Source: Press Release, Last Accessed: 2015/06/22

According to Heinz Lichtenegger, President of Pro-Ject Audio Systems, with modern digital technology and SMD circuit boards, you can minimize the size of outer casing without loosing performance quality, and normal music lovers will be more interested in products which are compact and powerful. The MaiA DS amp is his new proposal for such customers, being essentially a preamp, power amp, headphone amp, D/A converter and phono amp in one box.
MaiA DS is designed to satisfy the audiophile?s demands by including a 2x55W amplifier in a double-mono-design and a 24bit/192kHz TI 1796 based DAC with DSD playback capability through an XMOS-based USB asynchronous port. More over, the amplifier includes a 4th generation aptX Bluetooth streaming module, a MM/MC phono stage and a headphone output in a massive, resonance-free housing, featuring heavy-duty, gold-plated connectors.
The amplifier offers quite good standard connectivity through three analog and three digital inputs, a fixed output level for recording or a second zone playback system and a variable subwoofer output.
Heinz Lichtenegger, President of Pro-Ject Audio Systems, explains: “Today the modern customer does not understand the need for big boxes with a lot of air inside. With modern digital technology and SMD circuit boards, you can minimize the size of outer casing without loosing performance quality. On the other hand big boxes make products unnecessarily expensive. It is our very strong believe that in some years there will be only a few or no standard 44cm products below the 1,000 Euro price barrier. Heavy and big 44cm components will always be a part of the high-end business, but normal music lovers will be more interested in products which are compact and powerful.”
The unit is controlled via the Box Control IT app, a new approach for system control which does not require a WiFi connection and allows the user to control the unit itself as well as Pro-Ject's Stream Boxes, CD Boxes and other standard IR-controlled components like TVs and satellite receivers.
MaiA DS can be upgraded with a separate linear power supply that will almost double its dynamic power and improves the sound significantly in terms of punch and clarity, the company says. Power Box MaiA DS additionally offers convenient power wiring for customers who decide to have multiple Pro-Ject components in a system. Up to five products from the Pro-Ject family, including a turntable (DC-only products) can be connected simultaneously.
MaiA DS is already available in two colors (black and silver) for €799,00 (SRP).

For more information: http://www.project-audio.com/

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