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®
Getting Started
Getting Started 1
©2014 PS Audio Inc. All rights reserved.
Owner’s Reference
DirectStream DAC
LOCATION
A good location for DirectStream is in a cabinet or on a shelf at an easily accessible
height. Care should be taken to keep it away from power amplifiers or large potentially
hum inducing products. The IR (infrared) receiver for the remote is located to the left
of the Touch Screen. A direct line of sight will will help with DirectStream's IR sensor,
which has been greatly improved from its predecessor, the PWD.
STACKING DIRECTSTREAM WITH A PERFECTWAVE TRANSPORT (PWT)
DirectStream and the PWT were designed to stack on top of each other if they are not
placed on separate shelves. To do this, remove the feet from the unit you wish to place
on top of the stack. Carefully place the top unit so it rests on the bottom unit. You will
note that the bottom of the corners of each PerfectWave piece is specially designed to
mate with the top corners of another PerfectWave.
DIGITAL INPUTS
DirectStream offers multiple digital input choices including: The Network Bridge, XLR
(AES/EBU), RCA and TOSlink (S/PDIF), USB as well as I
2
S. All inputs, including USB,
are capable of accepting high-definition digital audio signals. The TOSlink input is
capable of 96kHz, 24 bit audio and all other inputs, including the USB, are capable of
handling up to 192kHz 24 bit of PCM or DoP data. The I
2
S inputs can handle single
and double rate DSD directly or DoP. Currently only the PS Audio NuWave Phono A/D
Converter is capable of sending pure DSD over I
2
S.
DirectStream uses an HDMI cable to transfer I
2
S data. This data can only be used with
another compatible component, such as the PerfectWave transport, and will not work in
other HDMI equipment as the I
2
S format incorporated does not comply with the HDMI
standards. The HDMI connector and cable were chosen to carry the I
2
S signal because
of their superior high-speed data transmission capabilities for multiple clocks and data
lines. PS Audio publishes its I
2
S standard and it has been adopted by multiple other
manufacturers as well.
DoP (DSD over PCM) is a standard allowing single rate DSD to travel over S/PDIF (the
RCA, XLR and Network Bridge digital inputs are S/PDIF compatible) as well as over
USB and I
2
S. It is not currently possible to send DSD directly over S/PDIF and the DSD
files must first be converted to DoP standards to travel this route.
It is possible to send DSD files (without conversion to DoP) over DirectStream's I
2
S
inputs as well as USB in the future. Most programs, such as JRiver Media Center and
Foobar 2000, will automatically convert DSD files to the DoP standards on the fly if the
appropriate checkbox has been enabled. There are no sonic penalties for conversion to
DoP as the raw DSD data is unaffected by the process.
Installation
Considerations
DoP
Digital inputs
available
