THE POSEIDON PROJECT

As a direct consequence of the international success of our flagship horizon DAC, we decided to trickle down some of the solutions and most of the sound character (or its lack) to the more affordable products. At the same time we noticed that the middle of our portfolio is crowded and there is too many DACs cannibalizing each other.

In 2023 we took a tactical decision to stop further development of The Big7 DAC, The Golden Gate and the Pacific. They are not discontinued but not developed further. You will find them in the page menu under CLASSIC. As a last minute addition we elevated these classics to the new, very much improved status with their respective Engine Eleven and Eleven-P

The classic products now and for the eternity will be called Big7-MK3, Golden Gate 3 and Pacific 2.

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All this middle of price segment is now served by one new DAC that will be our new weapon in  this upper quality echelon. Again - based on the revolutionary ELEVEN-P engine.

 

Enter: THE POSEIDON DAC

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Within our Lampizator team we had set a new challenge: to create an entirely new DAC not based on any model from the past but with exactly half the Horizon budget: half for the housing, half for the transformers, half for the electronics, half for the tubes.

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The target MSRP list price is also exactly half of the Horizon price that means it is 23 000 Euro netto.

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The design criteria were among others:

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1. To maintain the chassis size no larger than that of Pacific or Horizon

2. To offer single ended and balanced topology at the same time, without the need of choosing one

3. To offer volume control, display and remote control to everyone, without the need of choosing

4. To create the volume control circuit that is NO SONIC COMPROMISE versus a straight plain DAC.

5. To offer single ended and balanced ANALOG inputs - like in a super high end preamp

6. To eliminate the input impedance problems that plague typical preamps

7. To eliminate output impedance weakness that plagues the tube products

8. To use easily available tubes, which is important in these VERY troubled times. This is important for us, manufacturers - today, and for you - users - tomorrow.

9. Needless to mention - the sound quality had to be the best of all our DACs below the Horizon. And at the same time to maintain the Lampizator house character.

10. To provide a unique feature of SE analog inputs becoming really balanced at the outputs. So our turntable or tape deck can drive directly the balanced amps.

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The resulting DAC is a masterpiece of good sound and convenient features.  It has everything it can have, all the important features of the center of homer entertainment. It is specifically designed to work well with modern amplifiers, including the very big solid state ones.  At the same time it eliminates the need for a preamp, no matter if costing 5, 15 or 50 k Euro. The Poseidon built in preamp is better when driving the amplifiers directly.

Key highlights

• Proprietary, firmware driven conversion process with 760kHz PCM and DSD512 - Engine Eleven-P

• No silicon anywhere in signal path past the conversion stage

• Silver wiring inside

• Copper foil, true metal sheet capacitors in the signal path

• CNC milled chassis.

• 6N1P conversion tubes

• 6J5 output driver tubes

• Volume control of the highest possible caliber in every unit, featuring a full bypass function

• All units are truly balanced and SE at the same time

• Zero feedback, neither local nor global

• Zero opamps

• Tube rectified power supply

• Hundreds of tube rolling permutations.

 

Preliminary parameters:

• Weight: 23 kg / 55 lbs net, 35 kg / 80 lbs gross

• Dimensions without tubes: 440 mm W x 550 mm D x 170 mm H (height with tubes 250 mm)

• Digital inputs: 1 x USB,  1 x S/PDIF RCA, 1 x AES/EBU, 1 x TOSLINK

• 1 x analog input RCA, 1 x analog input XLR fully balanced

• Output impedance: 400 Ohms per phase

• Input impedance 100k per phase. 0,2M balanced (as a pre)

• 1 x analog output pair RCA and 1 x XLR balanced output

• Output level: 0DB full level @3V peak sinus 1 kHz per phase, 6V p-p for balanced

• Mains 110-115 - 220 - 230 - 240 V AC  /       consumption 120 VA  (0,45A)

• Frequency response 15Hz-100 kHz @+/- 1,5 dB,   >500kHz @ -6dB

• Overall amplification factor: 4x (6dB) - tube dependent

• Maximum possible amplitude output: 11V SE, 22V Balanced

• Volume setting to obtain 2 V output with standard digital source of 0dB: -10points  SE, -15 points Bal

• Volume maximum signal output with standard digital source of 0dB: 3V SE, 4,7V Bal

• Input sensitivity  @2Vpp output signal and max level setting: 625mV SE, 160 mV Bal

• THD @ 2V output: 0,09% SE, 0,02 % Bal

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Colors:  (sorry: no gold, no anodizing, no car paint (like Mazda Red)

• Matt Black Hole

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The dust cover plate around the tubes on top can be ordered in these colors:

• Copper - for the famous "Duracell  look" (Black body and copper top)
• Stainless steel mirror-like chrome look
• Black Hole black matt
  
  
  Packing in custom hand made flight case

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Tube compliment:

1 x 5U4G rectifier or equivalent, 274B, 5Y3, 5C3S, GZ34, GZ37, GZ480, 5AR4WGB

4 x 6N1P dual triode as input buffer or 6N6P or 6N30P or ECC88 or E88CC or PCC88 or 6DJ9 or 6922 or adapter fitted  ECC99, ECC40, VT99, 6F8G,  6900, 12BH7, 5687, 12AU7

4 x 6J5 single triode as output buffer or 6V6 pentode (without adapter), also 6C2C - Bakelite or Metalbase, also L63 and CV1067

All circuit consists of 4 identical mono circuits and each of phases has three tube stages: input buffer, amplifier and output buffer. The remote control for the first time is not before the tubes or after the tubes but in between stages, making it the most transparent and benign volume control ever.

Remote Control  - CNC milled metal "slab" remote

Display: OLED  display (amber color, monochrome)

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AVAILABILITY from December 01,  2023

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