PS Audio StellarGold DAC Review | Adrian Alexander Reports...
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- Adrian reviews the PS Audio StellarGold DAC.
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Adrian's Reference Equipment:
Mclntosh MC 462 Quad Balance Power Amplifier
Mclntosh C2600 Tube Pre-Amp
Eminent Technology LFT 8 Speakers
Gustrad R26 Dac / Streamer
SW-10 Audio File Ethernet Switch
PS Audio Power Plant 15
VPI Scout Turn Table
Audio Technica Turn Table
Hana Blue Umami Blue MC Cartridge
PS Audio Stellar Phono Pre Amp
Kirmuss Audio Record Clearer
Morrow Speaker Cables
Morrow XLR/ RCA Cables
2-REL Ti Sub Woofers
Who is Adrian Alexander?
I began my journey at the tender age of 12. Initially, it was just a small snippet of sound, perhaps a simple melody or a voice recording.
In my teenage years, I experienced the revolution of cassette tapes and the joy of being duplicated and shared among friends. The 1980s brought the era of compact discs, before turn of the millennium marked a significant shift as the digital age fully embraced me and MP3s became the norm, where I became more portable, fitting into pocket-sized devices that could carry thousands of me at once. I was shared across the internet, downloaded, and streamed on various platforms.
In my 40s, the rise of streaming services took center stage, and I found myself being accessed from the cloud, eliminating the need for physical storage. My quality improved, and I became part of playlists, enhancing the daily routines of people around the globe.
As the years rolled on, technology continued to advance. I witnessed the emergence of high-resolution audio, immersive 3D sound, and the integration of artificial intelligence in audio processing. Now, at the age of 63, I reflect on a lifetime of melodies, spoken words, and ambient sounds. From the crackling vinyl records to the seamless streaming of today, I have been a witness to the ever-changing landscape of audio technology.
What Is The Absolute Sound?
The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, UA-cam and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.
#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound
The ESS 9038 Pro chip used in this DAC is a single chip with 8 channel audio.
Superb review, Adrian! Your descriptions of what you hear are specific, useful, AND still very enjoyable. Keep it up! TAS needs to send you a bunch more stuff!! ☺️🤌
I wish they have used 2 of mono configuration AK4499 as it has nicer sound signature than Sabre
But PS Audio DAC is still the best, regardless
@@ernies8828 Would love to hear it
@@kdomster9141-it is too expensive for me to own at $4000, but there is a friend I know that has it, and I Have heard it in his high-end audio room. Wow, amazing.
well done...great review
This was a bit superficial. When you say there are 7 filters, we can see the number on the display, but you could at least say out loud the whole name of the filter. When you said you preferred the first one, you didn't say if there was a big difference between those filters, or not.
As a owner of the PS Audio DirectStream DAC MKII and the BHK PreAmp I can just confirm: They are really nice people. Just look at Paul's regular UA-cam videos, use "Ask Paul" to submit a question or simply visit the PS Audio Forum, where not only users but also engineers and Paul himself discuss and answer questions. These all run under the category "The Hi-Fi Family". So you are really threated as family member. For example: Ted Smith, the developer of the DS MKII has openly shared the whole design ideas and concepts on the forum, during the development phase of the product. And every question of users has been answered, many times by himself. Even if you don't own a single PS Audio device, you are welcome to participate, share photos of your system, express what you like or prefer (also if it is not PS Audio). As long as you are respectful, you are welcome. That's almost unique.
I agree, thank you
@AlexReusch
If you enjoy your MKII you should consider the replacing the stock Edcore transformers with the custom designed ones from APS (if they are still doing the mod). The entire spectrum benefits from the new transformers, but particularly the highs are more extended as shown by the measurements of the two transformers. Highly recommended if you're going to Keep the DAC for some time. I can't wait to see what Ted comes up with as he experiments using the two FPGA's for different processes.
Have his Analogue power supply board in my DS Dac Mk1, designed by his Son who works as a Designer for the Pro Music (Mastering Desk Pcb’s n stuff) and can say 100% the guy does fantastic work.
I have a Farad Super 3 linear psu hooked up to my DS Dac, clean power supply is everything.
Nice comprehensive review.. my issue is that we are now at 10,000 when you add in CD player etc… I would like to see a comparison between an all in one like my modded Oppo and this path….
I had a Oppo 105 which I purchased primarily for SACD. Eventually bought a LPS from E Bay which helped immensely, but it did not compare to a Marantz HD-CD 1, that died. I replaced it with an Audiolab 6000CDT into my Audio Alchemy DDP-1 + PS 5 (dac/pre that TAS gave it a great review). These come up FS for ~ $1200. Saw one recently for $1100. My next player/transport will likely be the Shanling EC 3, which is a top loader with popular outputs, control though apps ~$600
really depends on your downstream gear, differences in dacs aren't immediately obvious.
@@DueMand the quality of the outboard dacs power supply. TASs review of the Audio Alchemy DDP-1 the writer said it should really be purchased with the PS-5 outboard power supply . It was that much better than the decent wall wart
I've just subscribed to the magazine for ten bucks for a year. Its cheaper than food!
At the end, excellent gear sells itself, through innovative focus, and superb performance.
I thank a2, on sharing his experience with this DAC. Now I’m off to get as much overtime work to secure me, one!
😂 thank you!
Still enjoying your considered approach Adrian.
Thank you!
Excellent reviewer.!!!
Glad you liked it!
Nice review, and what a handsome fella!
Thanks ;)
Prefer long narrow DAC'S 😊
W4S 10th edition DAC2V2SE
Saves space on audio rack 😊
Great review!
Thank you!
Thanks!
Great review, thanks
Are you asking what cable I used? I use the audio quest, dragon HDMI cable
Thank you
Well done, sir!! Love your reviews!
I like that the remote isn’t one of those little Apple remotes
No kidding -
PS Audio may not have dealers but there are dealers who sell PS Audio. Not many but there are some out there
One of the reasons you enjoyed Todd Rundgren here was that he was as adept in the studio as he was behind an instrument. His background is more active in producing than performing. I don't know if he is an engineer, but his innovations involved that kind of technical aspect as well as writing computer software. In the early days in the sounds of "studio stuff" in the 70s Rundgren probably had a hand in it, or was behind it. He produced for many groups and recordings. When the studios were going to full blast electronics (good or bad) production and distribution he was one of the pioneers. So the effect you heard above didn't surprise me. I remember him giving an address to the students at Berklee, it may have been commencement, I saw it on UA-cam about five or six years ago. Thanx for the video.
thank you-I just remember hearing that song on the radio when I was 12 years old I always liked it. When I heard the uncut version. Wow yeah he’s a good musician/producer.
that makes sense. I didn’t realize he was a producer. Very innovative. Thank you for pointing that out.
Sweet . . . ordered one to audition against the Schiit Yggdrasil+
Hmm, I owned the original Stellar Gain DAC/Preamp and it just didn't sound very good to me with 16/44.1 content. It sounded like there was some distortion. But higher resolutions like 24/96 sounded much better. I sold it and got an Anthem STR preamp, which sounds better to me on 16/44.1. Perhaps this Gold version has upped the ante!
I get it. Sometimes different components sound different in my system. However, the stellar gold works well in my system- glad you found a solution
Nice review, what did you use for the I2S source?
You started to talk about I2S and digital done right. But I don't think you finished your thought in regards to I2S. I output DSD directly to my PS Audio Directstream MkI DAC and it sounds amazing. I can do this with either a lil 50 dollar converter box or an OPPO that I bought a OPPO Mod I2S card for. Was this part of where you were going? I have to agree with your buddy that digital done right can sound just as good as my best vinyl. Nice review!
Thank you!
Nice job. 👍
Thank you! Cheers!
Cool story. How many does a Weiss Helios have?
I was a live sound engineer in the late 90's. That Sonia Dada album was my reference disk for setting up PA systems, and I still listen to it today. Their follow up, My Secret Life, is great as well.
Hey - thank you! for the info - i’ll check out my secret life.
Thanks!
Great review. Thanks for that Methadone Clinic song. I watch reviews for the music recommendations as much as the gear.
Thank you!
I truly enjoyed your review Adrian. You were down to earth and not overly technical. Telling us about your personal experience with this product was obviously genuine. And while I am quite familiar with PS Audio via UA-cam videos of Ask Paul (McGowan) I still desire to to seek out independent reviews of the PS Audio line up of equipment. Thanks again for confirming that once again PS Audio has developed a great top of the line product that can compete and surpass other top rated products and at a much more competitive price.
Thank you for the kind words. I appreciate it.
Thank you
Another great review, Adrian. Very articulate and detailed description and impression of an interesting piece of kit. Even thought your taste in music was spot on. I’d like to get your take on DACs that integrate either rectifier or output tubes. Keep up the awesome reports! ❤
Thank you!
Man that LCD display looks crappy. It looks like the designer didn't take into account how many pixels where actually on the display and the words are actually being cutoff by the end of the display. That doesnt scream Gold standard to me unless his unit is scratch and dent or just defective.
I sent this to Paul: "I just saw the excellent review of your PS Audio StellarGold DAC from the Absolute Sound. The one comment I will make is at the end when he said that some people thought CD sound in the 80s sounded harsh. I disagree. It was better than tapes and records by far, but some people didn't play through appropriate speakers and equipment overall, and that was it. But I digress. The review was very encouraging and positive, and I wanted you to see it if you haven't already." And I sent your UA-cam link.
Fair enough now that I think about it, I agree with you about the system, and how CDs sounded back in the 80s You are correct, sir they did sound better than tape and records. Thank you for passing this video along and thanks for your honest comment. I appreciate it.
@@adrianalexander2651Am I understanding this correctly? You’re saying the 80’s era CD’s sounded better than vinyl?!?!
@adrianalexander2651 Adrian, thank YOU. I have to say that as good as the DAC is, many will not be able to afford it. But I love PS Audio anyway :)
@cyclistman6358 - Of course, they did. I never bought or listened to a record again.
Your company ad in the middle of the review so I stopped it. Put it at the end it's bad enough that UA-cam keeps interrupting but pushed me over the edge when yours started.
R2R Dacs are overrated
😂😂😂
Fantastic review!
Thank you!
Thanks Adrian!
Thank you!
Their webpage confusing. They include sold out products.
So what. They tell you they are sold out. This is a small, cult developer and those of us who”sold” on the brand really don’t mind seeing what was.
It makes perfect sense to occasionally show "sold out" models. Currently, PS AUDIO is running a promotion through March 2024 on several models that are end of run products at 50% off. At least one model showing sold out is one of the end of life products. Since many people on PS Audio's email list may be looking for these sale items through the March promotion, it's logical to leave it up and mark it as sold out. Their current models are also occasionally out of stock & appropriately marked that way. Among the roughly twenty-five audio electronics models I own, nine are PS AUDIO models, including the StellarGold DAC & StellarGold preamp. Very nice gear!. Enjoy The Music!
“22lbs, however it felt like it weighed 35 to 40lbs to me”. Maybe the dumbest and most useless thing I’ve ever heard
I've owned this DAC since it came out, it having replaced the previous Stellar Gain Cell DAC. I love the sound, but ran into an issue which you didn't mention. Did you try hooking up a CD player or transport via either the Toslink or coaxial SPDIF inputs? I have a CD transport (Audiolab) connected to the Stellar Gold and it does NOT correctly display the bit depth on either of those digital inputs. It correctly displays the "44.1 kHz" sampling frequency, but doesn't display anything "--" for the bit depth. Strangely enough, it plays a rip of the same CD from my NAS and DOES display the correct bit depth. I have discussed this with the PS Audio engineers and they acknowledged this issue. A while later I received an updated firmware which was supposed to fix the problem. However, when I checked my DAC, it was already running that firmware, so that "update" was of no value. I again wrote to their team, but several months later there has been no further update or any indication of when or if this issue will be fixed. As for the I2S input, I also tried that using a DVI to HDMI cable from my HiFi Rose RS-150B streamer to the Stellar Gold DAC and it would not function at all. I have used a similar cable in the past from my computer to a monitor and it worked great. What device did you connect using the I2S input?
Interesting information thank you I don’t have a CD transport. However, it’s funny that you mentioned the hi-fi rose 150 B I had one of those probably about a couple of weeks before I received the deck. We should discuss what my experience was to answer your question I had the deck hooked up to the streamer from PS audio, if you want we can chat more about this
@@adrianalexander2651 Hi, Adrian: I have my Rose 150B hooked to my Stellar Gold DAC via usb cable and it works and sounds great. I believe the PS Audio DAC uses the same DAC chip as the Rose 150B, but has 8 chips in parallel instead of the Rose's single ESS Sabre chip. I find that the sound is more dynamic, smoother but with better defined leading edges of transients. In this setup, the issue I mentioned regarding 44.1 kHz/16 bit music not displaying the bit depth does NOT apply; it works as it should. So I am not sure what is different about both the Toslink and coaxial inputs on the Stellar DAC. When I have time, I may try hooking up a coaxial cable from the Rose to the Stellar DAC and stream a Redbook CD quality rip to see if this issue only occurs when using a CD transport/player or if it is inherent with those two typed of inputs on the Stellar Gold DAC. I also should mention that this issue did not affect the sound quality of the playback; it was excellent. I also own and have used a Chord Qutest DAC and the DAC on my McIntosh preamp to compare with the Stellar DAC. The Chord is closest in SQ to the Stellar Gold, but has more weight or "meat on the bones", while the AKM DAC in the McIntosh is leaner, but airier and a touch more detail. The Stellar Gold has the best balance of the three in my opinion.
This is great information. I have the McIntosh 2600 Preamp - I agree with you about the Dac in the Macintosh. I have to say I really am enjoying Stella’s gold. I’m currently using the stellar DAC with a streamer. I can’t mention it but you should see a review on it soon. I’ll tell you what sounds really good I just ordered the Audio Quest diamond pure silver HDMI cable it sounds unbelievable- I love The I2S input makes all the difference in the world we should chat. I’m just trying to figure out a way to give you my number. I did have the hi-fi rose 150 B a few months ago and I enjoyed that it worked well with stellar gold, DAC
You work with TAS and you're still calling POLARITY phase??? That is like speaking Ebonics instead of actual English to/with a ignorant audience
PS Audio formally refers to this feature as a Phase switch. Which, of course, inverts polarity.
I have discussed ths years ago with Paul, who agrees it is POLARITY but still calls it phase. So, it's not out of ignorance
@@thomasmartin2219I discussed this many years ago with Paul, who knows it is POLARITY, and yet still uses the wrong word to describe it, so it's not out of ignorance. There is no good reason for you to misinform your viewers
You need to switch to decaf, and also learn some manners.
@@DBravo29erROFLMAO