Frode, there was mention a while back (I think in one of the videos) of Ted working on something new. Perhaps it’s a multichannel DS!
As for the new transport, I hope it offers something more than an Oppo with Vanity board. The current Oppo 103 is $500 and the 103D is $600, add $850 for the Vanity board. Well below the cost of a PWT at $4000 and you get a Blue Ray player to boot. I’m not knocking PS Audio, just pointing out the best current (and only?) way to play SACD discs directly into a DS. Obviously the details of the new machine are TBD so this is all based on speculation…
Nope. While it’s been discussed, no multi-channel DAC’s in the works. You’d need three. But we wouldn’t even be discussing this without a player capable of outputting raw DSD from SACD over I2S, so one step at a time. Besides, I haven’t any clue what level of interest there is in multi-channel audio. Every time I hear it at the SACD mastering studio I am in love - but it takes quite a commitment - 5 speakers and amplifiers for a start, then three DACs and so forth.
pmotz said
Frode, there was mention a while back (I think in one of the videos) of Ted working on something new. Perhaps it's a multichannel DS!
As for the new transport, I hope it offers something more than an Oppo with Vanity board. The current Oppo 103 is $500 and the 103D is $600, add $850 for the Vanity board. Well below the cost of a PWT at $4000 and you get a Blue Ray player to boot. I’m not knocking PS Audio, just pointing out the best current (and only?) way to play SACD discs directly into a DS. Obviously the details of the new machine are TBD so this is all based on speculation…
It is much more than an Oppo with a Vanity Board installed. But for those wishing to go that route and save bank, that's always an option. To do this correctly you need the right power supply, you need to reclock all the signals, run them through a Digital Lens, reshape them, buffer them properly, etc. It's quite an undertaking.
Will your new player support 2ch. DSD over HDMI from my multiplayer, convert it to I2s and send it to the DS?
I am not sure I understand this question Frode. The new player can read SACD as well as data discs and BluRay. It will send unencrypted DSD, if that is what is on those discs, and high resolution PCM over I2S through our HDMI connectors to our DirectStream DAC. So, for the first time, you can play an SACD and receive the raw DSD directly into DirectStream over HDMI.
I get a little confused when we use the term HDMI - as in the PS Audio worldview, HDMI refers to a connector - not the format.
The new Oppo based player will not output HDMI as a format.
No, I mean DSD Audio over HDMI 2.0 as input to the new PS Audio player. This is part of the HDMI Audio standard and nothing to do with I2s.
But I understand the confusion, because the new player apparently contains a transport drive mechanism. Then such an input would only matter if one try to stream DSD to the player over HDMI because you don’t need a physical drive in both units. Instead I would think supporting Ethernet and USB connection would suffice.
My Rockna player cannot play SACD discs, so this is interesting
I erred. It actually has a USB input where one can place a memory stick or small HD. The only problem with this is the menu system isn’t easy - it’ll use our touch screen on the front and for small library inputs it’s easy to scroll through and play. But for big libraries I wouldn’t recommend this input - I picture it as a courtesy - a friend brings over music on a thumb drive.
No RS232 support planned. Remote control, touch screen on the front. The idea of the product is a major step up from the PerfectWave Memory Transport - the same sort of product only it can also play SACD and output pure DSD to our DAC.
Frode said
I reckon 'no inputs' is carefully considered, but what happens if it is not bundled with the DS?
I assume it will be replete with the standard outputs: AES/EBU, Coax S/PDIF, optical S/PDIF as well as I2S, and likely USB as well.
Are you aware of other transports with digital inputs and the ability to convert to other digital formats to output to a DAC? This could be handy in some installations.
Since we are getting deeper into this new product, I was curious as to how you solved the DSD issue. My first thought was you are using the Oppo license since it is based on an Oppo drive. Correct? Is there a similar licensing issue with the receiving DAC or is it covered by the main license? Any encryption required to transmit to the DS? Your upgrades to the basic Oppo/Vanity combination sure sound intriguing, will be interesting to hear what it sounds like! Too early to offer my Beta testing services? Those poor SACD’s will just have to sit in their box and wait just a while longer to be heard in their full glory…
We’re developing a handshake protocol between DirectStream and the new Player. DSD will be available only through I2S and only to a PS Audio DAC. This will require another DAC firmware upgrade, and since we’ve planned on another firmware upgrade in the first quarter of next year, anyway, the handshake instructions will be included.
This means the I2S outputs on the new player will only connect with a PS DAC and cannot be accessed otherwise. This permits us not violate Sony’s obligations of no copying of the DSD stream. This permits the DAC to render it perfectly, but only our DAC. If you try and take the stream as raw data without the DAC, the handshake fails. Is it bulletproof? No, nothing is, but it’s close.
Are you aware of other transports with digital inputs and the ability to convert to other digital formats to output to a DAC? This could be handy in some installations.
Sure.
My Rockna Wavedream Net transport arrives next week and it has the following inputs:
DISC PLAYBACK 32 bit - 384 KHz PCM, 1 bit – 11.28 MHz DSD
USB 32 bit - 384KHz PCM, 1 bit – 11.28 MHz DSD
ETHERNET 32 bit-384 KHz PCM, 1 bit – 5.6 MHz DSD
USB 1 32 bit - 384 KHz PCM, 1 bit – 11.28 MHz DSD
USB 2 32 bit - 384 KHz PCM, 1 bit – 11.28 MHz DSD
It will feed the DS over its I2s.
It also has a 1TB SSD built in and JRiver installed. One may order a Linux version or a Win7 core OS.
I will start experimenting via JRemote, but will probably install some other apps on it, e.g. roon.
Paul McGowan said
since we've planned on another firmware upgrade in the first quarter of next year, anyway, the handshake instructions will be included.
While at it I hope Ted makes the LVDS polarity insensitive.
Allowing various HDMI signal polarities is on my list - I wouldn’t use the words “polarity insensitive” as auto detecting the clock polarity may be difficult from some sources, but at worst we’ll have a UI setup/configuration for the polarities of any signals we can’t auto detect.
Yes, my EC EMP3 multiplayer has 2 USB, 1 HDMI inputs and 1 Ethernet port.
It it based on Oppo 103 (video part) and can play SACD, DVD-A, CD, BD Audio and BD HD (video) disc formats. It also contains a streamer. The downside is that the SACD part can only be output via its XLR analog outputs, except for HDMI output 2 which support DSD audio over HDMI 2.0. My sound processor however can decode this, so I get SACD digitally out of my player.
Ted Smith said
Allowing various HDMI signal polarities is on my list - I wouldn't use the words "polarity insensitive" as auto detecting the clock polarity may be difficult from some sources, but at worst we'll have a UI setup/configuration for the polarities of any signals we can't auto detect.
Rockna is planning to incorporate clock polarity into their I2s protocol, however this would be a proprietary solution that won't be inter-operable by default.
