HOLO Audio Spring DAC: Affordable discrete R2R Multibit Dac, could be a winner.


Many manufacturers are going back to R2R Multibit d/a conversion, a good portion of audiophiles are saying it sounds better than the cheaper d/a conversion of Delta Sigma, (1 bit), Bitstream, Saber. etc.
And it says it uses dual R2R’s Multibits to support DSD natively!!? 

Product Description:This new DAC.”Spring” is the first design of a new era, a milestone for HOLO Audio’s own Jeff Zhu. It’s a full discrete R2R type of audio decoder and does not have off the shelf-DAC chip! This is a bespoke custom-designed core DAC module and truly a breakthrough with technology for any DAC chip today. The Spring is here to achieve new heights, new dynamics and simply a full spectrum of audio to please the aural senses. This Dac has been called the poor mans Total Dac / MSB / Wavedream / Chord Dave Etc. It plays with the big boys.

https://kitsunehifi.com/product/springdacbase/

Looks amazing inside for $1,700. Schiit Yaggi better watch out!!!!



Cheers George
128x128georgehifi
Many thanks,  Charles, for the update.
I have auditioned the Bricasti in my home system and going by your description of the Holo's sound next to the Bricasti's, this is high praise indeed.

J. :)

Thanks guys,
My post was no attempt to write a  formal review but rather an impression of its performance relative to a know highly regarded reference such as the Bricasti SE.  If the additionof the Singxer SU-1 provides even modest improvement then we have a DAC of enormous performance/cost  value. This is excellent news for those shopping for terrific sound quality at very reasonable cost.
Charles 
charles1dad, it is always a good thing to post "as you hear it". There will always be skeptics. I could clearly hear "changes" with power cords. So one can understand why a fuse change might affect.
Anyways, I am now interested in 2 DACs - The Kitsune Spring Level 3 and the Bryston BDA-3. The advantage I see for Bryston is the DSD over HDMI. If there is a simple way to route a DSD to the Kitsune over IS2 via a HDMI cable, I am all ears.
Milpal,
According to my friend the Singxer SU-1 will allow the use of IS2 connection, he is awaiting his. I don’the mind the inevitable skeptics. They come with the territory of open discussion forums., I’m confident in what I hear and am comfortable reporting it. Depending on the circumstances I’ve heard a fuse or power cable make more of a difference than a tube or capacitor swap (sometimes). It varies from one situation to another.
Charles
Thanks for your feedback Charles. I too am in George's bad books for mentioning the fuse! I look forward to your findings with the addition of the singxer.

Cheers Greg