PS Audio PWD MkII vs W4S DAC2

i'd seen this comparison with the Mk I:

http://ravenda.wordpress.com/2011/03/29/a-happy-ending/#respond

but haven't seen a more recent comparison. i'm looking forward to the responses you get.

Neal, you're right. I didn't write it, and have my own doubts as to the article's assertions, so it is really is a non-issue. Sorry for getting huffy. Aside from any issue with writing or reviewing, I could not fathom owning a PWT and not getting the PWD.

tabl10s, perhaps you should have just ignored it instead of writing an irritating comment.

for the record, i have never heard any of the DACs mentioned in that link for a long enough period of time to have an opinion with regard to his conclusions following his comparison.

but nglazer was asking for comparisons between the W4S and PWD and the fellow who wrote that had done a comparison between the W4S, PWD, and several other DACs.

whether or not you agree with his conclusions, it is a comparison.

i see you own a PWD, tabl10s. no wonder you found the link irritating. perhaps you can say something substantive to refute his assertions as to the relative merits of each DAC and help the OP, rather than making unhelpful comments addressed at me.

given that the price increase for the PWD Mk II puts it closer to the price territory of the berkeley alpha dac 2 and resolution audio cantata, it'd be great to hear if anyone has compared them. with the optional bridge and potential for I2S connection to the PWT, the PWD seems to take the cake as far as features, but purely based on sound, i wonder how the three compare.

Nglazer, I was responding to Tabl10s. His name is Neal, too. Sorry for the confusion.

Enjoy your further research into the PWD Mk II. I hope to hear one in a few months at the Newport Show.

I don't have much experience with the W4S, aside from having heard it at shows. I always thought it sounded great in those venues, but couldn't make a fair comparison. But, since the thread started, I picked up a PWD Mk II and PWT, and it's pretty safe to say that my digital needs for the next few years are taken care of. I've been extremely happy with the units.

I'd spent a bit of time in the PS Audio room at RMAF after the PWD/PWT debuted and had been impressed with it then. The fact that they offered customers who had purchased the original unit a clear upgrade path reinforced my decision that it was the right way for me to go. As of now, I am just using the PWT with the bulkier HDMI cable from Blue Jeans Cable. Perhaps down the road, I'll check out the Harmonic Technology Magic cable, but for now I have no complaints. I've also been using various laptops to stream and play back music files, and again, it sounds great. Whatever they are doing in terms of the Digital Lens, does seem to work to minimize differences in transports.

Down the road, I'll check out the Bridge and Silent Server, but I'm waiting to see how that plays out, in terms of their software eLyric and its development. I'm fine with Decibel, Foobar2k, and Rhythmbox for now, on their respective OS platforms. It will be nice to simplify down to one program for my stereo, but it seems to be a work in progress, according to the PS Audio forum reports. I feel fairly confident that they'll arrive at a nicely integrated digital front end solution, but I'm still going to wait a bit before jumping on it. I have most of my files in FLAC and don't have a strong desire to go the Apple music server route. I have high hopes for the Silent Server, but will wait until it's out for a while before getting that and the bridge. I may also look into the music servers sold by Sonore, which use Linux. We'll see.

If you haven't seen it, this review of the Mk II is also worthwhile reading for someone interested in the unit:

http://www.hifi-advice.com/PWD-MKII-review.html

In answer to Audiobill:

http://www.avhub.com.au/images/stories/australian-hifi/reviews/2012/2012-03/ps_audio_perfectwave_pwt_pwd_review_lores.pdf