Based on what I hear here, I enquired of dCS in the UK about this Apex upgrade for Bartok and got back:
“There have been no new product announcements from dCS so, if I cannot assist you with your Mosaic issue, there is no further information I can provide”.
NB I have not had much luck with operating my Bartok with Mosaic, but will work with Roon.
Well, that wasn’t very helpful, was it?
Sean, I have read all of the way through your thread on this and see that I was involved during the early days.
You seem to have a unique problem with the incoming BT router installed in your garage and not your home where Bartok is situated.It appears thereon to the home you use wifi. At least Roon gives you access to Tidal but this really does not seem to me to be the answer that you need or are looking for.
Potential solutions seem to have been offered and there may have been some directly from dCS but naturally I could not see that side of things. So you seem to have ended up with a work around suggested after a visit from your dealer. As you have deduced Bartok really needs to be hard wired to the router as it is not a wireless device.
Can you not get BT to move your connection so that the router is in your home?
As you have written to dcS about a Bartok Apex upgrade they have , naturally, said that such a product has not been announced. Which it hasn’t although rumours abound. However in the context of Mosaic, Apex upgrades offer nothing in this area. Apex is a hardware change concerning (briefly) power supplies, DAC and analogue output stages. It has nothing to do with the streaming board. So there isno solution there for your issue.
After reviewing this thread it appears that only two posters have confirmed being contacted by their dealer with offers of an Apex upgrade for the Bartok and both of these posters are Canadian. (I am one of them)
So I am wondering if the Canadian dealership network is misinformed or just letting the cat out of the bag before an official announcement from dCS.
Dunno.
Perhaps @Johnkuch1 and I share the same dealer with this dealer just speaking out too early or simply misinformed. Nevertheless, confusing.
That’s an interesting thought. I see you are in Vancouver. My Bartok comes from a Vancouver dealer that fairly recently moved to North Vancouver. He has now given me a date and an invoice. That seems strange if it’s not true.
Well here it is…one dealer, mine as well, was the start of this. Time for dCS to respond.
I tend to think that if it wasn’t true, dCS would have been along already to say so. They can’t deny now, only to reveal it in a few weeks’ time…
SeanSullivan
PAR Pete Rogers;
I appreciate your helpful interest but my addition to this thread was about the possible Apex Upgrade only really. But seriously, thank you!
(However, I have replaced the BT Router, BT changed the Mastersocket, BT moved the Mastersocket, changed the DAC’s location, re-arranged the household telephone wiring to become “ethernet wiring”, changed the physical cables, changed the DAC’s physical support/cabinet, hard-wired the DAC, changed the iOS device several times. Apart from digging up the incoming external BT telephone cable from the ground, the only item not changed is the Bartok…the DAC will now work OK on Roon. In the meantime I switched to Linn LP12 vinyl which is sonically superior but still have the aluminium brick and sought to at least get some remaining value from it, hence the Apex interest. I also wondered if the Apex upgrade would close the gap with the Linn. The Roon/DAC combination is not perfect but I can well live with its interface)
i dont live in canada but have also been informed by a dcs dealer that apex is coming to both headphone and non headphone versions of the bartok.
What is the next big show where an official Bartok Apex announcement would likely be timed with? Or does dCS just roll their own announcement schedules and not tie them to any particular trade show?
So we have another data point and another country, seems like we may have an Bartok Apex. Now what is the deal with the two tiered pricing?
This dCS dealer in Stockholm is offering its ex-demo Bartók HDAC (non-Apex) for sale. Another clue?
think we may see a few of these hitting the market
If the Bartok APEX is true, and there is tiered pricing on the upgrade, one would have to invest up to $9k (USD) more into their Bartok. As the lowest end DAC in the dCS line, that does not resonate well. As a percentage of the cost of the Bartok, it’s a very high price of entry compared to the other models. In fact, it feels like it’s meant to discourage you from doing it (and perhaps encourage you to upgrade instead).
The cost to upgrade to APEX should be the cost to upgrade to APEX. Not based on some point in time. Then why not apply that approach to the Rossini and Vivaldi as well? It does not make sense and it leaves a bad taste of the brand. If you bought a Bartok, you bought a Bartok–it should be simple as that! Want to upgrade to APEX? – here’s the (one) price to do that.
In any case, all of this is hearsay right now. We’ll wait to see if any of this bears out.
As everyone knows dCS have not made any announcement about a Bartok Apex DAC ( HPA or solo) at his point. It remains as speculation and even if you believe the rumours there is nothing you can do to get one. dCS will not supply dealers nor undertake an upgrade until ( if) the official announcement is made should this happen. I am sure that some dealers might be happy to accept an order nevertheless to improve their cash-flow even if they can’t (yet?) supply the goods. Naughty.
The current price of Bartok HPA in the UK is £17,750 so if you take the Guildford Audio ad at face value you can work out a price differential should the ad be for the HPA version - it is ambiguous. However if and until the product is released you can do nothing except speculate.
I would counsel simply calming down and exercising some patience . It will become clear on a practical level what is or isn’t happening as the new year wears on.
Seems the cat is out of the bag though Pete - although apex is not specifically mentioned, Oxford Audio Consultants are showing the Bartok at £19,000 and the Bartok H/E at £21,500 which is the price I was told by a dealer last week and posted on here.
No comment 
.
Whatever, if there is such a thing you won’t be able to get your hands on one until the announcement. In the UK so far hardware updates have been carried out at the Swavesey factory. if it is to be then there will likely be a wait ( my Vivaldi Apex was ordered in May and delivered in November). So I will reiterate the need for patience.
Love the banter … it will all be revealed in its good time.
The most interesting thing about this is the fact that the Headphone version is now only slightly more expensive than the dac version. And it’s a prettt fair pricic considering the headphone amp’s performance.
