Hi @shankha , I dont have the experience or knowledge to express an view on the top parts of your post. However regarding the PST to DAC , I cant think of a reason why you couldnt try a DDC inbetween to see if it makes a difference in your set up- I have been mulling over getting a Jay’s Audio CDT or PST and feeding the coax output through one of the BNC inputs on my Mscaler - then subsequently through the DI-20 to the DSD sr.
If you can find a DDC with I2S input (denafrips ?) and output you wouldnt need to compromise (by introducing a S/pdif connect) on the PWT to DSD link. Having said all this I personally wouldnt want to risk this without getting a chance to hear it in practice.
If you do give it a try I would be interested to hear the result. Likewise I will post if get to hear a transport through mine
All the best NM
There’s no reason for a DDC from the PST to the DSDAC because DS DAC has two i2s inputs. That’s how it’s connected at the moment. An eventual AL will connect through the other i2s input not the DS DAC
My only comment on all of this is that I suspect the very cheap devices add jitter rather than reduce it. I am happy to feed my DS with 96/24 from a Wyred4Sound Remedy reclocker with femtosecond clocking. Any cheap devices that I’ve heard (e.g. coax to optical converters) have terrible jitter judging by the glassy sound.
I use a remedy with my DVR outputs–excellent device.
What’s wrong with the Matrix 2 DDC? It has anti jitter and re-clocking built in. My system sounds pretty bland without adding the Matrix, and it doesn’t cost that much either. Oh yeah… I forgot the thousands of dollars in cables and LPS. OK, Forget I mentioned it.
I rarely see KTE SU-2 for sale. I have one and it’s fantastic. I compared it to a Matrix and I thought it sounded better. Also, it has a fantastic internal power supply so you don’t need an LPS.
Disclaimer - I have nothing to do with the seller or this sale:
Have you compared a Matrix with the Farad Super 3 power supply to the Singxer? The Farad LPS turns the Matrix into a different animal, but then the Farad does cost much more than the Singxer or the Matrix, so it really isn’t fair.
I did! And I still liked the KTE. Especially for DSD files. To me it has a broader and deeper soundstage.
I also agree with you about the cost of LPS compared to the actual DDC. The good news right now is the Euro and the Dollar are super close. I was just thinking about buying a 7V from Farad for my office to replace the Ultracap 1.2 I have there now.
And all this is why I am waiting for the Airlens before I do anything else with a new DDC or LPS for my matrix. I have a cheap Small Green Computer LPS for the matrix and I really did not notice any benefit from the combo. I took out. I would love to try the Singxer but again, why, I am going to try the Airlens first.
The reason for the Airlens is to get rid of the DDC and all the crap that goes with it. I said it in another post, but I’ll say it again. When my brother brought over his Esoteric streamer/DAC, it sounded better than my Esoteric streamer using USB to my DAC. But when I put in the Farad powered Matrix with Dragon HDMI to my modified DS DAC, the tables turn, my Esoteric sounded much better, and I don’t mean a little, it was pretty dramatic!
We await the AirLens.
I am very interested to know if it’s better than my current favorite.
In all probability, the Airlens will trounce your setup, with galvanic isolation and direct HDMI to your DAC, I’m confident the resulting performance will really be impressive, just like the PST, and also the ability to play DSD 256, it doesn’t get any better that that.
From what I gather these are the upgrades that come with the level II from what we have: Turbo Linear Power Supply, Synergistic Purple Fuse, RFI to HEAT Shield, and Finisar SFP Fiber Optic Transceiver. No idea what benefits the SFP gives over a generic. Fiber is what it is. I do not see any mention of how the Turbo LPS differs from what is inside either. Purple fuse and RFI can be added easily. I saw this posts someplace on why is this unit so expensive. If you look inside getting a generic Sonore Rendu and adding LPS of your choice yields the same. I got mine used at good deal, but I tend to agree. I am really hoping the AirLens will be at least as good. Any better and I will be ecstatic. I can sell my Sonore for probably more than I paid or just get money back. That money will be more than Airlens I hope. Then add in selling Matrix (at a loss 
) and simplifying my setup is bonus.
I have the Level II. It’s quite nice.
Don’t leave the SU-6 out of the discussion! It’s pretty nice as-is with the supercap power supply, but scales well with a linear supply too.
One thing I haven’t really seen mentioned, just to keep expectations level, is that a DDC isn’t a magic bullet. Even with one, the quality of the source still matters.
So am I reading this right, (as a UK thicko 
) having an basic (£600) Intel i5 NUC feeding a Stellar Gain Cell Dac via USB using a new interconnect (Artisan Silver one). The sound will be greatly improved putting a DCC inbetween, and using the I2s connection?
Yes. The USB introduces a lot of noise. There was a recent video in which Paul talked about this.
A lot of people here, me included, are using the Sense player on Innuos Zen/Zenith/Statement with great success. It only works using usb, the usb output having its own ultra-quiet linear power supply.
hey finally saw someone use the same DCC as me. I’m extremely happy with the sound after DG-20 i2s to PS DSD. Without the DCC, it’s OK. But once I hook it up, I just couldn’t take it out.
One of the best decision I made for my spaghetti chain. 