Just read this post over at PS Audio:

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We are well on our way into 2013.  Should be an interesting year for PS Audio with the Class D Amp and work on the next generation DAC with DSD capabilities.

After reading a few other posts from McGowan, I also feel that the PWD will become more of a preamp (than it is already) and maybe a phono stage will rear it's head once again in their lineup (if not already included within the new upcoming DAC).

Just a rumor and thinking outloud on the phono stage as some of his posts seemed he hinted about it or at least getting set up for one. 

Hmm ... trying to stay as much analog as possible seems like the main point to vinyl playback!  So turning an analog signal into digital doesn't sound right to me ... It's almost a why bother after a certain point ... although doesn't RIAA equalization break up the signal somewhat anyways?  Perhaps it the lesser of evils however?

For anybody who's interested, I have just verified that the upcoming version of the PWD will bring DSD streaming via ethernet.  Also the current PWD MKII will be upgradeable, however it must be sent back to the factory for them to do it as it is a complicated procedure and requires a number of new components to be changed out.

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I'm keeping an open mind to it, from all the talk it seems like DSD is one (if not "the") best playback of digital files out there.  I'm in no rush though considering I have all of 1 SACD's and absolutely no DSD files on my PC/Server whatsoever ...

But if I was going to purchase a Network Player/DAC that costs as much as the PWD I would defintely be looking for DSD playback in its specs.

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I bet the analog section will be pretty decent, however I just can't get over the fact that they want the capability to send the analog signal through an ADC - DAC  ... All I can say is WTF, do those youngsters know the real reason that people are still spinning vinyl ... a format that's about 125 years old?

It makes me think of our previous conversation of why we found vinyl so soothing is that it's as close to a pure analog signal as possible and then PS Audio is not only converting it into digital, they are then de-converting it back to analog ... so they actually molest the purity 2x before it even hits your ears (provided somebody goes that route in their hookup)

Anyways, for that kind of money I think the ZP3 will be the best bet!  

I'm enjoying this conversation.  There is not a lot of DSD files available right now and we don't know if it's going to take off, but if I was going to buy a DAC that costs over $1500 I would want that as an as an option just in case or go into my purchase knowing that it can be upgraded at a later time should the need arise.  And considering there are DACs on the market right now under $1000 that can playback those DSD files, when stepping up to a BIG GUN DAC like PS Audio PWD it should almost be a given.

As for DSD taking off ... well I'm unsure at this point if that will be the format that wins, however there’s no doubt in my mind that hi-res files are the future and while I don’t see CD players going away anytime soon due to the legacy factor of people who own lots of titles in that format, but in my opinion when the dust clears it's going to be hi-res files and vinyl left.  Let's face it, PC based music playback has only been mainstream for a short while and can already best CD playback systems costing thousands more and we are just getting started.

I’ve read that companies like Linn don't even make CD players anymore (since something like 2010) and have been pushing their customers towards network/PC music playback for a while now.  As for me, I own less than 100 CD’s and have ripped them all to my PC and never looked back and I seriously doubt that I will ever purchase another CD again … I’m a BIG FAN about the playback ease and performance of PC files, so all the music I plan on purchasing are going to be hi-res downloads and vinyl.

But DSD has obstacles that currently blocking it as a mainstream format including the fact the you need to be tech savvy, special hardware is needed (i.e. like a 1st gen PS3) to rip and store them and they take up a lot of space ... top that off with not many titles being available and well anybody's guess is as good as mine.  When I search for DSD downloads, I find mostly independent artists and labels (which is cool that artists are into the format).  But unless someone has been ripping SACDs with their PS3 and putting them on torrent downloads even then I'm not finding a lot of titles.

I own a couple SACDs and found one as a bit perfect DSD copy on a bit torrent site, I downloaded it and played it back using JRiver ... I wish I could say that it really made a difference, however my DAC is not up to snuff to differentiate DSD and regular FLAC.  But I am very interested in some critical listening to those types of files.  If more and more DACs start coming out with the feature it could give a push towards DSD as a more mainstream format, it should be interesting to see how this plays out.

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Lon, I have to admire your conviction ... you have no interest and that's that, even though you have one of the BEST DAC's on the market that is setup to exploit PC/Networked based music playback in all it's glory

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PR, I would really enjoy hearing more about the Baetis AND the Emotiva (if you decide to go with those components) from what it seems the Emotiva is way more accessible than the Zektor when it comes to purchasing.  With all your gear swapping and techie stuff do you ever have time to listen to music?