DCS RECEIVES 2025 KING’S AWARD FOR ENTERPRISE
dCS has received a 2025 King’s Award for Enterprise: Innovation for its work on the Ring DAC APEX, the latest evolution of the company’s proprietary digital-to-analogue conversion platform.
The award was formally presented at dCS’s Cambridgeshire headquarters by Mrs Julie Spence OBE QPM, Lord-Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire.
DCS RECEIVES KING’S AWARD FOR ENTERPRISE
The King’s Award for Enterprise, founded in 1965, is the highest official honour for UK businesses. It recognises excellence across four categories: International Trade, Innovation, Sustainable Development, and Promoting Opportunity. Each year, applications are reviewed by an independent panel and approved by the Prime Minister and the King.
In 2025, dCS was one of 45 UK companies recognised for Innovation, and one of three businesses in Cambridgeshire to receive the award.
DCS RING DAC APEX DEVELOPMENT
The award acknowledges the design and development of the dCS Ring DAC APEX, a hardware update introduced in 2022. The project began in 2020 during the Covid-19 lockdown, when dCS Product Development Director Chris Hales investigated ways to further refine the performance of the existing Ring DAC platform.
The resulting APEX architecture introduced a redesigned analogue output stage and improved current delivery, resulting in enhanced performance across dCS’s Vivaldi, Rossini, and Bartók product ranges.
Alongside new APEX-equipped models, dCS made the upgrade available to existing owners through a global upgrade programme. This approach reflected the company’s policy of maintaining long-term product support and extending the benefits of new engineering developments to existing customers. Elements of the APEX design have since influenced newer dCS systems, including the Varèse Music System.
LORD-LIEUTENANT VISITS DCS FACTORY
To mark the occasion, the Lord-Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire visited the dCS headquarters, accompanied by Deputy Lieutenant Mrs Sophie Costello and two Lord-Lieutenant Cadets, Flight Sergeant James Wallman and Lance Corporal Olivia Baldwin. The visitors toured the research, development, and production areas, observing how dCS products are assembled and tested, before visiting the company’s dedicated listening room for a demonstration.
PRESENTATION OF THE KING’S AWARD
Following the tour, Mrs Spence delivered a speech outlining the King’s Award programme and congratulating dCS on its recognition. She presented the award to Managing Director David Steven and shared remarks from the judging panel, which commended the dCS engineering team’s work on refining the Ring DAC platform.
David Steven thanked the team and highlighted the collaborative nature of the APEX project, noting that its success relied on contributions from across the company, from design and engineering to production and customer service.
He also recognised Product Development Director Chris Hales’s role in leading the APEX initiative and his continued work to advance the company’s audio technology.
SECOND ROYAL RECOGNITION FOR DCS
This is the second time dCS has received a royal business award. The company was previously honoured with a 2019 Queen’s Award for Enterprise: Innovation for technologies used in its Vivaldi range.
dCS stated that the King’s Award is a valued recognition of its ongoing research and engineering work. The company continues to focus on developing and refining its digital audio technologies with the goal of improving performance across its product portfolio.
The 2025 King’s Award for Enterprise: Innovation places dCS among a select group of British companies recognised for sustained technical achievement and commitment to design and manufacturing excellence.
HiFi PiG Says: Congratulations to all at dCS!
