PS Audio NuWave DSD DAC User Manual
®
Owner’s Reference
7:
(<+06
Instructions for Use
Owner’s Reference NuWave DSD
NuWave DSD
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301 15-074-01-1
PH: 720.406.8946 www.psaudio.com Rev A
©2015 PS Audio Inc. All rights reserved.
®
Introduction
7:
(<+06
Important Safety
Instructions
Owner’s Reference NuWave DSD
Heed all warnings
Follow all instructions
WARNING. TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR ELECTRICAL SHOCK, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS
APPARATUS TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.
Clean only with a dry cloth.
Do not place fl ammable material on top of or beneath the component.
All PS Audio components require adequate ventilation at all times during operation. Rack
mounting is acceptable where appropriate.
Do not remove or bypass the ground pin on the end of the AC cord unless absolutely necessary
to reduce hum from ground loops of connected equipment. This may cause RFI (radio frequency
interference) to be induced into your playback setup. All PS products ship with a grounding type
plug. If the provided plug does not fi t into your outlet, consult an electrician for replacement of the
obsolete outlet.
Read these instructions
Protect the power cord from being walked on or pinched particularly at plugs, convenience
receptacles, and the point where they exit from the apparatus. Unplug this apparatus during
lightning storms or when unused for long periods of time.
When making connections to this or any other component, make sure all components are off. Turn
off all systems’ power before connecting the PS Audio component to any other component. Make
sure all cable terminations are of the highest quality.
There are no user serviceable fuses inside this product.
THERE ARE NO USER-SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE ANY PS AUDIO PRODUCT. REFER ALL
SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL
Please contact your authorized dealer, distributor, or PS Audio if you have any questions not
addressed in this reference manual.
This product is manufactured in the United States of America. PS Audio
restricted for use by PS Audio International, Inc., its subsidiaries, and authorized agents.
®
is a registered trademark of PS Audio International Inc., and is
Introduction
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301 15-074-01-1
PH: 720.406.8946 www.psaudio.com Rev A
©2015 PS Audio Inc. All rights reserved.
i
®
Introduction
7:
(<+06
Thank You
ESS Technology
High Current
Low Jitter Clocks
Asynchronous
USB 192kHz 24
Bit Input
Owner’s Reference NuWave DSD
Thank you for your purchase of the NuWave DSD.
The NuWave DSD is a state-of-the-art Digital to Analog Converter (DAC). It can accept any USB, I2S
or S/PDIF digital input from a transport, CD player or computer and will output two channel audio. The
input can be selected from the front panel.
The NuWave DSD is based on the ESS family of Sabre 32-bit architecture Hyperstream DACs.
Performance levels better than -116dB are achieved in this fully asynchronous, low jitter design.
The NuWave DSD combines discrete class A architecture with hand selected ICs for its output stage.
Hundreds of hours of listening evaluations were employed to select the perfect output topology to
achieve the NuWave DSD’s open, powerful, spacious and three dimensional presentation of music.
The NuWave DSD features a large, high current analog power supply for great performance benefi ts.
The NuWave DSD features similar low jitter fi xed clocks found in the world famous PS Audio
DirectStream DAC for improved sonics and low jitter performance.
USB performance of the NuWave DSD is state of the art, featuring the XMOS based asynchronous 24
bit 192kHz USB input and its I
2
S output directly into the D to A converter.
Introduction
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301 15-074-01-1
PH: 720.406.8946 www.psaudio.com Rev A
©2015 PS Audio Inc. All rights reserved.
ii
7:
®
(<+06
Getting Started
Owner’s Reference NuWave DSD
Location
Cautions
Isolation
Power Cables
Conditioners
Once your new NuWave DSD is unpacked, you’ll need to fi nd a convenient place to set it.
There are several ways to mount the NuWave DSD: on a rack shelf, or on a shelf near your preamplifi er,
computer and/or transport or CD player.
If your transport is located a long distance from the preamplifi er, it is best to run a long digital
interconnect and place the NuWave DSD close to the preamp. If you are connecting through USB
there is a limit to the length of USB cable you can use, typically no greater than 5 meters for USB 2.0
but 2 to 3 meters is safer. The quality of the USB cable matters.
The NuWave DSD can benefi t from aftermarket isolation devices such as a PS Audio PowerBase,
cones, spikes, or Sorbothane pads.
Once you have chosen the location for the NuWave DSD you can use the supplied AC power cord to
connect it to the AC wall receptacle or you can use an aftermarket power cord and receptacle.
We strongly recommend the use of a PS Audio AC series cable. While the supplied cable is adequate
for the task, it is not going to provide the best performance. Choosing a well regarded high-end power
cable will make a signifi cant performance improvement over the stock power cable.
We recommend the use of power conditioning equipment, such as a PS Audio Power Plant, Dectet or
PowerBase from PS Audio. We do not recommend the use of simple AC fi lter power conditioners not
made by PS Audio as many of these may ”bleach” the sound and rob the music of life and dynamics.
If you do not use PS Audio power conditioning equipment, choose wisely based on your experience.
Power conditioners and the quality of the AC power delivered to the NuWave DSD can make a
signifi cant difference in sound quality.
Getting Started
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301 15-074-01-1
PH: 720.406.8946 www.psaudio.com Rev A
©2015 PS Audio Inc. All rights reserved.
1
7:
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(<+06
Quick Start Guide
Owner’s Reference NuWave DSD
Once you have decided on the location and chosen the appropriate power cable, you are ready to
install the NuWave DSD.
Power down fi rst
Connect the
inputs
We would recommend you power your entire system down before inserting the NuWave DSD.
There are four methods of connecting the
digital inputs of the NuWave DSD: S/PDIF,
AES/EBU, USB and I
EBU are serial digital interfaces available
as either an optical source (TOSLINK), a
coaxial source (RCA), or balanced XLR.
This is the typical output you would fi nd
on a CD player, DVD player, or even a few
computer products.
Any type of S/PDIF input is most likely
going to be fi ne for the NuWave DSD. If
you are connecting through the TOSLINK
optical output of a transport, Sonos, or
computer sound card, be advised that
optical is typically restricted to 96kHz and
below. We recommend the coax input over optical TOSLINK if your situation permits.
2
i
s is a superior format of digital audio and is available on most PS Audio digital sources as well as
through other manufacturers who have adopted our I2S standard, available through HDMI connectors.
Though the connector on the rear panel of the NuWave DSD is an HDMI connector, the DAC will not
accept HDMI signals, only I2S.
2
S. S/PDIF and AES/
The preferred method to connect a computer is through USB. Connect the NuWave DSD to your
computer using a well regarded high-end USB cable that is as short as possible. If you have a Mac
the required driver is already installed. If you are using a Windows computer you will need to download
and install the driver. If you have questions, refer to the Q and A section for greater details.
“Bits ain’t bits”
Choose your input
Please note that digital bits aren’t just bits. The quality of your digital interconnect cable, HDMI or USB
cable can have a major impact on the sonic performance of your NuWave DSD. Make sure you invest
some time in choosing the right digital interface cable.
You can connect one or all three inputs at the same time. For instance, you can connect the USB
input to your computer and the coax input to your CD player. Then you can simply choose which
one to listen to from the front panel button that selects the input. The USB input requires a driver
which is already installed on a Mac computer but will need to be installed on a Windows computer.
The computer should recognize the new hardware once the proper driver has been installed. The
necessary driver can be found on psaudio.com under the resources -> downloads tab.
Quick Start Guide
4826 Sterling Drive, Boulder, CO 80301 15-074-01-1
PH: 720.406.8946 www.psaudio.com Rev A
©2015 PS Audio Inc. All rights reserved.
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