I agree, but nice casework is pleasing. A difficult call.
3 Likes
Of course, itās nice to have both. 
2 Likes
I will give a strong vote for that (like my vote matters at all)! There are plenty of DS owners who still have Bridge 2 cards that will not be able to do the MK2 upgrade until the streamer comes out.
So, I want to be on the list for both now.
3 Likes
Thanks @jamesh and @Paul. That would be great! Iām very much seeing the Directstream MkII and AirLens as audio and aesthetic complements. Iād be looking to stack the AirLens and MkII together to allow for the shortest cable connection possible.
On the chassis / price trade offā¦ Iād actually prefer to pay a bit more to get a top notch streamer and be done with it (than thinking I should hold off again for Octave server which has storage / ripping that I wonāt need).
All the best and Merry Christmas to you both. 
4 Likes
Well, I do not know what volume assumptions go into the case tooling cost amortisation assumptions. But I hope the design aethetic matches PS Audio. For me, I would like something Stellar-like. So curvature to the case in the front horizontals. But I assume that I will be looking at an app everyday, not a case that is hidden away in my stereo cabinet. So something less interesting and more PerfectWave-like or even totally square-edged is also OK. It has been such a long wait. Still I would like to have something that I can recommend to friends as well, from a design perspective. Because then there can be some volume for PS Audio. From present fans, and from future fans.
Since AirLens streamer is replacing the Bridge card, it should be in line with the PerfectWave looks. Plus, many buyers may not be current PS Audio owners, and they would expect quality products with quality looks.
1 Like
A while back the streamer was said to be in the 1.5k range. Are we still in this range? This being a streamer only with I2S output seems to be pricy not that I would not purchase it but curious what will it have over say a bluesound node for $550 which sounds pretty dam good using a good coax and up graded power cable. We must know what the internals are going to be in the new streamer by now or maybe the dac and streamer are being pushed out even further, Curiosity is killing meš
I am sure the latest estimate from Paul is around $2k. That was from a few weeks ago, I think.
So now we are approaching the 10k area for the new dac and streamer. Hmm, may have to start thinking more on other options now.
Currently my āstreamersā are hidden from view. They are small, think Raspberry Pi form factor, boxes. Iām thinking of diving into a more audiophile bling, like Lumin or Linn, level of streamer.
So, PS needs to decide if they are making a piece of audiophile bling or do they want something that just sounds good. Sounds good and Iāll tuck it back in my rack out of sight. Bling and it will sit for all to see. Something in the middle? This is where I think PS will go wrong. If this is too big to tuck in the back of my rack but not something worthy of showing off it will turn me off from purchase. Just my $.02
2 Likes
I agree, for a 2k streamer only it should have the same case work to match perfectly with the perfectWave line. This wonāt be going on the floor behind my rack. Who would do that!?
1 Like
Iād prefer the ingredients to be on part with the leading competition to the casework.
We should stop to expect the price of the Stellar line and the casework of the Perfect Wave line and whatever technology inside.
Not sure where Paul focuses myself. Too little information.
Also donāt forget this is a streamer only, so You canāt say stellar price for a perfectWave product. There isnāt anything else in the case and why is it even a half of a full size perfecWave chassis? Should be more like 1/4 size. I guess I have to much time today to be thinking about all this. 
Iām guessing it will really depend on the power supply. Even if its D to D some truly believe in having a very high quality power supply on these things including going as far as an external linear supply. Power supplies, quality power supplies, and isolation (copper or other cages) can be very bulky. I donāt know if it makes any difference.
edit: I should mention that the power supply on my current streamer is larger than the streamer itself and is an external box with enough capacitors it can keep the streamer going for over 15 seconds after I turn it off.
1 Like
When I start buying server/streamers over a decade ago they were based on computers and had fans, hard drives and CD drives. Nowadays mostly people use streamers that are extremely low noise and low heat, often a single processing board, no internal storage and no CD ripper. Internal storage really has issues because SATA requires mechanical damping and SSD generates a lot of electrical noise. You now have really high quality devices like the iFi Zen Stream that is reportedly seriously good (and will be Roon Ready), very small indeed and $400.
Unless you are going really high-end or want internal storage, I donāt see the need for a full size unit.
What streamer are you currently using?
Itās going to have to be better than an opticalRendu with an Uptone LPS 1.2 to make me budge. Thatās a tall order.
2 Likes
While only I2S is confirmed, it does seem likely that the AirLens will have matching ouputs to the MkII DACās inputs to take advantage of @tedsmithās good work. I really hope so! @Paul and @Jamesh, are things sufficiently advanced now for you to be able to say what outputs the AirLens will have?
1 Like
I totally agree, currently Iām using the node 2 via coax and an upgraded power cable into DS JR into BHK Pre and sounds really good. The node Iām sure you know is the size of a Mac mini and even has built in dac. I canāt imagine what is going inside a full half chassis for a streamer only. So Iām wondering how this can sound 4 times better for 2k. Iām not cheep but things have to make sense to me from a value perspective.
1 Like
No one would expect you to put this on the floor behind your rack. Not sure where all this got started. It wonāt be in a full sized PerfectWave chassis but it will be in a cool half size chassis, one that you and I would be proud to display.
7 Likes