Listening is scary

Ted Smith has done it again. A major breakthrough in the art of digital audio. Over this weekend we have been beta testing our newest operating system for our DirectStream DAC, Snowmass, and the reviews are flooding in:

"listening and it is scary - black background with delicate sounds, then the sax… this sound stage is just unbelievable! That track is like velvet textures on a very smooth and dark background. Man is the background black!" "The more I listen to Snowmass the more impressed I become. The sound is much more natural and neutral. Gone is any hardness or sharpness I would occasionally hear. The mid and lower bass range is also much improved. Mid bass is fuller and punchier, and the low end is tighter and digs deeper, resulting in a more balanced and satisfying tonal balance overall. Whereas before, the tonal balance seemed slightly lean, with more energy focused on the mids and highs. The soundstage has gone from good to spectacular. Images project further in front and behind the speakers, along with added height. All the improvements come together to better serve the music, and further suspend my disbelief." "Prior to listening I was thinking that Paul may have been hyping up how good this release is Why? Because I had already thought to myself how in the hell can they make this DAC better than what it already is with Redcloud??? I have to eat crow, because Paul is right. Ted, you have managed to elevate a great DAC to new musical heights! Whatever you did sir- MAGIC! Thank you so much for what you do for PS Audio and for this hobby." "I’ve never heard anything like it before. Digital has a tendency to sound like one frequency is competing with another, like there is a limit to resolution and truthfulness which is lower than our ears can resolve, like there must always be compromise between harmonic structure and timing. Snowmass seems to say, “No more compromise, you can have all the music.” "Honestly, if somebody had played Snowmass and Redcloud side by side I would have paid substantial money to get one over the other. Don’t tell Paul and Ted." "Dire Straits, Telegraph Road, original digital release (the one with actual dynamics.) The footsteps are events that occur in space – so physical. And the sudden chords, the sforzandos, have every bit of impact they ever had but are now so very clear and enunciated, making my recollection of them seem like they’d been distorting or mashed together every previous time I’d heard them. This is magic." "As soon as I heard Snowmass - it’s a paradigm shift in music reproduction through my big system! There is no need to switch back and forth between DS boxes to assess musicality …. No messing around: Snowmass in my system has a sound so distinct and therefore so instantly identifiable there was simply no need to compare." "Snowmass is simply incredible. And getting better and better. It has been playing continuously since 11:30 pm last night now 17.5 hours. I leave the attenuator engaged when I am not listening. The sound field is still growing - with a depth of sound that stretches beyond the field behind my house!"

Snowmass is a free upgrade for all DirectStream DAC owners. DSJ owners will have their chance at Snowmass soon. There's also new DMP code (3.10 just launched), as well as a Bridge update. Are you a DirectStream owner? It's fun getting a new DAC every time we launch a new OS.