"Can this really be digital?"
Ideon push the boundaries of digital design to the point where you question everything you thought you knew about the recorded arts
About the Ayazi MkII DAC
The aim of the Ayazi DAC is to give much of the Ideon performance at a considerably lower price point. But that objective does not mean quality is neglected, or too much compromise is accepted. By looking at the design in terms of price yet still maximising the opportunities of the fundamental principles such as femto clocking and excellent power supplies, the flow-down of 'Ideon knowledge' has resulted in a superb price/performance benchmark.
With solid and functional but no-frills construction, the Ayazi keeps most of it's value inside the box. And when it comes to the listening experience, it soon becomes apparent that this is a reference DAC at the price. Sound is solid and palpable, expressive and emotional. Transparency is excellent and the familiar Ideon trait of a lack of digital hash is readily apparent.
Specifications
DIGITAL INPUTS USB type 2 and above, SPDIF
OUTPUT FULL SCALE 2.0V RMS
FREQUENCY RESPONSE 10Hz-25kHz (+/- 0.5dB)
SNR (DC to 20kHz)>112dB
CROSSTALK -110dBSNR (A WEIGHTED 20HZ-20KHZ)>130dB on all outputs
THD+N (1kHz FS 96 kS/s)<0.002%E
USB FORMAT Asynchronous (dual clock) Device class: Type 2 or above Bit depth: 32 bit Sampling rates: 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4, 192, 352.8, 384 kHz
SPDIF / COAXIAL INPUT Bit depth: 24 bit Sampling rates: 44.1, 48, 96, 192 kHz
DIMENSIONS (W X H X D) 36cm X 17cm X 8cm
Tech Insight
The Ayazi DAC employs two high quality CCHD-957 oscillators by Crystek to produce a femto-standard clocking architecture. The CCHD-957 has been specifically designed for high-definition audio, offering superb accuracy but also beeing very low in it's own noise footprint. Building a DAC around these awesome oscilators is one of the essential basics of producing a true audiophile sound – that rocks!
Matching & Setup
As with all the Ideon products, physical setup should always be done to an appropriate standard – support, cabling, mains and so-on are all worth careful attention.
The Ayazi DAC is a component that is extremely flexible in a system-building context. It can drop in as a replacement for a more modest design, as a straight upgrade. It can then have the Master Time added later to produce a very strong digital decoding solution that will work well in a range of systems. Or it can be a stepping-stone to experience Ideon, with a plan to move up the range later. And whilst mix and match might not seem the best approach, we should say that the fundamentals of all the Ideon products are so consistent that scaling up to an Eos Stream say, still feeding the Master Time and Ayazi DAC, is in fact wholly appropriate.