Award-winning DACs taken to even higher level—at no cost
Boulder, CO: 6/9/2017 - Boulder, CO: (6/9/2017) PS Audio is proud to announce availability of the revolutionary Huron Operating System upgrade for the DirectStream and DSJ DACs. Since the release of the Torreys OS last year, digital guru Ted Smith has worked painstakingly to not just improve sonic and measured performance of both DACs, but to also prepare the Bridge II network card for MQA and Tidal. The Huron OS for both DACs will soon be followed by a new OS for the Bridge II.
The Bridge II network card is optional on the DirectStream, and is standard with the DSJ. Bridge II allows a wide range of streaming and network options, including Roon. The Huron OS on DS and DSJ will not by itself provide MQA and Tidal capability, but Huron is required for use with the forthcoming new Bridge II OS. The combination of the two new operating systems will allow full unfold of MQA up to 192 kHz, and complete applicability of streaming service Tidal.
If you could do everything you've ever done before in half the time, with twice as much precision—wouldn't you consider it revolutionary? You probably would. That's exactly what the new Huron OS does: it now upsamples all inputs to 20x DSD, up from the previous 10x, allowing more extensive signal processing than ever before. Ted is both modest and very literal and dismisses the term "revolutionary" as applied to his latest creation, Huron. But consider...
Huron:
- reduces jitter to the point where it is almost unmeasurable;
- lowers in-band noise by 3 dB;
- lowers ultrasonic noise by a staggering 18 dB, kept below the noise floor until 120 kHz;
- improves the perceived frequency response of both extremely low bass and very high treble;
- includes redesigned upsampling filters to improve resolution and noise-floors on both PCM and DSD.
What does it mean sonically? Blacker backgrounds allow even more precise and stable positioning of instruments, as well as a perceived increase in dynamic range. The already-stunning spatial and dynamic portrayals of DS and DSJ are even further improved. In addition, bass goes lower, and is more authoritative with more "slam"; treble extends higher than ever, and sounds cleaner and just more real.
To be clear: previous OS upgrades like Torreys, Pikes Peak, and Yale each successively provided massive improvements in the sound quality of DirectStream and DSJ. And yet, those were modest, progressive developments. Evolutionary.
Huron is revolutionary, a greater leap forward in both sonic and measured performance than anything PS has previously released. Ted started from scratch and spent a year completely redesigning the FPGA that is the heart and brain of those DACs.
And besides sounding better and taking the first step towards enabling MQA and Tidal—it's free.
The DirectStream and DSJ DACs have won dozens of audio awards; their FPGA-based architecture ensures they will never become obsolete, and will actually be improved by periodic no-cost upgrades of the OS. Huron (like Torreys, Pikes Peak and Yale before it) is named after one of 53 "Fourteeners" in Colorado, mountain peaks that rise above 14,000 feet. "14er" names symbolize PS Audio's aspiration to ultimate sound quality—and PSers also just love their Colorado home.
Full details of the Huron Operating System can be found here. Huron is available as a free download or preloaded onto an SD card (DirectStream) or a USB stick (DSJ) for purchase. Download for DirectStream is available now; it will be available for DSJ within the next week. Updated code for Bridge II, needed in conjunction with Huron to utilize MQA and Tidal, will be available within the next month. About PS Audio: Founded in 1973, PS Audio has a worldwide following and a reputation for designing and manufacturing innovative, high-value, leading-edge audio products. Our design and core manufacturing facilities are in Boulder, Colorado, at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. While our engineering staff is second to none, PS is not constrained by NIH Syndrome: recent products have included design input from industry gurus Ted Smith and Bascom H. King.
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