[TChan]

Unboxing of Holo Audio RED


Having opened the packaging container, Holo RED meets us with two more boxes:



In the upper box, by tradition, there was a power cable, and ... a flash drive!



In the bottom box, the unpacking hero himself is already waiting for us:



The freed neat, perfectly assembled, red bar also unexpectedly pleases with its weight, which does not colorize with its dimensions:



Here is another example of the small dimensions of RED compared to Holo Spring:



A few more portraits as a bonus:









Next, it is expected to warm up and test in 2 stages:

1) Warming up and testing the streamer itself with a regular Internet connection. Time reference - 3-5 days.
2) The second one is connecting through “cleared shores” courtesy of @LKir and @Nirealto . “Berega” includes: kit with LBP Teddy Pardo, power cables from Fedotov and LAN cables AQ with GCR), i2s HDMI cable RAL and fuse SR Purple. Also, just in case, we put a Samsung EVO MicroSD card, which proved to be good along with the Wolf. I'll figure it out myself as I go along.
The time reference is after January 23, when the above-mentioned nishtyaks arrive.

I will compare with my iMac:



If anyone is interested, I can post a review later.

Hello !

see that your TF card comes with packing. Is it Red OS pre-copied or you need to download and copy it yourselves ? Thks!

 

[FOUNDERZERO]

For those who have been using the RED for at least a week: How warm does the unit get?

 

[jgladden36]

Hello !

see that your TF card comes with packing. Is it Red OS pre-copied or you need to download and copy it yourselves ? Thks!

it is preinstalled. only need to drop in the card.

 

[Since1991]

I got mine coming in around the 23rd, how do I install the Red controller software on PC? Or is there even a software for PC?

 

[jgladden36]

I ordered the red because i was unhappy w bluos not expecting to hear a difference between it and the node nl130. I never thought two good quality streamers would have much influence on the sound but in this case I am floored.

Not sure if I am getting synergy with the holo preamp and holo may but I am hearing very significant improvement with the red. It is very resolving giving the impression a wider range of frequencies are presented - controlled, deep bass, a lovely mid-range with precise and clean top end. The holo preamp vividly renders the decay of sounds resulting in a perceived elongated tempo, through the streamer the accuracy of detail is startling.

Every chain is unique but I highly recommend a demo if given the opportunity. How a streamer has any influence on the sonic characteristics makes no sense to me. If I read this from someone else I would definitely raise my eyebrows. I have been a huge doubter of the extent of the role a streamer has in a chain but am no more.

First day impression so maybe new toy syndrome is biasing my impressions but my bet, we get some great measurements.

 

[jgladden36]

I got mine coming in around the 23rd, how do I install the Red controller software on PC? Or is there even a software for PC?

no software is required unless you want to swap red os for an alternative. you access the red’s UI by finding its ip on your local network and typing that in to a web browser.

 

[TChan]

Just type red.local in your browser and you will find your Red. It do not have its own player but support upnp, naa, ..... etc. You can play through 3rd party pgm.

 

[bazelio]

For those who have been using the RED for at least a week: How warm does the unit get?

It stays cool. So cool, in fact, that I wouldn't recommend putting your tongue on it.

 

[iFi audio]

Did you use any streamer or DDC before it ? They do have positive impact on chain

Agreed, not all setups benefit from DDCs the same way, but they can change A LOT.

 

[Will E Vormer]

Gonna have a full set of measurements later, but so far, RED has the lowest jitter of any DDC/Streamer I've tested. First thing to beat the Wavedream NET
Well done Jeff

Any idea how it compares to Pulse Mini?

 

[iFi audio]

Any idea how it compares to Pulse Mini?

Do you mean Innuos?

 

[mr_derrick]

The Red arrived today ahead of its Monday ETA.
Its frozen, will need to let its chassis temp stabilize before applying power.
The physical weight is impressive, as is the finish.
Use will be as NAA for HQPlayer streaming Qobuz compared against Sonore Signature Series Optical Rendu as NAA. ( Red is around 1/5 the $ )
HQPlayer embedded on Small Green Computer SonicTransporter i9 Optical.
Ethernet connection via Sonore Optical Module Deluxe or Uptone EtherRegen, both fed via optical.
Hopefully 1.4/1.5 MHz PCM will function. ( DAC is May KTE )

 

[iFi audio]

Its frozen, will need to let its chassis temp stabilize before applying power.

That's a good idea. Really, it is. I've seen some dramatic failures of really cold products. Otherwise, enjoy

 

[Greg121986]

Holy crap getting the RED setup was a major PITA! This thread is REQUIRED reading! I wish I had stumbled on this weeks ago. I was hoping to have a DDC that would take USB in from my Linux server running MPD, and seamlessly transition to streaming Qobuz from its native app. All out through I2S to my Spring 3 KTE. I have learned that is not quite what you get with the RED. You must power cycle the unit and its response depends on the presence or absence of a USB input. Very frustrating to manage and not at all what I had hoped for. This was certainly not depicted in the original hype generated before this thing became available.

It's still not clear on any useful source of information or retailer how this unit actually functions. I agree with some others who stated this thing should have been two separate devices. I suppose you could buy an SU-6 if you were not looking for a combined device, but I do not see the purpose of this being combined when the user experience of changing states is so unintuitive and frustrating. I adore the Holo products I've had over the years, but this one needs more development time and perhaps a completely different approach.

The real question is, when will Qobuz actually catch up and not force me to use Airplay to stream to these embedded devices running open source software? I am fed up with them and about to ditch Qobuz. There is no point paying for Qobuz only to be limited to streaming 16/44 because of Airplay. Relevant to this thread, is there any point to streaming to the RED if all you get is 16/44? It really does not seem so.

 

[FooFighter]

Holy crap getting the RED setup was a major PITA! This thread is REQUIRED reading! I wish I had stumbled on this weeks ago. I was hoping to have a DDC that would take USB in from my Linux server running MPD, and seamlessly transition to streaming Qobuz from its native app. All out through I2S to my Spring 3 KTE. I have learned that is not quite what you get with the RED. You must power cycle the unit and its response depends on the presence or absence of a USB input. Very frustrating to manage and not at all what I had hoped for. This was certainly not depicted in the original hype generated before this thing became available.

It's still not clear on any useful source of information or retailer how this unit actually functions. I agree with some others who stated this thing should have been two separate devices. I suppose you could buy an SU-6 if you were not looking for a combined device, but I do not see the purpose of this being combined when the user experience of changing states is so unintuitive and frustrating. I adore the Holo products I've had over the years, but this one needed to be reconsidered.

The real question is, when will Qobuz actually catch up and not force me to use Airplay to stream to these embedded devices running open source software? I am fed up with them and about to ditch Qobuz. There is no point paying for Qobuz only to be limited to streaming 16/44 because of Airplay. Relevant to this thread, is there any point to streaming to the RED if all you get is 16/44?

Solutions for streaming Qobuz
a) Mconnect
b) Roon
c) Audirvana
All these don't involve lossy airplay and can be controlled from your mobile device