Ps Audio DirectStream vs Denafrips Terminator 

Well done! I can hear and preference your streamer with the PS-Audio DAC instead of the internal streamer! Between PS and Denafrips fed by your streamer is only a small difference over Y-tube compression. I think the biggest difference is on the „high“ frequencies. Dena is less pronounced than PS, but not sure which is more correct?? Sometimes I had the feeling, Dena could be more 3-D ? But again, that is very difficult to hear via Y-tube.

I think the DirectStream with the Bridge II was the best sounding. Better pace, and more warmth and body. Your speakers are impressive.

Great to see a head to head comparison. I've never heard the Denafrips units but I am quite happy with my DirectStream especially after replacing the output transformers over the Christmas break, using the Edcor XS4400 units. Much improved!! Spatial cues, dynamics, layering.. A great number of us DS users have also separated the digital and analogue power supplies; I am feeding the analog side with an external Farad 12v 3A LPS. Both worthwhile modifications for

I would love to hear a future retest but with high end solid state gear also please next time if I can recommend both some orchestral music and something with great vocals both male and female to really see midrange and texture etc. Anyways cheers. Great work on your Gab and the beautiful speakers! :)

Thank you for doing this comparison! I'm really enjoying your channel. My pick would be the Terminator with the GabStreamer. The bass was the best and the high frequency was natural. Next would be the PS Audio DAC using the GabStreamer. This combination was close but the bass and HF was just not as good. Next would be the PS Audio DAC with the Bridge II Streamer. This combination was bright and the bass was not as tight. You should be very proud of the GabStreamer, besides sounding great it is beautiful. I love your speakers! They are really cool looking and they sound great! You need to record a video with a heavy bass track. You almost got there of the second song, but it was cut off when the bass and drums kick in. Thanks again for your time and effort making these videos! Carry On!

Very interesting review! I am on the cusp of choosing bewteen Terminator Plus and Mk2 Directstream. I found the PS Audio renditons on your tests more musical, warmer and more reverb, nicer to listen to. I was surprised to hear such a difference over bluray headphones.

Your system is at a level that I could clearly hear the difference between each combination. To me, the DirectStream with the Bridge II was the best sounding. The upper midrange was sublime. I always thought I'd be an R2R guy, but the PS audio sounded more present and fluid. Bravo PS Audio.

Nice work you did there. From what I can hear through RU-vid, maybe PS-Audio + your streamer sounds better, but the difference is very minor, the reality is different as well, as you comment there, the room acoustic plays big role. Anyway, nice to hear these DACs.

PSA sounds smooth and lively.

Those DIY speakers are gorgeous! Seriously impressive! Really like the rest of your system too, all good components, not too over the top. You should DIY a remote controlled pre-amp/line stage next! ; )

These two Dacs got a lot of good reviews when they came out, but another once has since come out that in my view is easily the new class leader at this price and even much higher. It features a high grade PSU in a separate chassis as well as dual mono R2R ladders, which neither of these have, as well as a superior PLL input circuit. End result is a larger holographic soundstage than the Denafrips and no digital glare in female vocals like the PS Audio. It is the Holo May for around $US5000. You have to spend $US40,000 before you will find the first Dac that can beat it - MSB Reference - which incidentally has very similar design principles to the Holo May.

Nice job, I definitely preferred the PS Audio as a DAC with your streamer. The Denafrips sounded more detailed but thinner and too much treble “shine” for me. The PS Audio had fatter, warmer treble to me without any thinness or harshness.

I believe that you have reached a level of excellence in equipment where the differences in sound are imperceptible, probably the audio compression of RU-vid hides any possible difference.

First your system is sounding great. The speakers are great and pair well with the 275s. For me the 3 songs were great, better, best. Both the DACs on the Gabster streamer were much better than the PS Audio streamer. But I think I liked the Directstream on the Gabster.

I listened with Audeze LCD-X (2021) headphones through a Benchmark DAC3 HGC and couldn't tell any difference. I was really impressed with your speakers though and will have to now watch your YT video. When I first saw them I was wondering if those disparate drivers would blend well and they sure do. BTW, I own the PS Audio Direct Stream DAC, but without the internal bridge streamer. Instead I'm feeding it with a Bryston BDP-3. There is lots of talk now on the PS Audio forum about using a DDC between streamer and DAC in order to take advantage of the I2S input, which supposedly is quite an improvement.

Surprisingly, the Terminator despite it's great size is the most refined, laid back and maybe a tad more seductive of the two dacs. The PS brings the muscle , assertive and forward facing with great even an infectious energy in the performance. Two great products for sure. All down to musical taste. Other considerations would be the Terminator lacking dynamic punch and power & for the PS that being one of that vibrant sometimes vivid energy leading to fatigue. All things considered, the PS might just shade the Terminator. As an owner of the Pontus II, I see no major improvements overall in the Terminator.

Beautiful job on those speakers you built. well done!

Can't say much about the differences as my headphones and laptop are limiting factors. I would have to listen several times to form any opinion and then it wouldn't be convincing. I really did like the video and the way it was honestly presented and very well put together.Glad to hear you are into DIY. Keep up the good work.

The PS Audio is somewhat more bright in my view and seems slightly more detailed. I have the sense that both highs and lows are somewhat heightened. The Denafrips seems somewhat more reserved, somewhat more neutral, somewhat more focused on the mid-range. It seems maybe my view is somewhat in contrast to yours, but maybe it's just that we are using language (terminology) a bit differently. I like them both. I think day-to-day the Denafrips would be my choice - it seems I would not tire of it - but I can see that the PS Audio would really shine on some recordings. Thank you for your efforts !

The 3rd track sounds awesome. Great speakers.

Hello from Montreal, excellent video and I appreciate your effort. A big challenge for us it really comparing components side by side in order to make the right choice. So for my digital source I started with the Bluesound node/vault with a built in dac on my amplifier. Then over time and hearing other people equipment I realize the need to upgrade. Because I had a lot of cds, a good cd ripper and storage would be needed. So I went with the Innuos zen ripper/streamer plugged into a Denafrips Venus 2. This eliminated the need for a CD player and a laptop to store the music files. A very clean and extremely detailed source that I love. Watching your videos I do envy your ability to build your own equipment. I would consider building some speakers maybe some open baffles in the future. Thanks Gabby

I thought the Denefrips was somehow cooler or less engaging than the PS. Since they were not being fed by the same streamer I’m not sure the comparison is entirely valid. Overall I preferred the PS which had a fuller presentation. Both were good but the PS really bloomed in a way I liked. I listened over very good Sony top of the line Bluetooth equipped headphones. YOUR SPEAKERS WERE THE REAL STARS HERE. I’d love to hear them live.

The 3rd track sounds best on PSA audio - the hand drums or whatever they are called sound incredibly realistic on PSA but muted on Denafrips. I have owned 3 Denafrips DACs and like the brand.

I could tell the difference immediately. One is r2r vs chip. The denafrips tones lasted a bit longer on the harmonics. This is what I’ve experienced over the years. Leading edge appears to be there but depth is not .

1. PS Audio + Gabster. Open, relaxed and detailed. Sounds balanced 2. PS Audio + Bridge II 3. Terminator + Gabster. Something in the upper mids treble makes me feel uneasy. Glare or Frequency/phase issues

I prefer the Terminator/GabStreamer combo.

Hi Gabster, not sure if you had your DS modded. There're a lot of info on PS audio forum. After install those mods it'll be much better than the stock one. I have no experience with Denafrips though. Thanks for sharing these comparisons. Love your channel!

Great demonstration, thanks. First it is an amazing showcase of your speakers. The second track that Thomas Stereo uses for all his demos sounded far better on your system than any of his commercial speakers. The demo really came to life on my Grado headphones. Not as clear on studio headphones. I like both the DACs. The PS Audio is clearer and a little quieter in the noise floor. But I liked the Denefrips better. I could live with either. I preferred your streamer to the built in PS Audio streamer. I also use a DIY streamer based on Ian's tech. My build does not have as exotic power supplies, but it has better clocks. So likely different but similar. My DAC is based on an old TDA1541a S2 chip but tricked out with massive power supplies and a monster triode output. So it will have a flavor closer to the Denefrips R2R ladder.

Great video! I prefer the Terminator in all aspects mostly the visceral sense of space and the natural fluidity it makes. In third song on Terminator I almost feel like listening to direct live recording and not system...

The percussion instruments on the first track are much cleaner with the PS Audio. Same on the third track.

Another amazing video, Gaby.

Great comparison... IMHO the PS Audio Directstream is quite much better. Specially with Bridge 2.

Yep. Can hear differences in all 3 songs. Based on my playback device (Apple iMac), I feel the Terminator is a warmer sounding DAC versus the PS Audio which is a bit brighter and precise. I think this comparison demonstrates the importance of streamer selection as I felt the pairing of the PS Audio & Terminator with the GABStreamer were much better pairings. Suggesting the GabStreamer is the better streamer. Great comparison. Cheers Tony

PS audio seems to have more clarity and open midrange where Terminator sounds more closed in and with pulled back midrange what makes bass sound more pronounced... Just my take...

Too close to call, but I senses a better more defined highs in the last song using the PS Audio with the Gabster streamer. Thank you.

Great comparison. I like your streamer with the PS Audio DAC the best. My second choice is your streamer with the Terminator DAC. But really impressed with your streamer, wow. How hard was it to source all the parts to make your steamer and approx. what was the cost. Have you tested DAC's in the cost range of $2,500 - $3,500 ? I'm starting to wonder if your streamer with a slightly lower cost DAC would help me keep the cost down. Great work, thank you so much for sharing .

What were you playing through (besides your speakers of course)? Very nice sounding. I own a poor man's Macintosh, a PrimaLuna, Premium Dialogue, but it's a bare bones integrated amp, which I love, but a separate pre-amp would be nice. I have a PS Audio Perfect Wave with a Bridge II, and output to Tekton Perfect SET 10. I really couldn't say which I liked better, more room echo with the Denafrips and it seemed more textured, high freq on DS seemed more linear and clear, cleaner, which I can't say was a more faithful reproduction, but still very nice.

Great video

the DirectStream with the Bridge II was the best sounding

PS Audio definitely a little more resolution and spacial imaging

Thanks for a great video ! You made life so much easier for someone who can't afford either DACs but is incredibly curious. My conclusions: 1) The GABStreamer makes a big difference compared to the PS AUDIO Bridge II. Especially in the first song it seams the main difference is between the streamers and not the DACs. 2) PS AUDIO + GABStreamer= very pleasing to listen to and gets attention easily. There is virtually no listening fatigue. Very good for a very relaxed long listening. The only disadvantage is imaging. The image is very muddy and the sounds seem to be less natural when compared to Terminator. 3) Terminator + GABStreamer= Very natural sound that has a live feeling but the sound is boring and not very exciting. The image is razor sharp. A clear distiction in space between the instruments exists (Good Separation). So the Terminator seems to be less enjoyable and too analytical. Seems to me it is good for accurate analysis of the sound and imaging but brings on much more listening fatigue and boredom. In summary: a) For a good relaxing long listen=> PS AUDIO + GABStreamer b) For accurate sound and imaging analysis but without listening for long sessions= Terminator + GABSter THANKS MAN! A GREAT VIDEO!

listened to akg 361 and there are absolutely no differences

Terminator sounds better, with no question. Actually in this comparison it reminds me my beloved Topping d70s mqa with its palpable midrange.

I'm glad I own the direct stream dac. Although there's nothing in it really. Splitting hairs...

For #1 & #2 song, really hard to tell to tell the differences between the two dac, I only can say Denafrips Terminator is a bit recess on high, but come to #3 song Terminator do play better than PS Audio, Terminator feels more balance, everything feels merging well and more musical, and bass is more realistic too. I think Terminator is a more relax dac, you can listen for long hour without fatigue.Btw, I am using Hifiman He6se V2 driven by Krell KAV-250a.

Hey Gaby, I am just generally curious how you feel the build with the Ian Canadas dual mono ESS + OPA861 I/V stage compares to the PSA DS and Denafrips Terminator. Did your build surpass these two commercial builds?

What made more of a difference in you opinion the amp you choose or the dac to the ultimate sound quality?

Both are good🤷

No1: PS Audio Dac/Gabstreamer, No2: Terminator Dac/Gabstreamer, No3: Ps Audio Dac/Bridge II Streamer. (Conclusion: Don't stream unless you have a very good streamer/switches/cables! Use old fashioned "real estate" CD, SACD, or, even better, audio-files from audio-bank, memory cards or usb sticks or SSDs, directly read/fed to the dac. I don't know if it is possible to stream into a memory first (create an audio-file) and play it back, right afterwards).

Cool video I've been on the fence of selling my psaudio dsd for an holo spring 3 for while. Have you upgraded the transformers of the psaudio? also external power supply can be provided and the bridge removed if you are on external streamer to reduce internal noise.

Funny you should say that if it's not built in North America it's looked down on... My Hifi is entirely built and designed in the UK and EU, and I actually would always choose it over some American brand 😂

Try an Audio Music DAC/1

First Song starts 11:19

id paint the silver screws black

what DAC do you like best❓

You could hear no difference between a $599 streamer/DAC, and a $4500 DAC that many consider among best in class? Yikes. BTW, Denafrips has an authorized repair facility in Texas.

Is your psa direct srream mark 1 ?

Gab what tubes do you use in the mc275?

I don’t want to offend any Denafrips fans but it sounds broken or something is wrong.

PS Audio has a more digital character....esp brightness.

This video is redundant as PS Audio have replaced the Direct Stream DAC with a Mark 2 version which is substantially better than either of the two in this video.

Denafrips all the way: R2R are the best!

Maybe another time record and upload a file somewhere.... just for the super nerds.... ;P

Terminator/ gabstreamer

11:24 12:16 13:09

this BS audio directshit dac scored a 74dB of SINAD on ASR review. Far below CD quality of 96dB... PS Audio is a snakeoil company ypu should avoid...