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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
nyev OP
1,023 posts
 

“For the record, I found that my hearing began to suffer greatly on my wedding day and has degraded precipitously since that time. “

@ghasley , you might be on to something. Someone should do a study! In the interest of science. There is also the phenomenon that I’ve noticed, where I’ve oddly found it has been more difficult to acquire new gear following my wedding day. I wonder if the issues are related….

Just met someone who bought a pair of Sonus Faber Amati’s, the brand new edition, and he’s not planning to tell his wife until after they arrive!  Brave soul!

nyev OP
1,023 posts
 

My time with the Merason DAC-1 has been truly enlightening. Pretty much everything I said above that I attributed to my Innuos gear I now realize was coming from my Diablo DAC module. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s an excellent performer more resolution than the DAC-1 (which is unfair to say as my DAC-1 remains hobbled by my current basic RCA cable at its lower output voltage vs balanced).

But the significant bottom-up balance of the Gryphon DAC really constrains the midrange. The DAC-1 is showing me how expressive the midrange can be, with far more emotion. And as I mentioned, it’s nothing to do with performance of the DAC other than being neutral.  Some songs are now a fundamentally different experience with a fuller and open mid.

Nothing I haven’t said already as I continue to wait for the MU1 and cables, but my realization is, I think my focus on the DAC side of things is really increasing. Will wait to see how the MU1 does with the Gryphon DAC before doing anything drastic, but I’m not sure the MU1 would actually change the heavy tonal balance of my Gryphon DAC. @ghasley I think was predicting where this might end up. I’ve now been looking into the Tambaqui.

Will take it slow though - as I need to! A few things I need to take care of on the financial side of things before I go down that path. Will give me a chance to get to know the MU1 first. Which is apparently ready to ship next week, but shipping will take some time…. Might be a couple more weeks.

debjit_g
247 posts
 

I have only heard good things about the MU1. My experience with various DIY streamers and servers has been quiet revealing to say the least over the years. I have found that a extremely well made (carefully chosen h/w with supporting s/w) streamer/server can turn the table up-side down. The better these sources are the less I have found the differences between the DACs. Off-coarse there is a balancing act that plays here - for example, a $50k will obviously sound better than a $5k DAC with the same streamer/server but a well executed $5k DAC can walk toe-to-toe or even better with a better streamer/server than a mediocre streamer/server paired with a $8-10k DAC. I would hold onto unless the MU1 is in hand and you have the chance to play with your current DAC and find the synergy.

Having said that, I wonder if anyone here has compared the MU1 with the best of the servers available in the market today - like Innuos statement or the Taiko Extreme or the PF Ultra or the Antipodes ?

 

 

nyev OP
1,023 posts
 

@debjit_g , on other forums and also in some reviews, I’ve seen people mostly say that the Taiko Extreme bests the MU1. At a more “Extreme” cost, of course….

In terms of generalizations I think Christiaan at HiFi Advice seems to do a good job describing the differences between the K50 and MU1, as others seem to agree with him. Check out the reviews and his short YouTube video where he contrasts the two products sound differences. He declared them both “favourites”. I’ve not seen any comparisons at all with the Statement. But all are great from what I understand. Stereophile should be doing their review of the new Statement with Next Gen power supply anytime now. For what it’s worth. They’ve been testing it for many months. I know pro reviews are of limited value but it can help in a general way. Stereophile raves about the K50 and the MU1, but I thought their original Statement review seemed to be less enthusiastic. Not bad, but just not using any of the typical superlatives. So it will be interesting to see what they say about the new version and whether they put it on a pedestal like they did with the MU1 and K50. Statement next-Gen is in a higher price tier though, more along the lines of the Antipodes Oladra.  Not that price means anything but sometimes it does (see the Taiko Extreme).

nyev OP
1,023 posts
 

A used mint condition Mola Mola Tambaqui came up for sale from a Canadian distributor for a fair price, so I went for it. Really looking forward to listening to this pairing, comparing with the Diablo DAC, and comparing with my Innuos Zenith Mk III & PhoenixUSB.  The prior owner of my Tambaqui traded it in for a Kassandra.

I feel like this should be a winning combo (one of the designers who had a hand in designing the MU1 also designed the Tambaqui). Not too concerned buying the MU1 and Tambaqui unheard; these two products sell fast on the used market. But hoping I don’t have to go there!

My phone wants to enter “Tampon” every time I write Tambaqui.

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