Aqua Acoustic La Scala HD dac

€2800

Combine the latest cutting edge technology with time proven innovation.
"La Scala" will make you love your digital collection without regretting the analog sound. Transparency, musicality, brightness, timbre and spatial coherence, proper scanning time of each musical note and harmonic richness to excite, as with listening to the analog master.

The components with extraordinary attributes of quality, reliability and durability, as well as sonic (capacitors: axial snap-in and 105 ° long life, metal film resistors and film low noise 1% and 0.1%, etc..). Every single component has been chosen and selected after extensive listening tests.

The intense design work and cure to detail is full gratified at every listening.

Specifications:

• Digital inputs:
3 coaxial S / PDIF (2 RCA & 1 BNC) 75 ohms
1 AES / EBU balanced 110 ohms
• High resolution asynchronous High-Speed USB port with resolution up to 24bit and 192KHz streamed into the DAC. A Xcore microcontroller is interfaced directly in I2S protocol conversion board bypassing the digital receiver
• galvanic isolation between digital section and analog
• Digital decoding is done by our exclusive circuit DFD (direct from decoder) without any digital alteration (upsampling, oversampling, digital filters, etc..)
• digital phase selector on front panel
• transformers current / voltage conversion (I / V)
• NOS ECC82 TELEFUNKEN valves analog stage in pure class A without feedback and led polarization
• tube anode supply circuit made with "virtual battery"
• the strands are fed and stabilized by a specific voltage regulator with power rising gradually to lengthen the life of the valves
• D to A conversion made by 4 Burr Brown PCM1704-K with 24-bit resolution and power MOSFET operated by constant current generators made J-FET and BJT
• aluminum anti-resonant cabinet with Nextel and aluminum front panel with a thickness of 10 mm

Aqua Acoustic

Struss R500 Amplifier

€34500

The Struss R500 amplifier does not possess its own features. Instead, it reinforces exactly what it is given and gives out everything that the speakers can cope with. The technical solutions used are owned by the company and are registered with the numerous patents. The amplified channel constitutes a fully balanced system supplied with two electrolytic compensators with a total capacity of 176 000 uF and two toroidal transformers with a capacity of 2.0 kW (2.8 kW peak), each  magnetically and electrostatically shielded. It is the tradition of this company not no include any bipolar transistor in the entire amplified system.

The surreal design is not a matter of chance. The beauty of its compact design is combined with the graphics of one of the most successful post-war Polish artists, the author of many prominent surrealistic works of the contemporary art.
The launch of the new R500 Struss amplifier by the Struss Amplifiers Company proves that the most powerful amplifier in the world (2 monoblocks) can be designed and produced in Poland.

Technical parameters:

Power RMS / Music: 2 x 500 W / 8 Ω, 2 x 1000 W / 4 Ω (DIN 4550)
Minimum load: 0.5 Ω (momentary)
Distortions THD - 8 Ω: 0.05% with a power of 1 W, 0.025% of the power of 480 W - 8 Ω load
Frequency Response: 5 Hz - 500 kHz + / - 0.05 dB / 1 W / 8 Ω
S / N ratio: 145 dB (IHF - A)
Dynamic Range: 140 dB
Inputs: 4 x Universal - RCA, XLR (balanced), separated CD - RCA voltage output for external devices
Security system: advanced against short-circuiting of the speakers and the appearance of the output voltage
Indication of "peak": approaching the maximum output
Transformers: 2 x toroidal, magnetically and electrostatically isolated, power 2000 VA each
Remote control: RC5 code (volume)
Power consumption: 200 VA - 3 000 VA (peak)
Work in Class A: 2 x 50 W
Net weight: 54 kg
Dimensions: 530.3 x 153 x 430 mm
The amplifier meets all the requirements and standards applicable in the EU
Manufacturer Warranty: 36 months

Struss

Totaldac REFERENCE-D1

PSU

€6500

REFERENCE-D1 is the high end product of Totaldac. Most components have been improved from the REFERENCE-A1 DAC, the resistors, the power supplies, the output stage, the FPGA etc... and it has many different inputs and outputs. The embedded digital volume control allows to interconnect the DAC between a drive or a computer and a power amplifier.

-192KHz asynchronous Xmos USB, optical, RCA and AES-EBU digital inputs, selectable from a remote control.
-44.1KHz, 48KHz, 88.2KHz, 96KHz, 176.4KHz and 192KHz, 16 to 24 bit formats supported on the coaxial and AES-EBU inputs.
-44.1KHz, 48KHz, 88.2KHz, 96KHz and 192KHz, 16 to 24 bit formats supported on the USB input.
-44.1KHz, 48KHz, 88.2KHz and 96KHz, 16 to 24 bit formats supported on the optical input.

-RCA, XLR analog output and 3.3Vrms max 32ohm to 600ohm headphone amplifier.
-digital volume control, adjusted by a remote control and an OLED display.
-adjustable 3.5Vrms max output level.
-phase polarity selected by remote control.
-display switch off by remote control or automatic.
-R2R DAC technology using VishayPG foil naked (VAR) 0.01% resistors, 100 resistors per stereo channel.
-class A, low impedance, discrete transistor output stage.
-supplied with rubber feet and metal cone feet, easy to swap.
-external power supply to minimize the noise on the embedded preamp. Not yet visible on the photo.
-aluminium and polycarbonate enclosure.
-controlled quantity of raw material, limited weight for the shipping, easy manipulation, 4kg unpacked.
-low power consumption, 10W on average.

-First shipping in 2012 february.

Available options.

-dual DAC option, using 2 DACs per channel for a 100% balanced DAC. Only for a DAC without active crossover. Improves the XLR output but leaves the RCA and headphone outputs unchanged - €1200

-Adjustable 18dB/oct high pass filter to attenuate sub bass to solve a room accoustics problem or to protect the loudspeakers or to remove sub bass when listening with a headphone or to remove the recording offset or to preserve neigbours or children at night. - €200

-110V-120V power option.

-BNC coaxial digital input.

-REFERENCE-D2 and REFERENCE-D3 ,69 bits 2 way and 3 way crossovers including a digital preamp for the main volume control and also for the relative level between bass, midrange and treble.- D2 €8000, D3 €9400

Zanden Audio Model 6000 Integrated Amplifier

Zanden Audio introduced its first integrated power amplifier, the Model 6000. It includes a full-function remote control for volume, source selection, muting and absolute polarity inversion. These functions are accessible also via a rotary knob and switches on the unit itself.

The preamplifier section offers 3 inputs plus unity gain in a home theater or as a power amplifier with separate preamplifier. The model 6000 utilizes 4 x KT-120 in push/pull to achieve 100 watts per channel. The 1st and 2nd voltage gain stages use 4 x 12AU7A, one per stage per channel. Zanden eschews paralleling output tubes and direct-couples the 2nd and 3rd stages of the output circuit, which operates fully balanced.

A number of unique noise absorption and shielding techniques are used throughout including Asahi-Kasei Fibers Corporation’s Pulshut RF noise absorption material.

Jeff Rowland Aeris dac inside - Part 2

Close - starting to the right of the circuit board

Power from PSU comes here

Fairchild MOSFET's

Linear Technology Regulators

An old USB receiver from TI - TAS1020B

From TI "This product is not recommended for new designs"
Why not use 24/192 Cypress USB receiver instead of the old TAS1020B?

Xilinx Spartan FPGA/DSP, Two gold crystal clocks above the Spartan.

Under Spartan there are three chips.

Left - AD1895:  192 kHZ Asynchronous Sample Rate Converter
Middle - Xilinx Flash for the Spartan FPGA chip
Right - AKM 4113 24/192 S/PDIF receiver

Going to the left of the circuit board
At the top - One AD1853 delta sigma 24/192 dac chip.

Under the dac chip there are two Lundahl LL1588 transformers

LL 1588

Jeff Rowland Aeris dac inside - Part 1

$9800