Pure Digital Editions
Pure Digital starts with the Alpha 3 SX, and Wolf will soon launch the Luna and Red Wolf 2 Digital Editions.
Stillpoints Isolation
OCXO Clocked USB Outputs
Expandability (up to 32TB)
“I was immediately impressed when I started to play familiar files. This machine sounds killer. Take notice for certain! It sure seems like what Wolf did with their hardware and software tweaks really paid off.”
-Bascom H. King
Traditionally, every Wolf has come with an integrated Blu-Ray transport capable of making high quality CD and DVD rips, and playing back DVD and Blu-Ray movies. These days, more customers are asking if a transport is necessary as the proliferation of High Res Audio continues. More and more artists and studios are remastering albums in Hi-Res, or reissuing CD quality audio for download, not to mention making their music available through streaming. Having a transport is becoming increasingly irrelevant, and leaving it out of the Wolf enables us to expand our storage capabilities. This does not mean we are giving up on the transport, we are making a variant of our systems available without one. The Pure Digital Edition -whether the Luna, Alpha or Red Wolf – can hold four solid state drives and an NVMe drive, totaling 40TB of storage. That’s 120,000 CD rips, 40,000 Hi-Res Albums, 20,000 DSD64 Albums, 5,000 DSD256 Albums, etc. Even as the size of digital audio files increases (DSD1024 files average 3GB per song), you’ll never struggle to store your whole library in one place.
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.
There is a reason we’re starting to hear our systems referred to as the Big, Bad Wolf. The beautiful things about a true audio server is their power and their flexibility.
For example, stereo and multichannel audio (or video) travel different paths on their way to your speakers. We create custom configurations that automate the switching process, so that if instead of a DAC the data needs to go to your receiver, it just happens. We learn about your system and listening preferences and then we custom build the Wolf to suit your needs. Rarely is one configuration exactly the same as another. And while our focus is on audio, a wonderful byproduct of work we’ve done to create the best audio device out there has yielded amazing results for video as well… the sheer strength and extensibility of a Wolf system cannot be overstated, it can only be experienced. 2-Channel audio is where it starts, but where you end up is entirely up to you.
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.
Our debut device
Specialized for modern Hi-Fi
The Wolf Audio Systems Pure Digital Edition Servers are perfect systems for the audiophile who have made the transition away from CDs and physical digital media to Hi-Res streaming and downloads. The Alpha 3 SX Pure Digital takes all the best of digital media storage, playback and delivery components and consolidates all of these disciplines into one system with a ton of built-in capabilities and future-proof hardware that will keep the music playing for years to come. As the audio world evolves, Wolf evolves with it, making strides to keep our components perfectly suited to the current and future digital audio landscapes.
The power of choice
A perfect tool for its time and place - the ability to switch applications depending on need is a cornerstone to Wolf functionality. Whether on the Linux WolfOS or Windows 10, you have the ability to leverage the audio application - Roon, JRiver, etc. that fits your wants and needs in needs at the present.
StorageStorage
Solid State Drives
Solid State drives are a must in Hi-Fi audio systems. Normal mechanical hard drives can spin up to a pound of metal at 7200RPM, wreaking havoc inside a system that is meant to be especially sensitive for audio purposes. SSDs have no moving parts and are over 4x faster than traditional hard drives. Our Alpha 3 SX Pure Digital Editions use top of the line SSDs for maximum reliability and speed. We have upgraded the standard audio storage sizes from 2TB to 4TB, and the removal of the BluRay transport has allowed us to offer up to 40TB maximum.
The experienceControl
Browser & App Control
You have full playback functionality through Android and iOS applications, as well as a web browser. The Wolf has built in Bluetooth and wireless capabilities, which allows the user to use with wireless keyboard and mouse or simply by using a smartphone or tablet. Our users drive the Alpha 2 with a TV, or touchscreen monitor with the added option of managing and navigating their entire music library through the use of an tablet app when they want to just listen.
- Control: Android, iOS, Keyboard & Mouse, Web browser
- HDMI: 4k & Multichannel Audio
- Best in class galvanically isolated USB audio
- TV and Monitor support – touchscreen capable
Home Screen
If you employ a TV or monitor in your listening room, this is where you get started
The experienceAlbum Information
Browse tracks and play music with ease - no more squinting at the back of a jewel case.
What are customers saying?Search View
Utilize the built-in Search feature to find Artists, Albums, Tracks, Composers, etc. It doesn't just search song names; it reads through the tags of files and provides one of the most powerful searches we have ever seen! Add your own custom tags to truly personalize your music collection.
What are customers saying?Managing your music
If you want to customize your system, you can jump to standard view to make edits, change cover art, genre, add date released, etc.
What are the specs?Frank Malitz of the Bob Carver Corp discusses his experience with the Alpha 3 at AXPONA 2018. Frank’s room was out of gas, he had the Amazing Line Stage and their new Crimson 350w amplifiers, a Mytek Brooklyn DAC+ and a MacBook Pro, but no sound. In the video, he explains what happened next, but we’ll do a quick summation: We put an Alpha 3 and a touchscreen in his room, he immediately was able to play music in a way that was much more intuitive and natural to an audiophile, and he wasn’t bent over a keyboard or squinting at a screen all weekend. That’s a big deal, and he knew it. Watch Here (Link starts at 08:02)
Specifications
PCM SAMPLE RATES/BIT DEPTH
16 – 32 Bits, 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4, 192, 384, or 768kHz
DSD
Native DSD or DoP (DSD over PCM), DSD64, DSD128, DSD256, DSD512, DSD1024
INTERNAL STORAGE
1TB System Drive, 4TB Music Drive
DIGITAL OUTPUTS
(2) shielded OCXO Clock 24MHz USB ports, 1 Galvanically Isolated USB Port
NETWORK
Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11/n/ac 1.3GHz
PROCESSOR
9th Generation Intel Coffee Lake Eight-Core technology
MEMORY
32GB DDR4 RAM
MASS STORAGE CONNECTORS
6 USB type A, 1 USB 3,.1 Type C
CONTROL CONNECTORS
(3) Display options, Ethernet (RJ45), IR In, USB-A, USB 3 .1 Type C, WiFi and Bluetooth
MAINS VOLTAGE
100VAC, 115VAC, or 230VAC, factory optimized