Methodology: 1. Watch a superb DAC review by Tarun, 2. Sit down in front of my system, 3. Choose music I most enjoy and that is likely to emphasise the tonality issues raised by Tarun, 4. Read about the concept of a DAC, the physics, and the manufacturer's notes and pedigree, and 5. Thoroughly enjoy myself. Many thanks as always Tarun.

Thanks for reviewing their middle of the line product, with much detail. I think most of us can get a good estimate of whether we should move up or down in the line. A very fine review indeed.

A wonderfully comprehensive review on a high quality product. Thanks Tarun, as ever your videos are a "must see" for someone interested in audio.

This is the level of construction I expect and desire to see. There’s something to be said of having options of excellence to choose from. This is the level of quality I have seen in Spectral Audio and Sutherland product lines. Well thought out layouts are not something new to this company. I’m not easily impressed, but this piece is well worthy of praise. This is what separates true craftsmanship from wannabes. Love to hear it. That is the true test. Listening for yourself in your system. It is where legends and decisions are made. Well done Tarun, bravo! Stay safe my mates!😊👍🏻😷

Greetings from sunny Malta, many thanks for your comprehensive and detailed reviews. This is very much appreciated for audiophiles like me who do not have the luxury of visiting and listen to audio equipment at their local Hifi store. Keep up the good work,

Great point about how good audio is today, especially at the lower-priced part of the market. Value for money is off the charts for everything audio. It wasn't always that way. I got into the avocation in the late 1970s. First, Dad's Dynaco, Acoustic Research, Rek-O-Kut/Shure system (which is still around, and to note, the ST-70 can still to this day be a lovely amplifier). Really good stuff was rare and mainly pricey. I got rid of all my large/heavy/complex/multi- chassis electronics and big floorstanding speakers largely due to a lack of space, but with how good all audio is today, I haven't lost anything, but gained even better performance at much lower cost, reduced footprint, and plug 'n play ease. We are in the best time of audio ever.

Great review. I recently purchased a May KTE. when connected to the source via coax the sound was good. As soon as I connected it via USB the sound was jaw dropping. This is an amazing DAC the measures well and sounds even better. Using it with HQ Player takes it up to another level

I bought a Pontus 2 mainly because of this review. Wanted a Spring 3 but can't afford one yet, this review made me think that the Pontus was worth a try first. Thanks, and excellent review!

Very Nice Review , very thorough & easy to understand & follow. I went with the Pontus2 , really nice solid piece. Sounds great, just a very clean, clear, detailed DAC with an amazing Sound Stage... Really looking forward to some serious listening sessions.. A+ for the Pontus2 .

Thanks for your review that has been very helpful in choosing Pontas II or Spring 2 Dac. Started using Spring 2 and have been enjoying music.

Great explanation of this technology. I use an inexpensive r2r DAC from Schiit Audio using my Onkyo CD player as a transport and I wouldn't go back to using the onboard DAC. Thanks for a great vid.

Hi Taran, I'm a bit late to the party but there is a reason. As always an excellent and informative review. I’ve a bit more cash available so was looking at the next level from these companies i.e Spring 3 KTE and Denafrips Venus II. Both are impossible to demo in the UK so we punters are totally reliant on reviews and forums of which there are quite a few but of variable quality and usefulness. Your site is one of the best I've come across and your equally instructive responses to comments also help. I couldn't choose between these 2 makes and I'm sure either would be highly satisfactory, but today I ordered the Venus II mainly because there was a UK dealer and the OS/NOS facility. I'm hoping your comments scale up, I'll let you know when I receive my new DAC. Thanks again and keep up the good work.

Good evening tarun, I've been very interested and impressed with the new R2 R dacs on the market, some very nice build quality and measurements as well, your review was very well informed and explained well to non audiophiles. I'm hoping to get to listen to said dacs soon if my local hifi retailers have them available, looking forward to seeing another review soon tarun keep up the good work.

Excellent review, thank you. I like that you showed the internals as well, and seeing it has optical decoupling is interesting.

Nice review again :)!! Guess what is driving my Kinki B7 mono blocks and S400s since two weeks. This thing rocks, especially with the preamp module it is one of the best value products on the market today. End game DAC / preamp for me. The combo with the B7 mono blocks is a match made in heaven to my ears :)! Final upgrade will be the S400 Mk2.

Another terrific review. It seems DACs are getting better every month!!

Excellent review. Out of my price range but I do appreciate how you describe these high end products. Keep up the good work.

The Spring looks very well sorted inside and very pretty outside, I like the copper.

Good review, liking the technical details section. R2R really stopped me disliking what I was hearing from the delta sigma technology. BTW, I still have exactly the same E39 you featured.

Once again a superb review, excellent explanations and clarity. Thanks Tarun.

Ahh Saturday morning again and another excellent Tarun review, even if it is another digital one going over the head of this old analogue dinosaur. Thanks Tarun but you're still not convincing me to move away from my LPs.

Thanks for the awesome review Tarun!! I have been debating getting the Pontus 2 or the Holo Spring 3, L2 with Preamp module. You're the first reviewer that goes into comparison between your existing preamp vs the preamp module in the Spring3. Had some questions for you :) 1- Would you recommend pairing the Spring 3 (exact config as your review unit) to a Purifi-based Class D amp? Like the NAD C298? Or would you opt to pair it with a Hegel class AB? My speakers measure quite flat so I am wondering what amp I should combine the Holo S3 with. 2- What sources did you use with the Holo / Denafrips? Would a BlueSound Node be good enough to notice the Spring 3's full capabilities? I plan to use it direct USB to PC/Mac and Coax to Node. As always, highly appreciate your reviews and review style.

Another excellent review Tarun. Thank you!!

Your reviews are superb, thank you. I am very tempted to buy the Spring DAC now.

Fantastic review as always Tarun

Thanks! This does sound like a outstanding DAC and maybe one day. This year my disposable is going into a 77" OLED with the new EVO screen.

Another superb review. And such a great voice, you should consider doing Audible books Tarun. What would you pair it with when using headphones instead of speakers. Under say 1000 pounds? Headphones are HD8800s, ZMF VC, LCD3's. Cheers John

you always make me hungry when you describe things have to call you the audio chef lol

I know Jeff Zhu before the release of Spring 1. I was one of the users of the Holo Audio T.Rex 1704 DAC. This Spring 3 looks like an upgrade in the signal processing part like what he always pursue for years. I look forward to listen to it soon.

Thanks Tarun, another excellent video. I have been eagerly anticipating this review as the Holo Spring 3 is joint top of my wish list with the Denafrips Pontus 2. It's going to be a tricky decision, but I'm tempted to push the boat out and go for a Spring 3 KTE version!

saw the holo on the back in previous videos, looking forward to watch this video. Denafrips still king? who knows!!

Hello Tarun, first I would like to congratulate and give you may thanks for your transparent and fair reviews. Could you give a review about a technical interesting DAC. I’m talking about SONNET MORPHEUS DAC. cheers!!!

Nice review, Tarun. I especially liked the tour of the inside.

Thank you for the Holo vs Pontus 2 comparison. That was information I was very curious about. Perhaps next you can find an R2R DAC which uses tubes & of the same $2k-$3k price range?

Great review, again. For me, ignorance is bliss - I really don’t notice all the finer qualities you mention, when listening to my music - so I’m happy, with a significantly smaller hole in my pocket 😀 But I did notice better dynamics when using the pre-amp of the Audiolab instead of the volume control on the RME ADI-2 DAC.

Hi Tarun, I'd love to hear your thoughts on how the Chord Qutest and or the TT2 stack up against these R2R dacs if possible?

Hey Tarun, thanks for a great review, always really helpful. I would love you to review the Denafrips Thallo amp, there aren't many reviews on this amp but it has been given high praise.

Love your review structure, the explanations and most importantly the existence of COMPARISONS. The R2R market looks hot now. Any idea how the Holo Spring and the Denafrips Pontus compare to a similarly priced european solution like the Metrum Onyx?

Another great objective review Tarun. Thank you

Thanks for another great review. Would love to see Holo Audio do smaller R2R DAC that you can use on a desktop (Ares II or Musician Pegasus sized).

I respect your work sir!Next please review Gustard R26 if you have a chance!

Thank you for another intelligent review

Thanks Tarun this one is to rich for my blood but loved your review. Had seen a couple reviews now al good ones. Right now using a Bifrost but had looked into the Aries love it for my speed.

Hi Tarun, when you used the Spring 3 with your Exposure pre-amp, what volume did you set the Spring to? Is it best to up the volume on your Exposure and lower the Spring’s volume or vice-versa? Thank you for a fantastic channel, all the best, Jim

Nice review Tarun…and nice GMT master as well 😉

Awesome Review! Love your Video's ! Can you do a Video on good Streamers to use with the spring3 or May?

Excellent review as usual

I ordered Spring 3 DAC after watching this review !

Brilliant review... detailed, paced, balanced. 👏🏻

Hi Tarun, excellent review as usual. I particularly liked the comparison to the Denafrips and the SMSL. I currently have the Lampizator Big 7 mk2 R-2R DAC which i love and I keep wondering how the Holo Audio May might sound in comparison……..it never ends!

Great review. I wish I could hear these different dacs. I can only comment on what I have, a Questyle CMA400i and I think it sounds very natural. I hope you get to review a Questyle Dac sometime, would like to hear your comments on it.

Hello Tarun. Hello from Bruce in Canada Enjoy all your reviews. Saw your review of the HOLO Dacs and wanted to seek your opinion on the Spring 3 DAC. Some reviews state that if your system is under a certain value (speakers/amp/transport) then you maybe wasting the funds and should consider spending the money on upgrading speakers or amp. Recently retired and this maybe the last update to my gear. Have purchased within my budget new speakers (Q Acoustics Concept 40 & new amp MOON 240i internal dac). Using my old ARCAM DV27 cd/dvd player and must admit the sound is very good. Do you think spending approx $3000.00 CDN is worth it or should I upgrade the amp/speakers? Any reply or comment would be appreciated.

Hope at some point you can review the MHDT Orchid DAC (R2R and -- a key difference -- a tube). It has a great following and can be modded out. I had an upgrade to mine and he did the following: Replace and upgrade 8 key resistors directly around the tube with a mix of Vishay Zfoils, Audio Note Tantalum non-magnetic and Shinkoh. Also replaced the output caps to the great sounding VH Audio Audio Vcap Odam 2.2uf. Total cost for DAC after these mods is still about $1500. It sounds spacious, resolving, detailed, and smooth.

Thank You for another excellent in depth review. I followed what you were saying but couldn't repeat any of it. It sounds like you might be in for a new DAC, one or the other? I think DACs make a great difference in musical enjoyment. I went through several before I found one that sounded right and didn't cause any smoke to rise from my visa card. I know it sounds like a Schiit Parade from me, but I enjoy the Gungnir Multbit. No remote and no filters. Just good. I noticed you have some country music in your favorites. You might want to try All The Roadrunning by Emmylou Harris and Mark Knopfler. Light country but an elegant musical experience. Also great fun is Neck and Neck with Knopfler and Chet Akins. Some guitar amazing there. Thanks again. Love the reviews.

still loving the Chanel Tarun, any chance of you reviewing the ProAc Response D20R ? and a great follow up to what has been achieved since your 1se this would be the next logical level up for many in the 1k bookshelf range , keep up the great work

Hi Tarun, great review thank you! I have a Hegel H590 and Im considering alternative DAC's - would you consider the holo spring as a suitable upgrade? also - what did you use as a streamer for the review please as Im assuming it is a DAC only?

Hi - firstly a great review that really gets into the details of what makes the DAC good but also doesn't get lost "in the weeds" of dac technical detail. I have become a big fan of R2R dacs and my testing journey started at the SMSL M500, onto the Denafrips Ares both of which I tested in my home for a while. I then had to narrow my decision down to the Pontus 2 and the Audio GD R8MK2. I had to choose one without an audition as there were none available to me at the time. Have you ever listened to any of the newer Audio GD products? I would love to hear your opnoin?

Thanks , that was an amazing review I

Great reviews! Thanks

@abritishaudiophile7314 Tarun, another amazing review as always. Grateful for all that you do and your content. I am debating like many others, between the Pontus II + Iris DDC, spring 3 KTE, or the Venus II. You mentioned the Venus II makes the Iris a moot point. How would you stack up the Venus to the Spring KTE? I’m leaning towards the Venus because it gives the option of OS/NOS but curious about your thoughts here. Source is eversolo dmp-a6 master, feeding into Michi X3 integrated amp and Sonus Faber Sonetto V speakers. Thanks.

Oh Tarun.... Fantastic.... This Is very much my cup of tea..... Very insightful.... The value of a clean pre amp facility as well as a superb (performing and measuring) dac is appealing.. Though the depth texture and body that a great seperate preamp may lend overall... Hmmmm.. Tough decisions 😂..... Really top content here, thank you again.

Great review and like the sound of the Holo Spring 3. How does it compare with the Auralic Aries/Altair (excluding the streamer function)?

Very thorough and helpful review Tarun (as always). I have a question regarding the preamp module of the Spring 3. There don't appear to be any line-level inputs on the rear panel. Is the preamp section restricted to use with the digital inputs?

Thanks for an interesting review. Looks like some great kit. I worked at Altwood of Maidenhead many years back and loved the E39. On a separate note have you ever auditioned the Marlow CE loudspeakers (by EJ Jordan). There is also the MFA Baby Classic pre amplifier. Both British. Would be great to see your review of these. Btw am not in or have any links to the audio industry.

thanks for this review...My question for you is...what did you choose to keep in your system?... Pontus ll or this Holo Audio Spring?...and what makes you selct that particular one?...also have you ever tried either of the following two dac's Msb Discrete or Aqua La Scala MKII Optologic? those are more expensive dac's but somtimes more expensive doesn't relate into better sound..✌️

Any chance of a review of the Musetec LKS MH-DA005 DAC? Great video's otherwise, looking forward to what you come up with next.

Great review!

As usual Tarun another outstanding review, I sound a bit like a broken record. I am very interested in this review because I have a luxman DA-06 DAC and l am considering an r2r ladder DAC. Would I be right in assuming that the Terminator 2 is the equivalent of the May? I'm not sure if you have any experience with the May but if so I'd be interested in your opinion in regards to a comparison of the two. Cheers Shane.😁👍🎧

Hi Tarun, thank you very much for this beautiful review, that had a negative impact for me... I was decided to go for the pontus II next week, and now there is a big dought ;-) As I am seeking for the best for symphonic and classical music, according to you, which one would fit the best for this music, specialy for the cello and doublebass breeth and structure in a complex piece ? Thanks a lot Tarun for you advice, I could find wonderful one SCs thanks to you ! bye

Outstanding review! Having tried a few myself, I realize it’s not as easy as you make it look. Question: Does the Spring allow for easy absolute phase inversion? It doesn’t appear to have a “phase” button like the Pontus and Ares. If so, can it be done via the remote?

Hello Tarun! Thanks for your transparent and fair reviews. Could you consider a review about another interesting R2R DAC? Soekris dac2541

Excelent review, thanks for sharing your knoledge. Thinking on upgrading from Topping d50s to VmV d1 se, do you think it worth it? My other equipment is an old rotel rb 991 and a parasound pre z3 preamp that i thinks is the weaker link. My speakers are dali zensor 3. Thanks, Greetings from Argentina!!!

New to your channel and finding it most useful and informative. I have just got some ProAc DB1's similar to yours and im looking for some stands . Can I ask what you have for your ProAc's Thanks again for the channel

Hi Tarun, fantastic channel! I'm a happy owner of a h160 and wondering how the reviewed dac compares with the dac integrated into the Hegel. In other words, what would be price range, where an external dac would bring significant sound improvement compared to the h160 integrated dac? Thanks for your opinion!

Another highly detailed and informative review. How would you compare the Holo Spring to Chords Qutest. Different technology and sound signature.

Just subscribed to your channel! Which had a blacker background and spatial queues within soundstage? The Spring or Pontus?

Hi Tarun.. An excellent review.. thanks. May i know which one have more airy in presentation, Pontus or Spring3?as you mention spring 3 wider sound stage comparing to Pontus.. thanks☺️

Great review. Is this the level 1 version of the Holo spring 3 Dac?

Love your reviews! I've been going back and forth between buying a Pontus 2 and Holo Spring 3 and am still torn. I'll be pairing it with a Mcintosh 6600 integrated, Cambridge 851N streamer, and Kef Model Two reference speakers. I'm thinking the Mcintosh integrated should preclude the need for a preamp, and would love your thoughts on which DAC might pair best with what I have, and improve on the sound from the built in DAC of my Cambridge streamer. Many Thanks!

Great review! I have a Chord Mojo 2 in my system but am looking for another DAC. Do you think the Holo Audio Spring would be better / a good complement? I only ask as I know you have a Chord Mojo. Thanks!

Hi Tarun, a seemingly excellent match the spacious soundstage of the Holo Spring (and even more, May) Dac are the QAcoustics Concept floorstanders: 500 and 50. Hifi Choice even recently ranked the QAcoustics Concept 500 ahead of the mighty 3-way ATC SCM 40s (!) Also the late Ken Ishiwata chose the 500s to demo his flagship 9,000 Euro Marantz PM-10 amplifiers on. The Concept 50 is also rather good at its price point. So one of these QAcoustics might be very interesting for you to review, it is by the way a British brand.

Hi Tarun, I have an H190 and was wondering which match more appropriately, the holo or. Pontus, I do understand it Is a matter of tastes but certainly both can sing better with the hegel commanding, but which one stood out with the hegel, if any. Also if you have heard the h390 and the h590,.How do they compare with the holo /pontus +h190 teamup. Thanks to you and your channel.. Very well thought and well picked content

proper bloke. good review

This was a wonderful video..loaded with useful information. I have a question which I don’t believe is off-topic to a discussion about high-end DACS. I use decent quality digital and analog components in my av system. I am currently using the DAC inside a Marantz AV7706 Preamp Processor that is daisy chained with the DAC inside my Parasound Halo P6 Preamplifier. I have more than enough amplifier power to drive my speakers. The problem that I'm trying to solve is with the 3D soundstage. The depth & width are good but not great. The height representation of singers & instrumentalists, on the soundstage, is terrible..completely unrealistic..the singers & band members sound as if they were 3 feet tall. I have tried tweaking my av system but nothing I do corrects the soundstage issue. I have heard from several knowledgeable people in audio that soundstaging is a DAC's responsibility..not that of the preamp and power amplifier per se. That I can't power my way out of a soundstage problem. Does anybody else agree with this? If this is true, then maybe it would be prudent for me to purchase a better DAC than the one built inside if my Marantz and Parasound units. Maybe I should consider one of the state-of-the-art DAC's mentioned in this video. IDK... Please let me know your well considered opinions. I really appreciate it. Thanks, David

I own a Denafrips Venus 2 and am very happy with it but feeding it from a desktop PC requires a DDC to get the best out of it. In this respect the Holo Spring 3 is renowned as having an advantage - it's i/p stages are so good at cleaning the up the signal that many report that adding a DDC does not really make that much of a difference to SQ. Conclusion: If you have a good source design that was designed for music reproduction both the Holo & the Denafrips DACs will sound great. However, if your music source is a computer - then the Holo will probably be a better / cheaper match.

Tarun, a while back you made a case not to spend more than a few hundred pounds or dollars on a DAC because of the always improving DAC technology. It seems now that you believe DAC quality has reached a point where it is worth spending a month’s rent or more on one, mainly with the revitalization and implementation of moder R2R technology. Can you please elaborate?

Thank you very much for this video. I have a Chord Qutest as DAC. Is the Holo Audio superior in sound quality ? I don't have speakers, I have 2 headphone systems instead, Stax with Stax preamp and Audeze with Feliks Elisia MKII tube preamp. Will there be in your opinion a drastic difference in my system with the Spring 3 ? Thank you very much

That construction is beautiful! Your explanations are great and unique. I'm personally eyeing the Doge 7 Tube DAC, any chance to review one please?

Thank you for another nice review.Still I am curious about spring 3 I2S input.Have you tried this .Is it compatible with I2S output from Denafrips Iris.And how does it sound compared to Pontus2 with Iris via I2S connection.

Hi, It would be cool if you could compare the new Laiv Harmony to the Denafrips and Holo; then recommend which one sounds best for female vocalists/jazz. I have the Denafrips Pontus II 12th-1 + Denafrips Iris 12th Apple Music lossless

Hi Tarun, would you be able to consider reviewing the Denafrips Avatar CD Transport at some point? On paper it looks like a match made in heaven with this Holo Audio Spring 3 DAC, which I have heard performs best with an I2S input - and the Denafrips has an I2S output, as well as a Femto clock and top loading mechanism, not to forget great looks.

Who knew that r2r dac's would come back with such a vengeance! It seems we are spoiled for choice nowadays compared to a couple of decades ago. To think that back then the idea of r2r dac's seemed laughable and was only pursued by extreme diyers! Is this another case of a tinkerer's dream becoming a mainstream product in audio? We've seen this get repeated a few times!

Just for the price, the Spring 3 should be compared to the Venus 2 - the Pontus 2 is considerably cheaper. But as for your conclusive result, it can compete just the same.

Hi Taran, what are you thought on the phase button? I think I see you see it out of phase(light on accordance to Alvin). Thank you.

Hi Tarun, I’m considering partnering the Spring 3 with the Buchardt A500s. Since you have reviewed both products, any advice on whether I’d get much mileage from the upgrade? The A500s have a tuning that is supposedly flat. I’m hoping that one allows the best of this DAC to shine through.

Tarun, what CD transport or streamer did you use with this DAC? Also, when Herb Reichert reviewed the Holo Spring May he used the I2s input exclusively.

Hi Tarun, thanks for great reviews, should be the Spring 3 significant upgrade to dac inside Cambridge 851n? the rest of my chain is Kinki ex1+ and Magnat Signature 909. I mean, can the difference be as night and day? many thanks, new sub hear..

Oh wow, nice dacs. I was going to suggest the Audial Aya 5 before this went up. Also Sonnet Morpheus (mk2), which has a very interesting voltage based volume control.

Thanks Tarun. After a point adding or upgrading components has no real benefit. The power transformer changes here have no benefit. Each goes to a rectification and filtering system with DC output. We can not hear DC differences once a power supply does its job, if we do hear a difference then it is the power supply itself aside from the transformer that is the problem. Basically, if two transformers both have the same VA ratings and are capable, under test, of producing those ratings then we can not hear any differences in the final DC. The same goes for capacitors. If two capacitors have the same capacitance, heat rating, and ESR than we can not hear the difference in those capacitors as the output is DC, these are not signal path capacitors. Noise figures, etc. are a product of circuit design and while we may have one capacitor that outlasts another a circuit built to accommodate that difference negates any benefits of the more expensive component. Then there's the cost and when we are paying for flat wires, fancy core shapes and silver wires the question becomes - can we hear the difference? For the lengths of wire used in gear silver wire has no benefit, nor can we hear the difference in transformers and power supply components with equal parameters that measure equally or flat wire - DBT prove this. We can purchase electronic instruments that far exceed human hearing that are completely void of any of these expensive power supply components. Take a 6-1/2 digit bench meter by Keysight or Fluke for example. The precision of resistors and the noise floor of those resistors enable us to measure into microvolts and picoamps. You can buy those meters by a very well respected company for well under $2k. DACs and their associated chips are constantly being updated and improved, the expensive DAC of five years ago pales to today's DAC. Can manufacturers build DAC chips with resistor ladder networks? Sure and they can use very good resistors equaling resistors on the component level so we can expect better and better components in the very near future. I appreciate your honest reviews and the fact that you, more than most, are willing to go into electronic detail because, after all, audio equipment is designed with the same formulas and components as any other equipment. My thinking is that without DBTs, which are science, we can not truly evaluate equipment, we are subject to manufacturers promotions. This DAC shows that, it has updates that we simply can't hear. Let's DBT their most expensive DAC with their cheapest DAC and decide if we are really getting that much more for our money.

i just ordered one!!