Aries Cerat · Ithaka

Ianus Ithaka

A reference-grade ladder DAC defining the pinnacle of TriodeFet performance.

The Ianus Ithaka represents the distilled essence of Aries Cerat's most ambitious digital engineering, crafted to bring the scale and authority of their reference systems into a single, highly refined package. It stands as a purist non-oversampling ladder DAC that completely eschews the common delta-sigma architecture, opting instead for a passive conversion process that treats the digital signal with absolute respect. At the heart of this machine lies a staggering array of forty-eight top-grade Analogue Devices AD1865N-K R2R converters, arranged in a parallel single-ended configuration to ensure vanishingly low noise and exceptional linearity. By running these converters without any digital filters or oversampling, the Ithaka preserves the temporal integrity and harmonic richness of the source material exactly as it was recorded. Beyond the digital engine, the Ithaka features the proprietary third-generation TriodeFet output stage. This Class A circuit provides the high-current drive and low output impedance of a pure amplifier, ensuring that the DAC can communicate with any preamplifier or power stage with effortless dynamic authority. The result is a sound that feels remarkably tactile, with a level of tonal saturation and emotional depth rarely found in digital sources.

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Key Features

Massive Parallel Ladder Architecture

Utilises forty-eight Analogue Devices AD1865N-K converters in parallel to naturally cancel resistor deviation errors and maximise linearity.

TriodeFet Output Stage

Features the proprietary third-generation TriodeFet output circuit, operating in pure Class A for maximum transparency and current drive.

Transformer I/V Conversion

Custom wideband transformers handle the current-to-voltage conversion, preserving signal purity by avoiding standard operational amplifiers.

Pseudo-Battery Power Supply

Independent pseudo-battery power systems isolate all analogue and digital circuits from grid-borne noise for a silent background.

Super-Clock Technology

An internal, on-the-fly bypassable Super-Clock with quad-stage pre-filtering achieves femtosecond-level jitter attenuation.

Chapter 01

Engineering Philosophy

The Ithaka is built on the conviction that digital conversion should be a passive, transparent event. By utilising a non-oversampling resistor ladder architecture, the unit avoids the phase-shifting and ringing artifacts inherent in oversampling and digital brick-wall filters. This approach treats the digital bitstream as a raw source to be preserved rather than processed, allowing the natural timbre of instruments and the acoustic space of the recording to remain intact.

Chapter 02

Power Delivery

To achieve its signature sense of authority, the Ithaka employs a massively over-engineered power supply system. It features two 500VA low-noise toroidal transformers and over 4 Farads of total system capacitance. Power is delivered through extensive, cascade-filtered stages and over 70 LC filters that decouple the digital rails from the mains, ensuring that no power-supply-induced jitter can contaminate the delicate conversion process.

Chapter 03

Listening Notes

Listeners often describe the Ithaka as having the liquidity and tonal weight of a high-end analogue tape deck. Because of its 1-ohm output impedance and high-current TriodeFet stage, it possesses a level of control and ease that makes complex orchestral crescendos or delicate vocal passages sound equally present and alive. It is an instrument designed to disappear, leaving only the music behind.

Specifications

TypeNon-oversampling R2R ladder DAC

IC Chip Array48 AD1865N-K R2R converters (24 per channel in parallel)

Gain StageThird Gen TriodeFet, single-stage Class A, 1A idle current

InputsUSB (up to 24/384KHz), AES/EBU, S/PDIF, BNC

Outputs2 x RCA, 2 x Balanced (True Balanced standard)

Output Range10Vrms at 0dB (30Vpp)

Output Impedance1 ohm

Dimensions (H × W × D)165 × 540 × 580 mm

Weight160 kg

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