Philippe Perrot of PHP Audio arranged a nice review by Jean Razzaroli for French Magazine Vinyl & Audio.
Excerpt:
Philosophy of a perfect design
Without worrying about the costs or limitations of manufacturing, the music servers of the Taiko Audio range are the result of many years of research and development in order to achieve a level of excellence that allows you to “bring your musical experience far beyond what you can imagine.” says the manufacturer. Although dealing with bits, and while any player can now correctly read the 0s and 1s, digital playback requires an astonishing calculation speed and ultra-low digital noise to extract all the data recorded in music files. Any failure at the source level will generate distortion or tonal imbalance that takes us away from reality.
Taiko Audio has worked extensively on system latency (active processing time), which plays a crucial role in sound quality. During the design of the Extreme, they ensured the lowest possible latency for each instruction or set of instructions the server must handle. Whether it is the components, the housing, the power supply, or the mechanics, the configuration of the whole results from an in-depth study of the system’s design in its entirety and the understanding of digital and
analogue audio signals.
Approaching the test of a device such as the Taiko Audio Extreme music server is a real challenge and always poses a case of awareness. Does the technology used really justify the price?
The level of detail is amazing. The defects attributed to digital are completely absent here. The sound is both devoid of a digital artefact, at least that is what is perceived in the ear, and of a naturalness that is similar to the playback of an analogue master tape. The restitution delivers shades that give the instruments a palette of colors of great refinement. It is both gentle and defined.
Compared to the listening of a SACD on the Playback Designs MPS-8 player, which I had the opportunity to test at PHP Audio, this server happily surpasses it. It redefines the very notion of musicality from the playback of streaming files.
If Music, with a capital M, holds an important place in your life and serves as a vector of emotions, the Taiko Audio Extreme server is probably the best streaming and server player available, directly competing with Wadax Atlantis Reference.
Read the full review in PDF format via the link below:
Vinyl&Audio Review Taiko Audio Extreme Music Server Reference Product
