Harmony µDDC

Six months ago, I obtained the LAIV Harmony uDAC and as my Harmony website reviews reveal, was extremely pleased with the sonic gains in my 2-channel system…just could not imagine my audio nirvana any better. 3 days before the LAIV Harmony uDDC Reclocker arrived, I installed sub cabinet isolators. Post sub-isolators, my system has Never sounded better! Anticipation as to how/what the Harmony uDDC Reclocker could offer my already fine-tuned, half-century in the making, jaw dropping sound reproduction setup.

With 100 hour uDDC break-in recommendation, I started 24 hours “round the clock” with various music playback genre and to my ears, it really needed it! During the break-in period, I spent 3-4 hour listening sessions each day comparing my previous direct uDAC sonics to the newly inserted system uDDC reclocker…was not impressed during those first 100 hours, I had resigned myself to returning this unit (top end not close to what I had previously achieved). But, recalling that my uDAC took 250 hours to really open-up and shine synergisticly in my system, I opted to continue (with much patience), the break-in process. After all, still had 56 days left to the LAIV Audio return window!

To get fully settled in to its potential system position (equaling then surpassing the open and deep soundstage presentation, very airy vocal, instrumental, keyboard, string, percussion imaging that I had assembled before the uDDC), took more like 225+ hours! Bass authority, speed, timing, tonality, timbre, and depth did arrive, and elevate bottom end performance within the first 25 hours! The rest of the midrange and treble openness, air and immediacy in transient response, articulation, and precise tonality, took a full extra 200 hours! Now, the full bandwidth plays effortlessly in what feels like perfect timing and presence. The system breathes, space and air between notes comes alive, and music flows with more feeling and emotional involvement, rather than just listening to a great stereo!

Has the uDDC greatly surpassed what I heard before its arrival? No, not with my system, my dedicated music room, my acoustic genre music library, and to my 25 years’ experience in a previous music career (private study, degree, performance, and teaching)! However, it has presented to my ears subtle but definitive sonic realism and growth, with blissful enjoyment as the setup and room disappear! The music unfolds in front of me, and I Am There in the recorded venue with the musicians!!

I received the uDDC yesterday , set it up last night (which is pretty straight forward ) and right of the bat, the improvement and the difference in sound is astounding . The separation of the instruments , the clarity, the even more precise imaging , the layering, the detail retrieval without ever being bright or strident, and most especially the ultra wide soundstage both horizontally and vertically is just truly amazing . Bass is even more precise and textured but still very plenty , punchy and deep.Even more so before I added the re clocker. On some tracks , it literally has created a dome of sound. Very immersive and holographic. Some notes are almost literally floating in space (which sounds a bit cliche ) and nuances in music are even more noticeable . It’s absolutely amazing. And again, as cliche as it sounds and I’ve said this every time i do an upgrade, it’s like hearing music and tracks I’m familiar with for the first time I must admit I was very skeptical in purchasing this uDDC . I just don’t know how it can improve upon an already amazing DAC (referring , of course, to the LAIV Harmony). If anything, I’ve always thought if I have to upgrade on something , it’ll be my streamer (currently using an Eversolo DMP A8 for streaming purposes only). I was told by the LAIV team that the re clocker requires around 50-100 hours of burn in time. But right out of the box, I felt it had burned in already. If this is how the sound is with the uDDC without burn in time , literally out of the box, I can’t imagine how it’ll sound after the recommended time. I’ve had DACs that were 2x the price of the LAIV which , IMHO, the LAIV handedly beat, and with the Uddc, i felt like my DAC is now competing with DACs 3-4x it’s price. (Side note: I’ve demoed the Mola mola tambaqui and Weiss DAC recently). My system , i feel, is coming way too close.

Again, to the LAIV team, Thanks for designing and creating such beautiful and wonderful products.

I can’t wait for your streamer to come out . I’m already predicting that would be my next upgrade .

(I almost pulled the trigger on the HPA2 out of curiosity because of the rave reviews but for now, I’m extremely happy with my integrated amp: it’s a Luxman L -509z. If I have to build another system , it’ll definitely be in the top contender for pre amp duty. Thank goodness I did not impulsively bought the Hi Fi Rose RS 130 coz I can’t wait for LAIV’s streamer to come out).

Thank you Weng , Alice and the entire Laiv team .

About a month ago I added the HP2A to my system with a nice result. At the time I was debating back and forth if it was worth giving this device a try. After seeing it come up in a few reviews on YouTube with positive feedback and learning a bit more about reclocking I figured I could give it a try to complete my Laiv Harmony setup (DAC + amp/preamp + DDC).

In short, I can very clearly hear the change in sound when this device is added to my chain. I was expecting something subtle, but the difference is very apparent. The best I can describe it is that things are much more "clear" - the stage is more apparent with left right details more separated, depth is more discernable, and treble and mids are more transparent and crystal clear. To be clear - the Harmony DAC is great without this device - somehow this bumps it up just a notch.

A few other comments from my initial reactions. On first use, I almost thought the device made the sound too bright. This is because I tried to do an A/B compare of before and after to ensure I could see a benefit to the device. The increased transparency was more than my mind was ready for. My next listening session I started listening with the DDC in the chain from the beginning and things sounded great. Things did not seem too bright or harsh - just clear and transparent. Another observation from my A/B compare on first listen is I could more easily detect the difference in NOS/OS modes on the Harmony DAC. They are different with just the DAC in my chain, but with the DDC, they are very different - that is how much this DDC increases the clarity / subtleties in the presentation.

If you have seen my Harmony DAC or HP2A reviews, you will see I have/use the Meze Elite and Hifiman Susvara headphones. For my DDC testing it has almost exclusively been with the Meze Elites. I have landed on running the Harmony DAC in OS mode with these cans. I suspect with the Susvara I may choose to switch the DAC to NOS mode. From my A/B testing the Harmony DAC NOS/OS performance can be summarized as: NOS - more bass weight, less clarity in the treble and mids, OS - extremely clear mids and treble with a slight rolloff/weight in the bass. With the Meze Elites having more bass/midbass than the Susvara the OS mode pairs nicely. With Susvara lacking a little color in the bass/midbass, it might be a bit more "fun" in NOS mode - something I will need to experiment with soon.