Waversa Systems Mini Headphone Amplifier/DAC

kevalin · December 6, 2020

Waversa Systems Mini Headphone Amplifier/DAC

For Sale is a new and updated Waversa Headphone Amplifier and DAC/Streamer. Waversa is known for over engineering their equipment that allows at home over the internet updates of both the firmware and the FPGA, future proofing their units as digital technology evolves. Their Waversa Audio Processor is an inhouse design and processes the digital signal unique to the industry.

More about the company and technologies are detailed HERE.

The unit retails for $1700. This unit is new and opened for photographing. Price $1600 plus shipping (N. America Only).

MAIN FEATURES

• Headphone Amplifier with DAC and Streamer • External USB Storage • Roon Ready • DLNA Media Server   • Airplay   • MQA
EXCLUSIVE TECHNOLOGIES   • WAP - Waversa System Processor   • WAP-X - Waversa System Processor Extension   • WNDR - Waversa Network Direct Rendering   • Dynamic Range Enhancement Levels 1- 5

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

• Chassis: Aluminium   • Colour: Silver   • Input: Ethernet (with Native DSD), Digital Coax, Toslink, USB-B   • Output: Analog 1 x Balanced (XLR), 1 x Unbalanced (RCA
• I/O: 2 x USB-A)   • Headphone Output: 2.5mm sym., 3.5mm, 6.3mm   • Dimension: W 180 x L 150 x H 37 mm   • Weight: 2 kg / 4.4 lbs .• Power supply: 24V Adapter 90-120V AC / 180-240 VAC @ 50-60 Hz

SUPPORTED AUDIO/VIDEO FORMATS

•COAX: up to 24/192   •Toslink: up to 24/96   •USB/NET: PCM 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4, 192, 352.8, 384 kHz
: DSD64, DSD128, DSD256 •ROON: FLAC, WAV, DSF, DFF, AIFF, ALAC, AAC, MQA   •DLNA Renderer: WAV, AIFF, OGG, FLAC up to 24 bits / 192 kHz

SPECIFICATION

  •Linux 3.2x with 1GHz TI OMAP Processor ARM Cortex A8   •Ultra Low Power Universal Serial Bus Audio Class 2.0 •High Precision Dual MEMS 44.1/48 Clock   •Headphone Output: XLR 5.600mW (32Ω), 1,4A; RCA 2.800mW (32Ω), 0.7A

Nothing off the shelf:

Here we are dealing with a technology that converts every incoming signal into a digital PCM signal with an extremely high resolution of 32 bit/384 kHz from the very
first moment. The difference between PCM and most other Class D amplifiers starts here, because they usually convert the incoming analog signal into a so called PWM , a pulse -width modulated signal in which the width of a pulse is varied - instead of the amplitude of the incoming analog signal as in PCM. The higher the amplitude, the wider the PWM pulse. This principle is well known: The first to try this technique in a commercial scale product were Sony engineers they used it on the famous and easy to repair
TA-N 88. With Waversa, however, the entire signal processing is completely digital, even before the Class D end stage.

As if that weren't enough, the Koreans have given some more thought to how the energy efficiency of a Class D amplifier can be used without having to accept its disadvantages such as limited bandwidth and frequency response changes depending on the impedance of the connected loudspeaker. After the analog signal has been converted, it goes into a chip developed and programmed at Waversa, which masters a lot of arithmetic and converts the PCM signal into PWM form. The chip which has this task is called Waversa Audio Processor , short WAP/X. Regarding his arithmetic skills, which are the things that he has mastered all in real time include upsampling to 768 kHz, but also things like improving sound quality by achieving a linear and broadband frequency response up to 160 kilohertz , which is a record for Class D amplifiers. All these calculations take place directly on the chip. Resistors or even coupling capacitors can be saved in this way. And the WAP also does something else: It forces the PWM
signal to the clock of the PCM signal - a safe method of eliminating jitter and other interference. His programmers have also given him one last feature, which they are proud to point out: the ability to improve the accuracy of detail and spatial representation, independent of volume. Among other things, this is achieved by
reconstructing even-numbered harmonics of real music up to the 32nd harmonic - something that is only possible through various digital processes. The HPA 2,
weighing only 2 kilos as a headphone amp, offers all this, only minimally slimmed down in some cases, and even has a symmetrical design. It also serves as a full
-fledged streamer and preamplifier, it can handle DSD, MQA, and with external USB memory it also has a NAS function and all this leaves the viewer astonished.