Mola Mola Tambaqui Roon vs Separate Streamers

@davetheoilguy - I have a Lumin U1X in another system that I added to my system with the Mola Mola Kula which includes the Tambaqui module.  Although I noticed an improvement in the imaging and possibly width of the soundstage, the upgrade from the internal Tambaqui streamer wasn't enough for me to keep the U1X in my Mola Mola system.  I've since put the U1X back in the other system where it pairs fantastically with a Holo Audio May KTE DAC.

I'm still looking for a better streamer match for the Mola Mola and am considering a Grimm MU1 next year.  I love the Lumin products, but the Lumin house sound wasn't a great compliment to the Mola Mola (for me) and the quality of the Mola Mola streamer was better than I was anticipating.

@oczed 

Thank you.  I’m kind of doing the reverse search — finding the DAC that will match of with my Lumin U1x.  I have Tidal and everything all set there and don’t feel like reinventing my playlists outside of the Lumin software.

i wonder if the dcs Vivaldi apex would be a better choice.

what specifically about the Lumin U1x/Tabaqui combo was not ideal?  I understand both to be on the analytical side.  I’m actually OK with this bc my preamp is Nagra HD pre which is extremely precise and fast but also warm. 

The best advice I can give is to try the U1X with another DAC and then you can more readily identify the Lumin sound. For me, it added too much coloration to the sound of the Mola Mola to my liking.  This description likely isn’t helpful, but I would describe the Lumin as sort of a laser like sound which was too much of a contrast to the more neutral Mola Mola presentation.

I don’t have any in-depth experience with the DCS DACs, so I can’t comment on them here. I will reiterate how much I love the U1X with the Holo Audio May KTE DAC. Both the May and the Tambaqui have excellent imaging, with the May being slightly softer and warmer in presentation. For whatever reason, that combination works in that system to my ears.

@saurabhgarg The Tambaqui is a “zippy” DAC in my experience, and I’ve found it fatiguing in some configurations. Have you played with the voltage settings? If you increase the voltage to 4 or 5V output, some of that fatigue may go away. 

Using a dedicated streamer instead of the one built in will also help, in my opinion, as well as good cabling. Feel free to PM me and I’d be happy to provide additional guidance. 

@davetheoilguy Lumin has a slightly more detailed/analytical sound, so you should be looking potentially at more harmonically rich DACs. I am an authorized T+A dealer, so take this with a grain of salt, but if you’re looking at the DCS Vivaldi Apex, one unit to consider is the T+A PSD 3100 HV. It does have the preamp built in as well, but for MSRP $22K, the quality of its DAC nears the $39K reference SDV 3100 HV. T+A HV Series DACs are well known for their harmonics and organic presentation and are denser/richer with improved effortlessness, decay and air compared to their renowned DAC 200. 

Other DAC brands to consider may be EMM and MSB.