⌈ The MYTEK was founded in 1992 in New York by a Polish engineer MICHAŁ JUREWICZ. At the time he worked as a technician in recording studios and while working there he realized a weakness of one of the elements in the signal’s path - the analog-to-digital and digital-to-analogue conversions. The rest is history - currently it is one of the most recognizable brands with studio pedigree in the high-end audio industry. This time we had a chance to test its latest product, the BROOKLYN BRIDGE streamer. It will be a long text, so I encourage you to brew a cup of a good tea or coffee, and maybe even pour yourself something stronger. Enjoy! ⌋

YTEK DIGITAL devices were born in the recording studio. The brand’s founder, Michał Jurewicz, worked as a technician in New York studios and dissatisfied with the quality of D/A converters he used there, he decided to design his own. And what does studio background mean? If I had to try to put it in a few words, I would point to the pursuit of minimization of the final price, utilitarian appearance, high functionality as well as reliability.

Products of this American company, that are actually designed and manufactured in Poland by HEM Electronics, were just like that. If we follow the evolution of the basic DAC in its lineup - for example - from the Stereo192-DSD DAC, Brooklyn to the Brooklyn DAC+, we would see such a classic studio product.

One of its basic features is size. All aforementioned D/A converters, just like the subject of this test, have a height of 1U, or 44.45 mm (1¾"). This is the basic unit used in the assembly of studio equipment in racks. Also its width is a classic example of studio equipment, because it is half the width of such a rack. But the studio origin is just one of the leads. Mytek is one of the few producers grown out of pro audio, which has also been successful in home audio, or "hi-fi".

This evolution can be seen also, to a certain extent, in its appearance - Manhattan and Liberty DAC are classic "home" devices, but also the basic product of this company, the Brooklyn, was increasingly domesticated with time. And it is not about reliability, price or functionality - these are features that are still associated with the studio ethos - but about what a given product can do. Starting from the Brooklyn DAC+, the device includes a phono preamplifier, and with the latest Brooklyn Bridge model we also get a streamer (files player, bridge). Please notice that another pro / hi-fi company, the English dCS used exactly the same name for its device (more HERE).

| BROOKLYN BRIDGE

And that’s how the device is described on manufacturer’s website: "STREAMER • DAC • PREAMP". Actually, one should add also a "headphone amplifier", which you can find in the manual, where the description is a bit different: "DAC • HEDAPHONE AMP • PREAMP", and underneath there is also "NETWORK PLAYER". As you can see, "domestication" I talked about went a step further - now it's not only a digital-to-analogue converter, a headphone amplifier and a preamplifier, but also an audio files player:

Brooklyn Bridge is identical to Brooklyn DAC+ in terms of audio circuits and performance but has the addition of a built-in Network Streamer. AES/EBU digital input is replaced with an Ethernet network connector, a Wi-Fi antenna and a USB port for external music hard drive. Just add a tablet (iPad or android) for complete music system to stream Tidal MQA, Qobuz Hi-Res or other streaming services or play local files connected to Brooklyn Bridge USB port. Roon requires additional Roon Core. Like in the Brooklyn DAC+ there is line and phono analog preamplifier and a reference headphone amplifier.

mytekdigital.com, accessed: 26.03.2019

MARCIN HAMERLA | owner, designer
PAWEŁ GORGOŃ | R&D engineer

HEM Electronics – MARCIN HAMERLA (on the left) and PAWEŁ GORGOŃ (on the right)

MH: In 2017, when we moved to the new headquarters, we made some changes to the circuit (Brooklyn DAC - ed.) And that's how the Brooklyn DAC + came to be. The digital section remained almost the same as in the basic Brooklyn DAC model, but it became completely "ours", that is, all elements were designed and programmed by us. We used a different DAC chip, analog volume control system, which is now much better, and we have refined various smaller components. The device sold great for the next year and a half.

PG: Mid last year, we came to the conclusion that developing a streamer based on Brooklyn DAC + might be worth our effort. We realized that during High End Show in Munich. Streamer is a complicated device - it is actually a microcomputer. At the moment we use outsourced module, but we are already working on our own solution.

[…] Bridge features seven different filters for PCM to choose from, but they only work if we turn off the MQA module. If it is on, it operates also as a digital filter for the PCM signal played without MQA. If you want to use the other seven filters, including the apodization filter, you need to turn off the MQA in the Bridge menu.

When the MQA decoder is turned on, part of the operation is performed inside it and the part in the converter, but the latter part is adapted exactly to what is being done in the decoder. That's why there are no filters to choose from. This means that to signals that are not MQA encoded, this decoder also adds something. In my opinion, the result is positive. And you can not ignore it, because it follows the principle of operation. You can only turn it off completely, then the signal goes directly to the converter and it is possible to select filters in it.

MH: The idea of MQA filters was that every A / D and D / A chip is is actually ‘spoiling’ something in the signal and it has to be corrected by filtration during the playback stage. The chip and decoder parameters are chosen so that they compensate each other.

WOJCIECH PACUŁA: So the main role of the Bridge is digital-to-analogue conversion?
PG: I'm not sure if we can say that. It seems to me that network functions are the most important in it. It can perform almost all functions of the Brooklyn DAC +, but without the AES / EBU input and connectors for an external clock. We had to give up these inputs only because there was no more space on the rear panel, and we wanted to add LAN and USB input for pendrive. That’s what home users expect.

MH: In my opinion, the advantages of what we did in Bridge result from our expertise in the digital-to-analog conversion. There are many companies in the world that make good file players, but have no idea about digital signal conversion. We do :) We think of Bridge as a streamer that features a real "DAC".

PG: We used the Conversdigital module in it. It allows you to play files both from LAN and from a pendrive. The device can work also with streaming services such as Tidal and Spotify, and is compatible with Roon. For its control one uses a dedicated application called MConnect HD available for Android and iOS. The signal from the streamer module goes to the XMOS chip with a MQA decoder. It's a programmable chip that is most commonly used for USB inputs - we have our own USB circuitry and we encode XMOS with MQA decoder software. The logical heart of the whole device is the FPGA chip that controls the transmission of digital signals - it is programmed by us. ■

It’s a fragment of a longer conversation, that will be published in the „High Fidelity’s” June’s issue.

You can probably say that with the Bridge Mytek has turned for good to the world of home audio - at least when it comes to this class of products. There is no AES / EBU digital input, which is often used in studios, and no connectors for an external clock. The studio DNA is still visible but only if one of the screens is called up on the OLED display, featuring VU-meters, showing both the peak and medium levels, with the same indications, but numerically given on the side.

Digital | As for a home audio device, the Bridge is extremely functional. Mytek emphasizes that it is primarily a streamer. And indeed, it's the most important difference between this model and the Bridge DAC+. But the new Mytek is also an advanced digital-to-analog converter - and that's where the company has the most experience. The DAC parameters exceed the parameters of the streamer, so I would treat it as a D/A converter with an integrated streamer module. This is a complete module from Conversedigital.

The converter supports PCM signals up to 32 bits and 384 kHz via the USB input, and thus a DXD signal as well as a DSD signal up to DSD256 (11.2 MHz). RCA inputs are also extremely "capacious", because we can send PCM signal up to 24 bits and 384 kHz, as well as DSD (!) up to DSD128 (DoP) using them. And even the Toslink input supports PCM up to 24 bits and 176.4 kHz and DSD (DoP). In turn, the streamer supports PCM signal up to 24 bits and 192 kHz, and DSD - the USB input is intended for connecting external media and it supports files with the same parameters.

For each signal type, one can choose a digital filter - the ESS Technology DAC chip used in this device, offers up to seven different filters for the PCM signal, the most interesting of which is the "apodizing filter" once introduced into the audio by Meridian. For the DSD signal one can use one of three filters, defining the frequency at which the frequency response begins to roll off. We can also use the MQA module's digital filter.

| MQA Studio / MQA

The MQA codec has its own filter, largely based on the apodizing filter. Master Quality Authenticated is a PCM coding and decoding system developed in 2014 by Bob Stuart, owner of Meridian. It had two purposes: to send a high-resolution PCM signal at low bit rates, and to "improve" the recording by appropriately shaped digital filters.


The MQA was adapted by Tidal streaming service, and last year the Universal Music Japan released dozens of MQA discs that could be played using regular CD players as in a standard 16 / 44.1 resolution - or using a player with an MQA decoder which allows it to play an "unfolded" signal with a resolution up to 24/192. More on this issues in the article entitled MQA + UHQCD: HI-RES COMPACT DISC, or yet another death of the Compact Disc (HF | No. 180).

Let me remind you that there are two categories of MQA: MQA Studio and MQA. The first one is the better. In this case a representative of a record label, musician or music producer is present during the coding process, one who has power of attorney to approve the process. However, it requires comparative listening and active participation in them. The niebieski color means that the encoded file has an official "imprimatur" and the company says it is "identical" to the original hi-res file.

The zielona LED will light up when the file is encoded in the MQA, but without the participation of people associated with the recording or label. According to Bob Stuart, MQA director, signal resolution and sound quality are the same as in the case of the MQA Studio, but we are not sure about their origin.

Mytek was one of the first companies to implement the MQA decoder in its DCA - in 2016. It is implemented in a separate chip, so it supports the signal from the streamer, but also from all digital inputs of the DAC.

mqa.co.uk

Analog | While discussing the new Mytek, Marcin Hamerla strongly emphasized the experience they gained while designing the analogue stage and that it is what distinguishes his company's products from most made by other manufacturers. The Bridge is not only a streamer, not only a D / A converter, but also a fully functional analog preamplifier. There is one stereo line input available, which can be switched to a phono input in the menu that supports MM and MC cartridges. Volume control takes place in the analog domain in integrated circuit. If we prefer, however, the signal may be attenuated also digitally - it’s user’s choice.

And last but not least, the Bridge is a headphone amplifier, with two jack outputs (ø 6.35 mm). You can connect two pairs of headphones with unbalanced cables or one pair with a balanced cable. The headphone output is controlled by specialized integrated circuits, and the volume control is set independently of the line outputs. To adjust gain of this output to particular headphones user can change the sensitivity of inputs, the range for digital inputs is -12 to 0 dB and for analog ones from -12 to +12 dB.

Others | The device has many additional functions, such as adjusting the brightness of a display, two different home screens, activating or deactivating volume control, changing the absolute phase, digitizing the analog signal and changing the format from any digital source to USB, allowing you to record a signal on your computer - for example - from a turntable. There are really many possibilities. Let me add that this is a balanced device and the signal is available on the RCA line outputs (the signal is given from one half of the signal) and the balanced XLR.

Control | To play files one needs a DLNA/UPnP application, for example the MyControl HD. With device one also gets a small, aluminum Apple remote control. The device is also compatible with ROON.

Brooklyn Bridge by Mytek is a complex system that can be a heart of a high-end audio system. In order to explain its complexities and listen to it in my system together, Mr. Michał Hamerla, founder and owner of HEM Electronics and Paweł Gorgoń, R & D engineer responsible for a large part of the new device, came to Krakow.

The main function of Bridge is, as my guests said, the streamer. The player and converter sections participate in this playback process - and so it was the function we treated as the key one and we listened to it mostly working as a streamer. During this part of the test it was compared to the Lumïn T1 and T2.

Mytek however is a synonym of a D/A Converter, hence its DAC section seems to equally important. We assessed it comparing it to DAC section of my Ayon Audio CD-35 Player, using signal from laptop (JPLAY Femto) played via USB, and via digital RCA (S/PDIF) cable with Ayon’s transport as a source.

I assessed the phonostage using the Transrotor Alto TMD turntable with a classic MC cartridge, the Denon DL-103. Mytek does not offer impedance loading nor gain adjustment, but this setup worked really fine. I think it would work fine also with MM cartridges, from Shelter, for example.

The headphone amplifier was compared to tube Ayon Audio HE-3, using three pairs of headphones: planar-magnetic HiFiMAN HE-1000v2 and dynamic Sennheiser HD800 and AKG K701; First two of these featured Forza AudioWorks Noir HPC Mk2 headphone cables.

I have not assessed preamplifier section, because Mytek Brooklyn Bridge worked in „High Fidelity” reference system that featured Ayon Audio Spheris III preamp. I used Soulution 710 power amplifier and Harbeth M40.1 loudspeakers. Mytek was placed on the Finite Elemente Pagode Edition rack’s shelf, and it was powered using Harmonix X-DC350M2R Improved-Version power cable. I placed it on top of passive EMI/RFI Verictum X-Block filter.

During the test I used unbalanced outputs of the Mytek, because I listen to music in my system using unbalanced connections. Bridge was connected with preamplifier using Crystal Cable Absolute Dream IC. Please note – during my test I used MQA filter, the best one available in this Mytek.

Recordings used for the test (a selec- tion)

Audio files/Tidal
• Captain Marvel, soundtrack, muz. Pinar Toprak, Hollywood Records/Tidal, MQA 24/96 (2019)
• Fisz Emade Tworzywo, Radar, Grand Imperial/Dwa Ognie - 001/Tidal, FLAC 16/44,1 (2019)
• John Coltrane, Coltrane ’58: The Prestige Recordings, Prestige/Craft Recordings/Tidal, MQA 24/192 (2019)
• Lambchop, This (Is What I Wanted to Tell You), City Slang SLANG50197/Tidal, FLAC 16/44,1 (2019)

Audio files/HDD
• Alexis Cole, A Kiss In The Dark, Chesky Records JD366/HD Tracks, „Chesky Records Binaural Series”, FLAC 24/192 (2014)
• Art Pepper, …the way it was!, Contemporary Records/Mobile Fidelity UDSACD 2034/rip dsf, DSD, SACD/CD (1972/2008)
• Daft Punk, Random Access Memories, Columbia Records/HD Tracks, FLAC 24/88,2 (2013); Compact Disc
• Alexis Cole, A Kiss In The Dark, Chesky Records JD366/HD Tracks, „Chesky Records Binaural Series”, CD (2014)
• Charlie Haden & Antonio Forcione, Heartplay, Naim CD098, „True Stereo”, CD (2006); • Dream Theater, The Astonishing, Roadrunner Records/Warner Music Japan WPCR-17071/2, 2 x CD (2016)

Long Play
• Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis, Barney Kessel, Concord Jazz CDJ-1002, „Direct-To-Disc Recording | Limited Edition”, LP (1978)
• Ella Fitzgerald, Ella Fitzgerald sings the Cole Porter Song Book, Verve/Speakers Corner Records MGV 4001-2, 2 x 180 g LP (1956/2000)
• Kraftwerk, Tour De France. Soundtracks, EMI Records 591 708 1, 2 x 180 g LP (2003)

| Audio files/Tidal

Computer systems, and every streamer is just a specialized microcomputer, evolve quickly. They change from technical point of view, because it is relatively easy to understand and master. To improve sound is much more difficult - designers have a pretty good idea how to use tubes, semiconductors and even capacitors to influence performance of an audio device, they still don’t have the same level of expertise when it comes to "processing" audio signals by computers.

However, they are getting there - Brooklyn Bridge represents the direction designers have been going to for a while now, and they are working on delivering richer, fuller the sound. The Mytek device delivers a low-based, meaty, dense sound. The change is clear because the technical "correctness" has completely disappeared, replaced by the musical "truth". One could listen to, for example, new Lambchop album titled This (Is What I Wanted to Tell You) and the Fisz Emade Tworzywo Radar, to realize that quickly.

In both cases I got a very nice color and low, dense bass. It is slightly emphasized by this device and the definition is not very precise. These are two elements that caused me to think about sound of vinyl records. And there is something to it, at least I believe so. As if the next engineers, digital specialists, tried to refer to this analog medium - for good and for bad.

The good part about it is that you can finally listen to various music in absolute comfort. I must admit that it’s been a while since I listened to any album twice in a row at least until the Radar. This is a classic for Jacek Gawłowski (mastering) and Emade (recording and mix) production, it is well-balanced, deep, slightly sweet in the top. And so it was presented. The soundtrack I played next from the Captain Marvel and the sensational, modern jazz (electronics plus instruments) from the The Comet Is Coming’s album Trust In The Lifeforce Of Deep Mystery confirmed the „low&deep” direction - the bass was well-extended, dense, warm, slightly soft.

The sound proposed by Mytek streaming files was similar to what vinyl and SACD, offer with a slightly lesser definition and lower resolution - that’s what streamers still are not able to overcome. However, the performance was convincing enough and simply cool to listen, so I did not really care about it. I knew what was going on, but I still liked it a lot. And even, the usually too bright sounding album Color Of Spring by Talk Talk (from Tidal in MQA 24/96) sounded rich and dense.

| Audio files/HDD

Audio files played from external drive retained the character of the same recordings played from Tidal. It is clear that all source signals delivered to the streamer module - that is from the Internet, LAN and via USB input from an external hard drive - are subjected to exactly the same processing. They did, however, differ in details, depending on where they came from.

The closest to the sound achieved with Tidal, which is warm, low, not fully defined, were the recordings listened to from a HDD via the USB input. I liked a lot recordings encoded in DSD, having the most "human" dimension, with a tangible, large and warm foreground. Whether it was Sinatra's vocal or Haden’s double bass, or electronics from the Daft Punk album, always everything directly in front of me was most important. What was shown behind foreground was nicely palpable, but a definition and three-dimensionality were limited.

The Brooklyn Bridge treats files played this way as something that needs "working on". It lowers the bass, lowers the midrange, smooths the top and withdraws it a bit. These two elements, that is, bass precision and treble clarity, improved to some extent when the signal was played from the NAS - it has long been known that LAN source is much better than USB and that local files are exposed to less distortion than downloaded / streamed from the "cloud". A computer specialist will tell you that it's nonsense, because it's the same files, but your ears will tell you otherwise, because the difference is significant.

| Compact Disc/DAC

The fact that a D / A converter and streamer are two different things and that each of the file players sounds different can be proven by listening to the tested Mytek. The PCM signal from the CD transport (S / PDIF) as well as a signal from my laptop (USB) were of a different nature. They were better tonally balanced, that is, the bass was shorter and the top was clearer and also more spatial.

Comparing 16 / 44.1 files with a CD was pointless, because the disc always, always sounded better, more naturally. And only the comparison of CD and high resolution files almost closed the gap. Because is a great DAC. I liked it already very much in the Stereo192-DSD DAC, even more so in the Brooklyn DAC, and now it is, to put it simply, sophisticated. Previously these were great devices, which, however, had something of the „mechanical fashion” of the recording studio, that is why it the sound was not that rich and full, there was not enough flash to the bone so to speak. With the new device one should never miss these elements.

It will, however, offer excellent dynamics at the same time. And this feature, next to the tonal change, is the biggest difference between the D/A converter section and the Brooklyn Bridge streamer. A CD played via the RCA input, but also a file played via USB from the computer, presented higher dynamic contrasts, sound was better differentiated. The same material played using the "Bridge" module sounded warmer, more pleasant, but always in the same - pleasant - way.

| Turntable

One doesn’t find many DACs with a phono preamplifier integrated to them. But Michał Jurewicz, who came up with this idea, wanted to expand Brooklyn's functionality and give users a chance to listen to vinyl records, as well as to record them on a computer (via a digital output).

This is an element that I would treat as an add-on or bonus feature if you will - a nice one, but still an add-on. Designers made sure records would sound nice, soft, slightly warm (which is similar to what streamer offers). There is a nice, low bass, as in Tour De France by Kraftwerk, there are strong metal cymbals, as on the direct-to-disc release of Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis and Barney Kessel by Concord Record, and finally a nice vocals, as in re-issue of the Classic Corner album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book. What you will get with all of them is a truly nice, enjoyable performance.

The dynamics, however, will be somewhat limited, and the resolution will only be OK. This is not a section that would allow for a high-end listening session, as the digital section does, but rather it can be used for comfortable, casual listening. Since that’s an element that we get as a bonus, „for free” there is no reason to complain.

| Headphones

In spite of what I wrote in the description of the streamer section, in spite of , in fact, positive perception of its audiophile correctness, music played in this way, „made” to sound like a vinyl record, was highly enjoyable, even addictive. Yes, when I wanted to listen to something intently and with proper attention, I chose the CD and the RCA input (S/PDIF). But when I read, relaxed, etc. - I listened to Tidal and HDD files. Even choosing NAS a source instead, was a step backwards within this sonic aesthetics.

And most often in this way I listened using headphones. I wrote about it earlier, with previous Mytek DACs, but let me repeat it again: with a relatively simple circuit used in headphone amplifier section, the designers managed to achieve a really great performance. This is an amplifier, which beautifully drives planar headphones and not only Audeze LCD-3 and HiFiMAN HE-1000 v2, but also much more demanding HiFiMAN HE-6. At least now I know where it comes from - at home Marcin Hamerla listens to the music mainly using headphones, so he developed a product that would satisfy himself.

This offers a precise but also saturated sound. It is open at the top and disciplined at the bottom, it has high dynamics and very good "imaging", while it stays on the softer side of the world, the natural side,, I would almost like to say - normal side. It is still a precise tool, the professional/studio origin of the company is clear, but these „roots” are part of something bigger, they do not exist just to exist, but to be sort of a backbone of the whole presentation. And visible elements define its the whole performance.

It's a deep, refined sound. Maybe without some outstanding imaging, these are properly conveyed by expensive, mostly tube, headphone amplifiers. But the images as a whole is not decreased or dried - what we can „see” is natural and nice.

| External power supply 12 VDC

KECES
P8

Price: 3180 PLN


One of the options that Mytek offers is the ability to connect an external 12 VDC power supply. There are a lot of such devices on the market, starting from the Polish company Tomanek, so there is a lot to choose from. On Asian markets, where audio develops most dynamically, SBooster power supplies are often used, and ones by Uptone Audio are considered the best. But you have to check out also the Keces P8 power supply. This is the top model of this Taiwanese company.

It comes in two versions: Single and Double. For each of them one can order a version with a required output voltage. The Single version offers one 8 A output plus a USB output with +5 VDC, and the Double features two outputs, with the same or different voltages plus USB +5 VDC. This version delivers 2 x 4 A current and that's what we got for the test.

Both Marcin and Paweł suggested using with Mytek an external power supply able to deliver current of more then 4 A, and preferably around 6 A. P8 in the tested version offers 4 A, with a cut-off at 4.2 A (it’s a power supply with protective circuit). The OLED display reads the voltage at each output and the current current consumption - Mytek takes 1.3-1.4 A, so 4 A (and in fact 4.2 A) offered by P8 seem to be perfectly adequate. If you disagree differently you may choose the Single version offering 8 A output.

Replacing SMPS with a linear power supply brings a change in sound, but rather not a revolutionary one. After some time it is difficult to imagine turning off the external power supply, and yet we know that it is not a change as big as - let's say - replacing an interconnect with a better one. If we consider the fact that the price of this external power supply makes up to 25% of the Mytek’s price, and sound quality improvement may be quantified as, say, 10% it might not seem very reasonable. It's just that it's 10% on a top level which makes it different than 10% on an entry level.


Keces's power supply gives Mytek a new level of refinement. It results in a deeper, smoother, more 3D sound, that is, with a deeper background. The internal power supply is not bad at all, after all it was custom designed for this device, listened and measured with it. So it is not that an external power supply is a necessary addition. But it is also worth knowing that it is a way to further improve Mytek's sound, to deepen it in every respect. P8 does a very good job.

Summary

Mytek does not rush new products to the market, but they also do not delay it longer then necessary - they offer new products every, more or less, two years. It is a company in which the engineering ethos is as important as the listening sessions - which reminds me, the approach of the Nagra. Therefore, their devices are also perfectly refined and reasonable. In the high-end industry it is a rarity. I'm talking about the high-end, because although Brooklyn Bridge is small, and therefore inconspicuous, it does not cost too much, I am convinced that it will be used in many very expensive systems, probably Japanese, because they do not have any prejudices.

It is a neatly made streamer whose main strength is the digital-to-analog converter section. Is a kind of "transitional" product, because in the future we can expect a new device with a streamer section developed by Mytek crew. But other audio companies can only dream of such a "transition" products - and with Brooklyn Bridge we get a great sound here and now. Add to this a very good headphone amplifier and a nice phono preamplifier, and the matter will probably be clear, right? There is nothing to wait for, because there is too much good music to listen to. A well-deserved RED Fingerprint.

MYTEK BROOKLYN BRIDGE is a streamer, DAC, phono and line preamplifier as well as a headphone amplifier in one. Everything fits in a small chassis 44 mm high, 218 mm wide and 206 mm deep, made of bent steel sheets with an aluminum front. The front panel has a nice three-dimensional texture that we saw for the first time in the Manhattan in 2014. There are two color versions available - silver and black. The top cover is sort of a mesh, with holes forming a large company logo, because the circuits inside get very hot.

Front and rear | The front features a medium-sized OLED display, which allows user to call two different menu screens; the company intents to add a third one displaying a cover of album being played. There is a volume knob next to it, also used to navigate the menu in combination with four buttons placed below. On the left side there are two 6.35 mm headphone outputs. You can use them independently, or in a balanced system - to do that you will need a proper adapter with two jack plugs.

The back is really crowded - after all it is a small device with lots of functions. There is WiFi antenna sockets, three digital S / PDIF inputs - two RCA sockets and one optical - a USB port for an external hard drive, as well as a LAN input. Next to it there is an analogue section, with a stereo input, which in the menu is defined as linear or phono (MM or MC) and analog outputs - unbalanced RCA and balanced XLR. On the side there is an IEC power socket and an another inlet for external 12 V DC power supply.

Inside | All electronic circuits fit almost entirely on a single, large printed circuit board. In the Bridge there is additionally a streamer module purchased from external supplier. It’s a separate small PCB. It is the CDMCM-2121R by Converse Digital. In addition to the programmable systems and WiFi, it also features a D/A converter chip, the Wolfson Microelectronics WM8580A. However, it is not used here.

After unpacking files, digital signal is sent to the XMOS chip, and then to the proper converter. Also signals from USB input, that features a proprietary FPGA programmed by Mytek engineers, and other digital inputs are sent there. The D/A converter is based on the ESS Technology ES9028 Pro Saber DAC. This is a well-known, popular 8-channel system whose outputs can be summed up to two stereo ones, resulting in lower noise and distortion levels. Next to the DAC there is a large cube with a metal screen - it's a precise clock (oscillator) VCXO LVCMOS, part of the Mytek’s system called Femto Clock.

The analog signal from DAC section is forwarded in a balanced, form with two integrated circuits in the I / U conversion and two consecutive ones in filters. An integrated, analog resistor attenuator is used in the output. Next to it there is a phonostage section with three more integrated circuits. Their descriptions were wiped out making it impossible to identify them. All the circuits and resistors are surface-mounted, whereas the capacitors are nice, polypropylene Wimas. There are two large circuits next to the headphone output - these are complete headphone amplifiers; also with all the marking removed.

Power supply | A small switching mode power supply is placed on the side. It is small, shielded and it is purchased from a sub-supplier. To reduce the noise generated by it, the IEC socket is integrated with the filter. There are more than a dozen separate power supplies on the board, with nice filtering capacitors from Rubycon.

The device features four small feet. These are definitely worth replacing with some more advanced solution. You can control the device using a small Apple remote. ■

Specifications (according to manufacturer)

Supported file types:
• lossless: FLAC/WAV PCM up to 24/192, dsf/dss DSD (DoP)
• lossy: AAC, AIFF, MP3, WMA, Apple Lossless, OGG, Monkey's

Digital inputs:
• USB2 Class2 | PCM up to 32/384, DXD, DSD do DSD256
• USB/HDD/pendrive: PCM up to 24/192, DSD (DoP)
• LAN | PCM up to 24/192, DSD (DoP)
• 2x S/PDIF RCA | PCM up to 24/384, DSD128 DoP
• Toslink | PCM up to 24/176,4, DSD64 DoP

Decoder: MQA
Dynamic range: 130dB
Output signal (max): 2.5 VRMS
Output impedance: 75Ω
Headphone output: 300mA, 3W
Power consumption: (max) 28W
Dimensions (W x H x D): 218 x 44 x 206 mm
Weight: 1.6 kg