PS Audio Direct Stream Memory Player/Direct Stream DAC

Barry2013 said:

The DAC arrived on Thursday morning and together with the transport went into the system that afternoon (details in my profile) so able to report initial impressions.
I have the grey units which look good and the build quality seems good as well. The DAC is brand new and the latest model but the transport had had some play.Unusually the Transport/DAC connection recommended is with a supplied shortish HDMI lead which is what I have used together with Entreq Challenger 3V power cable and Entreq Apollo balanced i/cs so very straightforward.
Listened with no preconceptions or expectations and after only 15 mins play I was liking the sound. Listened more critically to a mixture of CDs and SACDS during the course of the evening and today - Abcko Stones Beggars Banquet, DSD remastered Stones Aftermath, Steven Isserls Dvorak Cello Concerto CD, Vanessa Fernandez SACD When the Levee Breaks, Dire Straits SACD Brothers in Arms and Kraftwerk OK Computer and now listening to Patricia Barber Modern Cool SACD,The sound has steadily improved on both CD and SACD, but have listened to more of the latter so far.
How does it sound? Very good and better than the resident DCS Puccini/Scarlatti clock. A natural musical and communicative sound with transparency, placement and timing, frequency response and transient attack all good. No discernible digital glare and a communicative sound.
I did debate with myself whether to try a home audition but no regrets so far. The sound is feeling right to my ears and a good synergy with the rest of the system.
I'll need to have a more extended listen before deciding but so far very enjoyable and IMHO certainly worth a home audition.

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Barry2013 said:

Thank you to everybody for their comments and suggestions.
Upgrading the DCS Puccini/Scarlatti clock combo has been the most difficult audio decision I have ever faced.The PS Audio Directstream duo was a real contender but I have managed to buy a one owner used DCS Scarlatti Transport in mint condition and I now have to find and decide upon a DAC to go with it.I have identified a potential Scarlatti DAC but I haven't forgotten Bonzo 75's advocacy of the Lampizators which I presume would also be a good partner to the Scarlatti Transport.
Any thoughts and experiences of the best match for the Scarlatti Transport would be appreciated.

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Barry2013 said:

Congratulations Lee
They are good particularly after a good burn in of 200 hours plus,
So easy to set up and get even better with an upmarket HDMI lead.
Enjoy and keep us posted.

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Ron Resnick said:

That is great, Lee! Enjoy it!

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Lee said:

The Memory Player and the DirectStream DAC arrived late yesterday and I just set them up 10 minutes ago. Very early impressions are fantastic. Tons of detail, nice imaging, and very musical. I major step up over my prior DACs as I expected.

I would say I am impressed with PS Audio's experience. The packaging was very well done, the owner's manual clear, and they include the I2S cable and even a pair of white handling gloves! I used PS Audio products in the 90s and they were a good value but they are a next level company now.

Huron was preloaded on the DAC and it appears the DMP has the latest software so I don't even have to mess with firmware updates.

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Barry2013 said:

That is great news Lee and so pleased for you.
They do sound good straight out of the box as I found but you can be sure that you will get a significant improvement once they burn in, about 200 hours I'm afraid, and I will be very interested to hear the difference an upmarket HDMI cable makes. Audioquest Vodka or above was the recommendation I received.

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rockitman said:

While digital is not my primary source, it is still important to me. I agree..... this DAC/Player combo is a sonic bargain. Comparing it against my analog sources of the same material, it does a very convincing job. So much so that I see little value spending the big bucks on the uber DAC's $20K and above. If digital was my primary source, then I might spend those big dollars for the negligible improvement the big name dac's would provide....Congrats on your new rig.

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Lee said:

An update just shy of 200 hours in.

The unit has really opened up further. The Blood, Sweat and Tears SACD from mofi sounds spectacular with really fine separation between instruments. What is truly amazing is how dead-on the piano tone is and the definition of upright basses on jazz recordings.

This combination is turning out to be everything I hoped for. I think I may be done with digital upgrades for a while...at least until the next PS Audio download is available for the FPGA.

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rblnr said:

Glad you're enjoying your stack Lee. I'm a dealer so take this as you will, but I think the PS Audio components are terrific values. The DACs costing much more don't make much sense to me whenever we've compared them. And as you note, the software based architecture allows for continuous improvement.

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