dCS Puccini Player Upsampling CD / SACD Player User Manual Software Release 1.4x October 2013 © Data Conversion Systems Ltd. 2007-2013 Price UK £8.00 / Euro 12.00 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of dCS 1 .
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Puccini Player Manual v1_4x.docx Software Issue 1.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 Contents Using the dCS Puccini Player for the first time ....................................................................................4 What’s in the box? Positioning the unit Condensation Safety Notice Laser Radiation Which types of disc can be played? Which types of disc can NOT be played? 4 4 4 5 5 6 6 Step-by-Step Guide ...............................................................................................................
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 USING THE dCS PUCCINI PLAYER FOR THE FIRST TIME Congratulations on purchasing your dCS Puccini Player. Before using your unit, please read this section and the Step by Step Guide. This will enable you to set the unit up quickly and safely with your hi-fi system. From time to time, dCS will release updated software on CD that you can install yourself using the CD Update feature.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 Safety Notice Your dCS Puccini Player contains no user serviceable parts. DO NOT attempt to open the case as there are potentially dangerous voltages present inside. In the event of the unit developing a fault, please contact your dealer in the first instance. To maintain protection from electric shock, the unit MUST be connected to mains earth (ground) via the power cable. Also, unearthed systems do not give the best sonic performance.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 Which types of disc can be played? Commercially manufactured CDs can be played if they: • • • are 12cm or 8cm round discs are recorded with linear PCM digital audio data carry the Compact Disc Digital Audio logo and meet the “Red-Book” standard.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE This section guides you through setting up the unit for basic operation. Preliminaries The Menu / Setup Guide sheet details the menu structure and details the two most common set-ups. For digital interfaces, use with cables designed for digital audio: • • for Word Clock interfaces, use 75Ω coax cables fitted with BNC plugs. for SPDIF RCA interfaces, use 75Ω coax cables fitted with RCA Phono plugs.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 Fitting the Remote Control handset batteries Use a small coin to release the screw securing the back plate. ! Lift the screw a little and slide the back plate off. Fit 2 AA size batteries by pressing the flat end (-) against the spring and pressing the battery into the slot, so that the + end makes contact with the stud. Slide the back plate into place and tighten the screw.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 STEP 1 – Connecting the Analogue Outputs Choose one of the following two sections: Using a preamplifier • • • • Set the preamplifier volume control to minimum. Connect either the balanced (XLR connectors) or unbalanced (RCA phono connectors) outputs on the Player’s rear panel to matching line level inputs on your preamplifier (probably labelled CD or AUX). Use the Player’s Volume↑ button to set the volume to maximum (0.0dB on the display).
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 STEP 2 – Playing a Disc • Press the button. The display will show OPEN. • Load a CD or SACD into the tray with the label upwards and press the button again. The display will show CLOSE, then LOADING. The disc type will be identified, either CD or SACD appears on the display, along with the number of tracks and the total playing time.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 STEP 4 – Disc Playing Options The Remote Control gives access to other features, such as track number selection, repeat track or disc and programming a track sequence. • • To select track 5 as an example, either press button 5 and wait a few seconds or press 0 then 5 within the next few seconds (this is quicker). To select track 12, press 1 then 2.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 STEP 5 – Using a Master Clock Clocking the Player from a dedicated Master Clock (such as the Puccini U-Clock) can make some startling improvements to the sound quality. It is a good idea to audition a clock before buying. If you do not have a Master Clock, you can miss out this step. • Set the clock to generate 44.1kHz and connect one of the Clock’s Word Clock Outputs to the Player’s W/Clk Input with a BNC cable.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 STEP 6 – Using an External Source You can use the Puccini Player’s internal Ring DAC to convert digital data from an external source to analogue. The unit will lock to 32, 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4 or 192kS/s and process word lengths up to 24 bits. The unit will also accept DSD in DoP format and decode it to native DSD before conversion to analogue. If you do not want to use an external source, you can miss out this step.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 For best results, open the menu, set the Set-up / Clocking / RCA1 Clock Setting page to Clock and (if the Upsampling license has been purchased and loaded) set the Set-up / Upsampling / RCA1 Upsampling page to DSD. See the U-Clock manual for further information. What is DoP? DoP is the abbreviation for “DSD over PCM”.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 STEP 7 – Using the Digital Outputs Most owners will make use of the Puccini Player’s internal Ring DAC to drive the power amplifier directly. If so, you can miss out this step. When playing CDs, 16bit / 44.1kS/s digital data will appear on the RCA1 and RCA2 Digital Output connectors, which can be used to drive an external DAC.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 FRONT PANEL Figure 4 – Front panel POWER Button To switch on, ensure the rear panel switch is set to I and press the POWER button (A) on the front panel once. Note that the unit cannot be turned on from the remote control. To set the unit to sleep mode, press the POWER button once.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 PLAY / PAUSE Button After a disc has been read, press the PLAY / PAUSE button (F) to start playing. Press again to pause and again to resume playing. When the menu is open, the PLAY / PAUSE button changes to the → button, used to page forwards through the menu. PREVIOUS TRACK / NEXT TRACK Buttons Press this button (G) to skip to the previous track, or to the start of the current track if the disc is playing.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 REAR PANEL Figure 5 - Rear Panel Mains inlet Power is connected via a standard IEC320 connector (P), protected by a fuse (Q) and isolated by a 2pole power switch (O). The “Live” or “Phase” pin on the inlet is closest to the switch. Analogue Outputs The unit features separately buffered Balanced Outputs (R) on XLR connectors and Unbalanced Outputs (S) on RCA connectors. The Balanced Outputs should be connected to true balanced inputs only.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 REMOTE CONTROL Hold down the Sleep button for 2 seconds to set the system to sleep mode. Press the Sleep button again to return to normal operation. In Sleep mode, press the OFF button to turn the Player off. (The Upsampler Input & Output buttons are for use with a dCS Upsampler.) The Filter buttons changes the filter setting. (In Filter mode, the Mute button flips between DSD Filter or DSP Filter.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 THE MENU Figure 6 – The menu sequence Puccini Player Manual v1_4x.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 Using the Menu The menu gives the user access to a range of additional features. It also allows new features and performance enhancements to be added at a later date by software upgrades. The menu is controlled by four buttons. Press the MENU button to open the menu or select a setting. Press the > button to page forward through the menu. Press the < button to page backward through the menu.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 INFORMATION Menu The Version page displays the software versions loaded in the unit and the full serial number. Please have this information ready if you contact your dealer for any reason. The Contact page displays dCS web-site URL, email address, telephone and fax numbers. If you have any difficulty, please contact your dealer for help first.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 SETTINGS Menu The Layer page allows you to select either the CD or SACD layer when playing a hybrid disc. The active layer will be shown as dark, the other layer will be greyed out. While changing layers and re-reading the disc, Loading... is displayed. Phase is usually set to Normal. symbol appears on the display and the signals When Phase is set to Inverted, the on all of the Analogue Outputs are phase inverted.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 Set the Source menu page to Disc to play CDs or SACDs. Set the Source menu page to RCA1 or RCA2 to select data from an external digital source (such as a Puccini U-Clock or a DVD player) connected to one of the Digital Inputs. Note that the CD mechanism is turned off while a Digital Input is selected. It is quicker to change source using the Input+ and Input- buttons on the remote control. Puccini Player Manual v1_4x.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 SET-UP Menu The Upsampling Options menu page opens a lower level with three more pages. These allow upsampling to DSD to be turned off or on separately for each source. Set to PCM (left icon) to oversample CD data directly. Most listeners prefer to upsample to DSD (right icon) before oversampling. Set to PCM (left icons) to oversample data from the RCA1 or RCA2 inputs directly.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 The Clocking menu page opens a lower level with two more pages. These allow the DAC to be either slaved to the digital input or locked to a system clock connected to the W/CLK IN connector while accepting data from the digital input. Performance is generally improved by the correct use of a high-quality system clock unit. Slave to RCA1 digital input (left icon) or lock to the system clock while taking data from RCA1 (right icon).
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 DISPLAY SETTINGS Menu Set the display Brightness to a comfortable level using the < and > buttons. The MUTE LED dims when this setting is below 50%. Set the display Contrast to a comfortable level using the < and > buttons. This page runs a Display Test routine, which flashes all the indicators and the main display. The Display On / Off menu page controls the display and LED indicators.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 SPECIFICATION Mechanism type Dual laser CD/SACD mechanism. Converter type 5-bit, 2.822 or 3.07MS/s oversampled, dCS Ring DAC™ topology. All data is ultimately oversampled to this format before conversion to analogue. Upsampling When playing a CD, the data may be upsampled to DSD before oversampling (set in the menu). Upsampling of data from the Digital Inputs to DSD may be activated by loading a license, which may be ordered from www.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 MAINTENANCE AND SUPPORT Service and Maintenance dCS audio products contain no user serviceable parts apart from the mains fuse. If your unit is damaged in any way, please contact your dealer. Replacing a Blown Mains Fuse There is a mains fuse below the power inlet, accessible from the outside of the unit. If the fuse blows, it may be changed by the user.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 Limited Warranty General dCS warrants this product against defects in materials and workmanship for a period of 3 years from the date the unit was originally shipped from dCS. During the warranty period, dCS will repair or, at our absolute discretion, replace a faulty product. Warranty repairs must only be carried out by dCS or our authorised service agents. Please contact your dealer if your unit requires service.
dCS Puccini Player User Manual Software Issue 1.4x October 2013 If you need more help In the first instance, you should contact your dealer. If they cannot resolve the issue, contact your national distributor. Manufactured by: Data Conversion Systems Ltd. Unit 1, Buckingway Business Park, Anderson Road, Swavesey, Cambridge. CB24 4AE UK www.dcsltd.co.uk This user manual may be downloaded free of charge from our web-site. A bound copy of this manual may be ordered from dCS.
