RDSChicago
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Haven’t heard much about this DAC lately? Do you guys still love it? If you were spending comparable dollars would this be the DAC you’d purchase? Why or why not? Thanks.
PS Audio Direct Stream DAC
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They ditched their dealer network because of a few bad apples. They will regret it IMO. GOOD Dealers are hard to find and GOOD dealers are consultants in the end. 99% of my calls go like this: “Mike, I’m looking for a new DAC, what do you recommend?” Then I ask a number of qualifying questions. Guess which DAC will no longer be on my recommended list to these callers or customers in the store? They think people are calling and saying “I want to buy the PS Audio DAC.” Wrong! Almost never happens.
As for the DAC, I just received some PS Audio email pretending they were having a big secret special sale. Seems like many others got it too. Funny, their big sale price is still way more than what some dealers were selling it for. It looks like the DS is being sold off and phased out from the sound of the email.
I think a Hugo TT2 or Aqua La Voce S3/La Scala are better DAC’s.
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Audioseduction
Active member
Love my Aqua La Voce S3! Thank you Mike! 
I think the reason PS audio is selling direct is because the big discounts from non authorized dealers were hurting the reputation of the brand.
I would expect they will be selecting authorized dealers at some point in the future. Getting back to the original oost, the direct stream is a
excellent DAC, all you have to do is google the reviews and yes it just had an update. I would recommend you try it, they have a money back
guarantee .
I would expect they will be selecting authorized dealers at some point in the future. Getting back to the original oost, the direct stream is a
excellent DAC, all you have to do is google the reviews and yes it just had an update. I would recommend you try it, they have a money back
guarantee .
He’s correct about the discounting. Authorized and non-authorized. They had some real jerks as dealers and they paid the price.
From unscrupulous authorized dealers. There’s one who does it all the time. Try getting warranty support if you buy from an unauthorized dealer. You’ll be screwed.
If the unauthorized dealer (or anybody else) has bought from authorized dealer the warranty should be valid for all subsequent purchasers during the warranty period. To be an unauthorized dealer you need to source stock outside the normal distribution chain, right? That's not happening here...
Wrong. The receipt for warranty purposes must come from the authorized dealer.
ALL dealer agreements strictly prohibit selling to other dealers. That’s what’s wrong.
Randy Myers
Active member
I would also consider the T+A DACs as being better. When I bought mine I was directly considering the PS Audio and Mike directed me towards the T+A. So very happy that he did!
So are distributors who are strict on “no discounting”. But you know the rules going in and you follow them. If you don’t like the rules, sell something else. It’s about everyone working together to ensure brand integrity. No one wants a situation where $250,000 speakers are being sold for $19,995.
For sure Randy. I didn’t want to address the discussion of whether the PSA DS is a good DAC or not. It’s all very personal on that level. Around that price point, I like Lumin T2, T+A DSD512, Aqua La Voce S3 and Chord Hugo TT2. The Hugo TT2 being the one you can buy and really take up to a whole new level if you later add the M-Scaler. The T+A that really goes up to a whole new level if you feed it everything converted to DSD512. Bring a powerful computer for that! The Lumin being the Swiss Army Knife of digital. “It does it all” - Roon, MQA, DSD, etc. The Aqua having the ladder DAC magic like MSB.
Randy Myers
Active member
This is true, you definitely need a good solid computer to do this right. So figure in at about $2000 to get a computer that is very up to the task, M.2 storage, gold power supply, etc. Works wonders for sure.
And as Mike states, a lot of personal preference here. If you do not like the idea of working with a computer or have other preferences the other choices that Mike mentioned are also excellent!