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When dCS releases a new product, it marks the beginning of a journey that spans the product's life. 

 

dCS’s engineers continually research how to improve existing technologies and products, a discovery process motivated by their drive to deliver unrivaled measured performance and the resulting musical experience. 

 

Often, innovation comes in the form of software. With the recent Bartók 2.0 software update, dCS improved DSD upsampling and added new filter options. Mappers originally designed for Vivaldi APEX and Rossini APEX are now available in Bartók. The Mappers control how data is presented to the Ring DACTM core. Bartók now includes three Mapper settings. It also includes DSD128 capability and an additional filter setting for DSD. 

 

Additionally, dCS products feature a modular approach to construction. The design allows for future upgradeability, which enables them to offer new hardware to existing owners. Such was the case with the Vivaldi APEX and Rossini APEX. Now, dCS is excited to invite existing owners to upgrade their Bartóks. Units upgraded to Bartók APEX are identical to the new model in every way, including the APEX nameplate on the rear panel. 

 

The New Bartók APEX Further Elevates the Listening Experience

The Bartók APEX retains the original’s powerful, dynamic and detailed soundscape and adds elements of resolution and refinement previously only achievable with the Rossini or Vivaldi APEX. dCS engineered Bartók APEX to inform and inspire. APEX sets a new benchmark for transparency. It organically resolves the finest details and uncovers textures and subtleties that most systems overlook. From the broadest dynamic swings in volume to the subtlest shifts in tone, Bartók APEX reveals each aspect of a recording with a sense of effortless refinement and control. 

 

The Ring DAC APEX 
The dCS Ring DAC is integral to all dCS DACs and integrated music players. This novel invention—one of several bespoke technologies created by dCS—is one of the reasons their systems have earned global acclaim for their transparency and fidelity. 

 

Developed from the ground up by dCS engineers, it features a combination of proprietary hardware and software that has been carefully honed and refined over three decades to deliver a world-leading technical and sonic performance. 

 

In 2022, dCS released APEX, a significant update to the Ring DAC’s hardware, which allowed them to enhance further the musical performance of their Vivaldi DAC, Rossini DAC, and Rossini Player. dCS' obsession with remaining at the forefront of measured and musical performance meant that it was only a matter of time before they developed an APEX upgrade for Bartók owners. 

 

The latest-generation Ring DAC APEX hardware brings several benefits. Noise and distortion have been further reduced, and linearity increased by over 12dB.

 

dCS' subjective listening tests, in turn, have revealed a number of sonic improvements, with listeners noting enhanced dynamics, rhythm and timing, greater soundstage resolution and image focus, blacker backgrounds, and a heightened sense of realism. 

 

The Ring DAC APEX: one of several bespoke technologies created by dCS that have earned their systems global acclaim for their transparency and fidelity. 

 

For APEX, the engineering team made extensive changes to the Ring DAC’s hardware. With the exception of the resistor array, which remains unchanged, the latest-generation Ring DAC hardware is all new. 


Improvements Include: 

  • Modified reference supply that feeds the Ring DAC, resulting in 
  • lower output impedance
  • Enhanced the filter, summing and output stages of the Ring DAC
  • Improved the symmetry of summing stages
  • Created an all-new output stage
  • Reconfigured the main Ring DAC circuit board
  • Replaced individual transistors on the board with a compound pair 

 

 

Designed and hand-assembled at the dCS headquarters in Cambridgeshire, England 

 

Bartók APEX is born from meticulous craft, exhaustive development, and obsessive attention to detail—a pursuit of musical purity that has inspired dCS to reimagine the limits of sound reproduction. Sharing the same electronics as their Vivaldi and Rossini systems, it features the latest generations of the Ring DAC APEX, clocking architecture, and digital processing platform—a unique combination of hardware and software unrivaled in its sonic and technical performance. 

 

Bartók APEX combines precision engineering with an elegant and timeless aesthetic. Standard-setting build quality means Bartók APEX withstands even the most intensive use and reliably delivers superb sound quality at all volume settings and outputs. With flexible and upgradeable software and hardware, Bartók can grow and evolve, providing a state-of-the-art listening experience for years to come. 

dCS Bartók APEX Upsampling DAC / Network Streamer

PriceFrom $20,950.00
Color
In-Store Only/Call to Purchase

Dimensions: 444mm / 17.5” x 430mm / 17.0” x 115mm / 4.6“. Allow extra depth for cable connectors

 

Weight: 16.7kg / 36.8lbs

 

Converter Type: dCS proprietary Ring DACTM topology

 

Digital Inputs: Ethernet network port on RJ45 connector, accepts 24-bit 44.1 – 384kS/s PCM, DSD/64 & DSD128 in DFF/DSF format; USB 2.0 interface on B-type connector, accepts 24-bit 44.1 – 384kS/s PCM, DSD/64 & DSD128 in DoP format; USB On-The-Go interface on A-type connector, accepts 24-bit 44.1 – 384kS/s PCM, DSD/64 & DSD128 in DFF/DSF format; 2 x AES/EBU inputs on 3-pin female XLR connectors, accepts 24-bit 44.1 – 192kS/s PCM, DSD/64 & DSD/128 in DoP format; 1 x Dual AES pair, accepts 24-bit 88.2 – 384kS/s PCM, DSD/64 & DSD/128 in DoP format; 1 x SPDIF on RCA Phono connector, accepts 24-bit 44.1 – 192kS/s PCM & DSD/64 in DoP format; 1 x SPDIF on BNC connector, accepts 24-bit 44.1 – 192kS/s PCM & DSD/64 in DoP format; 1 x SPDIF optical on TOSLINK connector, accepts 24-bit 44.1 – 96kS/s PCM

 

Analog Inputs: 1 x pair balanced outputs on 2 x XLR connectors. Output levels: 0.2V, 0.6V, 2V, 6V rms for a full-scale input, set in the menu. Output impedance: 3Ω. Maximum load: 600Ω (10k-100kΩ is recommended); 1 x pair unbalanced outputs on 2 x RCA connectors. Output levels: 0.2V, 0.6V, 2V, 6V rms for a full-scale input, set in the menu. Output impedance: 52Ω. Maximum load: 600Ω (10k-100kΩ is recommended)

 

Headphone Outputs: 1 x stereo balanced output 4-pin male XLR connector; 1 x stereo unbalanced output on 6.35mm (1/4”) 3-pole jack. Full-scale output levels: 1.4W rms into 33Ω, 0.15W rms into 300Ω. Minimum headphone impedance: 33Ω

 

Wordclock I/O: 2 x Word Clock Inputs on 2 x BNC connectors, accept standard Word Clock at 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4 or 192kHz. The data rate can be the same as the clock rate or an exact multiple of the clock rate. Sensitive to TTL levels. 1 x Word Clock Output on 1x BNC connector. With Sync Mode set to Master, a TTL-compatible Word Clock is output

 

MQA: Full decoding and rendering of MQA data from the Network and USB2 inputs. Final rendering of unfolded MQA data only from the other inputs

 

Residual Noise: 24-bit data: Better than –113dB0, 20Hz - 20kHz unweighted (6V output setting)

 

Left Right Crosstalk: Better than -115dB0, 20Hz – 20kHz

 

Spurious Responses: Better than -105dB0, 20Hz – 20kHz

 

Filters: PCM mode: up to 6 filters give different trade-offs between the Nyquist image rejection and the phase response. DSD mode: 4 filters progressively reduce out-of-audio band noise level

Conversions: DXD as standard or optional DSD upsampling

Software Updates: Download and update functionality available via dCS Mosaic Control app

 

Local control: dCS Mosaic Control app for unit configuration and playback. RS232 interface (controlled by a 3rd party automation system). dCS Universal Remote is available as an optional extra

 

Power Supply: Factory set to either 100, 115/120, 220 or 230/240V AC 50/60Hz

 

Power Consumption: 30 Watts typical / 50 Watts maximum

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