Wow… Tariffs are affecting us now and not only the prices have gone up now I cannot even get some products. Is this also affecting PS Audio? Sweetwater and other retail stores are.
APS has also announced the new pricing change on some of their offerings.
According to the other forums, they seem to be having a blowout sale going on now.
Seems to be a great deal especially for this level of DAC.
Hello
This is one of the upgrades offered by JK Richards on the MK1.
‘‘Perform a DC offset tune. Anyone who is familiar with transformer magnetics would know why this is a necessary step.’’
‘‘It also states a 14mV imbalance between channels, creating one channel louder than the other’’
How can this be corrected without sending my dac to JK.
What does this mean, or how it is done, or can be done at my local shop please advise.
First I would check the transformer primaries for DC, with a basic DMM, assuming they can be reached safely while the unit is plugged in. Could anyone share a procedure? I don’t know what pins to measure.
Failing that I believe R5/6 should be checked for tolerance and replaced with higher precision resistors if necessary. Does anyone know the specified value and if they can be checked in circuit? I believe they are 500 ohm 1%, so a 5 ohm error could cause significant DC offset. I don’t know if this is the only source of DC on the primaries.
I see that I’m rather late to the party, given I just purchased my DS mk1. I am, however, quite impressed with it and am willing to replace the transformers and SM caps in the power supply. My reason for writing is to ask if the following are a viable upgrade, or, if there’s a better option:
https://www.digikey.ca/en/products/detail/vishay-sprague/298D227X0004P2T/1978503
Thanks, John
Approaching 6000 pages, it’s somewhat hard to filter through this thread. Has the group come to some consensus on what might be the best approach to the Vcom mod? I’ve seen values from 220 uf, 16v to 47 uf, 10v - is there a size that was decided upon as ideal? Thanks.
I used the Polymer type 16 vdc 47uf
Bought from Mouser or Digikey.
The ideal way is to swap the OP amps, like several people did and reported here.
A combination of different values, like I did, is not ideal but better than a single value. Because we need to make a low resistance path in a wide range of frequencies. If you didn’t get it from my post, where I laid out all the details and explanations, then you might be good with anything that you randomly pick.
Any single value here does the job. But, as reported by many, with tembral disbalance. Far from ideal, but satisfactory to a lot of listeners…
If anyone wants to make a proper power supply upgrade, I highly recommend to use Sparcos.
They have Black Friday sale. Code:
BF30
To get 30% off pretty much everything in their webstore
anyone know how to do a factory reset on the mk1?
IIRC, turn the unit off, then press and hold the logo button on the front while you turn the power back on.
mahalo - will try that
Wondering if you can point me in the right direction. I have a 2021 DS DAC Mark 1 unit I bought from PSAudio. It’s January 2026 BTW. Have it opened up, I’m about to install the Edcore XS4400 transformers, but I realize now I have to disconnect the rear panel to get access. ChatGP or whatever says if I do that, I’ll probably never get the unit back together. Question: is this the right thread to glean transformer install info? Do I want to do this or will I regret it? Thanks.
Actually, I’m wondering if anyone can point me in the right direction? I’m like 5 years late to the party. Thanks.
Clearly, you don’t know what you’re doing. DON’T DO IT. Drop this idea to do it on your own. The transformers swap requires skills. You can ruin the board thereby the DAC. Seek for skilled technician.
It’s a waste of time putting in the XS4400 transformers as it provides little if any gain is sound quality.
That unit needs the power supplies and VCOM upgraded along with some good nickel transformers designed for this unit. If you have never changed out transformers in the DS MK1 You will most likely mess up the DAC.
These upgrades need to be performed by a professional.
Yeah, that too. Transformers swap alone, regardless of the brand/type, doesn’t bring much.
If you can’t find a professional or a hobbyist in your home town (try local forums, Facebook, or even Nextdoor), you can always go to mister Richards. He does the bare minimum to make this DAC sound very good.
I thank you for your opinion. Could you be more specific, though? What exactly is the technical hurdle I have to surmount? I’ve soldered my Telecaster, not beautiful work but it’s functional. I did speak to Mr. Richards and, to say the least, it’s expensive and there’s shipping. I’ve already bought the XS4400 transformers, so you’re sure I’ll screw it up?
gosh. I mean, I’ve read partway through this thread of 6 years plus and running, and the consensus seems to be that the XS4400 upgrade is essential. My Mark I is stock. Even Paul implied to me that this particular transformer upgrade reaps substantial rewards. Didn’t the Mark II put XS440 transformers in and doesn’t Ted Smith endorse this upgrade. If so, why so negative? Appreciate you learned input. Tony
