Opinions on PS Audio Direct Stream DAC (Mk 1)

@gavin1977 Thanks. I am not replacing my LIM. I use that in my office with my Magnepan LRS+ and RAAL CA-1a headphones, it sounds great on both slightly bright speakers.

I am looking for a slightly less dark DAC for my other system. That is where the interest on the MIB DAC arises. I would have 2 Yggi's, the LIM and MIB. 

I will look in Headfi for more into. I think Mike Moffet posts there.

👍 

I think the MKI with the full APS mod would be a fantastic dac when fed by a streamer, as people found the bridge card not as desirable. I used the bridge II card and found it better than the USB input.

However I upgraded to the MKII and had the APS transformers installed. The top end was more extended (as shown in the graphs Jeff has posted) as well as a bunch of other sonic benefits. Jeff thinks a fully modded MK I can compete with a MKII, so that might be a great bargain, though I have no idea what that costs. The MKII with APS transformers is so good I’m currently running with no preamp, and recently reviewed two amps for The Absolute Sound running direct from the MKII with no preamp. I felt this was a better way to hear each amp since there would be no preamp to effect the combo. My AGD GAN review vs. BHK300 is here https://youtu.be/K0p6MUKSVo8?si=5Gz8MTTzCYNStBwf

@magon I’d give it 24-48hrs of on/play time. Not sure if anything was changed inside as part of the “factory refreshed” process so just let it run. Overall your assessment is pretty accurate but I wouldn’t classify it as monotonous though.
It’s bombastic when the music calls for it but overall it’s a gentle giant. Coming from a cooler sounding DAC it may take some time to begin appreciating this DAC’s qualities.

I owned one for a few months and though it was a great DAC, especially as I purchased mine pre-owned at a great discount.  I ended up spending significantly more for Ayre Acoustics top DAC that I've been extremely happy with.  Happy listening.