LAIV Harmony


New company with a new product.  There are several "professional" reviews out there, but not much consumer input here or elsewhere.  Those that have been using now for over a month, what are your thoughts?  What were you using previously and how does it compare?

audiostick

Hi  audiostick I will post that info as soon as I can get it down here to listen to .

My friend lives about an hour away and he is a busy guy .So I have not heard anything yet from him. He did tell me  , initially , that LAiV said that because of the modular boards it should not be a hard thing to do . I guess they were thinking of a quicker repair time if he does it . I agree . If it is kind of easy I would rather handle it myself . They also sent him a shipping sticker so that he can get it back  to them and  they can check it out.

All though I may be disappointed if this kind of thing happened to me . I do think it is being handled in a proper way and I will also keep you all informed of the  ongoing  situation . as best I can .

One more thing --- I should have my Dac in a few weeks . I will try and post a comparison between it and the Directstream Jr.  ( if this thread is still active at the time )

So, I'm the guy with the broken Harmony DAC. The input board went bad. I contacted Laiv the next day, and 4 days later a new board arrived by FedEx from China. Installation was smooth except for a tricky ribbon cable that I had not ever seen a connector like that before. I hooked it up and it's working fine. I have only been able to test the coaxial so far, but I suspect the USB will be working fine as well. I really want to commend Laiv for acting so fast. If I had to ship the unit back to China to have it repaired it would have taken a lot longer (minimum 2 weeks).

@koestner Glad to hear if went smoothly and that Laiv seems to be doing a good job standing by their products.  Love to hear your thoughts once you have some hours on it. 

I have had mine for weeks now (edti, received and put into use on 5/14/24). On my system it competes with my older high end dacs (Theta Gen V; Lexicon, ES) and my newer ChiFi DAC (D90SE).

I really like it. Very quiet and sounds great. Have used in in NOS mode quite a bit and OS for a week or so. Whilst I seem to prefer NOS, in any setting it sounds great, noise is lower than the others and (i know subjective) it sounds more musical than the Topping.

I find myself listening to music longer without fatigue. Also at a higher SPL.

It is a good looking piece also and remote its superb.

I say, give it a try. I could have bought any and my budget for a new DAC was up to $15K. I decided to try the LAiV since I wanted to try a ladder type. No complaints from me. It has become the DAC on input #1 on my PreAmp!

Dear friends,

 

I am Weng Fai, founder of LAiV Audio based in Singapore. Thank you @audiostick  for creating this thread on one of the largest forums in the US!

 

We’ve got some great news about the LAiV Harmony DAC! Our team has been working hard to ensure everything is perfect, and we’re excited to share where we’re at.

 

Current Status:

  • Production: The DAC(s) are currently in the final stages of production.
  • Quality Assurance: Each unit is undergoing rigorous testing to ensure it delivers the superior sound quality and reliability you expect from LAiV.
  • Estimated Shipping Date: We’re shipping out orders as we speak! Backorders are currently being fulfilled. If you’ve placed an order with us, you’ll be receiving your tracking information very soon!


We appreciate your patience and understanding. Trust us, the wait will be worth it—the LAiV Harmony DAC is going to take your audio experience to the next level.

 

Thanks for hanging in there with us!

 

Best regards,
Weng Fai
Founder, LAiV Audio