The Alpha 3

Here at Wolf, computer audio has entered its third production generation. As technology evolves, there are new opportunities to take the Alpha platform further than its predecessor. The Alpha 3 has several advancements that positions it as one of the greatest servers for 2018: one of those is power. Intel has upgraded their 8th Gen Coffee Lake CPUs to 6-Core processors. That gives the system a 50% speed bump over last year’s system. There is an additional NVMe slot for ultra-fast storage, room to add an extra drive that makes today’s SSD’s look like turtles – perfect for DSD512 and 1024. And in another great evolution that even audiophiles will appreciate, the Alpha 3 supports native 4k 60p video. Who might really appreciate a TEAC BluRay transport and 4k and HDR output? Maybe all those who missed out on the last Oppo’s. Couple these advancements with our brand new USB Clock output stage and new shielding materials we have standardized to silence any erroneous electronic noise from affecting the signal path and you can begin to see why the guys at Stillpoints and the Bob Carver Corp have chosen the Alpha 3 as the system they take to shows and do mission critical demos on. It is just that good.

We use the Alpha 3 at home, touchscreen to our right and 4k TV in front of us. It handles anything we throw at it, and does so with a native sonic quality that has us fairly excited. Our listening sessions are better than ever, and when we want to watch Concert BluRay, we don’t even miss the Oppo. It sits in the bedroom stereo rack, just a little bit dusty.

We have spent years customizing the OS and Media Center and now ROON to virtually eliminate the manual tasks that scare many people away from Media Servers. Many of our customers are technophobes, or have at best a rudimentary knowledge of computer systems, they can open mail and surf the web… but they can also use the Wolf. We aren’t kidding when we say that grandma has played with this machine. We worked on the interface, the settings, and the flow until she was comfortable. But that doesn’t mean we’ve dumbed things down. We’ve taken the extremely complex and streamlined it, customized it for every possible configuration and then take an extra step you won’t find elsewhere… we share knowledge, we teach, and we support you. What we do to every build could be pages long to explain, but suffice it to say that it is a lot, and ever evolving. The software is upgradeable and if you have apps or utilities that you can’t live without, you bring them along.

Simply put, a Wolf is capable of just about anything. Our current preferred build is Windows 10 Pro, though Server 2016 and even a Linux variant are running in our lab. Windows 10 Pro is quickly becoming the gold standard OS for modern audio and our choice for maximum reliability, convenience, features and experience.

What does that mean for the listener? A few things: a full-blown web browsing experience in the stereo room using either a big screen TV or a monitor beside you. The ability to purchase your music where you play it. The ability to send music or videos to other places in your home while also doing critical listening. The ability to stream, rip, tag, arrange, compare, burn, buy, share, room correct, transcode, upsample, downsample, convert and even create – all with the same system.

We are typing this paragraph on a Wolf. We send our emails from a Wolf. We don’t like spreadsheets, but when we have to do them, we do them with 65” of 4k screen real estate, on a Wolf and while rocking out. And when we want to, we turn out the lights and turn off the screens and just listen to our music with an app on our phone or tablet. With a Wolf, you have options… to take it as far, or use it as simply as you’d like.  The only thing we ask is that you enjoy the music. Oh, and did we mention automation? We are working on that, too. A Wolf can become the central hub of your home. We’ll let you know what your options are.

We developed the first Wolf based on what we didn’t find in so-called servers and streamers. To buy a streamer means also needing to buy a desktop or laptop system to purchase music and move it over to the device. It was all too much for us, much less our technophobic friends, so we focused on bringing high power into HiFi. We wanted to build a system that could do it all, and evolve over the years with technology – and this is where streamers get left behind. We accomplished that, and then some. And then we gave our systems a three-year warranty and a five-year upgrade path. Our customers are very happy. We are here for you, well beyond the point of sale. Just look at some of the testimonials from our customers below.