PS Audio Direct Stream MK2 DAC

My PS Audio mark 2 also has no hum. Since PS Audio offers a 30 day return period, you can always send it back if there’s hum or for any other reason.  Their customer service is excellent.

The PSA DSD MK2 with an AirLens is a fully functioning network system. 

Their is no hum on my Mk2.

+1, “I would never buy anything with a 60hz hum”. Obviously, something is wrong.

It is very strange that some units have this hum issue and others do not. In any case, I would not purchase the unit until the hum issue is addressed.

You might want to read this

https://forum.audiogon.com/posts/2586529

Anyone see a date for the PSA DSD MK2 to have a functioning network system? Minus the streaming it won't mysteriously not perform of course.

DirectStream DAC MK2 with BHK300 amps:  no hum, just a fantastic musical DAC with AirLens. 

Just to add, as a former MKI/bridge 2 owner, the “noise” PS mentioned about the bridge card, I don’t think was audible noise.  People on their forum were finding the MKI sounded better with the bridge card removed, hence the thought that a Dac sounds better with no network card inside.  
 

As far as the MKII, I believe the network update function/wifi only is active during update, or can be shut off.  
 

One nice thing about the MKII is you can/or will be able to shut off inputs not in use.  Add the grounding isolation features, XLR shell lift,etc 

My MKii is broken in and sounding fantastic and now I’m running it straight to my BHK300 monoblocks and I’m getting the best sound I’ve ever had.  
 

I still plan on getting the transformers upgraded.  

I received my PS Audio DS DAC Mk2 a couple of weeks ago or so. I have given it an initial listen and it gives a nice soundstage with good detail and imaging. No hum at all. A nice DAC. Much more listening to go. But so far so good. As for the streaming, they never advertised that the Mk2 had streaming. Lots of good DACs don’t have built in streaming. I have other great streamers. I don’t need PSA building in streaming and increasing the price further. This whole complaint about steaming is a lot of nothing. 

I can understand being upset with a company that advertises that their DAC has streaming capabilities, but did not provide such capability.  Assuming that a MKII product has the same features as a MK1 product is on the consumer.  This assumes that the manufacturer provides information on the feature set of the MKII product.  I was very interested in the MKII DAC, but the timeline didn’t fit within my purchasing timeline.  I never wanted a DAC with streaming capability.

acmaier3:  boy somebody is trolling PS Audio.  What are you going on about?  This is a great DAC and your comments seem to be intended to slam PS Audio.  You have an agenda.  I have listened to this DAC for about 3 weeks.  It is amazingly good with great dynamics and soundstage..clean your ears or your mind.

There is no hum and this is a fantastic DAC.

Listening review of the MK2 vs. Chord TT2 and PS Audio MK1. Not really worth the effort to consider the MK2 I'm sad to say. The sound was lacking in dynamics, depth, and detail. The sound stage was fine but then again I have nearly full range towers for that. Listened across a wide range of music from cutting edge indie - Dirty Projectors "Right Now" to Zepplin II to Coltrane "Giant Steps" at 196kHz on Qobuz. One of the telling moments of reproduction isn't musical but a playing mistake about 2.65' in on Giant Steps when the string is misplayed off the fingerboard - you can here the non-musical quality for a second which creates a nice juxtaposition. The clarity of the detail in the high horn notes and the cymbals shone on the TT2.  The deepness and detail of the bass were both severely limited in the MK2 by comparison.  

A five month wait to ship it while sitting on my money to receive a device that is noisy and doesn't have any purpose for it's network card. Maybe one day they will make the network card do something. Actual sound couldn't hold a candle to the Chord TT2. I'm not sure I would say it is even better than the MK1. Maybe PSA can upgrade the firmware and decoding algorithms to improve it's competitiveness but why wait? 

The Airlens was to be their streaming component. PS Audio has a reasonable trial period. Many years ago Paul was 75% engineer and 25% marketeer. Perhaps we could fairly suggest that this ratio has moved towards marketing. Following threads at the PS Audio Forum made me aware of how audio companies have been struggling with supply and cost. I also have Ted to thank for making their I2s implementation clear, which runs counter to what I’ve taken as Paul’s I2s explanation, which made me think that clock signals were being sent to and used by the DAC via I2s.

@oczed  I enjoyed your post. A calm, logical response to criticism is always welcome!

@acmaier3 - Well, because you asked about the sufficiency of my education in regards to my reading comprehension and logic… Yes, I have a law degree from a top 5 law school and am admitted to two state bar associations. I think my reading comprehension and logic are sufficient to get by in life.

Not sure what to tell you here… no one else was confused about the product. The unit never shipped with a network streaming card.  I never saw anything from PS Audio claiming as such and I’ve been following the development and release of the MK2 over the last couple years.  

Best of luck to you on your journey. 👍

@markmuse - same points on simple logic to you - PSA were the ones that said the MK1 Bridge was noisy - send me your email and I'll forward the support note where they said the MK1 Bridge II was noisy. So they regularly ship noisy products but are supposed to be a leader in noise suppression eg DS power plants. They aren't scientifically testing their products or they are testing them but just don't care the products are noisy - don't see much room in between. Which do you think it is? 

@oczed reading comprehension is taught in grade school. Logic is taught in high school and college. Did you complete any of this schooling?

When someone offers a trade-in for a machine with a network streaming ability for the new version that DOES ship with an integrated network card, you should either be told the network card doesn't do what it did previously or it should be equivalent/superior functionality. This is really just simple logic so I feel very sorry for you. Best of luck stumbling through life with such "cloudy" thinking. 

@hgeifman ​​​​​​

Thanks for the update from PS Audio in relation to the "hum" issue. 

However, please consider what was stated by Ted Smith in relation to the hum:-

The hum is coming from the piezoelectric response from a few critical capacitors in the power supply. The device was designed with a component that wouldn’t cause this problem, but supply chain problems forced us to design in a slightly older version of the part which caused the hum. Unfortunately, the new and old parts aren’t footprint compatible, so we’re stuck with the older version for a while even when the newer parts become available again

Based on the answer received by @hgeifman ​​​​, I deduce that PSA's answer to the hum issue (and probably the Stereophile article) is a software "workaround" and not a hardware solution as indicated by Ted Smith above. If this is the case, then when will the newer parts referred to be used by PSA? 

Or am I mixing the issues up (ie the noise addressed in the Stereophile article and the "hum" issue are separate and distinct issues)? 

Thinking about it, short of an announcement being made by PSA on the PSA forum, it may be better to wait for those with the MK2 and a hum issue to confirm that the problem is no more before I pull the trigger on the MK2. 

Glad to note that they have been working on the problem though. 

I also don't understand why there could be any confusion on the lack of streaming capability in the Mk2.  PS Audio's marketing material never mentioned anything about streaming functionality w/the Mk2.  And for the "well, the Mk1 had the bridge" argument, the Mk1 bridge was a separate add-on when purchasing the Mk1.  It wasn't even included in the base product. 

@acmaier3 

Jeez, feeling a tad sensitive are we? This will be my last post on this thread, so go ahead and say what you want about me, I won't reply. But yes, my Mk1 did have a bridge. Noisy, untested? If you say so. Fanboy? Hardly... I currently own no PSA products. Corporate shill... now that is just being shrill. Hey, maybe I'm a bot? You overlooked that one. Have a good life. 

@markmise Also, you failed to read si are arguing against facts. Paul McGowan the founder and principal owner of PSA has admitted their documentation isn’t clear. So again what’s up with you? Corporate shill? Fanboy blindness I think. 

@markmuse  sorry did you actually make a point that counters my logic? No. 
you failed to mention if your MK1 had the Bridge. Was it noisy? Why is PSA shopping noisy untested products with useless components inside? 

@acmaier3 

You are proving my point. This is a NEW product. But perhaps their nomenclature is a bit misleading (Mk2). As a previous owner of the Mk1 is odd that I did not make those assumptions? It was very clear to me. 

Oh the update of the 2.6.2 firmware. Requires a drive smaller than 8GB with FAT32 - you’re welcome PS Audio, happy to guide your QA and document teams for $$$. 

 The fix for the noise issue Stereophile mentioned, according to the release notes,  is a filter. A digital filter that changes the output bc the machine is noisy. Another proofpoint PSA isn’t doing scientific testing and their QA is weak. 

@markmuse reread my posts - PS Audio offered a trade in on their DAC with a bridge but there is no mention of this loss of functionality on the website. Please reference this information. I’ve been a tech product manager for over 20 years. When you remove functionality you tell your customers. It’s called transparency and critical to maintaining the trust of your customers. Shipping products without scientific audio testing that results with hum and noise, as widely reported, should be proof enough this machine and company aren’t  worth it. There’s also no mention anywhere that the network OTA updates don’t work yet. A DAC with a network card for only firmware updates that doesn’t actually do firmware updates is less than useless. 

@acmaier3 

I am expecting delivery of my DS Mk2 next week. I ordered it some time ago and have been waiting for them to be available. It has been clear to me from the beginning that unlike the Mk1 there is no capability to stream directly and that the card slot is for software updates only. I am having a little trouble understanding how you misunderstood this other than by making an assumption based upon the Mk1 capability. 

I asked PS Audio for information on their DirectStream MK2 DAC regarding the Ethernet connection, the units hum, HDMI, etc. As noted below, their LATEST software update FIXES the hum issue. Please see his response below:

“The network board inside is only for future software updates. It is not for streaming. The DAC itself does not have the ability to stream. You need a separate streamer to send it the signal. Currently the updates are downloaded from our site and are put onto a thumb drive which is inserted into the DAC. The OTA updates through the network connection is expected to be released soon.

The DAC has no HDMI connections. The I2S ports use an HDMI cable but they are completely different.

The noise that is heard through the DAC is now fixed with the latest software update. This hum/buzz was only heard if you ran the DAC directly into your amp with no preamp. If you use a preamp, you cannot hear it at all”.

NOTE: I have no information when their latest software will be released.

My hope is that other companies will come out with a CD/SACD transport.  It may be a long shot, but I just can't pull the trigger on products that seem to have issues after going into full production.  At the price PS audio is charging for their transport and dac I would expect perfection.

@hgeifman the thread just above your query addresses this question - no the PS Audio DAC MK2 does not support any type of direct music streaming - you must purchase a separate network bridge.

PS Audio insist the network card was always only intended for firmware updates. Contrary to that insistence the MK2 doesn’t have any menu items for upgrading the firmware. The 2.6.2 firmware released this week won’t install from the USB drive when I tried yesterday - will try again today. There are no instructions about what format the USB drive should be though using FAT32 didn’t work; just tried with APFS which didn't work either. The update doesn’t include anything for OTA updates through the network card and there is no published timeline for when updates will happen OTA. The manual nor the website (AFAIK) has absolutely no mention of the fact that firmware downloading isn’t ready yet.

When I said this new product was half baked I was being very kind.

Does the PS Audio mk2 DAC have an Ethernet board that allows you to stream from Qobuz, etc.? How are software upgrades installed? Thanks.

is the Ethernet board standard or an extra cost option?  Thanks. 

@dcpillai wrote: "

Congratulations on acquiring the MKII @emailists ! Hope you manage to resolve the slight hum that you have found.

I have read that the Niagaras have a hum of their own in certain instances, but if I am not mistaken it is heard over the speakers, which does not seem to be the case with your setup.

Do let us know if any of your tweaks /  adjustments / upgrades eliminates the hum. Congrats and wishing you much enjoyment with the MKII!"

I have a Niagara 5000 and there is zero noise with it in my system.

@acmaier3 

I recognize your frustration in not getting a product that you expected would have a built-in streamer. I hope you find a DAC/streamer that you will enjoy.

My situation is a little different. When I bought my original DS DAC, I already had an excellent Innuos streamer/server and chose not to install the Bridge II to provide an Ethernet connection for my DAC. I knew from early information about the MK2 DAC that it would not include a built-in bridge, so that was never my assumption or preference. Knowing that periodic updates for the MK1 required use of an SD card, which was not a very elegant solution, I welcomed the ability to update the new MK2 via a network connection. 

Now that I have the MK2 and can listen to it in my system, I am very happy with how natural and non-fatiguing it sounds, while also providing realistic transparency and detail. It's a great DAC, and I'm sorry your situation didn't allow you to enjoy its beauty and musicality. However, there are lots of great DACs and streamers out there, and I'm sure you'll find something with the sound quality and features you're looking for.

@sdl4 Paul Gowan responded to me several times. He insisted the nearly useless network connectivity was never intended as a bridge. Not believable. Paul did say the website materials needed clarifying about the network only supporting firmware updates and zero services streaming.

Paul couldn’t identify any other products on the market that only use network capabilities for firmware and nothing else but he mentioned they have two more products coming out like this (no mention of which).

PSA support and Paul both mentioned that “over time they discovered” the MK1 bridge II was noisy but not how leaving a network card in the machine would prevent noise this time (nor omitting the bridge would solve this). It’s incomprehensible that a mature audiophile company wouldn’t be testing products for noise before they ship… The logical inconsistency of an audiophile company with many products on the market that require expert engineering to avoid problems with noise wasn’t addressed either. How they and others (Levinson, Devialet, etc.) selling integrated amplifiers without noise issues was also not addressed.

When you consider the facts and timing, the only logical conclusion is cost and the opportunity to sell their first dedicated streamer. Paul also basically admitted the network system might be too expensive to warrant use only for firmware updates.

@acmaier3

Don't keep everyone in suspense. Aren't you going to mention the response from the head of PS Audio when he suggested that you email him directly about your concerns. I understood from the PSA Forum that PSA was providing an RMA so that you could return the MK2 DAC since the product didn't meet your needs.

The PS Audio DirectStream MK2 is half-baked to be polite. They originally shipped these with audible humming. Mine was delayed in fulfillment for three months as they were probably revisiting this bad, noisy design - meanwhile they already charged my card for the device. I was trading in a device with the network Bridge II (guess they couldn't get Gen 1 right there either) for the MK2 but at no time did they  mention the network and wifi cards were ONLY for firmware - the network connections cannot be used to stream music from ANY service whatsoever. 

Generally people would say don't have a network card in a DAC for audio quality - specious but possible deterioration. A network card for only firmware? That is nonsensical based on cost and effort to integrate such a system.

So either PoS Audio (aka PS Audio) was:

1. Too cheap to pay for audio streaming service certifications

2. Didn't actually build a way to connect the ethernet and DAC - stupidity

3. or both

So they are charging substantially more than the previous edition for less functionality meanwhile you MUST buy a separate streamer. 

You're so fortunate actually - PoS Audio will sell you a separate overpriced streamer!!!

Latest update on my journey towards the  PSA DAC Mk2. Actually it is more like several steps back and not forward.😖

The Holo May is burning in nicely at around 200 hours in, and my PSA SACD Transport was delivered yesterday (which is the reason that I am on this particular trip). You can imagine my excitement!!

I got the PS Audio Perfect Wave SACD transport installed, and then I discovered that it could only play CDs and not SACDs. I could not activate the SACD layer as the command wheel on the machine seems to have been wired wrongly or there was a software glitch which prevented the SACD layer from activating ... in a brand new machine!! The technician of the distributor tried and he could not do so either. I was and am so utterly disappointed in PS Audio. Where is the quality control that one would expect of a world class producer of high fidelity audio equipment? 

Within 4 hours of installation, the SACD transport was on its way back to the dealer. I have of course asked for a replacement. Not sure whether PS Audio will agree. Not sure whether I will get my money back if PS Audio disagrees. Buyer beware indeed. I have a strong suspicion that I will be heading to the Consumer Claims Tribunal in the near term.

With this development and the continuing issues with the PS Audio DAC MKII (read the posts on the PSA forum to fully understand), I think that I am going to throw in the towel as far as PS Audio goes. But I acknowledge that this may be my frustration talking .... we will see I guess.

The saga continues ....

@dcpillai thanks for the kind words.  I lifted the ground on all the inputs (I only use usb) and while I didn’t a/B it yet, I think it sounds slightly better.  

I had some friends over last night for a birthday party and one friend requested Kraftwerk, and while I don’t often listen to electronic music, it sounded fantastic. 
another friend wanted to DJ a while and was playing tracks from her YouTube playlist.  It was shocking how good a YouTube stream sounded.  I had to kick people out at 4am, they loved the music so much.  I also played a one mic recording of Dave Brubeck compositions and my musician friend thought it was incredible to capture so much from one position.

It was also fun to tell people listening to their requests that they are hearing state of the art (for now) digital decoding.  
 

BTW my Niagara only has a slight physical hum (not through speakers) when using  my tube preamp, which I’ve read can happen.  With my passive pre it’s dead silent.  
the Niagara is such a benefit I don’t mind the hum since my rack is across the room.  
 

My next experiment with MKII will be lifting the XLR out grounds, and placing the unit in a Systrum platform, and then trying floating on a Halcyonics type active vibration table, though I don’t expect much benefit.  Having one under my turntable is fantastic though.  
 

Congratulations on acquiring the MKII @emailists ! Hope you manage to resolve the slight hum that you have found.

I have read that the Niagaras have a hum of their own in certain instances, but if I am not mistaken it is heard over the speakers, which does not seem to be the case with your setup.

Do let us know if any of your tweaks /  adjustments / upgrades eliminates the hum. Congrats and wishing you much enjoyment with the MKII!

Just got my MKII up and running a few days ago.  It’s plugged into a a Niagara 7000 and I am am hearing a slight hum with my ear about 1” from the DAC, however it’s dead silent though the speakers.

I’ll have to try plugging in straight to the wall, but as far as sound quality the MKII is fantastic.  I’m running a long optical usb cable from my Mac Pro in another room running Jriver as opposed to ethernet/EtherRegen  I was running in the MKI. I’m very happy with the unit so far and has really helped with the last niggles I have with my speakers coincident drivers dissapearing.

still planning on doing the transformer upgrade when available, as it supposedly takes the Dac to another level.

Congratulations @dcpillai! Have fun and let us know how it works out!

@dcpillai 

Good call and congratulations! Looking forward to your listening impressions. 

@bmontani @andynotadam @mdiaz @jl35 @sdl4 Many thanks for the information. However, as I have already got a Holo May DAC in the interim, I plan to revisit acquiring the PSA DAC Mk2 sometime in 2024. By then, am hoping that the issue (if there was one in the first place) would have been completely resolved by the use of the original cap intended by Ted Smith.

@milpai I got the Holo May DAC instead of the Holo Spring 3 (as suggested by @lalitk) and will be installing it over the next few days. I am excited and at the same time quite anxious to tell you the truth! 😅🤞    

As an owner of the DirectStream DAC Mk2, I must emphasize how wonderful this DAC sounds. It is probably the best sounding DAC under $10K, and may even be preferred by many listeners of much more expensive DACs. It provides clarity and detail, but without any of the digital harshness that affects many DACs. Bass is deep, tight, and real. Soundstage is wide and deep. There is a smoothness and naturalness that eliminates listening fatigue. I have had my Mk2 for only two weeks, and it continues to get even smoother and more "real" sounding as it settles into my system. There is zero hum coming out of my speakers, even with my ear next to the speaker drivers.

Ted Smith, the designer of the DirectStream DAC, acknowledges that there may be some listeners who notice some low-level hum when putting their ear close to the DAC itself. Here are a few of Ted's comments on this issue: "The part that causes the problem is one part. The humming comes from more than one cap that it affects. We did a couple of board turns changing the layout and number and type of caps in this part of the circuit and lowered the hum level. Changing the design overall to totally get rid of the hum would have been counterproductive in overall sound quality." So sound quality is the ultimate goal for the Mk2 DAC, and it succeeds fantastically. Unless you listen to your music with your head next to your gear rack, this low-level hum is a total non-issue. And the Mk2 even has the ability to lift the ground on any input or output that might be contributing to an actual ground loop or other ground-related problem in a particular audio system. 

I've owned several PS Audio products and never experienced hum with any of them. However, I did experience hum with a Pass Labs XP15 that I had on demo. I tried everything to remedy, including a very long run of RCAs to get it away from everything else. But to no avail. So I returned it. Ive also had hum with several power amplifiers in the past including a Krell and Classé.

A few years after I returned the XP-15, I decided to hire an electrician to run a pair of dedicated 20A circuits. And maybe a year after that, it was time to upgrade my phono pre. So I decided to give Pass another shot because it sounded so good. This time, the XP-17. And I've had zero hum issues since the new AC lines were installed. I also run sources & my MCH amp on one and my stereo power amp on the other. Zero hum or buzz even with my ear on any component. Not saying all of these peeps have wiring or grounding issues but it's certainly a possibility. 

I've had mine for more than a week, it is quiet and glitch free..and sounds great...

@dcpillai ,

Did you already get the Holo DAC? If yes, how do you like it?

@audioman58  No one mentioned or described the Hz of the hum. It's unlikely a 60 Hz one, which is a bass hum and is in my experience commonly the result of a bad cable connection. I assume the discussion is about a 120 Hz hum, the kind one gets with a bad component or ground loop.

Zero hum on my MkII...