Ideon Absolute DAC.
Ideon Audio
Proud Member of The 2WA Group Brand Family
Ideon Audio is a boutique audio systems manufacturer of extremely high performance digital sound equipment—with the goal of offering products that reveal the music hidden in the digital data. In brief, Ideon seeks to transport listeners to the original, recorded musical event—astounding them with extended frequency range, real-life dynamics, clarity, and detail.
To achieve such extraordinary results—which they do—all Ideon products are in-house, proprietary designs, built without use of off-the-shelf modules. The Company’s 360 “no compromise” strategy permeates every aspect of its processes—from choosing only highest-standards materials, and working only with production partners using state-of-the-art technology, to using only the absolute best components available. Testing takes place throughout the production process, and all products are hand-assembled in their final stage.
The principals of ideon believe that listening to music should be a transcendent experience—one that stirs our emotions. The Company strives to make the ability to hear great digital sound accessible to all—by offering products from an entry level price point to cost-no-object, extreme-performance systems.
It is not hyperbole to say that Ideon has taken the high performance audio world by storm—most notably with its award winning flagship product, the Absolute DAC—and The Absolute Suite of products. Perhaps most notably, Ideon lives up to its claim that the Absolute DAC is “future proof”, by making it fully modular—and therefore updatable on an ongoing basis. The Company’s latest Meta Edition of its Absolute DAC has received rave reviews, particularly from the standpoint of having noticeable improvements over the original, which reviewers didn’t think possible… until actually hearing the difference.
Vassilis Tounas
VP/Chief Designer
George Ligerakis
CEO
The Absolute Suite – (top to bottom): Absolute Time Signature Tracker; Absolute Stream; and Absolute DAC. (Click to enlarge).
Greg Mitsacopoulos Marketing Director
Angelos Gallis
Global Expansion
Based in Athens, Greece, Ideon was co-founded in 1990 by Vassilis Tounas and George Ligerakis, two of its four member Core Team (pictured above). While all Ideon products including its Eos Series, Ayazi DAC mk2, and 3R Master Time Black Star have won global acclaim, The Absolute Suite has firmly established the Ideon brand in the upper-most echelon of high performance audio.
Design Features That Set The Absolute DAC Apart
In its own words, Ideon has “declared war”—against electrical noise, voltage & current stability under load, and phase inconsistencies—battles that they have clearly won decisively. In short, the Ideon Absolute DAC Meta version is, arguably, the world’s highest performing DAC to date—setting new benchmarks for audio excellence.
The myriad features found in the Absolute DAC Meta version include: HyperStream, 8-Channel, 32-bit Architecture · The Industry’s Highest Dynamic Range (DNR): up to 140dB · Fully Linear Internal Power Supplies · Abundant Ultra-Low Noise & Ultra-Stabilized Power · Dedicated Lines Powering Critical Circuit Points · Persistent Signal Re-Clocking · Isolated Signal Inputs & Stabilized, Hi-Current Outputs · New Firmware with Proprietary Code Improvements · An innovative DAC Output Selection Feature: (High/Med/Low/Variable) designed to seamlessly match a diverse range of amplifier loads · Unique, 15ohm output impedance at -140dB SNR or 1W · Discreet Power—16 Separate Power Regulators n the circuit · Direct Coupled Output—NO capacitors in the output stage · Triple Distillation USB Input (Proprietary Three-Stage Noise Eradication Circuit that eliminates digital noise from the input signal) · Fully Isolated Control Board with its own Power Supply Line & Discrete Circuit · Three top-of-the-line Femto Ultra-Low Jitter & Ultra-Low Phase Noise Clocks—Ensuring NO-Compromise Precision & resulting Phase Fidelity—each clock with its own, Dedicated Power Line · Single-Block, Massive, CNC-milled Aluminium Chassis (26kg / 58lb) requiring 17 hours to complete · Impressive, 17-Stage Ultra-Low Noise Power Reservoir—comprised of 17 Ultra-Low Noise Power Supply Units & Individual Regulation Stages.
Excerpts from Reviews
Ideon Absolute Epsilon DAC, Absolute Stream and Absolute Time
“… The Absolute Epsilon DAC, Absolute Stream music server, and Absolute Time master clock are in the upper echelon of today’s best digital playback. The trio has some remarkable musical attributes, including stunningly lifelike reproduction of music’s dynamics. The sense of immediacy and presence—the impression of nothing between you and the music—was equally impressive.”
—Robert Harley
Ideon Ayazi DAC mk2 & 3R Master Time Black Star
“… The Ideon components provide the kind of musical thrills one might hear through the original Quad electrostatic speakers: a crystal clear, essentially neutral, hyper-detailed window onto the music that captures every nuance without sacrificing music’s weight and body… It can play every kind of music with all of its strengths intact. I simply found listening to certain genres on it to be a revelation…”
—Alex Halberstadt
Absolute Epsilon DAC Meta Edition
“… this revision is among the most remarkably effective and worthwhile “upgrades” I’ve ever experienced first-hand. With this comprehensive revisit and update, Ideon has taken its world-class reference-level DAC to an even more accomplished and exciting level of performance. Bravo, Ideon.”
—Greg Weaver
Part-Time Audiophile
Visit: www.ideonaudio.com