Very different Dacs doing very different stuff. The lampizator is a Dac that ultimately tries to mimic a stellar analog rig with a softer more natural top end with a organic mid range to cozy up to and it does it amazingly. The problem is I love my analog rig already and ultimately buy amazingly mastered for vinyl records that blow any Dac/streamer combo away with 70% of albums (other 30% are filled with less quality mastered vinyl or modern digital recordings that don’t transfer to vinyl as good as a nice digital stream and/or isn’t mastered by a totl tech to name a few Bernie Grundman for rock and Kevin Grey for jazz masters, Steve Hoffman for *cough dubbing/switching master tapes *cough) the spring does not try to imitate an analog turntable to me but what it does really masterfully is imitate an amazing digital front end.
The spring is half the cost of the lampi but tries to reach for something in another direction. It tells me hey I’m fucking digital and you can fuck off if you don’t like it! Wow!! There is no lowered or softened top end and the mid range isn’t propped up on a pedestal but rather it uncolors music to the degree in which the lampi achieves masterfully. The lampi really glows in the midrange how the spring shines in the top end (and all areas really equally) The top end sounds digital but without a glint of hash, glare or anything else that I hate about digital. It somehow takes 1’s and 0’s and transforms them into nice audiophile bliss with all the detail I need without a hint of being analytical. The sound is smooth without being described as smooth if that makes any sense at all. Is the lampi amazing? Well yes. Is it a better Dac? Well if you love vinyl sound but hate the ritual of records then yes. Or want to listen to streaming as close to your turntable setup with the added cost of records. Personally I’d rather throw on a record as I have not heard a Dac that comes close to a really good mastered pressing on my LP12.
(Listening to Vanessa Fernandez-UseMe while writing)
Overall the spring is the winner for me not because one is better than the other but more that it is a perfect compliment to my turntable setup and doesn’t try to imitate it or compete but simply gives me a fresh take of digital sound without any hint of what always draws me back to vinyl. I reach for the spring a lot now!
Added edits:
Bass through each Dac
-Lampizator- a nice warm wave, nice and flowing with liquid characteristics.
spring 1- a surfer absolutely shredding that wave apart with melodic twists and turns and Thor like thunderous impact.
Acoustic guitars through each Dac
Lampizator- organic, glowing and vibrant
Spring1- the plucks of the strings have a speed to them and the high end rings magically. Sounds great with low volumes too.
This has been written via my Devore Orangutans and ref75. What about using it through my Auteurs and Bigger Ben?
Same differences but subtle in nature. I was always told people hear bigger differences when listening through headphones vs. speakers but I find it easier to tell with speakers as nothing is restricting soundstage wise. Speakers uncompressed sound into a big room and is easy to tell subtle changes vs. a small sound stuck in an inch wide area next to my ears. Maybe my experience is more apparent with 2 ch.
After all said and done I’m really digging listening to records via my headphones. Better than the Lampizator but different than the spring. The spring has really clean and impactful lower frequencies in the headphones vs. the vinyl and Lampizator. The bass thuds are tight and correct sounding. No color or warmth. Lampizator is still a bit too soft on headphones but some songs it works as a positive especially hot recordings and certain powerful heavy punching genres.
Added info:
Lampizator retail $5500
Spring 1 KTE $2500
Both used via Bryson bdp 2 streamer. Xlr in/out on spring, rca in/out on lampi.
Great writeup and comparison. Having never heard high end Dac’s like this it’s really nice for somebody to give lesser mortals like myself a taste of what they may be like to hear. Thank you.
I was hoping to show by adding retail prices is to show how price points are not the end all and that dacs costing much less can be a better pairing vs expensive high end dacs. the Lampi is 3k more expensive than the spring yet in my system I find the spring a way better fit.
We may not agree on a lot of stuff, let us agree on Vinyl sounding like Vinyl, and having a DAC to complement which does not try to replicate Vinyl. Well done.
Agree not sure a dac like a MSB Select at $100K is $95K better than a Holo May at lets say $5000 . But people do buy based on name and looks and stellar reviews. I’ve heard the Select and sure its nice, but I don’t think its $95K nice.
The whole X%/X$ better never made any sense to me, how do you quantify what 50% better even means?
It is what it is and it costs what it costs, value is entirely subjective, and heavily dependent on your circumstances.
I’m not about to buy a $100K DAC, or even a $40K DAC, but for people in a different financial position than me might find those numbers entirely reasonable.
My experience in general with expensive gear is for at least the stuff you can find dealers for it’s usually very good, it’s not always my tastes, but you can generally hear why it’s expensive.
That might be true when the gear is matched correctly with other gear, be it dacs’ pre-amps’ amps’; speakers to include headphones, turntables, phono amps, cartridges . I’ve heard some upper tier gear that sounded great. But a person can match lesser priced gear and also have a good sound. There is price and there is “price” where few, which I don’t have a problem with as it supports and drives the hobby we are into.
Every night I tell my gear a lullaby and tuck them in. They also get all the food groups on a daily basis. it’s ok if my dacs know how to spit a little attitude as long they sing sweet melodies when I ask.
Yea, definitely not keeping the Lampizator after thinking about it. The spring compliments my system too well.
Also prices of components makes me think about the pharmaceutical business where aspirin is mass produced and cheap but a medication that treats a rare form of a disease with only 20 people prescribed cost half a million dollars. Extreme comparison but sometimes the crazy expensive gear is made for a very select crowd and is made for a few where other dacs are mass produced without all the glitz and glamor. Sometimes the esthetics are a huge chunk of the value and align more with art and showmanship over practicality and sound quality.
To bring it back to topic I’d like to see a May KTE compare with twice it’s price and see if it’s twice as good. Slim chance but will it double in being conversation starting material?
I mean how the hell does chord make the Dave so small yet pack the amount of greatness in it while looking super unique?
Low volume plays a large role in retail costs. A small company like Lampizator employs a relative handful of people and they require staff with strong technical skills. Tech employees are not cheap and they have many job options. If the company sells a few dozen or a few hundred items per year, the gross sales need to cover materials costs, purchased components, engineering costs, office overhead, medical insurance, retirement plans, etc. Even after charging $$$$$$$$ for their products, they may not make much (or any) profit at all. This is why boutique items tend to be pricy.
Note that some hobby builders don’t rely on the income from sales, so they effectively give their labor and overhead away.
I have a couple of questions regarding Holo Audio products but before I move on let me just preface by saying my question is not intended to slight Holo’s approach to sell dac but rather as an interested party looking to see which dac option is most optimal for me. Most information regarding the upgrades are well documented on their website but it is still very confusing. The tone and nature of some of my question may seem negative but please understand that my intention is to get some clarity and not to smear mud on Holo’s branding and product.
Has anyone ever considered the level 1 version of any of their lineup? It seems like most of the folks opted for the level 2 or kte version of the dacs which can range from several hundreds to over a thousand dollars more. Having no access to hear the dac 1st hand before purchasing it is difficult to discern whether the upgrades from L1 to L2 or even KTE are worth the premium.
@Torq did mentioned in an earlier post that the differences are subtle for the original spring dac between L1 to KTE and it requires critical AB listening to identify the differences. Now the prices of the dac are becoming very close especially between L1 May and Spring 3 KTE and this to me put the both L1 May and Spring 3 KTE in a very awkward position.
On one hand if the Spring 3 KTE can compete sonically with the L1 May but at a lower cost makes it a very attractive proposition but makes the L1 sort of redundant and potentially a bad purchase decision. On the other hand if it doesn’t then this makes the L1 May a very attractive upgrade for just 500 dollars more but at the same time makes me question the value and effectiveness of the upgrades between L1 to KTE.
Currently there’s just a bit too much variances within the lineup and this puts me in a very difficult position to comfortably shell out thousands. I’ve read many testimonies from reputable sites and reviewers to know this is very much well received by the community but the options does baffle me. Hoping to get some clarity before I make my decision.
Then there’s the question of revisions. 3 versions of Spring in 5 years? I’m all for upgrades and improvements which is why I cycle thru gear every couple of years but this seems a bit excessive. I may not need or want the upgrade but it will still affect the resale value on the original Spring/May should it happen.
