PS Audio PWD MkII vs W4S DAC2

Now I am really confused!

I plan on attending the NY Audio Show at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in 2 weeks, and I am sure they will have a full array of DAC's to listen to , although one never kniows which particular component is making the difference.

Neal

I would giver Walter Leiderman at Underwood HiFi a call, as he carries both the Wyred 4 Sound and the Perfect Wave DACs. (He also prices the Perfect Wave DAC very "competitively", so the difference in actual price between the two DACs is not going to be as large the retail prices suggest.) I know that he told me that the W4S DAC2 was pretty close to the Perfect Wave DAC Mk 1. But that the Perfect Wave DAC Mk 2 is a big improvement over the Mk 1 version.

I personally own two sets of Perfect Wave DACs/Transports, one set for my stereo rig and one set for my headphone rig. I have owned them for a couple of years and -- despite changing virtually every other component in my system a few times, including preamp and power amp -- I have no desire to change my digital source. The Perfect Wave DAC/Transport is simply revelatory and was the single biggest upgrade to my system I have ever made. Larger than switching from a McIntosh MC275 power amp to a VAC Phi 200 power amp at a $5K jump in price. The Perfect Wave gear just seems to get digital "right". And I have tried a variety of other digital sources, including Ayon, Northstar, and Raysonic.

My one quibble with the Perfect Wave DAC was that the soundstage seemed a little narrow and didn't extend too far beyond the perimeter of my speakers. The MK2 version seems to address this quibble, creating a wider soundstage and better stereo separation. The MK2 version also has substantially better bass and improved inner detail/resolution. It is a significant upgrade over the MK1 version. My understanding from PS Audio is that the MK2 digital board also makes the Perfect Wave Transport somewhat less "essential", since every digital input (coaxial, AES/EBU, USB) now has the proprietary "digital lens" that dramatically reduces jitter and pre-ringing, making all inputs sound very nearly identical. I imagine one could now use a less expensive transport -- say an Oppo unit -- and still end up with fantastic sound quality.

Mcondon,

I think you're right on target about the digital lens. I'm auditioning the newest Shunyata digital XLR that is bettering my Harmonic Tech Audio Only HDMI to the I2S...something I didn't think was possible. I also find eupsample measly Pandora feed over a coax sounds significantly better than it ever did before the MKII board.

Btw, I bought my original PWD from Wally...great guy!

6 months on with wider distribution of PWD MK II, any further comparos to share? I am very comfortable with W4S DAC2, especially since I connected it to Bryston BDP-1, but you know how it is . . . . As K D Laing sang, constant craving.

Neal

when you compare dacs, you have to ask what transports are being used with them.

a particular transport that works well with one dac may not match as well with another.

so you have to compare dac/transport combinations. even if someone has compared both dacs with a particular transport, the outcome may change if the transport changes.