@jerryg123 , I doubt I can get a demo of the Grimm but I can try! I’ll have to go direct because there are no Grimm dealers near me.
I’ve found pro reviewers to be FOS before for some reviews but with others they come through. For example, the PhoenixUSB and PhoenixNET were extensively reviewed and I have to agree with all the good things that were written about those products. Personally, I’ve found that when there are a large number of pro reviewers that fawn over how transformative a product is to the point that they are gushing, usually there is something to it. It’s the reviews that say “It’s great, we recommend it, if you are in the market it needs to be on your list to try” that I find you need to be wary of..
Plus, I found many posts of MU1 potential buyers who demoed then became owners at audiophilestyle. The language and descriptors they used to describe the MU1 was pretty much the same as the language used by pro reviewers. One guy even returned to give an update 6 months after purchasing, saying how great it was and describing which tweaks worked and which didn’t. Lots of experienced Innuos owners were chiming in as well, in favour of the MU1.
Nothing beats an in-system demo of course, but I find that with top end streamers from Innuos, Aurender, Antipodes, and probably Grimm, you can’t really go wrong like you can with amplifiers, cables, and speakers.
That said, I did find ONE pro review that said the 4X upsampling of the MU1 was too much for piano music, where transients became too sharp and the notes were missing lower end body. However I tried listening to the recording they referenced and the transient they referred to WAS absolutely sharp on my system, and I found the recording in general made the piano notes sound like there was no body to them. I’m guessing the MU1 was just being honest, but who knows.