rock, however, and any other music with complex rhythm and attack, the May is exceptionally clean. And the second question I can't really answer either because I have not compared it to the Spring. Link to post Share on other sites
Extreme_Boky 0 Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 Where did you guys buy your DAC's? Crux Audio? Link to post Share on other sites
ZGojira 10 Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 42 minutes ago, Extreme_Boky said: Where did you guys buy your DAC's? Crux Audio? I got mine from Crux Audio. Link to post Share on other sites
chris_jl 8 Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 48 minutes ago, Extreme_Boky said: Where did you guys buy your DAC's? Crux Audio? Likewise.... Crux Audio. Link to post Share on other sites
madfonzy 18 Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 On 20/12/2020 at 9:46 PM, BrownMagic said: How does the May do on fast rock? Like say fast drumming? My friend who had the spring was not very happy with how the spring handled complex fast heavy metal tracks with too much going on. Also between the May and Spring, which is more laid back? Thanks Chris I got my Holo May KTE on Xmas eve. I tried out some heavy metal tracks from Van Halen and Led Zeppelin. Both sound superb and accurate. For instance with Led Zeppelin - Moby Dick with the fast drums. The soundstage is great and the drums beats are clear, fast and perfectly placed. No issues from me. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites
BrownMagic 142 Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 6 hours ago, madfonzy said: I got my Holo May KTE on Xmas eve Congratulations! What transport do you use? Link to post Share on other sites
madfonzy 18 Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 Running a RPi4 with RoipeeXL usb to the Holo May. Nothing fancy at all! Roon core on my NAS connected by the Ethernet cable which is under the house in the cellar/dungeon. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Tony B 310 Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 6 hours ago, madfonzy said: Running a RPi4 with RoipeeXL usb to the Holo May. Nothing fancy at all! Roon core on my NAS connected by the Ethernet cable which is under the house in the cellar/dungeon. In my opinion this is as good as any. I know a lot will disagree. Congrats on your purchase. Link to post Share on other sites
Grizaudio 261 Posted December 30, 2020 Share Posted December 30, 2020 (edited) On 29/12/2020 at 1:45 AM, madfonzy said: Running a RPi4 with RoipeeXL usb to the Holo May. Nothing fancy at all! Roon core on my NAS connected by the Ethernet cable which is under the house in the cellar/dungeon. The RPI4 is a great source, especially paired with a solid DAC (Good USB implementation). I did notice a good improvement powering it using an ifi power x supply. Without using audiophile clichés, it was better and worth the investment for me. I have conversed with a few users who have compared the RPI4 (USB) to decent "highend" streamers sources such as the Lumin Mini U1, SOTM ultra, Allo USB signature etc. They stated they could not hear a difference. Yet you have others, who state the differences are night and day. Feedback seems highly variable. For me personally, I sold my $2500 Pioneer N70a in favour of the RPI4. The May looks, measures and by all reviews seems to sound amazing. Too bad its so pricey. Edited December 30, 2020 by Grizaudio 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Jpg60 0 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 I received my Holo May KTE just before Christmas from Crux Audio. Order placed November 29th and delivered December 23rd. Not surprisingly the May is a huge improvement over the NAD. So far all my listening has been in NOS mode. and I couldn't be happier with my purchase. It has the slam I'd previously experienced with Chord's TT2. The drums in Metallica's Nothing Else Matters are like they are being played in the room in front of me. Bass seems deeper and better defined. Link to post Share on other sites
chris_jl 8 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 21 minutes ago, Jpg60 said: I received my Holo May KTE just before Christmas from Crux Audio. Order placed November 29th and delivered December 23rd. Not surprisingly the May is a huge improvement over the NAD. So far all my listening has been in NOS mode. and I couldn't be happier with my purchase. It has the slam I'd previously experienced with Chord's TT2. The drums in Metallica's Nothing Else Matters are like they are being played in the room in front of me. Bass seems deeper and better defined. Hey John, Great Christmas present! Like you I listen to the May exclusively in NOS mode. And until hearing the May, I had dismissed a lot of my red book CD recordings in my library as pretty ordinary. I now have a different view. Not only do many of them sound really good in 44.1K but if you do upsampling with HQPlayer or Roon (keeping the upsampling to a multiple of 44.1 and keeping the May in NOS mode), the May seems to be able to get at even more subtleties from the original recording. Give it a try... let me know what you think. cheers, Chris Link to post Share on other sites
Grizaudio 261 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 What did SNArs pay for this dac? Link to post Share on other sites
BrownMagic 142 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 22 minutes ago, Grizaudio said: What did SNArs pay for this dac? I am not sure if people are aware that Kitsune is not the exclusive distributor for Holo May. People in Singapore buy from Wildism in HongKong who have been selling May products for a long time and costs about 50% less than what Kitsune quotes. We have no local dealer either. Link to post Share on other sites
Grizaudio 261 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 5 hours ago, BrownMagic said: I am not sure if people are aware that Kitsune is not the exclusive distributor for Holo May. People in Singapore buy from Wildism in HongKong who have been selling May products for a long time and costs about 50% less than what Kitsune quotes. We have no local dealer either. Thanks, the website doesn't show any prices: Link to post Share on other sites
BrownMagic 142 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 @Grizaudio - You can message him on FB. Very responsive. The rates I got for the May Level 2 is 31500 HKD including shipping to Singapore. That is about 5275 AUD. Link to post Share on other sites
ZGojira 10 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 (edited) 7 hours ago, Grizaudio said: What did SNArs pay for this dac? The listed price on the site. 6 hours ago, BrownMagic said: I am not sure if people are aware that Kitsune is not the exclusive distributor for Holo May. People in Singapore buy from Wildism in HongKong who have been selling May products for a long time and costs about 50% less than what Kitsune quotes. We have no local dealer either. I got my Spring from Wildsim, and can happily recommend them. When I was shopping for the May, I looked at both Wildsim and Crux. Since Wildsim did not have a Level 3, so I got it one from Crux. If Wildsim had Level 3's, I would've bought it from Wildsim. 29 minutes ago, BrownMagic said: @Grizaudio - You can message him on FB. Very responsive. The rates I got for the May Level 2 is 31500 HKD including shipping to Singapore. That is about 5275 AUD. I was quoted a very similar price from Wildsim shipped to Sydney. Edited December 31, 2020 by ZGojira Link to post Share on other sites
madfonzy 18 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 I got mine from Cruxaudio during the Black Friday sales. It was $300 off the list price so went with that. With Wildsim do they still offer the 3 years warranty? I can't see it on their website not that I can read Chinese. The famous Aussie tax and Aust Consumer law might be involved here on high priced electronics. Similar to why Apply computers are cheaper in Sg than here. Link to post Share on other sites
Jpg60 0 Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 On 31/12/2020 at 11:40 AM, chris_jl said: Hey John, Great Christmas present! Like you I listen to the May exclusively in NOS mode. And until hearing the May, I had dismissed a lot of my red book CD recordings in my library as pretty ordinary. I now have a different view. Not only do many of them sound really good in 44.1K but if you do upsampling with HQPlayer or Roon (keeping the upsampling to a multiple of 44.1 and keeping the May in NOS mode), the May seems to be able to get at even more subtleties from the original recording. Give it a try... let me know what you think. cheers, Chris Will do. I used to upsample into the NAD M51. As part of connecting the May into my system, I connected my CD player to the May via AES and then tested it by playing a CD. The improvement in sound was so good, I sat there and listened to the whole CD. Link to post Share on other sites
Extreme_Boky 0 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 I placed the order for MAY Level 2 DAC with Jo @ Wildism Audio HK. He shipped the DAC as soon as my payment cleared - on 27th Jan. I received my DAC .... TODAY. That is 4-5 business days only. Exceptional service. Jo was also replying to my emails within a few minutes - it was like I had the pleasure of talking to him eye-to-eye. Unbelievable. I sent him an email to thank him. He should truly be proud of his service. Nick Link to post Share on other sites
madfonzy 18 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Congrats Nick it will not disappoint. im still enjoying mine immensely even more so this week as we are in lockdown. Link to post Share on other sites
Tony B 310 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 6 hours ago, Extreme_Boky said: I placed the order for MAY Level 2 DAC with Jo @ Wildism Audio HK. He shipped the DAC as soon as my payment cleared - on 27th Jan. I received my DAC .... TODAY. That is 4-5 business days only. Exceptional service. Jo was also replying to my emails within a few minutes - it was like I had the pleasure of talking to him eye-to-eye. Unbelievable. I sent him an email to thank him. He should truly be proud of his service. Nick Hi Nick Did you pay any import taxes? Link to post Share on other sites
Extreme_Boky 0 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Yes I did. Link to post Share on other sites
Extreme_Boky 0 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 10 hours ago, madfonzy said: Congrats Nick it will not disappoint. im still enjoying mine immensely even more so this week as we are in lockdown. Thanks Link to post Share on other sites
delphi17 100 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Has anyone had the chance to compare this to say a Mola Mola Tambaqui or the DCS bartok? Really interested in this DAC as I am after the analogue sound too.. Link to post Share on other sites
BrownMagic 142 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 3 hours ago, delphi17 said: Mola Mola Tambaqui or the DCS bartok I dont think these are in the same price range as the Holo May. Link to post Share on other sites
madfonzy 18 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Not me. The Mola is 2 x price and Bartok 3 x price so didn’t really consider either of them. Link to post Share on other sites
delphi17 100 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 58 minutes ago, BrownMagic said: I dont think these are in the same price range as the Holo May. Yeah but they are on the same A+ level as those two. I don’t think price is indicative of the quality , especially as a lot of it also how expensive the case and marketing. Link to post Share on other sites
Tony B 310 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 I'm also interested in this Dac L3. What are the stock levels? Anyone know? I've msg Crux Audio but no response as yet. Link to post Share on other sites
BrownMagic 142 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 1 hour ago, delphi17 said: I don’t think price is indicative of the quality This becomes a subjective comparison. We all like a bargain and the reviewers also hype things about. The May is a very good Dac under 5k. Probably one of the best. We should judge its merits on those parameters. Also ive heard all 3 DACS but never next to each other and not in the same system. From what I can try to sense is that they all sound different. I cant say one is better than the other because it would depend on what you are looking for. Similarly the May is not the best dac under 5k because again it would boil down to what you are looking for and the May surely will not please everyone. Assuming the May has all that you want then at 5k, its much better value. than another dac that offers the same but for a lot more. You be the judge. Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
madfonzy 18 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 1 hour ago, Tony B said: I'm also interested in this Dac L3. What are the stock levels? Anyone know? I've msg Crux Audio but no response as yet. My L3 was considered a custom order which they have to build. Took about 3 weeks from ordering till I had it. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
delphi17 100 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 10 minutes ago, BrownMagic said: This becomes a subjective comparison. We all like a bargain and the reviewers also hype things about. The May is a very good Dac under 5k. Probably one of the best. We should judge its merits on those parameters. Also ive heard all 3 DACS but never next to each other and not in the same system. From what I can try to sense is that they all sound different. I cant say one is better than the other because it would depend on what you are looking for. Similarly the May is not the best dac under 5k because again it would boil down to what you are looking for and the May surely will not please everyone. Assuming the May has all that you want then at 5k, its much better value. than another dac that offers the same but for a lot more. You be the judge. Cheers One second you say they are different price range and another second you say price don’t matter. ??? No idea what you are trying to say. Link to post Share on other sites
BrownMagic 142 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Where do I say that the price dont matter? Link to post Share on other sites
delphi17 100 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Just now, BrownMagic said: Where do I say that the price dont matter? You say it depends on what matters to you, and one is no necessary better than the other? Link to post Share on other sites
BrownMagic 142 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Absolutely. I never said that higher the price ,better the product. I only said if you are going to compare then a fair comparison is between products that are in the same price range. Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
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