Denafrips Pontus II FPGA firmware upgrade 2023

I updated my pontus ii on Saturday and listened to it that evening for a couple of hours. I have to say I didn’t hear any clicks, so that was great. While listening I noticed a more fluid sound in addition to more bass. To be honest, my system sounded louder at the same volume setting than if did before the update. I did notice when playing complex pieces, it sounded a little congested. When I went to bed, I wasn’t that worried about it because Alvin said the update will require five to ten days to break in. When I I bought the pontus ii last summer, it took a good month for it to fully broke in. I had a Qutest before the pontus and during that month I was concerned I made the wrong choice. But after it fully broke in, I feel in love with it. 

I haven’t listened to my system since last Saturday, but I have kept it running. I probably won’t listen to it critically until Friday night to allow six full days of break in. I think when I go down on Friday I’ll like the sound of the new firmware. I’ll repost after the weekend. 
 

@audiofilo123 - have you played with the NOS and the phase? Maybe using the NOS will bring back the natural tone. 

I updated my Pontus II this morning and am extremely happy with the results so far. Everything went smoothly and the actual FPGA flashing took seconds rather than minutes. A big thanks to Alvin and the FPGA update team at Denafrips for the quick turnaround for my request and the meticulous instructions which were critical for the success of this multi-step update process.

Two questions,

Are you glad you did the upgrade?

How do you upgrade something “The Pontus ll” that’s not connected to the internet?

Thanks.

I’m wondering if it’s the firmware or if maybe the increased resolution is uncovering an issue elsewhere in your system?  What’s the rest of your equipment, cables, etc.?

I will give it the mentioned break-in time and more, but now, after 4 days it still makes unhappy... let’s see how it goes.

I haven’t change anything in my system and I was having a blast prior to the firmware upgrade. The sound was very natural and a pure pleasure to listen. I was 100% happy, and I still fell that I will be again with the previous firmware.

Of course, my system still performs amazingly with my other CD players and dacs,

My reason to upgrade was to stop the occasional sound “glitch” when connected to the Cambridge CXC, but I loved the sound.