The heart of the Liberty DAC II now features the ESS SABRE ES9038, 32-Bit HyperStream DAC, selected for both its unprecedented level of performance and musical decoding accuracy. Surrounding this exceptional DAC circuit is an overbuilt 60 watt linear power supply with toroidal transformer and 48,000uF of filtering capacitance, coupled with a fully balanced analog output stage for increased dynamic range as well as headroom, higher resolution, and significantly improved signal-to-noise ratio.
"All three of these circuits together in one box are virtually unheard of for a DAC at this price point. A compact digital component never felt and sounded so realistic until now... thanks to the Mytek Audio Liberty DAC II," says Michal Jurewicz, Mytek's founder and chief designer.
Other noteworthy features present in the Liberty DAC II include the facility for firmware upgrades via USB connectivity, five digital inputs including an USB2 Class 2 module that doesn’t require the installation of additional software drivers on the digital source, both balanced XLR and single-ended RCA analog outputs, and a clock generator yielding less than 2ps of jitter for ultra-low distortion. As with previous iterations from Mytek, and keeping up with the company's studio origins, the new DAC is available in a 1/3-rack width, still a small footprint that allows for easy portability.
Other Liberty DAC II significant design features include a redesigned 32-bit (w/192dB DR) hardware dynamic volume control featuring 256 steps in 0.5dB increments that can also be controlled by an included IR remote control, a connected computer via USB HID or a ROON core. Additional USB HID IR remote features include playback, pause and skip functions on Tidal, Spotify, Qobuz, Youtube, etc. players.
Earlier in November 2021, the Mytek Audio Liberty DAC II made its first appearance during the Capital Audio Fest, along with the previously announced Liberty THX AAA HPA (Headphone Amp) and flagship Empire DAC/Streamer/Preamplifier.
The Mytek Audio Liberty DAC II is now shipping with an MSRP of $1,295.00 USD or €1,295.00 EUR (VAT incl) in Europe.
New Factory and Product Platforms
Earlier this year, Mytek Audio has announced a slew of new products to be launched throughout 2021 following the shifting of production to a new larger factory in Poland, moving away from previous manufacturer and EU distributor, HEM Electronics, which has meanwhile decided to enter the market with their own brand and products.
The new generation of Mytek products coincides with the development of a new product platform, based on Roon OS and Linux audio. This created the strategic need to update all of the new Mytek streaming DACs to this new platform and, consequently, most of Mytek's existing products have been discontinued and will no longer be available.
According to Michal Jurewicz, a selection of nine brand new products are in the pipeline, beginning with the Flagship $20K Empire Streamer, which is currently being assembled at Mytek's Brooklyn, New York facility. In addition, Mytek’s own recently established EU Branch, Mytek Europe Corporation in Warsaw, Poland has become the European Distributor for Mytek Products, effective since November 1, 2020. HEM Electronics is no longer representing Mytek, nor are they involved in any way with Mytek business.
Several very significant in-house designed technologies will make their way into the new Mytek product lineup, including a new GanFET Power Module for amplifier output stages, using ultra fast Gallium Nitride FET transistors. This technology will be used in the Empire and Manhattan power amplifiers.
Mytek was founded in New York City by Michal Jurewicz in 1992. He began working at Manhattan’s famed Hit Factory recording studio in 1989 with the likes of Paul Simon, Billy Joel and Barbara Streisand, recording to analog tape and his reputation later landed him a job as Skyline Studios’ tech engineer. While at Skyline, Michal developed solutions to help improve the workflow and sound quality of the new digital systems. It was here that Mytek was born, in 1992.
www.mytek.audio
