DirectStream DAC with or without a preamp?

Which way does Paul prefer when connecting a DAC to the system?

[gtrguyinaz]

23 years ago I tried this.. had California audio labs CD with digital volume controls straight into Spectron class D amp.. sound was very good but when added Audible Illusions Pre amp.. the Magic was born..

[NateEll]

As my system has improved over the decades I have come to recognize a really great preamp can make or break a system. A preamp, often viewed as of marginal importance is dramatically important
,

[cesarjlisboa]

Precise answer Paul. I can’t agree more.

[desperado]

Great Lego AT-ST at that desk in front of you Paul 😉

[DM-wspd]

Paul likes selling preamps - that's why it could possibly sound better!

[davidfromamerica]

Mowing the lawn listening to Octave recordings streaming Bluetooth on your headphones. .👍😎🤗

[RogierYou]

I have tinnitus with loud white noise in both ears. Plus the usual senior hearing loss. Don’t think Incan ever justify the investment in a hi end audiophile system. But I simply like hearing Paul talk 😊

[NoEggu]

@0:39 "I've never exactly figured out why."
Paul, the focus of your DAC is the clocking, the minimizing of jitter, and the creation of an analog signal from complete silence. Your DAC's attenuation is basically an after-though (comparatively speaking).

That Aesthetix Calypso pre-amp is an entire box, dedicated to attenuation. $4, 500 (back then) for that singular purpose.

Can you say that your DAC's attenuation section has the same engineering that Jim White put into that pre-amp?
Can you say that the power supply in your DAC, sharing duties with attenuation, can perform as well as the Calypso's dedicated power supply?

A well designed gain stage, in a pre-amp, will outperform a gain stage bundled in with a DAC -- even a high-end DAC.

@0:55 "Look. Less is more."
If less is more, then use a receiver. It will have your amps, pre-amp, transport, DAC, phono-amp, all in one box. "Less is more" implies that the receiver will sound the best.

@1:08 "We put a pre-amp between the two. It was a vacuum tube pre-amp."
It was the Aesthetix Calypso.

[LeonFleisherFan]

Matches my experience, but must use a great preamp, as good or better quality than the output stage in the source component. Also, impedance matching comes into play, i.e. choice of cables, and in some cases, an autoformer (a passive device, not cheap either) will do the trick. Also depends on the amp - many so-called "integrated" today are in reality power amps with input attenuation (lack a preamp stage).

[spacemissing]

In other words... "An extra component helps, but by all means if you don't want to use it, then don't."
Paul is turning into a friggin' politician here.

[HiFiInsider]

I agree through a preamp is better than variable output on DAC.

[ajwise]

Paul, thanks for all your videos. And can I say, have a holiday, post a video on how it goes. You work too hard! By the way, I am looking into PSAudio direct stream DAC, so a very timely video. Thanks always. 😊

[milkman]

hello paul.i have the dac mk1 and im upgrading to the mk2 dac soon. what are the main differences between both dacs? is it worth the money to upgrade? or purchase the new air lens instead?

[marksalamon]

Doesn't the appeal of tube electronics derive from the fact that tubes add subtle harmonic distortion to the sound signal in the same way that musical instruments "color" the sound of the fundamental tone with harmonics, and so our ears (and our brains) interpret tube electronics as "natural", "familiar", "musical", and "pleasing"? The opposite is true of solid-state electronics: when they distort they contribute unnatural harmonics that sound harsh. Could the tube preamplifier in your example have enabled the DAC to run at lower power, and thus introduce less solid-state distortion? I'm only guessing about this; I'll be the first to admit that I'm no expert!

[georgeballow]

Comin soon? A PS Audio preamp with only ONE input? And maybe no volume control even?

[bélalugrisi]

Don't know why DSD files are so much lower than PCM files when using my DirectStream DAC. I use an FMR Audio RNC1773 as a buffer amp, usually bypassed, but kick it on when I need more gain, or if my program material might vary too much in loudness.

[gotham]

Doesn’t it all boil down to the DAC having a higher output impedance than the preamp?

[LeDabe]

A preamp is convenience, volume control that prevents blowing up something (your ears ?) and multi source switch.

[CarlVanDoren]

W4S 10th edition DAC2V2SE
Discrete class A output stages

[artyfhartie]

Direct Stream also indicates you're doing fine.