Aavik SD-880 Streaming DAC – Quick Look

All Image Credit: Aavik

The Audio Group Denmark brand, Aavik, has announced the launch of their first ever flagship streaming DAC, the Aavik SD-880. According to Aavik; “What makes the Aavik SD-880 so exceptional is the revolutionary in-house developed and manufactured Non-switching Continuum Processing DAC, in combination with Aavik’s most advanced streamer technology, noise reduction technologies, and a pioneering enclosure design.”

The DAC supports; DLNA 1.5 and UPnP AV 1.0 standards with data rates of up to 768K, 32bit for PCM, and DSD 64-256 native.

Besides the use of their Non-switching Continuum Processing DAC that is based on a method where the digital signal is up sampled to 22 MHz and seamlessly converted to an analogue signal, other technologies include;

• Its quiet and powerful resonant mode power supply that unlike the square waves used by conventional switch mode power supplies, this Aavik series uses a resonant mode design which is principally driven by sine waves. The noise output of which is then lowered further by the use of ultra-low noise regulators creating noise levels of “measured in a few microvolts”.

• “The cabinet of the Aavik 880 amplifier was designed primarily with the goal of maintaining the best audio characteristics of the electrical design, i.e. the lowest inductance, reducing hysteresis to an absolute minimum, and ensuring excellent resonance control.”
• The enclosure is manufactured from solid copper with its bottom plate designed as a sandwich construction using a copper plate, a heavy compact laminate plate, and a titanium layer. This sandwich construction is said to ensure; “minimum resonance”.
• A number of TESLA coil arrangements, both passive and active, in order to reduce electrical noise.

• Includes a 3rd generation of their Ansuz analog dither technology that drives their active TESLA coils. These antiphase signals are said to; “eliminate the background noise floor.”
• Active zirconium anti-aerial resonance Tesla coils.
• Ansuz Darkz resonance control devices in each of the chassis four feet to; “absorb vibrations that are not directly related to the signal path.”
• Premium electronic components.
• The Aavik streaming app for iPad that supports personal playlists and streaming from; local servers, NAS, USB-hard disk and USB-stick, and remote locations such as One-Drive, Dropbox and Icloud, plus a number of streaming services to include; Tidal, MQA, vTuner and Qobuz. The app also supports various setup and control options.

Rear panel connectivity includes; stereo analog unbalanced RCA line-level out and BNC digital coaxial out. Inputs include; optical x2, BNC coaxial x2, USB Type B. Other connectivity includes; RJ45 LAN, USB x2 with control available via RS-232, trigger I/O and the Aavik streaming app.

Specifications:

MSRP:

• US: $70,000.00
• UK: £67,000.00
• EU: €67,000.00

For more information visit the Aavik web site.

Related posts:

• Check out this link for other streaming DAC posts.