PS Audio Perfect Wave Transport/DAC experiences

Hi Lev,
I think you'll need a preamp, too. I listend to PWT/PWD straight into the crossover, with the Levinson #32, and with the ARC Ref #. While the sound of the PWT/PWD direct was very good and I found it had great dynamics and punch, it was a little on the uncontrolled side. It also has to be (according to PS Audio) played at least half volume because with anything less a digital volume control loses some of its resolution. In my experiements things always sounded best with the PWD at full volume while using the Preamp to control the output. If you could swing it, and wanted a Levinson pre, I'd look at the #320s. You might also consider a tube preamp. I've really enjoyed coming back to a tube preamp. To me, it would be worth it to save for a Ref 3. However, I could easily live with using the PWT as a preamp if I had too!
Also, Cullen Electronics, who do design work and mods for PS Audio, are working on a mod for the PWD, and I believe I was told they thought they could improve the volume control on the PWD. So that may be something to check out in the near future.

you're right Sgr. my Pass Aleph P pre-amp needed break-in and on day 3...it really started to sound better. it's obviously an old peice but in really pristine condition. it could have been sitting in its wooden crate for 10 years, for all i know?. didn't think a lengthy break-in would be needed but i was wrong. really like the simplicity and the sound of this pre-amp so far. think i'm gonna keep it hooked up for now and see what happens.

and yes...keeping the pwd set up to run above 50% was a small problem too. it restricted the volume i wanted for certain disc's. i do understand that very little is lost below 50% but i(we) don't like to hear the word "lost" at all when it concerns digital playback.

will play around with different pre's down the road a bit, as the budget allows. i'm done spending big chunks of money for a while. finished a big room treatment project last weekend so i'm done for now. gonna sit back and enjoy the ride on a *perfect wave* for a good long while =).

cheers
Lev

Lev,
I think that's a good strategy. The Pass Alpha Preamp reportedly sounds great and should do the job nicely. I've been impressed by all the Pass stuff I've heard. You've got a superb system already. Rome was not built in a day!

I've not downloaded any hi rez files yet. Where do I find them, (I know where to find the Reference Recordings HRX discs but I haven't seen a title that says "buy me".) and what is the procedure for downloading them to a DVD? What titles are your favorites?
Have a great day!
Sgr

although i haven't generated 200 houurs on the combination i think that the dac and transport illustrate the maxim, "there is no free lunch". while i find that well recorded discs profit from the increased resolution, mediocre recordings sound worse.

perhaps, i will have a different perception after i have 200 hours on both units. incidentally, i am using both the ps audio silver hdmi interface and a silver coax. so far, i prefer the silver coax.

the combo reminds me of a good solid state amp--great on the bass and a bit brash in the upper mid/lower treble region. perhaps this will change after break-in has been completed.

i also own a tubed cd player from 1990--the audio note cd2.

Sgr, i've been using HDtracks for the most part. plenty of classical and jazz but very limited rock(almost non-existant rock of any type). just go to the to hi-res section. most are offered in FLAC only. these need to be converted to WAV. per PS Audio...the duo will play FLAC someday but they're still working on it. truth is... they're still working on alot of upgrades for the pwt/pwd regarding the software side. we're kinda beta testers at this point with alot of stuff in the works. luckily most upgrades will be software based and easy to download/install (at least that's what they tell me?).

not sure if you're using a pc or mac but instructions have been posted on PS Audio's web site in the discussion forums section. i'm the poster for the PC instructions and someone else chimed in with a mac how-to. gotta say that it was a nightmare getting started using windows vista. i'm sure mac users aren't surprised by this lol!. main problem was the UDF 2.0 format that's required. vista has alot problems with this. took me many hours and failed attempts to get a playable dvd.

go here for my post regarding pc/vista:

http://www.psaudio.com/ps/forum/viewthread/404/

go here for a mac explaination/instruction:

http://www.psaudio.com/ps/forum/viewthread/423/

lot's of good info on their forums and most of it is directed at the perfect wave gear.

if you need some help, just let me know. i can save you alot of suffering and pain. not sure what to do with all the bad/non-working dvd's i have. anyone need any coaster's?? =)

mrtennis: my pair was 80-90% there by 200 hour's. doubt you'll see anything too dramatic after that point. maybe the pwt/pwd is just not your cup of tea?. just goes to show you how this is all about taste and preference. interesting that you like the silver co-axial best. not sure what my buddy was using when we did some testing (i'm pretty sure it wasn't a silver co-ax line) but we really preferred the I2S-12 (ps audio silver hdmi). have you been able to compare a non-silver co-ax to your silver co-ax hook-up?.

cheers
Lev