Lampizator Big 7 Review

Nice review.

A few comments:

1. PCM to DSD upsampling was not created eaqual. As good as Jriver is in terms of features / ease of use, it is no match to HQ Player in terms of sound quality;

2. server used has a big influence on sound quality. A Macbook is no match to full blown CAPS v3 or v4 servers. It is like comparing $500 CD transport to $10.000 one;

3. Try the WE 101D replica tubes if you have a chance. Many Lampi owners consider them the best sounding option, and this is what Łukasz recommends (and this is also the tube that comes standard with Golden Gate).

I agree that the Lampi deliveres out of this world experience with DSD.
 
Elbroth i conpletly agree. But I am happy he like as much as he did. Mike has come along way and I do agree can go further with a sever.
I have a custom caps all out assault one pc setup and the new AO beta with jplay is amazing with any dac I have a tried
Truly another level stuff as said and for me it's true.
The 101 d is the most detailed tube for the lampi. It's level of detail is mind altering.
But for be its hyper detailed but looses some of the note thickness that make it real for me. But if you want to hear anything that was on that recording it's the one. You can the mixing on the fly as it happens in realtime not just after its mixed in.
Enjoy mike
 
Mike, great review. Really good info. I'm of the same belief as Mark though. iPad app and streamer. I monkey enough with vinyl


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Hello, Mike.

Reading your review today was a very pleasant surprise. Thanks for taking the time and effort to pen your thoughts honestly, the 7 is a truly marvelous unit. I have a Big 7 and a Lite 7 in my own home which I enjoy daily.

One thought I wanted to add with respect to fine tuning the presentation -- different tubes can change the presentation dramatically. For the full scale orchestra, for example--a modestly priced pair of electroharmonix 2a3s may have given you that last bit of dysmic expression you craved. The EML you listened to is somewhat of a jack of all trades, but hardly the last word in tube rolling (though the EML 45 Anniversary Globes are mind blowing).

In any event, thanks for the review and for adding this discussion forum.

Best,

Fred A.
LampizatOr North America
 
Elberoth said:
Nice review.

A few comments:

1. PCM to DSD upsampling was not created eaqual. As good as Jriver is in terms of features / ease of use, it is no match to HQ Player in terms of sound quality;

2. server used has a big influence on sound quality. A Macbook is no match to full blown CAPS v3 or v4 servers. It is like comparing $500 CD transport to $10.000 one;

3. Try the WE 101D replica tubes if you have a chance. Many Lampi owners consider them the best sounding option, and this is what Łukasz recommends (and this is also the tube that comes standard with Golden Gate).

I agree that the Lampi deliveres out of this world experience with DSD.
Click to expand...


Adam, I have tried to get you to weigh in on a very difficult question in the past and I know you are reluctant, but, respectfully, please allow me to try again. If you were forced to live with one and only one dac (assuming your entire collection was magically converted and upsampled to the format of your choice) would you choose the Trinity (pcm) or Lampi (dsd)?
 
Since I have more than one I like I think answer is both . Why not if we could afford more than one car would we still have just one. It's moot point of you ask me.

On another thought as I wait for my head dac return I wanted to share something. I had planed a while back to buy the woo audio wa234. IT rolls all the tubes the head dac does. Now since my woo wa5 is bested by the head dac amp section it's simple and far cheaper to own the head dac . I think when it comes back and gets known it's to be the next big thing for lampi .
 
Elberoth said:
Nice review.

A few comments:

1. PCM to DSD upsampling was not created eaqual. As good as Jriver is in terms of features / ease of use, it is no match to HQ Player in terms of sound quality;

2. server used has a big influence on sound quality. A Macbook is no match to full blown CAPS v3 or v4 servers. It is like comparing $500 CD transport to $10.000 one;

3. Try the WE 101D replica tubes if you have a chance. Many Lampi owners consider them the best sounding option, and this is what Łukasz recommends (and this is also the tube that comes standard with Golden Gate).

I agree that the Lampi deliveres out of this world experience with DSD.
Click to expand...

Please take this as constructive criticism. The first two points are the kinds of things that drive 95% of audiophiles away from purchasing a Lampizator. It reminds me of the 1990's and why people tuned out all the nerdy computer talk of mother boards, faster ram, video cards and the like. There was ALWAYS the next best thing coming along. There was always some faster RAM that would eek out the previous one by 1/1000 of a nanosecond. There was always a bigger hard drive. There was always a slightly faster video card. But all this geek speak is one reason why Apple made a roaring success. They didn't engage in it. Instead, they turned the computer into an appliance and made it seen as something people would want to use - and it worked. Sure, the specs were there buried in the data somewhere, but Apple realized, it was about the USER EXPERIENCE and not the geek speak.

I have an IT background. I own two IT consulting companies. I can speak the geek with the best of them. But when I come home, I don't want to nerd out. I just want to listen and I suspect 95% of the audiophiles reading this will feel the same way. Yesterday JRiver was the favorite son. Today its HQPlayer. Tomorrow it will be something else. Today its a full blown CAPS V4 hand delivered by virgins from the mountains of Peru. Tomorrow it will be something else.

My advise to the Lampi crowd is this: you have a great story, but you need to find a finished, polished, front end solution to recommend for the 95%. The Devialet guys are having this discussion now. Sure, they could nerd out, but instead, they are discussing Aurender, Auralic Aries, and similar. Sure, sure, sure, the simple solution might not have that last 1% of tech greatness, heck, it may not even have the last 10%, but it will appeal to the average audiophile. What I'm talking about is something like the Aurender N100 or X100L (and skip the NAS part). The Aurender (and products like it) are plug and play front-end solutions. The Aurender and similar have an iPad app. The average audiophile can turn on his Lampi, sit back and enjoy. He/she can build playlists from the wonderful iPad app. He/she can upsample PCM to DSD without ever leaving their chair. The Aurender is just one product, there are many others out there which are polished and easy to use.

Sure, tube rolling is fun. I don't think most audiophiles will object to that, quite the opposite.

But all this geek speak which changes like the weather and seems to be discussed on one site and changed tomorrow as to what's best is deterring would-be Lampi buyers.

I think Aurender or someone similar would be a pretty good demo/show partner for Lampizator. Just my two cents.
 
Alrainbow said:
Since I have more than one I like I think answer is both . Why not if we could afford more than one car would we still have just one. It's moot point of you ask me.
Click to expand...


The point of my question to Adam is to address the age old question argued in these forums ad nauseam regarding pcm vesus dsd. Many of the arguments are based on hearing a particular format on a less than optimum dac and blaming the outcome on the format not the dac. It is rare IMO to have an opportunity to hear each of the formats on a true sota dac in the same system, ergo my keen interest in getting Adam to weigh-in. Jerry is also in a unique position to opine on this topic given he has the Big 7 and the Berkeley Ref.
 
Mike said:
Please take this as constructive criticism. The first two points are the kinds of things that drive 95% of audiophiles away from purchasing a Lampizator. It reminds me of the 1990's and why people tuned out all the nerdy computer talk of mother boards, faster ram, video cards and the like. There was ALWAYS the next best thing coming along. There was always some faster RAM that would eek out the previous one by 1/1000 of a nanosecond. There was always a bigger hard drive. There was always a slightly faster video card. But all this geek speak is one reason why Apple made a roaring success. They didn't engage in it. Instead, they turned the computer into an appliance and made it seen as something people would want to use - and it worked. Sure, the specs were there buried in the data somewhere, but Apple realized, it was about the USER EXPERIENCE and not the geek speak.

I have an IT background. I own two IT consulting companies. I can speak the geek with the best of them. But when I come home, I don't want to nerd out. I just want to listen and I suspect 95% of the audiophiles reading this will feel the same way. Yesterday JRiver was the favorite son. Today its HQPlayer. Tomorrow it will be something else. Today its a full blown CAPS V4 hand delivered by virgins from the mountains of Peru. Tomorrow it will be something else.

My advise to the Lampi crowd is this: you have a great story, but you need to find a finished, polished, front end solution to recommend for the 95%. The Devialet guys are having this discussion now. Sure, they could nerd out, but instead, they are discussing Aurender, Auralic Aries, and similar. Sure, sure, sure, the simple solution might not have that last 1% of tech greatness, heck, it may not even have the last 10%, but it will appeal to the average audiophile. What I'm talking about is something like the Aurender N100 or X100L (and skip the NAS part). The Aurender (and products like it) are plug and play front-end solutions. The Aurender and similar have an iPad app. The average audiophile can turn on his Lampi, sit back and enjoy. He/she can build playlists from the wonderful iPad app. He/she can upsample PCM to DSD without ever leaving their chair. The Aurender is just one product, there are many others out there which are polished and easy to use.

Sure, tube rolling is fun. I don't think most audiophiles will object to that, quite the opposite.

But all this geek speak which changes like the weather and seems to be discussed on one site and changed tomorrow as to what's best is deterring would-be Lampi buyers.

I think Aurender or someone similar would be a pretty good demo/show partner for Lampizator. Just my two cents.
Click to expand...

True Mike but I hope Lucasz ignores your counsel, the backlog is already too long. :P
 
FlexibleAudio said:
True Mike but I hope Lucasz ignores your counsel, the backlog is already too long. :P
Click to expand...

I actually have full confidence that he's just hitting his stride. I'm sure a bigger production facility is just around the corner. [emoji6]


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Mike said:
I actually have full confidence that he's just hitting his stride. I'm sure a bigger production facility is just around the corner. [emoji6]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

And I have a feeling his next gen products will address your points regarding ergonomics by making DSD conversion and upsampling a no brainer interface. In addition, I expect his DSD methodology will be copied by many. Raw DSD playback without conversion (using filters only) approaches analogue as a matter of science not just sound (especially 256).
 
Mike said:
Please take this as constructive criticism. The first two points are the kinds of things that drive 95% of audiophiles away from purchasing a Lampizator. It reminds me of the 1990's and why people tuned out all the nerdy computer talk of mother boards, faster ram, video cards and the like. There was ALWAYS the next best thing coming along. There was always some faster RAM that would eek out the previous one by 1/1000 of a nanosecond. There was always a bigger hard drive. There was always a slightly faster video card. But all this geek speak is one reason why Apple made a roaring success. They didn't engage in it. Instead, they turned the computer into an appliance and made it seen as something people would want to use - and it worked. Sure, the specs were there buried in the data somewhere, but Apple realized, it was about the USER EXPERIENCE and not the geek speak.

I have an IT background. I own two IT consulting companies. I can speak the geek with the best of them. But when I come home, I don't want to nerd out. I just want to listen and I suspect 95% of the audiophiles reading this will feel the same way. Yesterday JRiver was the favorite son. Today its HQPlayer. Tomorrow it will be something else. Today its a full blown CAPS V4 hand delivered by virgins from the mountains of Peru. Tomorrow it will be something else.

My advise to the Lampi crowd is this: you have a great story, but you need to find a finished, polished, front end solution to recommend for the 95%. The Devialet guys are having this discussion now. Sure, they could nerd out, but instead, they are discussing Aurender, Auralic Aries, and similar. Sure, sure, sure, the simple solution might not have that last 1% of tech greatness, heck, it may not even have the last 10%, but it will appeal to the average audiophile. What I'm talking about is something like the Aurender N100 or X100L (and skip the NAS part). The Aurender (and products like it) are plug and play front-end solutions. The Aurender and similar have an iPad app. The average audiophile can turn on his Lampi, sit back and enjoy. He/she can build playlists from the wonderful iPad app. He/she can upsample PCM to DSD without ever leaving their chair. The Aurender is just one product, there are many others out there which are polished and easy to use.

Sure, tube rolling is fun. I don't think most audiophiles will object to that, quite the opposite.

But all this geek speak which changes like the weather and seems to be discussed on one site and changed tomorrow as to what's best is deterring would-be Lampi buyers.

I think Aurender or someone similar would be a pretty good demo/show partner for Lampizator. Just my two cents.
Click to expand...

Hallelujah and Amen!
 
FlexibleAudio said:
The point of my question to Adam is to address the age old question argued in these forums ad nauseam regarding pcm vesus dsd. Many of the arguments are based on hearing a particular format on a less than optimum dac and blaming the outcome on the format not the dac. It is rare IMO to have an opportunity to hear each of the formats on a true sota dac in the same system, ergo my keen interest in getting Adam to weigh-in. Jerry is also in a unique position to opine on this topic given he has the Big 7 and the Berkeley Ref.
Click to expand...
I own a big7 and msb stack do I qualify ?? Lol.
 
cmalak said:
Hallelujah and Amen!
Click to expand...

Thank you Cyril. Others have already PM'd me to say they agree. I personally will be looking at an Aurender N100. I love simple. The Aurender iPad app is superb and easy to use. Total plug-n-play.


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FlexibleAudio said:
And I have a feeling his next gen products will address your points regarding ergonomics by making DSD conversion and upsampling a no brainer interface. In addition, I expect his DSD methodology will be copied by many. Raw DSD playback without conversion (using filters only) approaches analogue as a matter of science not just sound (especially 256).
Click to expand...

It must be heard to be believed. It isn't just better sounding DSD - it's in another league entirely.


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Mike yes of course. And at one time I did feel,like you and it's why I spent the money I did ona msb stack with the umt plus as well plug and play. But truth be told although complex there is much more that can be had. But agin I see and respect ypur point . I to have ankrell connect for,jus that purpose at my office plug and play from my iPhone or iPad. Very simple.
Pal
 
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