PS Audio DirectStream climbs Pikes Peak

PS Audio has announced that a new operating system is available for its DirectStream DAC, the upgraded OS is called "Pikes Peak". DirectStream, based on a design by software engineer Ted Smith and perfected by Ted and the PS engineering team, differs from other DACs both structurally and operationally. DirectStream up-samples and converts all inputs to DSD, which reduces the amount of processing the signal undergoes, and shortens the signal path. Processing occurs within an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), rather than an off-the-shelf DAC chip. An FPGA offers a skilled designer the ability to precisely control the allocation of resources used during processing, avoiding issues of overheating and limited processing capability which are often encountered in designs based on ICs (Integrated Circuits).
Since its launch last spring, there have been several major upgrades of DirectStream's operating system; each providing improved functionality, reliability and performance. The Pikes Peak release provides broader compatibility of sources, further reductions of jitter sensitivity and added proprietary resource management within the FPGA. The sound quality of Pikes Peak “towers above” that of its predecessor, and provides compelling evidence of the value of DirectStream's ability to be updated in the field by owners – at no cost to them. This latest operating system is called "Pikes Peak" after the most-famous of Colorado's "Fourteeners" (the 53 mountain peaks in the state that rise above 14,000 feet). Future upgrades will all be named after a "Fourteener". The Pikes Peak operating system is free and can be downloaded immediately from the PS Audio website.