Thank you for your excellent review, Steve! I'm really impressed with the difference the Holo Audio Serene KTE has made in my audio setup. Originally, I had the Holo Audio Spring 3 KTE with its built-in pre-amp, which was great, but it didn't quite capture the magic I heard in the showroom. That all changed when I added the Serene to my system. The improvement is clear: the soundstage has opened up, the imaging is pinpoint accurate, and there's a level of detail that I just wasn't getting before. Whether I'm analyzing the intricacies of a new album or just relaxing with some old favorites, the Serene delivers on all fronts.
@user-sm3ru1fm6g8 ай бұрын
Does bass on Serene feel boast up a little?
@wmszeto80958 ай бұрын
@@user-sm3ru1fm6gThe bass on the Serene is clear and controlled. Not only has the bass improved, but the overall sound quality has also been enhanced after adding the Serene to my system.
@mikehuntington44408 ай бұрын
What amp are you using?
@wmszeto80958 ай бұрын
@@mikehuntington4440 I'm using the active speakers PSI A14-M with the subwoofer PSI A125-M
@riknos32894 ай бұрын
@@user-sm3ru1fm6g No. I've had a serene for almost a year and find it incredibly neutral. The powerful and low impedance output stage of the serene can give a stronger impression of bass depending on the input impedance of your power amp, but that's due to the interaction between the two components rather than either component having that as an intrinsic quality.
@jhschmidMD48 ай бұрын
Super nice looking device! A high quality build, with great parts! I wish, however, that it had a record loop for us few remaining tape heads out here. Thanks for the review Steve!
@jos50678 ай бұрын
Audirvana is so great for sound! I can’t imagine living without! Thanks 🙏 Steve!
@barneyrubble93098 ай бұрын
managed to pick one up at a smidge over half price to run my headphones...it is sublime.
@royli32608 ай бұрын
I liked your video today - nothing new there (I've really enjoyed watching your KZbin videos for a very long time now), except to say your use of chapters is so much better for the viewer for navigation purpose - so much more user-friendly. Keep up the good work!
@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac8 ай бұрын
Thanks
@dennisfrancis11268 ай бұрын
Hello Steve and thanks for another great review! As a proud owner of the KTE version of this preamp, I can wholeheartedly agree that it is one tremendous piece. Like you (and no doubt countless others in audio-dom) I have played, owned, borrowed and heard many, many preamps over the years - NONE has sounded better at “putting the whole package together” as this preamp. To me it takes ALL of the best attributes of tube and solid state, and craftily blends them into one. Kudos to HoloAudio, and thanks again for reviewing this!
@wanderbaldini28838 ай бұрын
The Serene has one of the best engineered layout ever seen, no matte the price. If it costed 5 times I wouldn't be surprised, but at that price... it's a real steal!
@SergeySedlovsky8 ай бұрын
Kitsune is pronounced Kit-Soon-Eh and it means Fox in Japanese, hence the Fox logo
@jankafka73308 ай бұрын
I was going to suggest that he listen to the song "Megitsune" from the BABYMETAL album to learn the proper pronunciation.
@ivanmelkner77048 ай бұрын
Hello, how it is compare to your PassLab preamp? Thank you
@jasonpmcqueen8 ай бұрын
I had the KTE version of this for a while and its a fantastic piece of kit, especially at the price. Linked with my Spring 3 KTE it offered a great sound for the money. I replaced them with a Classe Delta Pre just because I wanted to redunce the number of boxes in my rack and the Delta had dual sub control.
@jamesberryman98938 ай бұрын
Very nice review! I love your calm demeanor!
@dontcare5638 ай бұрын
Using this preamp with my Holo May KTE DAC and Coda #8 amp. Love the combination.
@artyfhartie22698 ай бұрын
When I use it with headphones, I can feel the hollowness in my head
@dilbyjones8 ай бұрын
Mola mola, love the Macy gray !
@septembersurprise51788 ай бұрын
The Traveling Wilburys ? Yes please !
@albertcalderon34218 ай бұрын
Saludos Sr Steve, excelsos vídeos, gracias por compartirlos, siempre presentas verdaderos aparatos de verdadera Alta Fidelidad y no las mentiras actuales del mal llamado High End, siempre nos presentas cosas diferentes y de muy alta calidad a precios razonables, sigue adelante, tus comentarios y apreciaciones son muy valorados, abrazos desde Bogotá, Colombia
As always awesome video. Super excited about your upcoming perca review. Hope u get to pair it either the Makua or Tambaqui
@b00m3rh4nd_sol6 ай бұрын
I agree with the Macy Gray album comments. My only issue is the way the bass is mic'd can be little overwhelming.
@LuckyX28 ай бұрын
I have the Holo Audio Bliss which is basically the same price and quality as Serene but works as a preamp AND high power headphone amp. I use it all the time, it's great.
@LuckyX28 ай бұрын
They also just released a new DAC that's pretty exciting, the Cyan 2. 1024 DSD, 1.5MHz PCM with 127dB dynamic range (excellent for R2R) for only $1300.
@SergeySedlovsky8 ай бұрын
Same, with the May KTE :) Great system.
@SergeySedlovsky8 ай бұрын
Same, with the May KTE :) Great system.
@stevewoods86248 ай бұрын
Hi I’m a Holo fan, I have a Spring DAC Kitsune Tuned Edition. Wonderfull R2R goodness. Great company with great products.
@billlarkin-b5f8 ай бұрын
Thank you it looks super nice just love it😊
@Waitaminutesilly8 ай бұрын
Can you review Holo May KTE DAC which Herb has been using, Steve?
@mikrophonie56338 ай бұрын
The instrumentals on Music for Films and Heroes bears resemblance to the music of Cluster which came out 3 years earlier on albums like Zuckerzeit, which was an influence on Eno, and if you actually liked music more than you like equipment you would know that.
@martinscase39048 ай бұрын
And of course, Cluster collaborated with Eno on two lps. Zuckerzeit is a really wonderfully unique lp though!
@marcgoldstein29578 ай бұрын
Great shirt!
@richardw.b.feigen87008 ай бұрын
Good Afternoon Steve, Would you be interested in comparing this preamp with the Adcom GFP 750 Blue Board edition? I live here in Nyc and will be happy to loan you mine. Interestingly, this particular unit was originally part of Bob Carver's personal office system.
@PoulBBjerregaard7 ай бұрын
Hi Steve, Excellent review! I have the Serene KTE in my system. When do you plan to release the ModWright LS99 review? BR Poul
@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac7 ай бұрын
Hey, thanks for watching. The LS 99 review will post Monday or Tuesday.
@PoulBBjerregaard7 ай бұрын
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac Awesome! Thanks, Steve 👍
@johngalt96528 ай бұрын
So Steve, the Holo Audio Serene or the Schiit Audio Freya+? We're shopping. Thanks!
@manojcooray28708 ай бұрын
They sound completely different. The Serene is similar to the Benchmark LA4 preamp (neutral). The Freya+ is a fun preamp but it is noisy and not exactly a clean sound. I owned it and sold it. A much better Schitt preamp for me is the new Mjolnir (late 2023). I love that preamp, not as good as the Serene or the LA4, but it sounds rather good with the Schitt Aegir amp.
@martinvegas13278 ай бұрын
I like the Ladder Schumann R2R👍
@dilbyjones8 ай бұрын
Me 2
@isaacestep33218 ай бұрын
Sounds like a good preamp, but the chassis ain't chonky enough for my taste. At this point I'm only upgrading the pieces that don't look cool enough.
@tabl10s8 ай бұрын
I have my modified KTE going into a Dartzeel '108A. I've thought about selling it for a Joule LA-300ME or VAC Renaissance Mk V, want to hold out til I get the matching preamp.
@johnpischedda69518 ай бұрын
Hi Steve what’s the best email address to submit a viewer system of the day entry ? Thanks!
@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac8 ай бұрын
Audiophiliac@mail.com
@johnpischedda69518 ай бұрын
Thankyou ! @@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac
@jasonhinton24248 ай бұрын
I have the kte serene with a pair of schiit tyr mono blocks. My Klipsch fortes sound so great with this set up
@mrpmj008 ай бұрын
...Apple Music sounds so good.
@rapier58 ай бұрын
Like many my system has a streamer/DAC, with the analog output straight to my amp. In other words, no preamp. So logically that is the purest signal path. That said I suppose most or at least many high dollar systems, let's say $10K plus, have a preamp. Why? Well presumably the sound is more pleasant with a preamp. All well and good but it pretty much blows the ideal of a pure signal is best out of the water. I'm almost happy I don't have to decide if or which preamp in my charitably called HiFi system. It makes my head hurt. Anyway perhaps an episode about your preference for preamps would be good.
@parlimage50508 ай бұрын
Hey Steve, thanks for your reviews. Would it be possible to put in categories, Low-fi, Mid-Fi, Hi-fi and Reference the product that you are reviewing so we can get a more accurate perception of, on your comments. Thanks for considering.
@superdougie108 ай бұрын
Is there a way to tape loop without a tape loop?
@bob75018 ай бұрын
I didn't hear you mention the price. How much does this unit cost?
@rlc9498 ай бұрын
2:40
@saint65638 ай бұрын
"Piper At The Gates of Dawn" 2007 release had too much Modern Mastering [crunchy] for me. Great mono & stereo mixes tho.
@lok7778 ай бұрын
What is the point of a pre-amp? Dac XLRs output at 4.2V so why bother putting it through another box?
@ChrisStoneinator8 ай бұрын
Sure, listen at -0dB if you like
@s.daniel92248 ай бұрын
Cleans up the noise. Mostly, just by separating the amp/pre power.
@stoicar7 ай бұрын
Tray to enjoy audiogd he1 ( or he2 ) vacuum xlr preamp . It is wonderful preamp tube preamp
@OldTooly8 ай бұрын
Hey Ronnie, love your system. We use such similar design ideas but I could only dream of having those gorgeous open baffle speakers, much less your sweet amplification choices. The 300b amp on the full range is excellent. Once I went to a digital, PC driven source, all the pros outweigh the cons and as I improved my file quality I dare say it surpassed my other sources. Bigass speaker cables too. I just love your system.
@frasersimpson21858 ай бұрын
I think I may be able to put to rest the argument of analogue over digital. To me, digital is like standing outside a record shop on record store day and listening to a favourite band performing. Analogue is like being in the shop with the band playing. I rarely comment but I love your videos so thank you. Feel free to make them longer, I could spend hours watching.
@BobGeogeo8 ай бұрын
I don't think that argument will ever be put to rest.
@PersonaNonGrata-uz4of8 ай бұрын
Analogue is like listening to music in a forest with a forest fire in the background.
@razisn8 ай бұрын
For you. Not for very many others, including me. So no you didn't put to rest anything, the only thing you did was re-iterating the bs of the 'analogue' crowd. Boy, you didn't learn anything from the Mobile Fidelity fiasco.
@frasersimpson21858 ай бұрын
@@razisn Thanks for putting me right, even if it was condescending, patronising 'bs'
@razisn8 ай бұрын
@@frasersimpson2185 You're welcome. Next time you come with such an arrogant comment you'll get more of the same.
@guystpierrecomposer8 ай бұрын
This Pink Floyd album have a lot of bass??? Not at all on Apple Music or Qobuz… strange
@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac8 ай бұрын
I was referring to the quality, not quantity of the bass sound
@albertfigueroa1898 ай бұрын
Mumbo Jumbo
@Random-kq4pz8 ай бұрын
More Herb! (and cowbell) 😀
@frankr82718 ай бұрын
The gold looks tacky imho
@dmgmail70216 ай бұрын
It's actually copper and far more subtle in person. On yt they do side shots with alot of lite and vibrant settings. It really doesn't look that contrasting. It's actually gorgeous in person I've seen it. And gold would be tacky. But if you see gold maybe your settings in device is set too vibrant. Your the first person I've ever heard that didn't love the look but also the first to say gold so... who knows lol
@muralidharan068 ай бұрын
First
@Harrisongrey198 ай бұрын
But still a loser
@Pete.across.the.street8 ай бұрын
Cool story bro
@erics.41138 ай бұрын
What? I'm the First What, and that is the most important whatt
@Pete.across.the.street8 ай бұрын
Really adding a lot to the conversation 😂
@chrislj28908 ай бұрын
Your parents must be so proud.
@auggysimcity8 ай бұрын
made in china...
@tinetannies46378 ай бұрын
C'mon Guttenberg, how about some double blind testing to show us you can REALLY hear differences in audio equipment and it isn't all in your head. If the things you claim to hear are real this should be an easy no-brainer to prove credibility.
@PersonaNonGrata-uz4of8 ай бұрын
His 75 year old ears aren't up to the challenge.
@tinetannies46378 ай бұрын
@@PersonaNonGrata-uz4of It's the one thing you will never see, anywhere.
@oldaudionerd8 ай бұрын
He doesn’t have to prove credibility to you. Don’t like his reviews, go find someone else. Just go to ASR and be done with it.
@amb3cog8 ай бұрын
@@oldaudionerdExactly! ✌️
@tinetannies46378 ай бұрын
@@oldaudionerd Apparently he doesn't see the need to establish credibility with anyone. Reviewing audio and not doing any actual audio confirmation. Nice. Interesting that you're defending the total absence of substantiation.